There is a good article in the WSJ about the current investing landscape called Is This the Best Time for Investors? Don’t Bet On It – it is behind their paywall but usually if you google the headline you can get the articles for free.  The whole article is good but my favorite part is the simple thought experiment offered by Rob Arnott regarding the importance of QE:

How important is [quantitative easing] to asset prices? Some say it is the main story. Rob Arnott, chairman of Research Affiliates in Newport Beach, Calif., suggests investors engage in a simple thought experiment to understand.

Imagine, he says, if Mr. Bernanke announced tomorrow that he would end this policy forever. “Ninety-nine people out of a hundred” on Wall Street, Mr. Arnott says with a chuckle, know full well what would happen immediately: clattering falls of both stocks and bonds.