[RT] Brad Cowan's Book's - Brads' Response

To: <realtraders@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> Subject: [RT] Brad Cowan's Book's - Brads' Response From: Andre Franklin <andref@xxxxxxxxxxx> Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 21:06:03 -0800

The following is Brad Cowan's response to my post regarding his books. Brad's response was posted to the DGL group on Dec 15th by Dave Caldwell on Brad's behalf. I'm posting his entire response...followed by my previous post...for your reference. Good trading!!! Andre Franklin WickedTrader, LLC. http://www.wickedtrader.com ________________________________________________________ I want to thank Dave Caldwell for presenting me with these questions that were posted on a discussion group. I do not frequent discussion groups and would have been unaware of the questions without him letting me know. I'll do my best to openly answer the questions presented. If anyone would like to respond to me you will have to email me at www.cycle-trader.com because, as mentioned earlier, I do not read these discussion groups. Many of the comments Andre Franklin posted are correct. For example, there is a lot of time required to study and FULLY MASTER this material. Notice that I said "fully". When I decided to write these books I wanted to put together something unlike any other books on the market. I had read many many books and they all could be summarized in about 2 pages. So I put together a set of books that people could continue to learn from. The people that are having problems with it are trying to grasp the whole concept. If you want to do that, I agree it will take years. But what they should be doing is pick out the easy timing tools first, such as the planetary cycles, or the ellipse (as presented by George Bayer). Those tools are very simple to apply. For example, the October 1999 bottom in stocks came in right on schedule as described on Charts VIII.P, VIII.S, VIII.T from the books. This is a simple cycle that is very reliable and anyone who missed that bottom did not do their work because it was exactly 30 degrees from the October 1998 bottom. I had been telling people all year that October was the date to watch for the next bottom, that cycle was one reason why. Simple to apply if you can add 30 degrees to a number. The next one is due early next year. My point here is that people are overwhelmed by the amount of mateial in the books and do not stop and think of the simple tools presented that they can immediately apply. The cycle above is just one example. I have given many examples of how well this simple cycle works, some are posted

on my web site. Others are published in the books. For example, who do you know that predicted the 1999 bottom in grains 5 years ago! I did, throughout Market Science Volume II. Anyway, the point is to pick out the simple techniques and only work on the broad view later. It is also true that I do not provide individual market timing. Not only am I aware of the value of such a service, but I simply do not have the time to do it or the desire to register with the Feds as an advisor. Look what the feds did to Frank Taucher because of his Supertraders almanac. My personality type is that of a loner. Always have been, always will be. That's why I became a trader. Most of the other good traders I know also fit into that category. I really do not need to deal with people. I made more money since I started writing this letter than I have all year on my books (oil drilling stocks just broke out). I did not want to mention this until it was finished, but I AM in the process of automating the planetary cycle aspect of the work. I will be a windows based stand alone program. I did not want to make that knowledge public because it may take a year to finish. I'm mentioning it here for the first time to make the point that the techniques CAN be automated. That's why I make people sign the non-disclosure agreement to not put it into a program. The program will not be a replacement for the books because the manual will not get into details already described in the books. So it will be assumed the user has already read the books. Reasonably priced, probably $400 or so. If I can do it in a computer program why can't others do it manually? I know they can because I do it every day. Another recent example, as Dave Caldwell can attest, is when I told him I just bought BMG gold stock at 1 3/4, the exact low day and price. One week later I sold it at 4 1/8. About the Baumring thing.... When I was in my early 20s I sat through 6 of the 8 lectures Baumring gave and learned nothing. I was constantly at odds with him because I kept telling him he was presenting nothing that I did not learn in the first 2 years of engineering school. For example,his first lecture was about adding sin waves. Gads, I learned that in high school and told him so. I dropped out of his series twice and only returned because Baumring solicited me on the telephone telling me "this time it will be different...New material you haven't seen before" and offered me free attendance. It never was new material. Greg Ruff who has been presenting himself as "an instructor" at the lectures even presented me with a list of things in my book that he said came from the "lectures". I went through the entire list and sent him the copies from my college engineering text books where I learned it. I sent him a stack about 1 inch thick proving that there was nothing in my books learned from Baurming. The vast majority of my mateial can be categorized into 2 areas: (1) Price-Time Vector work and (2) Planetary cycles. Baumring never mentioned either in the seminars I attended. I even asked Brad Stewart, who was around him constantly, if he ever heard Baumring mention my price-time vectors (by any name). After carefully researching his notes he reluctantly had to agree that he never used that technique. I'm an engineer and vectors are our tools. I even have a letter from Ruff written shortly after my books were published congratulating me on discovering it. I would be more than happy to address any item from my books that someone thinks I got from Baumring and present them with the proof otherwise. As mentioned above I do not subscribe to discussion groups so please

address me directly on any items you wish to discuss. Cowan www.cycle-trader.com

Thanks, Bradley

>> >>Dave, >> >>I appreciate your efforts to contact Brad on my behalf. >> >>I should mention that I have received several comments, some from the >>DGL forum...and some from the RealTraders forum. The majority of the >>comments were NOT posted publicly. I have yet to receive even one >>"glowing" report on Cowan's material...especially from those that wish >>to make good on the material within a year, or less, of study. >> >>Most say that it's anywhere from 3-4 years of study to a lifetime. >>Certain prerequisite knowledge is assumed for each section...knowledge >>that is not commonly acquired. Also, I'm told that his teachings cannot >>be easily implemented...at least not consistently...except possibly >>after many years of study. >> >>His material seems to be a real gold mine for lifetime students of Gann, >>but for those that are looking for something practical to implement >>within a reasonable period of time...Cowan does not appear to be the >>man...or so I'm told. >> >>What strikes me as odd is that there were so many glowing testimonials >>at Cowan's website...I expected as least 10% of the comments I received >>from the forums to be similar to those at his website. At best...I'd >>rate the most positive comments as "neutral". Unfortunately, this forum >>will not allow my description of the most negative comments I received >>on the usefulness of Cowan's work. Allow me to add that no one claimed >>to be making money, real - or on paper, with Cowan's material. One >>suggested that Cowan's strategies are only practical if it can be >>computerized...assuming that is possible. Another comment was that only >>one or two issues can be closely tracked per day because the strategy is >>too intensive to allow additional stocks or commodities to be analyzed. >> >>It may well be that Cowan is the only one that understands Cowan. I've >>yet to find someone of slightly above average intelligence...and a >>reasonable amount of time to give...that has come forward thanking Cowan >>for their success. On the contrary...one Cowan student claims to have >>sought help from Cowan...and was simply told to "keep looking". >> >>There were a few direct and indirect comments that Cowan plagiarized Dr. >>Baumring's work. I'm not particularly interested in who plagiarized >>what...if at all...but Mr. Cowan may want to consider "clearing the air" >>on this matter while he has the floor. >> >>I sincerely hope that Cowan will step forward and allow us to hear him >>out. It's not fair to post such a message as this without giving the >>other party a chance to defend themselves. >> >>Brad....tell us it ain't so... >> >>Andre Franklin >>WickedTrader, LLC. >>http://www.wickedtrader.com >> >>P.S. I made my initial request regarding Cowen on both the DGL and

>>RealTraders forums. For this reason, I will be happy to post Mr. Cowen's >>response into whichever forum does not receive his response.

http://www.purebytes.com/archives/realtraders/1999/msg08501.html