Short? Or Short Shorts?

Since we have been on a bit of a anecdotal evidence of speculation kick lately, here’s one last item of interest: The Hemline theory:

"It’s called the "hemline theory," and Financial analysts have loosely
used it to determine where the economy is headed. So far it’s been pretty
accurate. In the ’20s and ’60s, hemlines were at a high and so was the stock
market. And in the ’30s and ’40s, the stock market was so low that women were
almost tripping on their skirts. The hemline theory was also on the ball in
1987. Miniskirts were all the rage, and the stock market was at a matching high.
But then the market quickly crashed in October, right when designers such as
Bill Blass decided that miniskirts looked ridiculous. Hemlines dropped and so
did the market. Coincidence? I think not!"  –Brainevent

Now that you know what the hemline theory is, have a lookie here at a recent article from USA Today on, (you guessed it) Hemlines:

Shortslarge

Here’s the short of it: Shorts are having a fashion moment.

Inseams are inching up this spring. Capris begat gauchos, which crept up to become bermudas. Now, short shorts — thigh grazers with 2½- and 3-inch leg lengths — are emerging as the top bottom.

It’s evidence that, with the bare belly long banished from malls and magazines, the leg is strutting into the style spotlight again, a couple of decades after shorts with tights and loafers trotted into view. Today’s version of the abbreviated bottom, however, is a tad sexier.

Fashionistas laud the look’s practical benefits. "Wearing a micro-short skirt is a lot more restrictive than a pair of shorts," Fister says.

This doesn’t mean a crash is imminent; Its merely a convenient excuse to post a photo of short shorts and a tight midriff.

Hat tip: Crossing Wall Street

>


Source:
Short shorts are sexier, and totally hip
Olivia Barker
USA TODAY, 4/5/2006 9:25 PM
http://www.usatoday.com/life/lifestyle/2006-04-05-short-shorts_x.htm

Culture Clash:  The Hemline Theory
Brain Event
http://www.brainevent.com/be/TheNews/culture_clash/20010608/index_html

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What's been said:

Discussions found on the web:
  1. Alaskan_Pete commented on Apr 20

    Somebody buy that waif cheesburger for gods sake! She’d freeze to death up here with those bird legs.

  2. D. commented on Apr 20

    I go by color!

    When the economy is bad, black and drab is in. When it’s strong, watch out for fuchsia and fluo colors!

  3. Fred commented on Apr 20

    Freeze? She needs a sweater to go with those shorts. There’s a plan here, I’m tellin’ ya.

  4. david commented on Apr 20

    Hi Barry, Shorts are obviously better than being short in this market. Larry K. is apparently right. Only earnings matter. So much for the long overdue 10% correction. So much for DOW 6800 by year end. It appears to be very different this time. Look forward to your thoughts.

  5. petronius commented on Apr 20

    It has been a while since I have seen a woman wearing a skirt or dress, long or short! On balance, it is also becoming difficult to judge whether people are male or female. Not sure what that means for the market!

  6. billy commented on Apr 20

    Its a fairly simple cause and effect realtionship. Easy money leads to corrupt morals (I know; I’m assuming that modesty is a virtue )

    So in effect, short skirts have a direct correlation with loose credit.

    This is just really the effect of the Wesleyan paradox. Religion – as advocated by Wesley – promoted thrift and industriousness, which led to the religious getting wealthy. And the wealth led to decadence and the abandonment of religion.

  7. B commented on Apr 20

    Let me guess. She smokes like a chimney to keep the appetite down. She’s bulimic. Because she restricts her caloric intake and because she’s borderline psycho because of it, she’s prone to mood swings hence she’s on Prozac. And finally, she shags link a minx to burn calories.

    I actually know from experience. And might I add it wasn’t a pretty experience. But it did raise my awareness that certain women of a certain profile are just plain nuts. (Sorry ladies. There are plenty of men that fit the profile as well.) She does need a cheeseburger. Then she needs a doctor standing beside her to make sure she doesn’t throw it up before digesting it.

