With 20% Of The Precincts Reporting...

In Barron's today, and on CNBC yesterday, there were comments that only 20% of the S+P 500 have reported earnings and the fact that 24% have missed expectations is not a reason to worry. Um, don't we call presidential elections after 3% of the votes are counted? Three may be wrong but you get the idea.

It is right to be concerned when too many people trying to justify something negative.

On a different note there was an article in Barron's about closed end call writing funds. The article was negative. As a group the funds have not done well but are doing a little better lately. The conclusion that is made in the article about these funds being a bad way to go may turn out to be right or wrong. I have written about these funds a lot in the past and I believe in the concept.

However at every step along the way I have disclosed that these only make up 5%-10% of the fixed income portion of client accounts. The means a client with 60% equities and 40% bonds would, at most, have 4% of his total portfolio in one of these.

If the fund I use, Madison Claymore (MCN), which luckily for me has done relatively well, should somehow cut in half, I would look dumb which is a lot better than if I had financially damaged someone by owning too much in the hunt for yield.