Most people think the economy will muddle through somehow, thanks to all those geniuses working at the Department of the Treasury and the Fed. Dream on!

The trouble is unemployment and the economy are consistent with a depression -- especially a depression that the feds are fighting every inch of the way.

If the market wanted to crash, it would have plenty of reasons to do so.

When the financial industry schemes and canoodles, it invariably leads to disaster.

How did the '70s period end? Inflation increased and the Dow sank. It didn’t hit its final low until August 1982. But at that point, stocks were undeniably cheap. You could buy the Dow for about 5 times earnings.

Congress is supposed to confront the problems of the nation and solve them. But with more people getting something from the government than supporting it, Congress is not likely to change course.

No lobbyist left behind! That's the new motto of the whole Washington establishment.  Every spending bill has something in it for everybody.

The Greeks are in a jam. The Hellenic deficit has risen to 12.7% of GDP, sending the cost of funding to nearly 7% for a 10-year loan. As the cost of money rose, so did Greece’s troubles. Each additional basis point of borrowing cost pushed the budget further out of balance.

The inflation numbers are coming in higher than expected. At some point, Mr. Bernanke will have to raise rates to stop inflation. But we suspect that that will not happen any time soon. We have a depression to live through first.

The Greeks are in a jam. They spent too much money in the bubble years. Then, they saw their tax revenues disappear in the bust.