In the week following the last-minute debt deal, the stock markets plummeted, giving many flashbacks to the dark days of the 2008 financial crash. The steep dive took place Thursday, when the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 513 points, or 4.3%, which doesn’t sound like that much, but it’s a lot, a lot, a lot. In fact, it’s the biggest one-day percent drop in the past 2 years. The other averages that are used to measure the stock market, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq, fell by 4.8% and 5.1% respectively that day. This obviously isn’t good news for our not-so-hot economy, as the stock market is used to predict what will happen financially in the future, and you can bet this will be THE (somewhat boring, but important) topic on the tongues of the Republican presidential candidates.

“Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty,” an exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, closed yesterday with record-breaking attendance numbers. The exhibit featured some of the McQueen’s most iconic designs, including Lady Gaga’s favorite- the lobster claw shoes. The museum confirmed that over 625,000 people viewed the pieces, making it the most viewed fashion exhibit in the history of the museum and placing it among the Met’s “top 20 blockbusters”. The show was extended twice to accommodate the crowds, and on the final 2 days, the museum stayed open till midnight. There were so many people that the wait to get in was as long as 3 hours.

Hosni Mubarak, the toppled, former president of Egypt, began trial on Wednesday on charges of corruption and complicity in the killing of protesters. Before his presidency ended in February at the hands of a youth-led revolution, Mubarak was the longest reigning leader of modern Egypt. For many, the image of Mubarak in prison whites, wheeled into the court-room on a stretcher, symbolized how far the nation has come from when it was in his oftentimes tyrannical grasp. Despite the solemnity of the proceedings, things took a somewhat chaotic, bizarre turn as the 30 (yes, 30!) attorneys representing the families of deceased protesters fought for the judge’s attention (not to mention the 130 waiting outside). One of these lawyers suggested that, in fact, the man in the courtroom wasn’t Mubarak but rather a clone or look-a-like, and that the real Mubarak had died in 2004. Another surprising turn? A recording of the defendant saying “I completely deny all these charges” quickly became a popular, downloadable ringtone. Can you imagine hearing that go off in the middle of class?

Outkast’s Big Boi, a.k.a. Antwan Patton, was arrested for drug charges on Sunday. The rapper was shaking like a polaroid picture (sorry…) when he was taken into custody by Miami police. Airport officials searched his luggage and found ecstasy, MDMA (the technical term for molly), and illegally obtained Viagra. His lawyer claims the drugs belonged to Big Boi’s entourage, who probably won’t be his entourage anymore after hearing how he threw them under the bus! Bail was set at $16,000- chump change for the famous artist.

Pic o’ the Week:

Photo Credit: AFP

Angered over the death of a 29-year-old cab passenger during a police traffic stop, protests spread across Tottenham, a district of London, on Saturday night. Several buildings, shops, and cars were destroyed and 55 people were arrested.

And now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, let’s put the beer down and really take a look at our fearless leader.

Unlike the seemingly general population, I am not an Obama fan. Let me rephrase that: I am not a political Obama fan.

[DISCLAIMER: these are my opinions. I’m a headstrong, non-poli sci major who’s just as entitled to my way of thinking as everybody else is, so hear me out. Before you begin your siege on my political thinking, give me a chance to do some explaining.]

Like any other American, there are some major issues that I place a higher value on than others. Though I didn’t vote for Obama in the election, I did happen to agree with him on two of my most important personal issues: stem cell research and investing in infrastructure. My younger sister has had type 1 diabetes for the past 12 years. Growing up with my (then) six-year-old sister having to constantly worry about her health and poke herself with needles has certainly made an impact on me. When I grew up and learned that there was a way for her to live a happier, more hassle free life, educating myself and advocating for this research became very important to my family and myself.

When President Obama pledged to lift the ban on research and allow more funding for it, I was simply ecstatic.

Similarly,  I think the infrastructure of our country is one of the most basic components to our success, hence the civil engineering degree I’m currently pursuing. When he pledged billions of dollars toward creating jobs in the field (yay!) I was, again, thrilled. This money and those jobs created would someday lead to my future career success, so I was naturally in full support of what he had to say. He promised 2.5 million jobs. How could anyone, especially in this economy, not get behind that?

But what’s come of it all now?

As far as stem cell research, he’s made some baby steps in what could be one of the biggest scientific fields of the future with the potential to save countless lives year in and year out. He lifted the ban on the research, yet hasn’t put any money toward it. And that’s….it. What has he done about infrastructure? And all those jobs? And the unemployment rate?

Maybe I’m misreading all the signs (stock market, housing market, job market…), but it seems Obama hasn’t fulfilled any of his promises to America. To his credit, Obama has tackled a very important issue, making major progress in integrating “gays” into the army with no questions asked. But that’s the biggest change we’ve seen.

Where’s all that so-called “change we can believe in”?

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to hate on our president; I think he’d be a great guy to grab a beer with. Maybe we could even have a doggie play date or grab Michelle and hit up JCrew. But as far as leading this country and fixing the system he deemed to be broken, well, President Obama is definitely falling short.

