Current state of the economy

[Ross]

Money
Dow plunges 500+ to below 10,000 mark
Analysis: Next stop, recession (Shouldn't this say Depression?) | More on crisis
5 big bills you can cut fast | Savings secrets
Jim Cramer throws in the towel

9,881.75 -443.63 -4.30

Light Sweet Crude Oil NOV-2008 87.81 -6.07 91.65 87.80 87.81 10/06 11:26am

Strap yourselves in, the big ones coming soon!

 

[Bina]

We've been getting the same warnings up here. Scary, especially heading into a long cold winter.

 

[Superbob]

It is always darkest before the dawn.

 

[catwoman]

It is always darkest before the dawn.

When will it DAWN on our political leaders and business leaders that it's not business as usual???

 

[terodac]

Pray for this Nation! We need Prayer! I am scared for our children and there children. All these golden payoffs need to be paid back. Can't understand someone getting millions of dollars on a rip off company!! JAIL, might be nice for them.

 

[Bonzo Dog]

Pray for this Nation! .....................

With respect, this is an international problem. Those with a vision beyond their own backyard are best able to sort it out.

 

[terryj]

No comfort in the fact for us close to retirement that this too shall pass. Hubby turns 59 1/2 in May. I guess we will take our money out of the market and eat the loss we have taken already. It makes me so mad because we thought we were doing the right thing putting money in a 401k all these years. I love to gamble and I told my husband I could have taken the money to the casino and had more fun losing it.

 

[Mary]

Our ex DIL lost her job three weeks ago, and our SIL is only working three days this week due to a slowdown in factory orders.
NOT good.

 

[Cooker]

It is always darkest before the dawn.

I agree ... This, I believe is a economic correction ... a huge one but still a correction.

Pray for this Nation! We need Prayer! I am scared for our children and there children. All these golden payoffs need to be paid back. Can't understand someone getting millions of dollars on a rip off company!! JAIL, might be nice for them.

Yes we do .... the news reported a tragic murder suicide (5 dead) believed to be the direct cause of loss of job and assets ... Our security needs to be placed in our God ... "I don't know what the future holds but I know the one who hold the future".

With respect, this is an international problem. Those with a vision beyond their own backyard are best able to sort it out.

Bonzo is correct that this is an international problem ... Bonz, don't be too hard on those with fears and concerned ... it is human nature ... I hate to admit it but I am more concerned with my backyard than yours.

 

[Bonzo Dog]

Bonzo is correct that this is an international problem ... Bonz, don't be too hard on those with fears and concerned ... it is human nature ... I hate to admit it but I am more concerned with my backyard than yours.[/COLOR]

God no Tom we all look to ourselves first, it's natural.
I just think it's a global problem, we are all in the smelly stuff together and thinking globally is the only way out of it.

This week's Economist is worth a read. http://www.economist.com/printedition/ The cover says it all. It also has articles on Obama v McCain and illegal migration from Mexico.

 

[Cooker]

God no Tom we all look to ourselves first, it's natural.
I just think it's a global problem, we are all in the smelly stuff together and thinking globally is the only way out of it.

This week's Economist is worth a read. http://www.economist.com/printedition/ The cover says it all. It also has articles on Obama v McCain and illegal migration from Mexico.

When I got the paper (morning news) out of the box this morning the front page showed a picture of a Chinese investor with his head in his hands, caption "GLOBAL MELTDOWN, Stocks plunge as fear grips investors worldwide"

Bonz... I did not mean to imply that you were being insensitive.

 

[Duff Man]

When will it DAWN on our political leaders and business leaders that it's not business as usual???

Amen. Well said.

 

[Superbob]

God no Tom we all look to ourselves first, it's natural.
I just think it's a global problem, we are all in the smelly stuff together and thinking globally is the only way out of it.

This week's Economist is worth a read. http://www.economist.com/printedition/ The cover says it all. It also has articles on Obama v McCain and illegal migration from Mexico.

The Economist is a great publication, Bonzo. Thanks for that link. I agree -- it is a global problem. In my earlier "darkest before dawn" comment, I did not mean to imply in any way that our leaders should sit idly by and wait for recovery without taking any action. I just meant to inject a small dose of hope/optimism that there will be an upswing after this recession, though it may take a while. I also have a small retirement account that has taken a big hit but I am not going to withdraw it now and accept the loss. I still have confidence that we will bounce back eventually.

 

[Bina]

And my financial savvy friends scoffed when I put a large RSP into GICs....the portion that I left in a Mutual Fund is concerning me now.
Hmmm, re-invest or ride it out......

 

[Rich]

They say we may be heading for a recession? What the hell do they call this situation we have been in for the last several years?
If things keep going south it will be a depression, no doubt in my mind.
I don't think pulling our money out of 401's or IRA's is good either.
Think of the taxes we would get slapped with.
And I agree a lot of the people who caused this should be in jail, not at their mansions spending the millions they took home.
It is definitely a world wide crisis.

 

[terryj]

Rich. I work for county government and I can pull my money out when I retire at any age without a penalty. My hubby will be 59 1/2 in May and as long as we roll it into something else(bonds,Cds,annuities) I don't think we get penalized. I just know we have lost a ton of money this year and we can't afford to lose anymore.

 

[hall]

There is a 90 year old women here in Akron that when they sherrif was on the front porch to foreclose she shot herself in the stomach. SHE LIVED! (had a mortgage to do repairs on her house.) They are forgiving her debt. What a sad story. I believe it made national news.

 

[njean]

There is a 90 year old women here in Akron that when they sherrif was on the front porch to foreclose she shot herself in the stomach. SHE LIVED! (had a mortgage to do repairs on her house.) They are forgiving her debt. What a sad story. I believe it made national news.

I read about this online & saw it on TV. Sad story indeed. I'm glad the little old lady lived & that they forgave her debt but what a price to pay!!

 

[Dennis S]

I have left our money in an IRA type account, but 2 weeks ago moved it into government backed funds. My "adviser" said leave things as they were, and ride it out. I must say I don't get that kind of thinking. Waiting as long as I did cost us a bunch of money. The last two weeks would have compounded the loss. I don't see the problem with taking to the sidelines for a while. A person can get back into the market in a heartbeat these days. I believe things will come back over time, but nothing in the future is going to go up with the speed that the market has gone down. I think there will be plenty of time to come back in-and pick up some real bargains-after the market gets back to being rational. But it is more important than ever to keep putting away some regular amount, if at all possible. I think that when things start to turn around there will be real opportunities for those with access to a little cash.

I do fear the possibility of significant inflation, which is another reason to try to stay as financially flexible as possible. If inflation does heat up, it will be a lot harder to decide where to put your investments.

 

[Ross]

I'm financially trashed, so to me, what else is new? Anything we did have has all been taken away due to medical bills. I do wish they'd stop sugar coating it with the word recession. We're beyond recession by about 4 years or more.