This might be such a boring topic that no one will want to comment, but here goes...

All my life I've heard ads on the radio saying things like, "Buy NOW with $0 down. Make your first payment in 2010". This week the public has suddenly developed "financial jitters" and the American stock market has lost 10% of it's value in four days. Oops.

My first question is, why the sudden panic? Is this the first time in 20 years that someone's realized that taking out a colossal loan when you have no source of income might not be a good idea?

My second question involves the federal reserve bank. Everyone seems to be hoping that the bank will stop the stock market slide by lowering interest rates. So what if they DID lower interest rates? Isn't that just postponing the dismal reality that 50% of the public has spent $200,000 that they have no hopes of ever owning?

I would be the first person to admit that I don't understand international finance but at the moment it just seems like the biggest pile of bunk in the history of civilization. Can anyone here enlighten me?

Maybe this is manifestation of the sh** hitting the fan.

Would it still be possible for the world to have a Great Depression (like the one in the 1930's)?

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