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Heads turned on Thursday when the Russell 2000 index of small stocks briefly dipped into correction territory. The Russell has been so strong for so long -- it gained 37% last year and fell only about 6% at its steepest drawdown -- that the move was greeted as a sign of a broader pullback.

Here's the thing: In the last quarter century, smallcaps on average experienced a near-bear market every single year! A bear market is defined as a 20% drop, or about twice the size of the drawdown touched briefly on Thursday.