Freefallin’

Anyone who tracked the Dow over the last 1.5 hours before the closing bell this afternoon was privy to some amazing fireworks.

The Dow plunged 679 points (more than seven percent) to close below 9,000 for the first time in 5 years.  For most of the day the Dow hovered at the 9,200 mark.  In what can only be deemed as a sudden rash of stock sales, the Dow closed at 8,579.19.

Various media outlets have all tried to predict when the market will bottom out, so that savvy investors can “buy low and long” to replenish their portfolios.

However, with today’s sudden drop off, when the Dow will hit rock bottom is anyone’s guess.  In seven sessions the Dow has fallen nearly 2,000 points, and there is no end in sight to the madness.

What can be done to retain investor confidence in the market and reverse this trend?

Perhaps once companies are able to obtain funds from the still-frozen credit markets, people will feel more secure in purchasing stock?  Or perhaps once companies get liquidity from the Fed buying up commercial paper?  Maybe if the discount rate at which banks can conduct intra-lending drops even lower?

Regardless, until that momentum shifting event occurs many people, such as myself, will continue to cash out and watch the fireworks from the sideline.

ACORN busted

Nevada state authorities conducted a raid on ACORN offices this week, with reports of canvassers filling out forms with fake names, address, and using celebrity profiles.  After noticing that names and addresses on the forms did not match, and that members of the Dallas Cowboys (such as quarterback Tony Romo and wideout Terrell Owens) were allegedly registering to vote in Nevada.

This is despicable.

Apparently this type of registration fraud is resultant of quotas that are enacted at organizations such as ACORN, which requires employees to enlist 20 voters per day.

Quotas?  Really?

Are these the kinds of games that the liberals have to play to ensure victory in November – with ACORN having already officially endorsed Senator Barack Obama in the presidential election?

On top of this latest scandal, ACORN was one of the key organizations that forced the hands of politicians to deregulate Wall Street so that lending institutions could approve subprime mortgages for low-income and minority wage earners – leading us to the mess we have today.

Groups like ACORN have a place in today’s society.  But with the corruption occuring from top to bottom, it is time to blow up the system and start anew.

Update: It’s not just Nevada! This is a nationwide epidemic that must be addressed immediately.  Senator Obama needs to go public and denounce such activity immediately.