Tonight’s news was dominated by the stock market rally. The Dow Jones Industrial average on stocks rose 5.8 percent to 6926.49, and various pundits were discussing whether the downturn was over. But before you start popping the corks, consider that from October 1929 to March 1933, the stock market went through several dramatic ups and downs. The Dow Jones average fell from 381.17 to 198.69 during the October-November 1929 crash. But in April 1930, it climbed back to 294.07. That’s almost a 50 percent increase. But then it began falling again and was was at a low of 50.16 in Feburary 1933 just in time for Franklin Roosevelt’s inauguration. So let’s wait and see.
--John B. Judis