The retail sales number today reinforces the notion that the consumer hasn't fallen apart. Today's market is encouraging from the perspective that there is less of an Enron hangover.

Today the market caught the double-dip disease. Recent economic data, like yesterday's [Tuesday's] consumer confidence number, seems to corroborate opinion about deceleration in growth.

Theoretically, the incumbent wants the economic recovery to coincide with the election, but really it's a coincidence that those years tend to be positive. I think it's more that there's a good feeling overall during that year -- everyone is promised the world and no one says anything bad to upset the markets.

Whether the catalyst was the cessation of tax selling or just a rally from a truly depressed area, the Nasdaq is attracting some bargain hunting. I would suggest stocks were over discounting shorter-term problems that have already been announced.

Competition's going to get a lot more intense, ... We know that one of the biggest products, Viagra, has been a blockbuster drug and there's more competition coming in next year. There's a new drug going to be introduced next year, and that supposedly has a much more effective impact on patients.

This divergence that's developed over the last 12 months, has clearly been the widest I've ever seen in all the years I've been in the business.