Bad here in Missouri too.  But we knew it was going to get really, really bad.  My hubby has been connected to the building industry in one form or another for most of his professional career.  He lost his job a year ago in October and is still looking.  So for us, when the big hit from the stock market came, didn't matter to us, we had already spent all of our retirement trying to keep the house, the car and put food on the table.  So we already had nothing to lose.

Until they get the home/real estate situation figured out, things won't move.  As homes and manufacturing goes, so goes the economy.  But they haven't figured it out yet. 

We're doing the best we can to try to pay to keep a roof over our heads, we're both of the age that losing our house is NOT an option.  So your priorities go from there. 

I think it's going to get worse, I don't think that any stimulus package the government puts together is going to be the right one. There may be help in it for some, but not for everyone that needs the help that has been effected by this mess...but those in the big DC are so busy filling it with pork that we are all still going to get lost in the shuffle.

It seems not to have hit the health care area too hard...yet.  We have heard (daughter is an RN thank goodness) of some layoffs of nurses in some hospitals around, which I think is absolutely insane, but that probably comes from the result of those that have lost their insurance, get ill anyway and have to be hospitalized and then can't pay the bills.  It happens.  Illness does not care if you have insurance or not and people need to be taken care of. 

Wish I knew the answer, if I did, I'd sure figure out a way to get heard.

I pray and hope for everyone better times!