I read a lot of different sources, both the pros and cons of the economic data. The one guy I most respect is Doug Noland and he has only recently begun to say that we are in the very final stages of the government finance bubble and that a bear market is probable for this Summer. I agree with the idea that many want to hear view points that support their own perceptions. I also know you will not get a lot of what ZH reports from the mainstream media and the reports from the likes of CNBC are very biased in their presentation. The bulls crow about how great the economy is, ignoring that even this weak "recovery" has been driven by extraordinary Fed liquidity. The bears will be dismissed as lunatics as long as the market keeps going higher despite any fundamentals. Even the technical traders have no advantage in trading these markets as the Fed has completely overridden the market normal functioning. And Fed governor Plosser today belatedly admits that the Fed has distorted the markets so that they no longer respond to economic fundamentals (see below), but I fully expect the Fed will be overwhelmed once this market turns:
"if central banks do not limit their interventionist strategies and focus on returning to more normal policymaking aimed at promoting price stability and long-term growth, then they will simply encourage the financial markets to ignore fundamentals and to focus instead on the next actions of the central banks"