Is It Over Yet?

[SHANEA]

The sky is falling...

Crude down $11.02
Natural Gas down $0.44
Gold UP $20.6
DOJ down $777
NASDAQ down $199
S&P down 106.
WILSHIRE 5000 - a real beating down 1020 - 8 1/2 %.
S&P 500 - down almost 9%

I haven't even dared looking at my 401K.

Will be really interesting after the markets closed to find out how much value was wiped out today.

Plus, there will be the margin calls, liquidity issues, etc. 

[Undertaker]

As of the NO vote today, big time trouble, I personally am not in favor of the Bail Out but this will cause very serious problems. 

[SHANEA]

Tried to get into look at my 401K this afternoon, for some reason, it kept timing out...   

[badknees]

Tried to get into look at my 401K this afternoon, for some reason, it kept timing out...   

Probably dividing by zero somewhere!

[SHANEA]

I'm expecting a statement showing a negative balance and that I owe them money...   

[SHANEA]

The day's loss knocked out approximately $1.2 trillion in market value, the first post-$1 trillion day ever, according to a drop in the Dow Jones Wilshire 5000, the broadest measure of the stock market.

$1,200,000,000,000.00   

A trillion here a trillion there...  What comes after a trillion? 

[mule ears]

The day's loss knocked out approximately $1.2 trillion in market value, the first post-$1 trillion day ever, according to a drop in the Dow Jones Wilshire 5000, the broadest measure of the stock market.

$1,200,000,000,000.00   

A trillion here a trillion there...  What comes after a trillion? 

According to W it's a brazillion I think 

[jamesb]

Hey at least the cost of my starbucks has not changed

James

[badknees]

Hey at least the cost of my starbucks has not changed

James

And.....despite some declarations to the contrary, market forces are changing the price of oil.

Market forces can resolve the current "crisis" as well, if people learn to live within their means and we prosecute those who commit financial crimes.

[harold]

Does anyone else note the lack of an outcry from the congress over who was in charge of this disaster?
This was created in a large part by Fannie and Freddie using the same accounting methods that were used at Enron by Ken Lay and company. Where is the outrage and demands for prosecution?  This is a much larger scam and will hurt a huge section of our population. Could it be that the heads of these corps who scammed the public with their "creative accounting" and collected tens of millions in bonuses are now working with the Obama campaign?
I say let's turn loose the investigators and prosecuters like they did at Enron and make these people pay for their malfeasance no matter where it leads.

[bdann]

My how things can change in 1 year...  I believe that 52 week high is also the all time high. 

[Casa Grande]

I haven't even dared looking at my 401K.

Unless you're planning on retiring in less than 5 years, don't even bother....your money will be fine.

[SHANEA]

Just do like I'm thinking of doing.  Pull it all out, pay the penalty and tax, pay off everything you own - house, truck, credit cards, toys, etc.  That way, when the crash hits and we are in the midst of another great depression , they can't take it away from you.  Talking to a friend last night, he'd put $60K into his 401K in the last few years, his investment is now work $15K.  My 401K is down roughly 40% as of yesterday. 

[Casa Grande]

Just do like I'm thinking of doing.  Pull it all out, pay the penalty and tax, pay off everything you own - house, truck, credit cards, toys, etc.  That way, when the crash hits and we are in the midst of another great depression , they can't take it away from you.  Talking to a friend last night, he'd put $60K into his 401K in the last few years, his investment is now work $15K.  My 401K is down roughly 40% as of yesterday. 

you know, that's the one thing I've never understood about people in general: They are more worried about their retirement worth than their current worth. Stay out of debt and you won't have to worry so much.  If you don't have the money, don't buy it.  It is really that simple.   When I was a kid, all I heard in my household was the how bad the C-word was.  I remember MasterCharge and Visa was a really bad word in our house.   I'm not saying I don't have my own share of Credit card debt, but it is very very small.

I think it is criminal what the banks have turned the American public into.  I got my first credit card from, you guess it, college at the age of 19.  I couldn't wait to get that new Video Laser Disc Player for $600 dollars (the huge discs that you had to turn over/replace every 30 minutes).  After 2 years of paying minimum payments, I finally went balls out and paid it off.  I calcuated I spent over $1800 for that piece of junk that wasn't worth the plastic it was made from after those 2 years....never again.

[Roy]

Used to be that mortgages, as an investment, were as reliable as TBills.  Then they let the speculaters (unregulated investment banks and insurance companies) into the business and things go crazy.  The reason these sectors used to be kept separate was to prevent exactly what's happening now.  Let the investment bankers, and their clients, take all the riskes they want, but keep the mortgage market safe and stable.
Any system needs a baseline, and the credit market no longer has one.  One big default and it screwed up the whole thing.  Noone knows what anything's worth so noone's willing to lend money to keep the system going.
I haven't owed money on anything since 1993, been saving it.  Shoulda spent it all and partied as hard as I could, then let everyone else bail me out.