    And David don’t give up that this market is overvalued and setting up for a correction. It has effectively gone no where for nearly six months. Markets can go down 30% in a month. Earnings guidance is NOT being upped for most companies. Plus, these commodity prices are either going to crush earnings or crush the consumer or cause rates to go up. 40% rise in copper in three months. It takes two to three quarters for those type of numbers to show up in earnings. Plus underlying stocks are not making progress sans the commodities, transports and brokers. Those are bubbles. The transports are nearly 3x their historical valuation. Ditto with brokers. Commodities are DEEP cyclicals and have very high PEs right now comparative to historical averages. It is all that is working so the bulls are jamming them into the stratosphere. Well beyond historical extremes. Liquidity is being drained, albiet at a snail’s pace.

    Take your 5% and be patient or if you are still in equities, ride it until they fail. You’ll know when. The savvy investor is patient and waits for their opportunities. Be it months or years.

  8. Mark commented on Apr 20

    B, you crack me up sometimes! I am printing out that first paragraph to preserve it! I might save it to my hard drive!

  9. Bynocerus commented on Apr 20

    I think B and I must have dated the same woman in the past. Smoking? Check. Mood swings and Prozac (actually Zoloft)? Check. Way too skinny? Check. Sexpot? Check. The girl you’re talking about didn’t also happen to be an overachiever B?

  10. B commented on Apr 20

    LOL! BINGO!

    Btw, I use Prozac because it is generically understood. At one time or another she was on Zoloft, Prozac, Buspar, Trazodone, Ambien and a half a dozen other more serious cocktails to keep her operating. Btw, she couldn’t keep a cheeseburger down. I do empathize with people and I’ll help others………….from a distance. I found out you can’t save anyone else but you sure as hell can save yourself.

    Pete, when I first read your post I thought clicking was something else. LOL! that “c” and “l” together look like a “d”. I guess either-or fits. Supposedly, I read yesterday she might have been cheating on her hubby. Now, I believe in marital bliss and all but I might have tapped that if she wanted to cheat with me.

    Ok, now that I’m posting things I shouldn’t, why not be even more polarizing.

    http://www.rollingstone.com/news/profile/story/9961300/the_worst_president_in_history

  11. todd commented on Apr 20

    So here’s to a HUGE rally! :)

  12. Detroit Dan commented on Apr 20

    My adopted son is skinny like the woman in the shorts, but it’s genetic. He eats junk food, but it doesn’t seem to affect him. No Prozac, excessive shagging (that I know of), smoking, …

    Regarding the market, some of us have been predicting an increase in volatility. My feeling is that the volatility will end up with stocks being down significantly.

    Actually, I have no idea why the Dow is up so much this week. The “good news” from the Fed minutes on Tuesday should have been completed erased by the bad CPI news on Wednesday, no?

    At any rate, the “good news” was just confirmation that some on the Fed share my conviction that growth is slowing, which will mean lower profits down the road. Sure interest rates will stop rising eventually, but the trade deficit will stop them from going back down again as fast as they normally would when growth slows.

    So I’m attributing this rally to mass stupidity, which seems to affect the markets and society as a whole from time to time…

  13. Slamster commented on Apr 20

    It is that shagging like a minx that can cause you to ignore all the other warning signs. Of course, by the time you finally wake up it is too late to avoid a complete train wreck.

  14. D. commented on Apr 20

    I can tell you that there are as many screwed up men as there are screwed up women.

    If only they asked for directions, went to see a shrink or took prozac, maybe they’d meet eachother at the gas station, ther drug store or in the doctor’s office.

  15. donna commented on Apr 21

    Who wears short shorts?
    We wear short shorts
    They’re such short shorts
    We like short shorts
    Who wears short shorts
    We wear short shorts.

  16. marlo commented on Sep 26

    i wish all women that had the legs too would wear short miniskirts. i remember growing up in the 60’s&70’s watching the girls going up stairs and trying to sitdown in there cute little miniskirts. oh the views.

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