Correction or Depression

Yesterday's bloodbath in the markets may be a one-off or a harbinger of terrible things. If it is a temporary hiccup, it is one that claimed a trillion dollars or so of wealth. If it is the opening salvo of a cannonade of economic horror, it could signal the start of a panic. It could deepen recession, although manipulated figures pretend that we are not in recession. In the worst case, it could be the start of a 1929-style great depression. Time will obviously tell whether this is a blip or a catyclysm, but it will not be Washington or the Fed that saves us from anything.