I think it could be terrorism.
Or - at least opportunistic terrorism, i.e., they already saw a problem, but decided to accentuate it.
I sell short. I don’t like it but with volatility the way it is, my investors depend on it. We are up this month and this week as a result. We maintain a 50/50 long short position and use SPYDERS to fill in the void. We don’t speculate by driving down shorts on news. We short poorly performing stocks that are temporarily over valued. Greenspan said Sunday that short sellers are necessary in normal conditions to maintain a realistically priced market. The problem we have now, and why there are so many bubbles are that hedge fund managers are so desperate for a quick score so they can make their hurdles and get huge payouts that they are running from new idea to new idea and piling on. The guys driving down the financial stocks are the same ones who brought you $147 oil two months ago. It’s a need for performance and a lack of proprietary ideas.