As the IRA tanks...

I do love my country (in my own way), but it is no tragedy that american-capitalism-is-dead-the-culprit-america. Speaking as someone with minimal macroeconomic literacy, it makes sense to me that it is foolish to worship markets (baa-aaa-aaa-l). They should be regarded as and used as tools.

Your IRA, if you have one, is a tool -- realize it doesn't have one handle, though, but a billion tangled handles. You could choose the BIG handle pointed at you (e.g., "Fidelity 2030" age-indexed type fund), in which case you are joined to a million other hands. Or not.

My worthless investment advice to those foolish enought to keep reading... when the market bottoms, really bottoms, make investments you feel good about -- try some socially responsible investing (SRI). SRI funds may not perform as well during booms, but when things go south you can feel better about the ship you are going down with... Maybe there was some lonely fund out there whose charter required that it shun sub-prime lenders. SRI may be due for a version 2.0 upgrade -- perhaps some legislation and/or self-regulation that recognizes a fundamental difference from run-of-the-mill market worship.

Similarly, if after the recession you are shopping for a loan or a mortgage, try a local bank or credit union that invests locally. Again, you may not get the lowest rate or the most free stuff -- maybe you borrow less money -- but it's not always about the money...