The market has not changed since 2008, which means when panic selling starts the market could jump off of the cliff. The people that want your money want you to pay fees and keep your money with their firm. Being in a short fund, playing options on the short side, and or holding in cash are smart plays. There are excellent straddles one can do to be safe just in case a sell-off does not happen. Let’s face it! There is a bunch of stuff that has happened that we are still recovering from. There is more to come and the markets are not healed from the last round. Will treasuries be safe? Will the U.S . lose its A rating? Will the housing sector come back? Will jobs be created? It takes 5-7 years after a recession for an economy to bounce back. This means in that time period an economy is vulnerable like a person with a weak immune system. If anything big happens the sickness could be terminal.