We always knew that this portion of the Great Destruction was never going to be easy. The main effect of any great bear market is to destroy the wealth of as many people as possible.
Simply moving everything to cash is not an option, because cash itself may lose its value more rapidly than it can be converted back into primary and secondary sources of wealth. Owning stocks and bonds is not a viable strategy, especially in a world where their prices are influenced/manipulated by the daily actions of the Fed and certain so-called ‘trading firms’ have turned in four-year win streaks without a single daily loss.
Parking everything in precious metals is probably the safest of the strategies, but that, too, is fraught with peril, as we still cannot be certain if inflation or deflation is going to win the day.
I deeply regret that this is the world in which we currently live, but here we are, and our job is to do the best we can.
I have two philosophies about investing.
The first is that I personally hate losses more than I fear missing out on gains. Some people are built exactly the opposite, and that fact helps to make markets the fun, dynamic places we know and love.
The second is portfolios are like bars of soap — the more you handle them, the smaller they get.
by hucklejohn 
