Our industrial machine was the engine that allowed us to win wars and to win at innovation, and while it is still not equal, it feels like we have peaked.Over the weekend, a WSJ/NBC/Annenberg poll revealed that 60% of Americans back President Obama's goal to degrade and eliminate the threat posed by ISIS, yet 68% of Americans have “very little” or “ just some” confidence he can get the job done. There was the drama and reluctance of the administration not wanting to use the ‘w’ word when referring to the ISIS mission, until midway throughout the weekend. This points to a very troubling situation for the administration, and no matter what side of the aisle you are on, this is not something we cheer. One’s opinion does not change on a dime; the longer Americans drift along in this haze, the tougher it will be to turn it around, and the closer it will come to being irreversible. Sure, the GOP is poised for a massive shift in November, but that only means steaming the tide and dealing with political gridlock with even a more intense rhetoric. It would be a miracle to see President Obama move to the center, despite how Bill Clinton went from a pariah to a hero.

A long time ago, even Republicans viewed his presidency with a certain amount of confidence that Washington can work. Right now, however, the nation is split and sinking. This summer, a Pew Research Center poll showed an overall 49% of respondents said the United States’ best years were behind us, versus 44% who feel they are still ahead of us. I bet if that poll was held today with the “behind us” group would be well over 50%.

Are we Still Exceptional?

Four pillars hold up American exceptionalism that seems under assault these days. Combined, these pillars hold aloft the republic, which promotes freedom, independence, self-reliance, and determination; and has created the most successful nation in the history of mankind. Our model has been observed, and while framers took pieces of famous documents throughout history, our own Constitution has never been duplicated or implemented. There is still something special about America… but for how long?

Four Pillars of Exceptionalism

Our military has not only kept America safe, but the world as well, resulting in billions of people around the world entering the middle-class, rather than living under the thumb of an invader or a tyrant.

Our industrial machine was the engine that allowed us to win wars and to win at innovation, and while it is still not equal, it feels like we have peaked.

American financial strength is underappreciated at home, but the rest of the world continues to buy our bonds, invest in our markets, and clamor for American assets. However, government spending is killing the golden goose.

This quote says it all:

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.”

We are under siege, mostly from within, but again, that is how great empires of the past have collapsed: under the weight of their own success. America has been avoiding the pitfalls of lessons learned which should have taught us that it is ‘easier said than done.’

Today’s Session

Yesterday’s selling had less to do with Alibaba than general anxiety that finally revealed itself last week. There is a tremendous amount of confusion about the Fed’s next move; and the general notion, the time is now. The major indices are continuing to indicate lower. Our market movers today are a look into consumer habits through the ICSC-Goldman and Redbook same store sales reports, the producer price index for final demand, and anxiety over interest rates due to the Federal Reserve beginning its two-day meeting today.

It looks like selling pressure continues to particularly in high Beat tech names but I think it’s more about fast money repositioning itself than an indictment on the market or valuations.  That’s being said lets hold off and ride out the rollercoaster.

Same Store Sales

The ICSC-Goldman same store sales report did not provide the news we wanted regarding consumer spending. For the week ended September 13^th, same-store sells dropped to -2.6% following a week-over-week gain of 0.7% the prior week. The year-over-year rate was also down, coming in at a gain of 3.0% compared to 4.0% the prior week. However, with the report referring to the calls being healthy, the declines may be isolated from the latest week. This makes sense as the back-to-school shopping season has ended.

Feeling Better

Last week the biggest dog in the world, a Great Dane named Zeus died. He was a majestic dog and reminded me of our bulldog, who had the same name. My mother took him to live with her in Alabama.  Sadly, he was hit by a car and killed two years ago.

For everyone that’s sad about Zeus, there’s good news. Seth Casteel’s latest book was released today.  Underwater Puppies is the follow up to his hit of underwater photos of dogs fetching balls. Take a look at these and know all’s well in the world after all. Below are some of the pictures from his book.

 

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