It's Looking Better!

Over the last few days since my last post the markets have simmered down. That's wonderful!

The feared run on the banks hasn't appeared and the likelihood seems less and less each day as the fear and panic surrounding the financial markets has subsided. The jury is still out on what the long-term effect will be to the US economy of the unprecedented steps taken by the Treasury and the Federal Reserve. But in the short-run they have averted an outright panic and collapse.

Right now is seems that the next step will be a slow, but steady decline in the economy as the losses on Wall Street begin to trickle down to Main Street. Already we're seeing the beginning of a contraction as small businesses are closing in the neighborhood shopping centers. Everyone is pulling back, spending less, going less, doing with less, and the exuberant days of endless spending are gone, at least for a while.

The question is how deep and how long will this last? Is it going to be a deep recession? Are we going to see a Depression? My guess (keeping in mind how tuned my prognostication skills are) is that this will be a pretty deep recession that will take a couple of years at least to turn around. And it'll be longer and deeper if Obama, Pelosi and Reid have control.

So, looks like it's safe to deposit some of your cash back in the bank now, although I think it's always a good idea to have some safely stashed away just in case. Keep an eye on what's happening, digging deeper than the pablum given us by the MSM. There's a lot of great sources of info available at your fingertips on the web. Do a little walking with those fingers and stay informed.