A number to remember...

This statistic pole-axed me for a few minutes.

It has been a year of record misery: the largest bankruptcy, bank failure and Ponzi scheme in U.S. history; $720 billion in writedowns and losses by financial institutions; $30.1 trillion in market valuation wiped out.
The biggest loss and the hardest thing to recover, though, may be something that can’t be precisely measured -- confidence in the markets and the firms that rely on them. [More]

By following the link in the quote, you can also get acquainted with The World Exchange Market Capitalization quote.

THIRTY TRILLION DOLLARS.  Of course, much of that wealth was over-estimated to begin with, but a 50% drop in value changes the future for all of us in one way or another.

The trailing indicator for the economy is employment.  And my feeling is this is when farmers will become more interested - as landowners, family members, children, and spouses lose a paycheck.

And sadly, access to health insurance.