WD Gann on Booming Markets
and the ‘Winds of War’:

W.D. Gann, besides being a chart-reading master, was an astute student of Human Nature.

He wrote an enlightening piece about the very times we're going through today which he was going through also back in 1941 during World War II.

This piece of insight comes from the first edition of Mr. Gann's book 'How to Make Profits in Commodities' which was printed first back in 1941. 

Below is an excerpt from that book:

WHAT CAUSES BOOMS AND WARS

History proves that wars break out every 20 to 25 years. 

It also proves that there is a great wave of SPECULATION and a BOOM of some kind in nearly every country every 20 to 25 years.

Why do these WAR PERIODS and BOOM TIMES come at such regular cycles and intervals?

The main cause of these is that HUMAN NATURE NEVER CHANGES.

Every 20 years a new generation comes along.

They are full of hope, optimistic and are progressive and up-to-date.They are inexperienced.

They know nothing of war or of the bitterness of war, because they have never been in a fight.

They are anxious to get into a fight.

It is easy for the politicians to induce the young men to go to war, but, it is hard to get the old fellows who have had the bitter experience and the suffering to go to war.

They want no more of it.

The young buck is wild and always ready to run and to fight.

It's the same with the Commodity market. 

The young generations either have inherited money or they make money, and they want to take a chance. It is the nature of youth to gamble, to take chances, and to be fearless of danger. Therefore, the young generation are anxious and eager to try their hands at SPECULATION.

When they get into a RUN AWAY BULL MARKET, they have no more sense than to keep on BUYING.

They throw caution to the wind. This increased BUYING power causes Commodities to go to HEIGHTS UNWARRANTED BY SUPPLY & DEMAND.

The result is that when this BOOM is over, the young generation suffer severe LOSSES , get some valuable experience and are not so anxious to try it again.

[The Gann comments that follow apply the Same Psychology to Different Arenas - George]

Just as sure as young generations come along from time to time, we will continue to have BOOMS in business, BOOMS in the STOCK MARKETS and COMMODITIES, LAND (REAL ESTATE) BOOMS and other wild WAVES of speculation.

Youth has to be served and young nature has to have it's fling.

That is why HISTORY REPEATS, because HUMAN NATURE DOES NOT CHANGE and each coming generation have to go through the same EXPERIENCE as the former GENERATION did."

From: 'How To Make Profits In Commodities' by W.D. Gann, 1941, pgs. 15-16

I hope you've enjoyed this as much as I have preparing this for you all. 

Write me and let me know. Thanks. - George H.