Zeev's Turnips Talk Politics (ZTTP)

[goodluck]

Pimco's Bill Gross weighed in on Iraq in his market commentary. See
http://www.investorshub.com/boards/read_msg.asp?message_id=800565

on the No Politics thread. Already, one poster on the thread says he will drop all of Pimco's funds due to his sentiments. Fascinating.

The offending comments are below:


One of the benefits of writing a book is that it serves as a snapshot of time. Thoughts, feelings, philosophies of living
change as we funnel down through the hourglass and the printed word is near immutable proof of such
transformations. One thing that strikes me about "me" as I infrequently pick up Everything You've Heard About
Investing Is Wrong is how absorbed I was in my late forties and early fifties with religion and the meaning of life. My
stories describing St. Catherine's Church and the fictional Father Guido Sarducci were numerous, and filled with
frequent references to religion and the search for a higher authority. Nearly a decade later in 2003, I must confide that I
am no nearer to resolving the conundrum. Like Virginia Woolf in The Hours, I cannot remember where I came from,
and I lack certainty in where I am going. We have company - Virginia and I. Still there are those who have found
answers to their individual quests and I accept their certitude if not their conclusions. In the absence of personal
resolution, I fall back on the thinking of Tennyson: "There lives more faith in honest doubt," he wrote, "than in half the
creeds." Perhaps. My life seems sprinkled with such self-consolations as the conclusion to my multi-act play comes
rushing towards me faster than I care to acknowledge. And my current faith, if it could be described as such, would be
a near resignation, suggesting that in the absence of certainty, the best we can do is to encircle our loved ones, display
empathy and compassion to the billions that share a world with us, and hold on tight as we descend into the
maelstrom. Answers, if any, await in the density of that great black hole beyond.

While I'm in the emoting mood let me tread into even more dangerous waters and speak to the impending conflict with
Iraq. For those of you who have already had enough, please skip this paragraph and proceed to the actual investment
outlook. I am not a geopolitical expert, but I have an opinion founded on what hopefully is a healthy dose of common
sense and historical perspective. I speak now, and risk client, public, and press censure because I was silent 35 years
ago. I sailed off to Vietnam, came back and collected my Veteran's benefits and was none the worse for the experience.
But hundreds of thousands, including some friends - were - and that is the point I suppose, in speaking out now. The
crux of the current argument involving Iraq is this: All would agree, especially since 9/11 that America has a right to
defend herself. The question is how far we can go in that defense and in the process what cost to the American spirit
and the American soul. President Bush and others say that we must take almost every step to insure our internal safety.
He argues that, in addition, those steps will bring positive changes in regimes dominated by oppression; Afghanistan,
Iraq, North Korea and Iran are but steppingstones towards a new democratic world order with America at the center. I
know the arguments - I'm even temporarily persuaded by them during emotional speeches such as Bush's State of the
Union. I suspect, however, that by invading "evil doer" nations, we may lessen our vulnerability but lose a piece of our
soul in the process. Yes, I'm aware that Iraq is in noncompliance with UN resolutions and that its leader is a near
madman. I'm also aware, however, of how absolute power corrupts and how we may be crossing a thin line.
Preemptive attacks? Kill them before they kill us? No one has experienced such Hours in the United States before. I
am heartbroken that it has come to this and I fear for my country's proud heritage and even more for its future.