I think my point was more that on one side we had general data...

I think my point was more that on one side we had general data to support one argument, and on the other we have random assertions from people claiming that it isn't true, that are so far unsubstantiated by anything other than opinion. I'd have to guess that most successful investors didn't get rich listening to conspiracy theories and the random hunches of random people. They did it with numbers, maths, figures, projections and hard data. The best that was available at the time. I know it's boring, but it works more often than gambling.

So again, while you may be right that everything is going to hell in a handbasket over in Africa .. where is the data to support this counter-view? Where is the real, non-anecdotal evidence to justifiably reject the claim that numbers have perhaps begun to modestly fall - as opposed to 'surging like crazy', which was the original point I was questioning?

It was simply a question on my part. I provided some data to support it. I'm VERY happy to form any view on this subject. I'm not married to a view that I'm fiercely defending. I just like to find the best available data to de-risk any decisions on a stock. We often don't know for certain, otherwise we'd all be staggeringly rich. So it's about balance of probabilities and risk.