May 25, 2010, 4:00 pm EDT — Closing Thoughts — The Standard & Poor’s 500 index closed up 0.42 to 1074.06, as last minute short covering caused panic buying. Groundhog day allover again as greed replaced fear, at least for  the last 30-minutes. … Besides the financial crisis in Europe, investors were reminded that political issues, such as tension between North and South Korea, can threaten economic growth. Meanwhile, the unresolved Gulf of Mexico oil spill contributed to more dubiety. … Uncertainty over how Europe’s debt problems will affect the rest of the world in the coming months has made long term planning difficult. Investor pessimism is affecting reasons to hold long term equities as the concern of austerity measures from European governments will compromise the region and cause another global recession. FEAR should not be discounted. … Britain’s FTSE 100 dropped 2.5 percent, Germany’s DAX index lost 2.3 percent, and France’s CAC-40 plummeted 2.9 percent. Japan’s Nikkei stock average fell 3.1 percent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 3.3 percent … European Union leaders warned today that the continent’s economy would stagnate unless governments make major reforms to promote growth. The problem is that large debts in some countries make it difficult to implement stimulus measures to rally economies, i.e. Helicopter Bernanke’s printing press machinations and questionable ‘over-balance sheet’ accounting. Indeed, Bernanke needs to offload $90 billion in worthless loans to the federal government or it would also be insolvent. The EuroZone cannot play the sham. … Investors are dropping the euro and commodities including oil, and again sought safety in government bonds. The benchmark 10-year note’s yield fell to its lowest level since April 2009. … A disappointing report on home prices added to the downcast mood. The Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller 20-city home price index fell 0.5 percent in March from February, a sign the housing market remains weak even with mortgage rates near historic lows. … Crude oil fell $1.06 to $69.16 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, in part a reflection of expectations that weak economic growth will curtail demand for fuel.