Chris,
Well said and welcome back to the ratrace,
Thanks biaeghh but to be fair I don't think I ever left it, I think there may be a misunderstanding about the level of pessimism that us grumpies have.
Long term I think we will come through the storm in pretty good shape as long as the government uses its recently purchased position wisely. We still have quite a long way to go though imo (exactly how far I don't no).
WWW is entitled to his own opinion (more than I am in the context of this board) and although I think he makes some good points I tend to go with the slightly more positive view of the senior fund managers and banking cheifs that things aren't quite as bad as some of the extremists would have us believe.
It's probably wise to brace for more shocks in the coming months and keep our fingers crossed that Anthony Boltons prediction is correct and that the (long road) to recovery starts with the banks.