Gail: It’s certainly possible that there are many more land mines out there. But apart from some Canadian stocks most of my holdings are in broad index funds, which have fallen but not as much as some stocks.

NN: I did read your recommendation to read Fooled by Randomness. I read it a while back and it might be time to borrow the book again from the library.

Phil: China, Russia or other nations are still much smaller than the US economy. And have their own issues to deal with. Still, poor US equity returns are within the realm of possibility.

While I say all this, everyone is still going to drink Coca-Cola, use soap and other products (from JNJ, PG, etc.) and, in fact, may eat more at home (KFT, Tyson Foods, etc.). So why are these stocks continuing to fall? These are the Rembrandts in the rubble that we should be looking for.

CC, are you increasing your index equity positions, in the middle of this quarter at all? Do you strategize for these opportunities (similar to how Swensen changed his asset allocations more frequently in 1987) by buying or reallocating your portfolio more frequently? Have you ever contemplated doing this?

Had I been an investor, my oblivion would have resulted in no long lasting ill effect. I submit that oblivion is probably not a bad state of mind in the current situation either.

Denial: it sure looks like managing your portfolio takes a lot of frequent visits to various websites, to get the latest news hot of the press. You have been kind in providing so many references, so please allow me in turn to refer you to the same books mentioned above, where the good Dr. Taleb puts forward his views on the usefulness of the daily news.

However, when you apply that same phrase to what is going on in the US economy right now, I think it’s quite fitting! I don’t think we’ve seen the entire US financial system teetering so far on the edge like it is since the Great Depression! In fact, based upon the staggering dollar figures being tossed around in the already failed Lehman Bros, Indymac, Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac – and combine them with the likes of Citigroup, National City and other institutions which are dancing on the precipice… We’re talking about countless TRILLIONS of dollars! We’ve NEVER seen that much money go “POOF!” before in the history of our financial markets…

That being said, I do agree with a previous poster on the other thread that we may be watching the sun set on the American empire and their economic dominance. Although all of my new money is getting parked in savings accounts waiting for the plummeting to stop… My regular pension plan contributions are going into a non-USA international index fund as I’m looking for the new dawn of whatever new economic empire will arise out of the ashes of the USA. I am only concerned that it MAY rise in a non-democratic, closed market in a totalitarian regime like China or Russia.