Being someone who tries to make a living in the markets every day I don't pay any attention to Jim Cramer. In fact, I think his approach is destructive as it appeals to young people and treats the equity markets like a crazy game show at best, and a wild casino at worst. If you work at the circus every day as an elephant trainer you don't sit in the front row at the show every night laughing at the clowns and wondering how they all got into that little car. So, I don't pay any attention to Cramer.
But it has been interesting to see the loud liberal getting clobbered by the Obama administration for daring to speak out about the attack on capital Lord O and The D's are conducting. He follows other private citizens like Rick Santelli, Sean Hannity, and Rush Limbaugh in being the target for personal destruction by The Democrat Political Media Machine. At least all of those fellows have a pulpit and microphone from which to strike back. A plumber in Holland, Ohio during the campaign had no such support network when he elicited the only interesting economic statement by Obama during his two year campaign for the presidency. The handmaiden media, complicit in the attack on that plumber, is now assisting their guy Obama in going after Santelli, Cramer et al. This is a shock for Jim who is used to being on the ins with big time Democrats and their friendly media. He has written an article (here) that reveals how shocking it is to find yourself being treated like a Republican when you've supported all the left's causes , voted "correctly", and attended the right parties. In that piece he talks about how his criticism of the prior administration was ignored-- unlike what he faces today.
excerpt->
President Obama's team, unlike Bush's team, demonstrates a thinness of skin that shocks me. When I somewhat obviously and empirically judged that the populist Obama administration is exacerbating the crisis with its budget and policies, as evidenced by the incredible decline in the averages since his inauguration, I was met immediately with condescension and ridicule rather than constructive debate or even just benign dismissal. I said to myself, "What the heck? Are they really that blind to the Great Wealth Destruction they are causing with their decisions to demonize the bankers, raise taxes for the wealthy, advocate draconian cap-and-trade policies and upend the health care system? Do they really believe that only the rich own stocks? What do they think we have our retirement accounts in, CDs? Where did they think that the money saved for college went, our mattresses? Do they think the great middle class banks at the First National Bank of Sealy and only the wealthiest traffic in the Standard & Poor's 500?"
Much was (rightly) made back in the 70's of Nixon's enemy list. Back then it seemed shocking to most Americans that a president would think dissenters were his enemies. Opponents, yes-- Enemies? That seemed extreme to us in our naivete.
Luckily, for the last eight years we were assured daily that Dissent Is Patriotic! Maybe Rick, Jim, Sean, Rush and others were paying attention and agree but probably they all just think free speech hasn't been outlawed yet. Frankly, I can't recall a time when the official spokesman for the President of the United States used his podium to denounce private citizens of our country day after day. It's kind of sickening to hear O's press secretary talk about my fellow citizens as if they're enemies of the state. It makes me think that they aren't very confident in their own ideas if they continually attack dissenters personally. Maybe worse though is that when they do engage in an argument on these issues they never address the actual points-- rather they load a speech in Lord O's teleprompter with yet another Straw Man for him to knock down.
The markets are watching all of this quite closely. This first month and a half is already one for the history books.
