What a year it’s been!

It’s for sure that most of us can’t recall a year like the one that is coming to a close this week.

And most of us would probably agree that’s a good thing.

Even with an historic presidential election that propelled the first African-American candidate to victory as president-elect, the story of the year has to be the economic tailspin the nation and the world experienced.

Little more than a year ago stock market indexes were at all-time highs, and things looked pretty rosy on the economic front.

But 2008 brought rapid-fire bad news. First came zooming oil prices that no one could explain. Was it true demand from emerging nations like India and China, or speculators driving up prices? No one seemed to know. When the price of a barrel of oil was $147, respected commentators predicted it would hit $200.

Everyone despaired of being able to afford to keep on driving to work.

Now buying gas is no problem, provided you’ve got a job to drive to.

What was most disconcerting for the layman had to be the seeming lack of consensus on the causes of what happened next.

In short order the public and congress were told that dollars in amounts difficult to comprehend were necessary to salvage once prospering banking firms, or else things would implode and all would be lost!

That was scary stuff.

And although congress eventually came up with the dough (payable by the means of future taxation) things did seem to implode, particularly the financial markets.

Sturdy savers and methodical investors saw large chunks of their planned retirement savings vanish rather quickly.

Ouch!

Banks refused to loan money, turning away borrowers they would have gladly lent to a year before.

Business slowed, layoffs ensued and the just ended Christmas gift buying season suffered.

Soon 2008 will be in the history books.

Let’s hope 2009 will be better.

                                                   
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