The intent of many short programs is inertia, because the available supply of stock against a strong fundamental backdrop ensures only one thing, a few or even one program architecht will know when to fish and when to cut bait.
I would think that inertia is actually a bad thing for anyone designing a trading program, whether short or long, because money is actually made taking advantage of volatility, upward and downward. Granted, there are long periods of time where selling volatility is attractive, but I don't know that shorting is the most effective way to make gains from a system of that sort. It seems like a more effective way of taking advantage of inertia is selling options.
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