DOW drops 633 to 8624... starting to get really terrifying at this point....

[RollWithIt]

Sell orders overwhelming afternoon trading. It appears at this point that the selling isn't following a rational pattern anymore. It's just a panic state.

[Bill219]

1. What the hell is going on???

Isn't there supposed to be some level where the brakes are supposed to kick in

[kayakjohnny]

2. That's what I thought.

[ejpoeta]

16. maybe the republicans got rid of that too. oye.

why is there no confidence right now!!??!! /sarcasm

[MadrasT]

23. First breaker is -1100 right now.

[DJ13]

3. Nah, not enough decline to trip the market circuit breakers

When that happens, THEN its terrifying.

[Pale Blue Dot]

26. So 3000 pts in the past couple of weeks isn't terrifying?

You and I have vastly different definitions of that word.

[elocs]

4. Thank god I am out of the market, having moved everything to T-bonds.

The last time I did this was in August of 2001 and it turned out to be a very good decision.

[LSparkle]

6. I agree with you -- all of my 401(k) is in a regular savings account at this point

My friends have been laughing at me but no more ...

[GoesTo11]

14. Good for you guys

I've been saving as much as I can year after year, but kept the "recommended" mix of assets. Now I'm down about 2 or 3 years salary. Maybe the market will bounce back. Maybe I will work 2 or 3 years more. Maybe I will take up smoking so I have 2-3 years less of retirement to have to pay for.

[LSparkle]

18. It will come back ... especially with a President Obama

Just psychologically I think his election will be a huge lift
for the nation and the world.

[Moody]

30. I agree, but I thought with his numbers going up in the polls

there would be an increase in confidence in the market. Wonder what triggers this rapid decline today.

[GoesTo11]

32. I sure hope so

Something like that happened when Clinton won. Now there's more than just psychology. There are huge problems. With Bush a lame duck, the US can't really fix them. Obama is the right person to be there to try to fix them - it will involve international cooperation and leadership and brains. Anyway, I'm staying in figuring that the world's companies can't really be worth just over half what they were a couple of months ago.

But I'm also viewing this as changing what my life plans look like. Not just little things like cafe lattes. Plans for kids college, plans for finding a moonlighting career, plans to move out of my house to take its equity earlier in life than I would otherwise.

[LSparkle]

5. Unbelievable ... this is really bad ...

When does the trading day end? Ten minutes?

[Turbineguy]

7. It must be about time

for Britney Spears to go into rehab again.

[gravity]

8. Capitulation

Traders have been waiting for this day for months. It signals the bottom of a market, so it gives a reason for people to start buying again

[2speak]

9. Very optimistic....we shall see.

[gravity]

20. If it opens lower tomorrow, I would buy

You have to wait for the point of maximum pain, where everyone gives up

[rockymountaindem]

29. Except we've had three capitulation days just this week

I feel like total shit at the moment.

[Javaman]

10. okay, I'm aware that if the market drops something like 1100 points before 2:30pm

it's stops trading.

but we have seen a major ass slide over the course of 3 weeks and no one is saying, "hmmmm, you know, just because the market hasn't slammed into the floor before 2:30pm, but yet has slid into the crapper over these last few weeks, maybe we should suspend trading?"

naaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa...

[kentuck]

11. The reality has rolled in....

like a Hurricane. When do they start jumping??

[Geek_Girl]

12. The credit crisis is getting worse

and the stock market is responding

[spinbaby]

13. We're getting a bit of a bounce off the bottom

We may close only 500 down.

[TahitiNut]

15. Bears covering shorts at the end of the day ... says it'll continue tomorrow.

That "dead cat bounce" in the last 5-10 minutes is the signature of end-of-day short covers. It's highly likely that the close will resolve to about 600 down as the ticker catches up to the HUGE end-of-day spike in volume. The short covers tend to mask the outright sales ... investors heading for the bond hills.

[Parker CA]

17. Looks like the final tally after closing trades will be in the -650 mark.

[spinbaby]

19. So much for 500

I've got a sharp pain in my 401k.

[TahitiNut]

21. Yup. The volume has been spiking like mad at the end of the day.

Dumps.

[Parker CA]

27. Well, I undershot that estimate. Heading to -680. Everyone looking forward to Friday? Sheesh n/t.

[NNN0LHI]

22. - 675 and still dropping after the bell

[depakid]

24. The thing about panic behavior is that is only lasts so long

It's not sustainable- any more than exuberance is.

When I hear things about people buying safes- or hoarding food, etc., my thoughts usually are- hows that food going to look come next spring?

Not very appetizing.

Look, right now, we have an idiot in the Whitehouse- but that's going to change, as are the policies that put us all here in the first place.

As for accountability- that will come too, in time and by mechanisms tried and true- not by lynch mobs.

[adamuu]

31. The market can remain irrational longer than the investor can remain solvent. n/t

[Barack_America]

25. It will close below 8600.

Holy shit.

[fascisthunter]

28. ahhh... Just Roll with It