President Obama is definitely Presidential material -  he’s got charisma and an uncanny ability to captivate audiences, he is a brilliant and well educated, he’s overcome many difficulties in his life and he’s worked very hard to get to where he is now. I do believe he can bring some change to our country and get us all to rally behind him, I’m just hoping the next three years are more progressive than his first.

The stock market is low. Really effing low. The lowest it’s been in a long ass time.

And people are freaking out.

So, in an effort to ease people’s minds, George Bush spoke. He interrupted my morning dose of Ellen Degeneres for about 7 minutes to explain what is going on and how the US Government is going to fix it. But that 7 minutes can be summed up in 2 simple sentences:

Things are bad – we caused the economy to decline worldwide – but they are going to get better. Just chill the eff out.

So, let’s relax, people. Forget about your money in the bank, your student loans, and the fact that you can’t afford your Easy Mac. Grab a bottle of your favorite (cheap) vodka, kick back on your couch and chillax.

Everything is gonna be ok!

I am no economist so I can’t tell you exactly what is gonna happen next, but it looks like we won’t have to stock up on the canned goods for now!

So get out there and celebrate the fact that the stock market isn’t crashing, your student loans are still available and all that money you have in the bank is safe for another keg.

(We’re still a little confused.)

According to Bloomberg.com, Obama and McCain had been discussing the possibility of postponing their campaigns, but McCain’s announcement this evening caught Obama off-guard.  By being the first one to pull the plug, McCain has put Obama in a tricky situation; either he stops campaigning too, or continues and risks being seen as not focused enough on the economy.

McCain seems to want to help Congress figure out how to pass Bush’s $700 billion “save the stock market and morgages” proposal. Perhaps he wants to brainstorm in the room with everyone?  It could be that he’s decided to sell one of his houses and donate the money to our ginormous deficit.  Or, maybe he’s secretly auctioning off Cindy’s $300,000 popped collar outfit.

If you want our advice Johnny, start with the dress.  It’s kind of hideous.

[photo from www.thewashingtonnote.com]

So when on Monday, March 17th, as I drove up to visit my dad I heard the NPR Marketplace analyst use the term Black Monday and Great Depression to describe the worries surrounding the current downward spin of the Stock Market of which the Bear Sterns crisis was simply the latest manifestation, my heart skipped a beat.

I’m about to head off to grad school this fall, I thought…my whole life is ahead of me…and suddenly my mind inserted my face into the Dorothea Lange photo desolation, destruction, depression…the end.

Okay yeah…so I’m a bit dramatic (very dramatic), but chances are you shared at least a bit of the panic I felt last Monday. The truth is, however, that the economy is far from the state of the 1929 crash but it is important to know what’s going on and how you should react in order to protect yourself.

The Economist’s lead article this week is a great analysis of the situation. They trace the current collapse back to the dotcom bubble burst in 2001. While overall the American GDP (Gross Domestic Product—the number economists use to calculate a country’s economic trajectory) has weakened, financial services have continued. Meaning that even as the economy slowed down (you and I see this most through the growing scarcity of jobs) claims on future clash flows continued (loans, credit card debit, etc.).

One major example of this is the housing crisis caused by bad mortgages. You may have heard of the term “subprime mortgage” linked to the recent downturn. A subprime mortgage means that the mortgage rate is adjustable. Often the initial mortgage rate is low but increases over time. They are given to buyers who don’t qualify for market interest rates due to their credit history or lack of constant income.

During the past few years, housing prices have doubled and tripled, leading many of these buyers to believe that they could refinance their house in the future if they even found themselves unable to pay their mortgage bill. Suddenly, last summer, all of the real rates for the subprime mortgages kicked in and across the country home owners defaulted on their payments. This sparked a domino effect that, as this past week demonstrated, is affecting all levels of the US economy.

Bear Sterns, one of the big Wall Street companies, underwrote much of the mortgage market within the US. On Monday, JP Morgan Chase bought the company and their credit obligations for only $2 a share less than one tenth of the previous weeks’ market price.

As my previous two articles on the Recession discussed, economic slowdowns affect everyone. Across the country, for example, the price of food is increasing. Reuters quotes Bob Goldin, executive vice president of food research firm Technomic Inc, saying that the food industry is facing a “perfect storm” right now in that lowered consumer demand is coinciding with a rise in the cost of doing business.

Best advice?

1.) Don’t Panic

2.) Diversify your employment—try to get some source of independent income

3.) Save, Save, SAVE! Even if it’s only a few dollars a week.

4.) Avoid using your credit cards as much as possible and carefully examine your student loan terms to make sure you can handle the payments.

[Have any more economic questions for Suzie? Ask 'em here!]

You know what I love doing after a nice, long, relaxing weekend? Waking up to the sound of bells ringing and sweating Wallstreet dudes screaming from the rooftops.

That’s right. The stock market is falling. Faster than the drunken hook-ups at Sundance, faster than the disappearance of Amy Winehouse’s crack stash—just…fast.

Some people think we’re headed into a recession. Which is just the kind of news I love to hear after receiving my first monstrous student loan bill in the mail.

Those who enjoy depressing themselves can go to CNN for updates.