Thanks to the 24/7 news cycle that announces every mosquito bite as "BREAKING NEWS" we are all too familiar with how much the stocks have plummetted. But, that is merely the symptom, and is one hell of a distraction from what ought to really worry everybody on the planet: money is getting tight.
In "Hello, Dolly!"--yes, nothing like quoting from musicals while understanding crises!--Dolly Levi quotes her late husband: "Money, pardon the expression, is like manure. It's not worth a thing unless it's spread around encouraging young things to grow."
That is exactly what banking does--makes sure that the manure is spread around. With the economic crisis, there is pretty much no money to go around. Bernanke and Paulson, and central bankers around the world are trying their best to infuse liquidity into the system. But, doggone it, we are bloody scared to lend our money to anybody anymore. Which is why auto dealerships are closing down--no credit available. Even grain exports are stalling because of distrust in any piece of paper promising payment. So, forget the market indices for now. That is a symptom and not the problem.
About 2:30 into this YouTube clip, you will see Horace Vandergelder (Walter Matthau) say that very line about money and manure, which is when Dolly (Barbra Streisand) says she is ready to marry him :-)
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