Yes, I know. But from what I've learned of Raschke's trading from what she has made publically available, I think it is safe t say hat she doesn't use indicators in every set up, and for those in which she does, the indicators may "indicate" a potential opportunity, but price action is the set up and defines the trigger for the trade, i.e. she is not trading MACD crosses. Compare this to the common message board refrain "thinking of going long here but waiting for MACD to confirm." As Raschke teaches her use of indicators, again, from what I have gathered from the materials she has made public that I have come across, price confirms the indicator, and not the other way around.
Correct. Raschke made the same mistake (though I doubt she sees it that way) as I made a dozen years ago, employing indicators as a translation device to enable interested traders to understand price action. But the result was that readers became so obsessed with the indicators and the settings and the various signals (divergences and crosses and undulations of one sort or another) that they paid little to no attention to price whatsoever. And, of course, when the results were not satisfactory, the fault lay with "the method". Raschke has taken and I suppose continues to take the same heat with, for example, her "short skirt" trades. The cook who knows nothing about food chemistry is far more likely to end up with dry, runny scrambled eggs. The trader who knows nothing about price behavior is far more likely to wind up exploring a lot of blind alleys.
Well, I have read this argument many times and as one who knows how much free time day trading can generate, I have to say that those who make have never day traded with the success that would allow them to live a rather free life. If you were day trading the NQ and you were using S/R, trend lines, channels, etc. and you were looking to trade the main swings, you would soon learn that on most days, the NQ will give 1-3 opportunities in the morning, then it will usually (not always, but usually) lie dormant for 2 to 3 hours where only a masochist or a gambling addict will be actively trying to trade it, and then, sometime after one, usually after 2:30 (the later it starts typically the larger and more certain the move) it will make another good swing. If it starts its move earlier, then the afternoon might give good two way action, as the early move will often not sustain itself - these days are more prone to double tops or double bottoms, in my experience. Trading in this way means I've already defined prior to the open the price levels at which I will be looking to trade: not long, not short, but either long or short. So when price is away from those levels, there is nothing to do but watch, and perhaps read ET and even post a few times. Certainly as the day gets under way, the current session may very well generate additional levels to watch for subsequent trade, but at the open, there should be at most four levels in play. What happens on most days trading the NQ this means there are a few bits of time - usually 5-15 minutes long, where my attention is focused on looking for a trade. But once in a trade and price has started to move away from my entry, it gets pretty boring. Also, most days, I get enough opportunity in that morning session before the mid-day doldrums set in that I am ready to do something else. Now I live in the Northeast, and so I have been inside and at my trading station the past few months far more than I'd like to have been, but perma-snow and constant sub-freezing temperatures sort of ruin the outdoor experience for me. But now as the weather breaks, I'll be shutting down after a couple of hours most days. I have an extensive garden, I play a lot of golf, and I have three kids and we all have season passes to a well-known amusement park. You see, day trading, assuming one is making good money at it, can offer one a great deal of free time. Some may spend it on internet message boards trying to find the few others who might also be able to learn how to do it to live such a life, and others might spend it gardening, golfing, or roller coasting. None will spend it trolling message boards looking for fights and trying to tear down others, though one might use it to engage in a defense of one's own against such trolls. As I think about, I now wonder why those who say DbPhoenix must not trade because he has so much free time to spend on ET don't stop for a moment and think,"gee, he must trade, otherwise how the hell could he have all this time to spend on ET?" But that would require thoughtful reflection rather than emotional reactions. One factor in whether or not one becomes a troll or not is likely aa propensity to live, trade, bitch, drive emotionally rather than reflectively. To others following along, I will tell you this: Those who argue against this approach can only do so from a position of ignorance. Three years ago I was breaking my back everyday. Now I too get to spend as much time as I want on internet message boards. Do you really think that is because I don't trade?
A near-perfect example of a breakout and a retracement. They are not all this clean, but this is what you should have in mind when you're trying to decide in real time the probabilities of your trade being successful. In a case like this, there's nothing to think about. And whether it ultimately fails or not, you still have your 5+ points.
Much has been posted about how yesterday should have been traded. As far as the SLA is concerned . . .