You can’t take it! …Economic update.

Last week started out with the stock markets doing the happy dance after May’s surprising increase in retail spending. We were out shopping with our government rebate checks at Wal-Mart and Costco. The markets also loved the hawkish remarks from Ben Bernanke, Fed chairman, about the economy and the dollar, sending the stock market on a three day spree. Friday, things got ugly. Stocks took a nasty spill after the employment numbers told the story of the unemployed, the highest level since October, 2004 and the scariest increase in 22 years. Another jump in oil prices had the soothsayers rethinking the Fed statement earlier of raising rates. After a month of quiet time, the financial institutions got back in the news with Lehman Brothers, having lost over 53% of their stock value since last year, whispering the Bear Stearns mantra of bail out.