Matt—you are right about the fundamental shift in advisor investing.

I would say I'm alternately excited about and terrified by the trend you discuss where advisors increasingly take control of their clients' portfolios in every way. To the degree to which strong asset allocation models are being implemented, and the focus on the clients' long-term financial picture, matching assets to liabilities, etc., I think we're in a wonderful place.

The reason is that if you know what you're doing, there has never been a better array of financial products available to you, covering every imaginable investable area at increasingly lower cost, better tax efficiency and targeted exposure. I love that investors now have options to invest in commodities, in emerging markets, in real estate and with leverage. But these very same products, which have been a boon to many investors, are leading to confusion for a great many more, and they are hurting investors who misuse them, and they may be damaging the reputation of the ETFs that are NOTHING but transparent and efficient. And all of that does worry me a bit.

For every story you say you heard at the conference, Matt, that indicated smart asset allocation strategy, I heard a "put it on red" tactical strategy or a wild misuse or misunderstanding of some futures or swaps-based product. And that makes me scared for the investors whose money is being managed by some advisors. So the onus, again, is on the industry and us to stay on the education project.

The Macro Picture

There's some nice discussion going on in Paul's blog on the .eu site about the trouble Barclays, SSgA and others continue to have with shocking falls in their share prices.

Here is a side note. An early-morning reader of my blog asked if I could link to Paul's blog, as he was wondering about possible credit issues related to Barclays' exchange-traded products. Here are the links: Paul's blog and my blog. In answer to your question, we DO talk about the credit risks in the products. So there you have them ... and for those of you interested in following European products and the European perspective generally, we have a Web site at www.indexuniverse.eu that already has the best (and it's rapidly improving) database of European ETFs as well as Paul Amery's excellent commentary.

If there is one thing that is crystal clear as we continue to hold our stomachs in the current environment, it is that we are in no way out of the woods of the current crisis yet. How the Obama administration handles the crisis and stays on the issues will be one big determinant of the macro picture. Based on some of the fearful equity movement we continue to see, and continued tight credit markets, there is still every reason to be nervous about the macroeconomic picture.

Keep your eyes on the Obama administration and on credit spreads. Hopefully we can ease our way around the rocks near the shore.