Is there ever a time when it is okay to sell stocks during a sell-off or bear market? 

If you listen to 99.9% of the financial professionals, talking heads or academicians, there is never a good time to sell, especially when there is panic in the air.

But I ask again, does ever make sense to sell when stocks are in a downdraft?

Clearly we are in a bear market. Stocks are weak across the board, and there is panic in the air.  Do we hold our ground here and stay long and strong?

In most cases the answer is yes. Staying invested in the market despite selling pressure has historically resulted in maximum gains in a portfolio.  There is a good reason why nearly every person involved in this business suggests that investors stay calm. (See also: "Users Guide for a Bear Market.")

Historically, drops in the market are followed by snap-back rallies.  The pendulum effect is as reliable as Old Faithful.  Watch stocks drop in value only to be followed by a rally of biblical proportions.

Wringing out the weak hands sets the stage for a rally.  Examples of reliable recoveries include the crash of 1987, bear market of 1991, Asian and Russian crisis of 1997, September 11 and the recession of 2002.

There has been only one occasion of late where sticking to your guns cost investors money and that would be the dot com crash of 2000.  In that circumstance, shares of Nasdaq companies dropped significantly after reaching bear market territory.

So here we are today, and everywhere I turn I see recommendations for investors to stay calm.  Hold your stocks, don't panic.  It is a familiar tune that has been sounded before.

This time around will we see the snap back rally or are we now looking at something more similar to the dot com debacle? (See also: "5 Rules for Bear Market Investing" and "You Still Need Stocks, Just Not The Headaches.")

Unfortunately the odds of a longer contraction are improving by the day and that is after factoring in the government bailout fund that is being created to buy bad assets providing much needed grease to the banking system.

I wish I could be more positive about what is transpiring, but doing so would require me to stretch the facts in a way that would not be credible.  The facts are the facts, and these facts simply do not support higher stock prices.

Here's the big problem…