When the election euphoria ends, the markets and investors have to face reality about the economy.

So how about that bond market, huh? Surely those smart guys are getting with the idea that expectations for the economy have bottomed and everything's going to be OK pretty soon, right? Umm, sorry. Not so much.

So why can't the market get going in a meaningful way despite seemingly low valuations? The simple answer is that prospects for the economy are weak and getting weaker.

The past 30 days were really a truly amazing stretch of time in market history. Take a deep breath and congratulate yourself for living through it, particularly if you have been following our advice here to keep 75% of your investable funds in cash and did not see a fifth of your net worth eroded.

Panic is driving the action on the exchanges, but there are ways to avoid the mayhem.

Stocks fell hard over the past month, with the U.S. indexes are off around 25%, while London (EWU) is down 30%, China's market (FXI) is off 35% and Latin America (ILF) is down 45%. Yes, that's one month.

This past weekend I saw an increase in the number of institutional investors or researchers that I consider to be smart making forecasts that the 2008 bear market is either over, or nearly over.

David Kotok of Cumberland Advisors, whom I respect, is one of the veterans making the call that it's time to ease back in stocks. He makes the case that we've just suffered a secular bear market, but government has acted fast enough to avoid a devastating bear.

Long-only money managers are urging investors to play the coming bottom. Before you become a lemming, check out this S&P math.

Stocks pulled a U-turn on the road to oblivion this week, as the major indexes apparently decided it was not the right day for a total meltdown. Yet breadth was terrible, volume was poor and selling pressure was strong.

The "world's greatest investor" is out there buying stocks now. Should you follow his lead?

One of the most fascinating sectors right now are the oil and gas producers, who have been bucking the downward trend in crude oil.

One of the most fascinating sectors right now are the oil and gas producers, who have been bucking the downward trend in crude oil.

The tremendous volatility in recent weeks has befuddled and confused a lot of traders. There are a lot of benign explanations for it, but today I would like to throw one at you that is a bit more austere.

Stocks turned in their best performance in more than a month last week, leading many observers to believe at least an intermediate-term bottom is being formed, messily and noisily.

Benchmark bank rate is telling bank watchers that credit remains tight.

Whenever you see a massive move higher, is there any way you can be sure the market has made a bottom?