It’s not easy to sit back and watch the Dow drop triple digits in one session.
Feeling panicky? Before making any hasty moves, here are five steps to consider first.
Don't Panic
First and foremost: Stay calm. The worst thing an investor can do is panic and go on a massive selling spree, says Ben Tobias, a Plantation, Fla.-based fee-only certified financial planner. Investors who sell now will turn paper losses into real losses and won't have money invested to recoup those losses when the market rebounds, he says.
And make no bones about it – the broader markets will recover. History has shown that over the long haul the stock market goes up, not down. Indeed, the periods after a crisis are often very robust.
Make Sure You’re Covered
If headlines of bank failures have you eyeing your mattress as your safe haven, take some deep breaths. Chances are the money you have held at your bank is FDIC-insured. If so, even if the bank shuts down, up to $250,000 (per depositor) in a checking or savings account (or $250,000 in retirement accounts such as IRAs or Keoghs) will be covered by the government. (To find out if a bank is FDIC-insured, visit the FDIC web site.) Those who have more than $250,000 in deposits should consider spreading it among several accounts at different FDIC-insured banks. That way, all of your holdings will be covered.
And what about the money you have at your brokerage firm
? In most cases, investors' assets at brokerage firms are safe even if the firm files for bankruptcy or shuts down. All brokerage firms that conduct business in the U.S. are required to be members of the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC), which insures accounts up to $500,000, including cash of up to $100,000 held in brokerage accounts, according to the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA).
In some cases, when a firm runs into trouble, you still may be able to trade or transfer your account – as is the case with Lehman Brothers. Thus far, it hasn’t been necessary for the SIPC to step in. For more, click here.
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11/25/2008
5 Tips: Navigating Today's Troubled Markets
11/21/2008
Dow Plummets Again
U.S. stocks slid and the Standard & Poor's 500 Index plunged to its lowest level in 11 years after economic reports depicted a deepening recession and lawmakers postponed a vote on a plan to salvage the auto industry.
The Standard & Poor's 500 Index extended its 2008 tumble to 49 percent, poised for the worst annual decline in its 80-year history. Chesapeake Energy Corp. and National-Oilwell Varco Inc. slid more than 21 percent as crude sank to a three-year low as the economic slump crushes demand. JPMorgan Chase & Co. tumbled 18 percent and Citigroup Inc. plunged 26 percent as concern the recession will trigger more bankruptcies pushed the cost of insurance against corporate defaults to an all-time high.
``It's an ugly mess out there,'' said Randy Bateman, who oversees $15 billion as chief investment officer of the asset management unit of Huntington Bancshares Inc. in Columbus, Ohio. ``The economy is confirming it is very, very weak.''
The S&P 500 slid 6.7 percent to 752.58, under the low of 776.76 reached during the bear market in 2002. The Dow Jones Industrial Average sank 443.8 points, or 5.6 percent, to 7,553.48. The Nasdaq Composite decreased 5 percent to 1,317.05. Twelve stocks retreated for each that rose on the New York Stock Exchange.
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This Is America: Thursday's Show
Tonight on the November 20 edition on This Is America, with Jon Elliott...
Tonight world-renowned photographer Sebastian Copeland joins Jon to talk about his just released book Antartica: A Call To Action
This is Sebastian's second photographic book on Antarctica and will be a great Christmas gift for all who cherish our planet.
Also regular guest Shannyn Moore joins Jon live from Anchorage and one of Talk Radio News' great journalists tells our listeners the latest in Capitol Hill goings on.
And of course Jon will be taking your calls at 866-303-2270. So make sure to tune in to tonight's jam packed edition of This Is America with Jon Elliott.
You may also dial in and hear the show through Cellecast at 206-400-2860.
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11/07/2008
Videos: Across the Nation Celebration
How is it possible that an election could trigger so much joy? Are there so many political junkies in this country? We're thinking no. What then? Well, there's a bit of "Ding Dong W's Dead" going on. But the rest? Pure phenom.
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Maron v Seder: Is Africa a Country?
Sam Seder and Marc Maron hit the streets to conduct a reality check after the most recent Sarah Palin revelations, and find that most people seem to know a thing or two about continents and stuff.
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7/14/2008
Terrorism officers on patrol in Arizona
John Leptich, TribuneTerrorism liaison officers have been getting a lot of attention in the national press lately. But the bottom line of what they do is basically old-fashioned police work, according to the state police coordinating the effort in Arizona.The TLOs, as they are called, keep their eyes and ears open for any suspicious activity.The [...]
