Sep

27

This year's spec party had a different feel than other years, a more mature, more focused, a more comfortable, intimate feel. We had spec's from all around the world, India, Ireland, Scandinavia, Zurich, France, Italy, London, Hawaii, California, Nevada, Tennessee, Georgia, Delaware making it a truly remarkable international diverse experience. The depth of knowledge, expertise, and perspective is simply mind boggling. Though there were fewer, the group was more intense, more hardcore quantitatively philosophically naturalistic in the Niederhoffer tradition.

We spoke of survival of volatility, diversity, adversity, ecologies, as we strolled from jungle environment to desert environments at the Haught Conservatory Greenhouse at the New York Botanical gardens bringing to mind the radical and swift regime changes and the necessary adaptations in nature and the markets.

We rode out to Shea Stadium to see the Mets play Florida. Baseball always has so many parallels to the market. The long periods of hard effort with no scores. The long innings of playing from behind, the maximum effort required while in a losing position. The rapid reversals as the Mets lost the game to a home run in the bottom of the 8th. All lessons valuable to the specs who braved adverse windy wet conditions which were somewhat of an anomaly in an otherwise sunny warm, summery beautiful New York summer.

We went back in time to the 60-'s and 70's in a nostalgic trip out to quaint Coney Island, near to where the Chair grew up and the stories from Ed Spec. We swam in the ocean, discussed waves, rode the Ferris wheel and had a wonderful day in the sun. I had a very nice discussions about India with Sushil Kedia, and a lengthy discussion about chess, strategy, and markets with the Grandmaster on the way back.

The Dinner at Delmonico's is the highlight of the weekend with the greatest collection of spec's celebrating with Chair and Laurel in the tradition of the giants of speculation from the history of Wall Street. I can imagine that years in the future they will talk of how Niederhoffer threw lavish parties and took over the whole restaurant for his friends as one of the legends of Wall street. The food was delicious and the tap dancing and Hula from the traveling Von Sogi's of Hawaii added to the fun of the evening. Among the likes of Wren-Hardin, Egan, Cooper, Grossman, Moe, Hewson, Katir, Floyd were fascinating discussions about cutting edge microstructural theories, fundamental considerations in currencies, statistical chemistry and the drug industry and the creation of unintended toxins. The evening was just starting leading to the Melvin pub crawl to the regular midtown Irish bar where many a very tall trading tale was retold with flourish and where Melvin was characteristically seen in the arms of 3 beautiful blondes at once (pics and proof to follow). Goldcamp was heard to have had a REALLY good time.

The weekend ended up with a serious and quite profound and relevant discussion of current market conditions at the Rose Garden in Central Park under beautiful blue skies and cool weather, with racoons scurrying about in the lush green arbors as the Chairman espoused his theory of the markets as the mechanism that mediates between government and the the populace, and the need of the financial machine ecology to support its overhead and extract the maximum amount from the weak and that causes not only the obvious capital allocation but buffers the power of government to protect the needs of the populace through price and capital demands. It is a novel theory which I have never heard discussed anywhere else. The market itself is the mechanism that effects large scale social and political change through changes in incentives, attitudes and demand, and is more than merely shuffling money. Understanding the markets as a social and political driver can lead to long term trading strategies and keep the trader on the right course.

New York, the greatest city in the world, was vibrant, alive, clean, young, safe, friendly. New York has a noticeably disproportionate number of young people, and slim attractive young women dressed up nicely compared to other areas of the world and country, something that Galton himself was known to count. Even Dr. Zussman noticed this anomaly. At many clubs and bars large groups of attractive women attended, and late at night there were more women out and about than men. The taxi drivers, restauranteurs, hoteliers, and people about town, subway riders, citizens, restaurant goers, theatre goers, were all courteous, friendly, intent and focused on discharging their social obligations and expectations. I saw no antisocial behavior, no arguments, no outbursts of anger, almost no vagrancy or homelessness. The subways were clean, very clean, well lit, and not overcrowded. Even the traffic had less horn blowing and cussing. To me, who grew up in the bad era of the 70's in the city, a real low point when the city was on the verge of bankruptcy, crime, vagrancy were rampant, it was a remarkable and enjoyable weekend in a magic kingdom. It was more special because many of the regular specs have become friends, I've been to their homes, and they to mine, the depth of our discussions and insights have grown over the years.

For all this wonderful and life changing experience and lessons in life and markets available in no other forum in the world, and the creation of this unique, international, eclectic, esoteric, erudite group called the Spec List, we have the true genius, generosity and broad thinking of Chair and Laurel and Steve Wisdom whose effort, huge expense and time in the midst of tumultuous markets to thank. I extend my heartfelt thanks and love to both the Chair and Laurel for a truly wonderful weekend I will cherish my whole life as a highlight.


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