Oh By the Way... Banks Still in Crisis

A little lost in all the inauguration coverage is what occurred in the financial markets today. While the focus is on the celebration of a new president, and a new hope for the nation, we have quite a crisis on hand here to deal with. To many, this isn't really new news, but I don't think a lot of folks grasp how serious this is. Bank stocks were just destroyed today, with big banks like Citigroup and Bank of America reaching levels not seen in over 15 years. I'm no expert economist by any means, but I do know investors are not stupid. These giants are still in huge trouble. The bailout (your tax dollars and mine) is a failure, and I don't think the banks or even some of the politicians are being up front about how big the problem is. It seems that nothing short of nationalizing these banks (gasp) will prevent them from failing... a big undertaking.

Moral of the story, the worst of the economy likely is not here yet, so the government had better try to come up with solutions fast, at least as best they can. Economies to a large degree are cyclical, and are going to have ups and downs regardless of anything the government does. In the meantime, let's all just hope we still have a job in a few months. I know I for one don't feel all that safe.