Strategy vs Tactics: Tactical Investor Proprietary indices

Strategy vs Tactics

We don’t try to do the right thing. We just do things the right way. Hence, this brings about a new Tactical Investor saying don’t try to do the right thing, just do things the right way. Sol Palha

Strategy is where you discuss how to do something. Tactics are where you spend more time doing what as opposed to talking. In other words, in the Strategy vs Tactics argument, a strategy is all talk and no action, while tactics are action minus the hot talk. In keeping with that line of thinking, we have opted to focus on tactics instead of spending excessive time in the “strategy” phase.

Wikipedia deals with the concept of strategy vs tactics in a very easy-to-understand manner.

A tactic is a conceptual action aiming at the achievement of a goal. This action can be implemented as one or more specific tasks. The term is commonly used in business, protest and military contexts, as well as in chess, sports or other competitive activities. The word originated from the Ancient Greek τακτική taktike, meaning art of arrangement.

Strategy is a set of choices used to achieve an overall objective whereas tactics are the specific actions used when applying those strategic choices.

Strategy vs Tactics and The Tactical Investor Indices

Focussing on tactics instead of strategy led to the creation of all the indices below and several new ones, such as the Trend indicator.

Religious Index

The last time we updated the religious chart was in June; at that time, the reading was 1680; in July, it rose to 1701, and in August, it inched up to 1710. It appears to be trending sideways and could mount a correction as it has not looked back once since Feb 05. However, the last time it took a dip was back on August 06, and then, instead of correcting, it soared even higher.

As we have stated before, the next red line zone is 1800, and should we breach that before the Year is out, the situation will explode. The last red zone was 900, and at that time, we stated that if we crossed that zone before the end of 2006, the situation would genuinely become horrendous. Since then, sectarian violence has exploded, the Taliban have emerged as a more organised and dangerous force, Pakistan is in chaos, and Iran refuses to bend.

The Afghan Debacle

Afghanistan, which was being trumped as a success story, is incomplete chaos; however, the press here makes it look like everything is rosy. It is so bad that those Afghanis who seek U.S. Visas must go to Pakistan to get them. The reason for this is that the U.S fears that a long line will attract suicide bombers. This frank admission illustrates how much ground the coalition forces have lost. It’s a powder keg waiting to implode (it has already exploded), and the coalition forces are barely holding on.

In Pakistan, Musharraf is in the battle of his life; his political career for all purposes is over, and the only thing keeping him in power now is the military’s backing. He could lose this backing anytime if the masses rebel against him. Iran continues to snub the United Nations and the U.S as it’s still secretly being backed by Russia and, to a lesser extent China.

Scales Tilting against the USA

As we stated before, the scales of power have tilted against the US; the US is no longer the sole master of the world. The new world order has emerged, and this group that Russia is leading is slowly changing the game’s rules. This new group has an unbelievable edge over the US; military Russia is equal to the U.S as the U.S would never dream of attacking them. The second edge comes from China; they have complete control of the economy via their massive treasury holdings.

A simple hint that they would dump these holdings could send the US economy into a complete nosedive. Finally, as a back, you have India; the country with the world’s second-largest army and one that also possesses nuclear weapons. When you examine this trio, there is simply no way the US can win; it has already lost the battle. The problem is that the politicians in Washington simply refuse to believe this. They think they can continue to bully and push the rest of the world, but their Empire is crumbling.

never-ending wars

Our religious provocation index suggests that this current war could last up to 18 years before it’s all said and done. Remember how the Russians lost Afghanistan; all it took was several thousand shoulder-hosted missile launchers, and the rebels in Afghanistan could destroy the then-so-called second-strongest army in the world. They are employing the same tactic now; they hit and run, and the coalition forces, like big blind elephants, bring their massive firepower and blindly aim at anything that moves. The same situation has been unfolding in Iraq.

Those of you who remember the Revolutionary War in the US remember how a bunch of Yankee Rebels defeated the redcoats (England). All they had was a more accurate, superior musket rifle that could fire from longer ranges. These rebels would only wait and ambush the red coats using a hit-and-run strategy. This simple approach was enough to crush what was then the strongest army on earth.

The same technique is now being used in Iraq and Afghanistan, only this time, instead of simple rifles, they have shoulder-fired missiles and highly destructive explosive devices. The principle, however, is the same; cause as much damage as possible to the enemy with minimal resources. It costs these guys 50,000 or less to inflict millions of dollars of damage at a time. Thus it’s easy to conclude that these wars are lost, and they were lost causes even before they began.

As previous empires crumbled (the Soviet Union and the British Empire) when over-stretching their resources, the same fate lies in store for the US. As we stated long ago, this is a religious war against Muslims, and things can and will only get worse.

Adult Index

This index has gained over 180 points since June and shows no sign of slowing down. The higher this index rises, the more individuals are willing to sell themselves for money; one can see this in the massive rise of erotic/XXX-rated services. There is almost no free newspaper in the country now that does not carry ads in this category, and now the internet has taken off. One of the most significant sources of the flesh trade is now Craigslist, and the speed at which things have taken off is genuinely staggering.

The police are trying to stop this, but for everyone, one culprit they catch, ten more appear. This massive rise in this index not only correlates to an increase in erotic services but also means that we are generally entering into a dog-eat-dog world. In other words, friends, family, business associates, partners, etc., are more and more willing to betray each other for a chance to make a giant buck.

Meat Market World

In other words, we are entering a world where anything can be bought; one just has to be willing to pay the right price, and sadly, the price is dropping instead of rising. One’s words that used to be something solid and something to stick by today are almost worthless and an almost forgotten concept. Honour and dignity have gone out the door, and deceit and greed have emerged in their place.

In other words, we are entering a world where anything can be bought; one just has to be willing to pay the right price, and sadly the price is dropping instead of rising. One’s words that used to be something solid and something to stick by today are almost worthless and an almost forgotten concept. Honour and dignity have gone out the door, and deceit and greed have emerged in their place.