Michael Yoshikami "JC Penney's Troubles: The Power of Adjectives", CNBC 4/30/2013:
As you read news headlines and listen to and watch media reports on the market, it's important to recognize that language may have different meanings depending on your perspective. Just last week the media reported that J.C. Penney stock "soared" 11 percent—on the surface that seems to be a positive enough development.
While "soaring" is certainly more positive than "plunging," soaring suggests good news at J.C. Penney and for most investors this is how they will take the headline. Those investors will not look below the surface for the complete story.
Michael Yoshikami is "Founder and Chairman of the DWM Investment Committee at Destination Wealth Management". The headline was probably stuck on his piece by some nameless (and brainless) editor at CNBC, but still…
Perhaps I'm wrong to worry about what system of structural analysis we should be teaching, when adults gainfully employed in the media think that "soared", in the sentence "J.C. Penney stock soared 11 percent", is an adjective. It's like worrying about how to teach algebra to people who think that π is an integer.
Obligatory screenshot:
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