Jeff Hirsch Thinks the Dow's Going Where? Seriously?

You've got to admire an optimist, even when the bombs are going off all around him. Jeff Hirsch - editor of the Stock Traders Almanac - says he's looking for the Dow Jones Industrial Average to reach 15,000 at some point in 2011. His conclusions are based on historical context - that's the typical move from the mid-term low (which President Obama is now entering) to the peak in the pre-2011-election high.

Of course, he also adds there's apt to be a dip of 20% to 30% somewhere between here and there. Maybe he could have just as easily said "the market's going to be volatile". That's about as specific, and doesn't intentionally overlook the massive standard deviations that should accompany the Almanac's historical statistics.

Hirsch also expects 400 new ETFs to go live in 2010. (A few dozen more than than, and there will be more ETFs than stocks. Stocks are so yesterday anyway.)