Blue Lips

So, ...the market finally bottomed. I predicted this. The world's top economists kept saying the market might hit bottom in about six months. They are all so wishy-washy. I said one to two months at most. It is Friday but not Friday the 13th. If it were, people would be more panicky than they already are. Courage is in very short supply nowadays. Now is the time to start having a good time. Prices are coming down - gasoline is a lot cheaper, too. There was this Harvard economist on NPR trying to explain why deflation is a bad thing. He just beat around the bush for ten minutes and didn't say a thing. Enjoy falling prices while they last.

Hemlines coming down

So, what happens now??? This is turning out to be a bigger financial mess than anyone ever anticipated. The bailout bill has been approved, the Federal Reserve is stepping in with huge amounts of money to help bolster the credit markets (the banks), President Bush is making speeches to reassure the public and still the market tumbles. Am I the only one who has not panicked??? Fear is gripping the populace - big investors are playing it safe. Huge sums are going abroad. I have said it before - there is absolutely no reason to panic. What everyone of you should be doing is buying huge amounts of stock - now that they are so cheap. They can only go up. In the meantime, since the economy is drifting downward, so will hemlines. I don't know if I like that.

FEAR

So, the stock market is still falling despite the bailout legislation? The country (and the world) is saturated with economists - some great and famous - yet, only a very, very few predicted the credit disaster. Those who did were not paid attention to. Credit is driven by confidence and trust. Everyone knows that. When confidence wanes, leaving a vacuum, fear starts to take its place. People see doom and gloom behind every tree and around every corner. Politicians are scrambling to settle things down. Even the State of California is asking for a bailout. It seems nothing was learned from Great Depression days. I believe things will actually get better, but what will now happen is that people of all stripes will look to government for solutions. That means government control and power will grow tremendously. Here, it will be liberal power - sharply toward the left. The virus is in Europe also. There, the power will shift toward the right. That's my best guess. What do I know? Get a second opinion.

Hemlines going up

After tomorrow, when the bailout plan is approved, hemlines will start going up again. They say that good economic times tend to raise hemlines on women's dresses or skirts. Who really knows? Of course, if the little plan doesn't get approved, then the hemlines will drop - probably all the way to the floor. It won't make too much difference to me either way - my eyesight is not terribly good. I would need to get really close to notice the difference.

Lehman Brothers

Lehman Brothers is a New York based financial services bank which is about to go out of business, like Bear Stearns and Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac before it. That's what happens when you play fast and loose with money, just because you want to maximize profits (i.e., when you get greedy). Lehman had been around since 1850 and had been buffeted by bad turns of events - including bad management and the Great Depression - many times. It had survived by merging or striking deals with other firms - Goldman Sachs, E.F. Hutton, and American Express among others. Now this. It's up for sale if you're interested. I predict another Federal bailout. Who will bail out the Federals?