The carnage continues. I do think it's a good time to start looking for smart buys (e.g. market cap near book value).

Quoted: A late-day decline once again pushed the markets down sharply, with the Dow falling more than 500 points.

This either represents denial or reality, depending on your perspective. In any case, maybe it brightens your day:)

Quoted: All is not lost. If you, like me, run a technology startup, then you are in a better position than most to weather, and even profit, from the coming recession. Here’s why:

Futures are pointing to another down day in the U.S. markets today.

Quoted: "Investors are now afraid that the world is going to enter a depression," said Jesper Koll with Tantallon Capitol Research in Tokyo.
...
"Japan is a leading indicator for the world economy and prospects for the world economy are not for a soft landing," Koll said. "They are for a recession, if not a depression."

The fall of WaMu is sad because it was the bank I grew up with as a child, when they'd send reps to my school to collect my $1/week and to teach me about responsible saving. It really was the neighborhood bank that will now be swallowed whole by a banking conglomerate which will likely rebrand the entire WaMu institution.

I don't think the effects on Seattle will be as devastating as this author suggests, though. Though it will cause layoffs, restructuring and the like, WaMu's general banking infrastructure should remain. I do feel terribly for the many employees that are headed for layoffs though, as their career has been, and will continue to be for a while, quite up-in-the-air.

A summary of what's happening with the Wall Street bailout, in plain, simple English.