My mother would have loved this market. She was probably one of the most perpetually depressed human beings that ever lived and was the constant source of negative news. A perfect fit for the current stock market. Just when signs that the credit crunch was easing up a bit, the worry about a recession has now become the worry du jour. Earnings are horrible (not really), the consumer is moribund (probably right), and the housing market is still in the tank (totally agree). Not surprisingly the market was terrible yesterday as more and more large companies signaled poorer fourth quarter prospects and began laying off workers. Surprise, there is a recession coming! My mother would be terming it a "depression", but we are not so sure. The decline in oil prices will in my view temper the depression scenario. Not prevent it, but make the coming recession less severe. Many stocks are now very attractively priced. I think this is a good time to be searching for opportunity. Sorry Mom, things are not really that bad!