Just curious if anyone else out there is buying some hedge positions in their brokerage or just speculating for a bear market/recession.  

 I've been shifting more of my investments into defensive stocks and assets lately.  I've kept a good chunk in gold/silver since Covid happened which has done pretty well overall.  I have a few blue chips, a good natural gas stock, a good chunk in the lithium market (ALB) and a few other safer stocks.  Lately, I've put a few grand out there in long term put options on the S&P (SPY).  I'm just looking for a little protection against a widespread downturn.  The more research I do, the more pessimistic I get about the market.  If nothing else, the fed raising rates means an end to the cheap money rally of the last couple of years.  

 There are plenty of headwinds out there that could bring on a recession/stagflation or a major correction.  Anyone here have a similar mindset?

I have heard people smarter than me suggesting puts on all the other brick and mortar retailers due to what's happened with Walmart and Target

I know for a fact expenses have eaten up all of people's discretionary income. Welcome to STAGFlation!

Been preaching it for 4 months.  

im starting to buy back in.  Tight stops.

VXX trades inverse to the S&P500

Lots of headwinds out there.  I'm looking into maybe buying some speculative puts on one of the cruise line stocks.  The usual cruise crowd might pass on going on their next cruise if they're hit with inflation and wages that won't keep up with it.  That and cruise ships run on marine diesel which is very expensive.  Cruise tickets might get more expensive percentage wise than inflation at a time when many of their customers are cutting back on expenses.  

I'd be happy to make enough in options to offset whatever paper losses I'd take from the general downturn in the market.

Macy's and Best Buy report next week, I don't know if wally world and target already sympathetically beat them down enough where there's not much movement when they do though.

I'm really kicking myself, after Walmart tanked I figured I needed to check the options flow on Target because they'd probably get wrecked as well. Well, I ended up just plain forgetting, and the morning after earnings my feed was people posting 90 baggers:

No but I have been longing PSQ inverse ETF of the NASDAQ which is a way better trade IMO

Options are risky, need to be right on price and timing.   If you get it right though you can get rich.  

Been trading SDS to play the short side on rallies.