The skies around Washington D.C. buzzed with urgent activity yesterday, matched by a crisis alert on the ground that sent the news media into a tizzy for several hours. Good thing the small plane that strayed within three miles of the White House was piloted by two guys named Troy and Jim rather than by Hassan and Abdul. With Washington's air space on a hair-trigger alert that has persisted since 9/11, the names 'Troy Martin' and 'Jim Shaeffer' must have brought a sigh of relief from anyone following news of the incident closely. Neither man will face criminal charges for what was evidently an accident, although it's possible they could be fined and have their licenses suspended for a while. Some on Wall Street would probably like to buy Jim and Troy a shot and a beer and a good Cuban cigar, since the two bumblers triggered a brief avalanche of shares at relative bargain prices. Initially I thought the swoon was just a bad tick or two on TradeStation. But when I saw that virtually all of the major indexes had recorded the same five-minute dive, I tuned to the news to find out what was going on. In retrospect, this little episode provided an insight into the stock market's behavior, which was manifestly bullish. In fact, buyers took a breather that lasted only a few minutes before stocks were off and running again into the close. (Click on adventure to enlarge) Those who stood their ground and accumulated shares during the panic were amply rewarded by the steep rally that ensued. Rick's Picks subscribers may have caught the bottom themselves, since the downside targets I'd provided before the opening for the mini-Dow and the Mini-S&P -- 10183 and 1157.00 ' were respectively just two ticks, and 1.00 point, from the
LATEST TRADES
