The stock indicies basically ignore the clues for long periods of time and then play "catch up" in a short period of time...Back in 2007-08, there was also a killer short squeeze in the fall that set the stage for 2008...It doesn't help matters that Central banks always stand ready and willing to do "whatever it takes" in an already gutted and increasingly illiquid market...Being a short is like having a target on your back 90% of the time...Reading blogs with people short up to their eyeballs in October was like watching a car wreck in real time...Seriously, some of the moves in stocks off those lows were beyond description...and then in November they start quietly rolling over, etc, etc...just like this past week, the volatility is cranked so high that one minute bars can move more than a day's worth of trading a mere 12 months ago...