One of the questions that many have right, fresh off Thanksgiving, is whether the coming mortgage slump will effect the economy. With 2 million foreclosures expected by 2009, the effects of reduced disposable income, and an inability to pay bills with resetting mortgages, is expected to cause serious problems. CNN Money reports on the economy and the mortgage slump:

"We haven’t faced a downturn like this since the Depression," said
Bill Gross, chief investment officer of PIMCO, the world’s biggest bond
fund. He’s not suggesting anything like those terrible times _ but, as
an expert on the global credit crisis, he speaks with authority.

"Its
effect on consumption, its effect on future lending attitudes, could
bring us close to the zero line in terms of economic growth," he said.
"It does keep me up at night."