2:17 PM ET: In early afternoon trading, stocks have pared some of their losses, but they are down for the second straight day (and spent most of Wednesday underwater before closing up), so it's worth wondering if this is a blip or the long-advertised "correction" traders have been predicting and awaiting.

First, a look at the markets right now.

As of about 2:15, the Dow is down three-tenths of 1 percent.

The broader S&P 500 is down four-tenths of 1 percent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq is down six-tenths of 1 percent.

Now, let's take a look back and see how the markets have been trending in recent months. (These numbers do not include today's moves.)

Since the March 9 bottom, the Dow is up about 58 percent, the S&P 500 is up a little bit over 60 percent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq, which has been leading the rally, is up a whopping 70 percent.

As I always say: That's great. That's money back in your 401(k) and your portfolio. But professional traders haven't understood this rally, because it's not based on solid underlying economic fundamentals -- unemployment has only risen during the rally and GDP turned positive only in the third quarter -- but they have thrown up their hands and said, using the Wall Street phrase, "You can't fight the tape."