[Ed Dantes]

Okay, seriously... I consider myself to be educated and informed. But what the heck is going on in the stock market?

When the bailout bill didn't pass the House of Reps, the markets crashed. Stocks began to correct themselves, and then the bailout bill did pass... which caused the markets to crash.

People say it's because of worries over the future of the American economy. BUT -- the dollar is gaining strength and oil prices are falling. Seriously... WTF?

[Hold My Own]

They were saying that the Stock Market predicts whats going to happen in the future...the 300+ you saw was b/c they knew a bill was going to be passed so to not look for a huge gain after.

[Ed Dantes]

They were saying that the Stock Market predicts whats going to happen in the future...the 300+ you saw was b/c they knew a bill was going to be passed so to not look for a huge gain after.

Then why did it drop the first time, after a bill wasn't passed?

[Realist]

The market already had the bailout priced in going in today. Today is a reflection of the markets around the world selling off yesterday, along with multiple bank failures around the globe, and the fact that credit is still frozen and not looking like it's going to be melted anytime soon.

[SumItUp]

Time to look for buying opportunities.

[Realist]

True, IBM is a great buy today.

[Ed Dantes]

So is DOG.

[SumItUp]

So is DOG.

The stock that is rising during a "panic" is not a bargain. It's time to look for solid companies that will weather the storm and rebound later.

[ATrain]

So is DOG.

The stock that is rising during a "panic" is not a bargain. It's time to look for solid companies that will weather the storm and and rebound later.

Yep, companies like Disney, IBM, and others are good.

I also got Anheuser-Busch stock when the talks about InBev began...then it was about $50/share...and sold when it was just a little under $69/share.

[Ed Dantes]

I was kidding, really, about DOG (for those who don't know, it's a stock that goes down when the stocks go up, and vice versa).

In any event, Jim Cramer was talking about how investments are going to lose like, 20 percent of its value. I looked at my portfolio and my YTD return for my portfolio is down 30%. If Cramer is right, I should be in good shape -- I can expect to my portfolio to go up!

Ughhhhhh. I've actually decided to re-allocate my contributions. I normally give 8% of my paycheck to my 403(b) fund, of which my company matches 4%. I'm trimming that back so I only give 4% to the 403(b) (and my company will match that, so I'm already doubling my return), then taking the 4% that I would have put into retirement and I'll move that into a high-interest yielding savings account.

Either way, I figure I'm pretty screwed.

Never let your boss help you pick stocks. As I found out, he has a vested interest in you not retiring early.

[ALUmnus]

Yeah, I just looked at mine today, lots of red across the board. But, hey, now I'm buying undervalued stock.

[JDUB]

i just bought the DIA etf fund. I figured the DOW has to be near a low, so it should be solid with slow growth back up

[Realist]

Pretty much everyone is in the red for the year unless you moved everything to cash about 2 months ago. The thing to do now is keep everything pouring into the stock market rather than keeping it out, unless you think the economy will never recover or you're retiring in a few years. The next few months to a year should be offering a discount.

[belcherboy]

I came back from lunch and the Dow was down 500. I bought Apple at $90 at 1 pm, I think it closed at around $98.

[Hold My Own]

I came back from lunch and the Dow was down 500. I bought Apple at $90 at 1 pm, I think it closed at around $98.

Apple with have a good Christmas as I expect RIM to as well

[Sly Fox]

Wait until the Storm hits the retail outlets. RIM is poised to have a huge holiday season.

[Hold My Own]

It's the iphone for every other network pretty much and their new phones are supposed to be very good

[HenryGale]

What method do you guys use to buy/sell. Online? If so...what do you recommend?

[Sly Fox]

It's the iphone for every other network pretty much and their new phones are supposed to be very good

I'm trying to get Mrs. Sly to hold out until the Storm comes out in a few weeks. But her patience is wearing thin and she may be sporting a new Curve when we arrive in Lynchburg.

[Baldspot]

Realist is right - foreign markets are the concern.

[ATrain]

What method do you guys use to buy/sell. Online? If so...what do you recommend?

I hear good things about E-Trade and TD-Ameritrade

[4everfsu]

Looks like a Blue Christmas this year for a lot of people

[JDUB]

What method do you guys use to buy/sell. Online? If so...what do you recommend?

I hear good things about E-Trade and TD-Ameritrade

zecco. no minimum required but first 10 trades a month are free if you have 2500. i would recommend... a cd for a few months until this thing calms down

[givemethemic]

Don't know where you bank at but... Here in NC, Coastal Federal CU is offering a really good deal... 5.01 APY for your checking account no min and max is $50,000 if you do 12 transactions a month.. (i.e debit card, online payments) They take the avg of your account for each month... This is allows you to earn if you can't afford to totally just sit aside a ton of month that you can't touch in a 6 month or 1,2,3 year CD...

[SuperJon]

This doesn't add much, but I read about it the other day and thought it was kinda cool.

There's a bank in Burlington that is starting an Elon savings account. For every Elon win, your rate goes up by .1%. For every conference championship and playoff win, it goes up by .25%.