Good Bye 2009

Markets Alert
from The Wall Street Journal
----------------------------
Sponsored by NASDAQ OMX
----------------------------


The Dow industrials fell 120.46 points, or 1.1%, to 10428.05 on Friday, capping what was otherwise a banner year that saw the average notch its biggest annual percentage gain in six years. For 2009, the blue-chip measure ended with an 18.8% gain. Still, it is down 26.4% from its all-time high set in October 2007.

The Nasdaq Composite Index wrapped up 2009 with a 43.9% gain, while the Russell 2000 index gained 25.2% and the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index added 23.5%.

Enjoy The Spirit Of Christmas

A reprint from www.newseum.org....enjoy

Eight-year-old Virginia O'Hanlon wrote a letter to the editor of New York's Sun, and the quick response was printed as an unsigned editorial Sept. 21, 1897. The work of veteran newsman Francis Pharcellus Church has since become history's most reprinted newspaper editorial, appearing in part or whole in dozens of languages in books, movies, and other editorials, and on posters and stamps.

"DEAR EDITOR: I am 8 years old. "Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus. "Papa says, 'If you see it in THE SUN it's so.' "Please tell me the truth; is there a Santa Claus? "VIRGINIA O'HANLON. "115 WEST NINETY-FIFTH STREET." VIRGINIA, your little friends are wrong. They have been affected by the skepticism of a skeptical age. They do not believe except [what] they see. They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible by their little minds. All minds, Virginia, whether they be men's or children's, are little. In this great universe of ours man is a mere insect, an ant, in his intellect, as compared with the boundless world about him, as measured by the intelligence capable of grasping the whole of truth and knowledge. Yes, VIRGINIA, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus. It would be as dreary as if there were no VIRGINIAS. There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. We should have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The eternal light with which childhood fills the world would be extinguished. Not believe in Santa Claus! You might as well not believe in fairies! You might get your papa to hire men to watch in all the chimneys on Christmas Eve to catch Santa Claus, but even if they did not see Santa Claus coming down, what would that prove? Nobody sees Santa Claus, but that is no sign that there is no Santa Claus. The most real things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. Did you ever see fairies dancing on the lawn? Of course not, but that's no proof that they are not there. Nobody can conceive or imagine all the wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world. You may tear apart the baby's rattle and see what makes the noise inside, but there is a veil covering the unseen world which not the strongest man, nor even the united strength of all the strongest men that ever lived, could tear apart. Only faith, fancy, poetry, love, romance, can push aside that curtain and view and picture the supernal beauty and glory beyond. Is it all real? Ah, VIRGINIA, in all this world there is nothing else real and abiding. No Santa Claus! Thank God! he lives, and he lives forever. A thousand years from now, Virginia, nay, ten times ten thousand years from now, he will continue to make glad the heart of childhood.

Reminder from the IRS!!

RS Reminds Car Shoppers about 2009 Tax Break  

WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service today reminds individual taxpayers who are considering buying a new car that they have until Dec. 31 to take advantage of a tax break that may not be around in 2010.
Taxpayers who buy a qualifying new motor vehicle this year after Feb. 16 can deduct the state or local sales or excise taxes they paid on the first $49,500 of the purchase price. Qualifying motor vehicles include new passenger automobiles, light trucks, motorcycles, and motor homes.
Individuals who itemize and those who take the standard deduction can benefit from this tax break. In states without a sales tax, other taxes or fees can qualify if they are assessed on the purchase of the vehicle and are based on the vehicle’s sales price or as a per unit fee.
The deduction is reduced for joint filers with modified adjusted gross incomes (MAGI) between $250,000 and $260,000 and other taxpayers with MAGI between $125,000 and $135,000. Taxpayers with higher incomes do not qualify.
Taxpayers who take the standard deduction need to complete Schedule L and attach it to Form 1040 or Form 1040A to increase the standard deduction by the allowable amount of state or local sales or excise taxes paid on the purchase of the new vehicle. Also, check the box on line 40b on Form 1040 or line 24b on Form 1040A. Individuals who itemize should include the allowable amount of state or local sales or excise taxes from the purchase of the vehicle on Form 1040, Schedule A

November Returns

With only one month left to go, the year is looking like a pretty remarkable comeback after the dark days of 2008.  Today's Unemployment numbers and rate certainly showed that at least the trend for the economy has turned.  Payroll number was down only 11,000 with an unemployment rate of 10% vs. last month's 10.2%.
Here are the returns:

The Monthly Index Report for November 2009

Index	Nov-09	QTD	YTD	Description
S&P 500 Index*	5.7%	3.6%	21.3%	Large-cap stocks
DJIA*	6.5%	6.5%	17.9%	Large-cap stocks
Nasdaq Comp.*	4.9%	1.0%	36.0%	Large-cap tech stocks
Russell 1000 Growth	6.1%	4.7%	33.1%	Large-cap growth stocks
Russell 1000 Value	5.6%	2.4%	17.6%	Large-cap value stocks
Russell 2000 Growth	3.1%	-4.1%	23.9%	Small-cap growth stocks
Russell 2000 Value	3.2%	-3.7%	12.1%	Small-cap value stocks
EAFE	2.0%	0.8%	30.6%	Europe, Australasia & Far East Index
Lehman Aggregate	1.3%	1.8%	7.6%	U.S. Government Bonds
Lehman High Yield	1.0%	2.8%	53.2%	High Yield Corporate Bonds
Calyon Financial Barclay Index**	2.4%	1.3%	-1.4%	Managed Futures
3-mo. Treasury Bill***	0.0%	0.0%	0.3%
All returns are estimates as of November 30, 2009. *Return numbers do not include dividends. ** Returns are estimates as of November 27, 2009.