<prompt> Human: I understand that if interest rates rise, prices of stocks and bonds will fall. If we are expecting interest rates to rise in the next year or so, why would we deploy any cash today, instead of waiting for interest rates to rise and prices to fall before investing in the market?I understand that many will say timing the market never works out. I agree with that.What I am really asking is, is there any theoretical academic reason why one would invest in a rising interest rate environment ignoring any market timing arguments.  <response>: You cant ignore market timing. Its the major argument. And its been true forever.If youre in the market long-term, and I assume you are, youre making a case for trying to time the market EVERY TIME something is expected. And thats how people either lose money or dont maximize gains.If stocks go down, do you know what theyre going to do later? Go up. The market is at an all-time high one out of every 15 days. The best time to invest is 20 years ago. The 2nd best time is now. 