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[Source: Breaking News from WarOnYou.com - Posted by The King Of Videos; VIDZ KING]
Barack Obamas civilian national security force ????
Back on July 2, Barack Obama read his “public service” address, and it contained this line that hasn’t received much notice:“We cannot continue to rely only on our military in order to achieve the national security objectives we’ve set… We’ve got to have a civilian national security force that’s just as powerful, just as strong, [...]
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[Source: Breaking News from WarOnYou.com - Posted by The King Of Videos; VIDZ KING]
US school rebuked for ibuprofen strip search
Wow there really getting ridiculous.
A divided US appeals court has ruled an Arizona school violated the constitutional rights of a 13-year-old student by conducting a strip search for ibuprofen.
Suspecting that a student had violated a policy against prescription or over-the-counter drug...
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[Source: Breaking News from WarOnYou.com - Posted by The King Of Videos; VIDZ KING]
Blimp recruited for interdictions at sea
Blimp recruited for interdictions at sea
THE GOVERNMENT LOOKS TO A LUMBERING BLIMP TO BOOST INTERDICTIONS OFF FLORIDA'S COAST
BOCA CHICA --
The Skyship 600 blimp has been a headturning advertisement for Fuji Film, rock band Pink Floyd and Ron Paul..
Now the 197-foot airship that looks like a gigantic white balloon features only an American flag.
The blimp's latest lessee: the U.S. government.
In a $1.6 million collaborative test project conducted by the Navy, Coast Guard and newly created National Office of Global Maritime Situational Awareness, the blimp has been equipped with radar, sensors and electro-optical infrared cameras to provide six weeks of surveillance of the Florida Straits.
The goal is to catch drug smugglers, immigrant smugglers and environmental law breakers, as well as to aid in search-and-rescue missions at sea.
The test is to determine if the blimp can provide the surveillance information efficiently and economically.
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[Source: Breaking News from WarOnYou.com - Posted by The King Of Videos; VIDZ KING]
7/12/2008
Dropping the peg
An Abu Dhabi policy report makes the case for being rid of the Gulf peg to the dollar
The official position of the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) that the fixed peg to the US dollar will remain in place until monetary union is achieved has never looked entirely convincing. It has suffered a further blow to its credibility with publication of a report by a department of the Abu Dhabi government suggesting that the time has come for a serious rethink of GCC monetary policy, including revaluation and a shift to a basket of international currencies as an exchange-rate reference point.
The report, issued by Abu Dhabi's Department of Planning and Economy (DPE), marks the first time that any government body in the GCC has openly advocated ditching the peg since Kuwait went its own way in early 2007 by tying the Kuwaiti dinar to a currency basket. It is unlikely to presage an immediate change in policy, but it suggests that the option of revaluation during the transition to monetary union could be given serious consideration when GCC finance ministers meet in September, ahead of this year's summit in November. ...
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[Source: Breaking News from WarOnYou.com - Posted by Mint Dollar- The Federal Reserves Worst NightMare]
McCains Econ Brain: America Has Become A Nation Of Whiners And Is Just In A
McCains Econ Brain: America Has Become A Nation Of Whiners And Is Just In A Mental
Thursday, July 10, 2008 In an interview with the Washington Times today, former senator Phil Gramm, who is Sen. John McCains (R-AZ) econ brain, blamed the state...
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[Source: Breaking News from WarOnYou.com - Posted by Mint Dollar- The Federal Reserves Worst NightMare]
Pentagon Pundits Scandal: Ignored
The The New York Times broke a sensational story about the Pentagon’s involvement in a secret plan to influence Iraq War media coverage through paid military pundits, yet the rest of the media has largely ignored this incredibly important revelation. This video by Free Press helps to expose some of the dishonesty of the cable [...]
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[Source: Breaking News from WarOnYou.com - Posted by Mint Dollar- The Federal Reserves Worst NightMare]
Temple dispute
Relations between Cambodia and Thailand may come under strain
On July 7th Cambodia's Preah Vihear temple was designated a World Heritage Site by the UN Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO). This is a major victory for the Cambodian government. The prime minister, Hun Sen, is using the success to build political capital ahead of the general election scheduled for July 27th. However, the issue has also provoked a surge in nationalism in both Cambodia and Thailand, raising serious concerns of another severe breakdown in bilateral ties.
Relations between Cambodia and Thailand have been strained since 2003, when anti-Thai riots erupted in the Cambodian capital, Phnom Penh, after a Thai actress reportedly said that the Angkor Wat temple complex--Cambodia's national symbol--was stolen from Thailand. Now another row is brewing over a different temple. Sovereignty over the Preah Vihear temple, which is located on the two countries' border, has been long been a contentious issue. The core dispute was officially settled in 1962 by the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which determined that the temple belongs to Cambodia. Crucially, however, the ICJ did not rule on the overlapping claims to 4.6 sq km of land surrounding the temple, and the two sides have yet to reach any agreement on the matter. ...
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[Source: Breaking News from WarOnYou.com - Posted by Mint Dollar- The Federal Reserves Worst NightMare]
Pima County, AZ, Transportation Election Was Rigged, According to Affidavit from
Pima County, AZ, Transportation Election Was Rigged, According to Affidavit from County Employee
Pima County, Arizona, Diebold vote tabulation system was manipulated to "pass" a 2006 ballot initiative when, in fact, the measure was actually vote...
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[Source: Breaking News from WarOnYou.com - Posted by Mint Dollar- The Federal Reserves Worst NightMare]
Kenyan shuffle
Kenya's finance minister quits, at least temporarily
Kenya's finance minister has stepped aside, but insists this is only a temporary measure. A long hiatus could prove politically and economically damaging.
The Kenyan finance minister, Amos Kimunya, stepped aside on July 8th pending an investigation into the sale of the Grand Regency hotel. The hotel was sold to Libyan buyers without a public bidding process and for some US$45m, as against a recorded value of US$115m. The finance minister had insisted that he would not resign unless other politicians--including the prime minister, Raila Odinga--did likewise, but Mr Kimunya's position was judged untenable after he lost a parliamentary vote of no-confidence over the issue and a government inquiry led by the attorney-general recommended his suspension. ...
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[Source: Breaking News from WarOnYou.com - Posted by Mint Dollar- The Federal Reserves Worst NightMare]
Federal judges decision renders Bush a felon
Last night on MSNBC’s Coundown, George Washington law professor Jonathan Turley noted that just this week, a federal judge rejected President Bush’s claim that his “constitutional authority as commander in chief trumped” the FISA wiretapping law. Judge Vaughn Walker explicitly stated that the President is bound by FISACongress appears clearly to have intended to [...]
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[Source: Breaking News from WarOnYou.com - Posted by Mint Dollar- The Federal Reserves Worst NightMare]
7/05/2008
McCain on McCain's Lack Of Economic Knowledge
McCain on McCain's Lack Of Economic Knowledge
Source: MSNBC Countdown with Olbermann 07/02/2008
New Zealand's economy
Rising inflation and fears of a recession
New Zealand's economy contracted in the first quarter of 2008, raising fears of a recession and adding to the general atmosphere of gloom caused by a cooling housing market, high interest rates and rising inflation. The weakening economic outlook increases the problems facing the Labour government as it seeks re-election later in 2008.
Data from Statistics New Zealand, a government agency, published on June 27th show an almost uniformly abysmal economic performance in January-March 2008. On an output basis--the government's preferred measure because it is less volatile than expenditure-based GDP--the economy contracted by 0.3% in real terms from the previous quarter. This was the first contraction since late 2005, made worse by the fact that the previous quarter's growth rate was revised down from 1% to 0.8%. The economy's performance in expenditure terms was even poorer, with real GDP contracting by 0.6% after a gain of 0.5% in the October-December quarter. ...
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[Source: Breaking News from WarOnYou.com - Posted by Mint Dollar- The Federal Reserves Worst NightMare]
Upheaval in Mongolia
Allegations of electoral fraud lead to riots in Mongolia and the declaration of a state of emergency
On July 1st Mongolia's president, Nambarin Enkhbayar, declared a four-day state of emergency. Violence broke out after unofficial results showed that the ruling Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party (MPRP) had won a clear majority in the June 29th elections. Although international observers have reportedly said that the elections were free and fair, the opposition Democratic Party (DP) has accused the MPRP of electoral fraud and rejected the unofficial tally.
It is too early to tell whether the protests will escalate into a full-blown political crisis. It is clear, however, that Mongolia can ill afford a prolonged period of political instability. The government urgently needs to tackle the country's economic problems, especially endemic poverty and a recent spike in inflation, and to approve legislation that is expected to result in huge foreign investments in the mining sector. Meanwhile, political uncertainty could also alienate foreign donors who have been eager to support the fledgling democracy. ...
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[Source: Breaking News from WarOnYou.com - Posted by Mint Dollar- The Federal Reserves Worst NightMare]
5 Ways to Unload a Gas-Guzzling SUV
How to quickly unload your gas guzzler without taking too much of a financial hit.
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[Source: Breaking News from WarOnYou.com - Posted by Mint Dollar- The Federal Reserves Worst NightMare]
