This past week, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernacke spoke to a joint Congressional Committee for the economy.  He laid out his outlook for the coming year and the future looks a bit bleak.  If his expected economic slow down occurs, the possibility of a recession may well become reality.

This is all happening while the nation's foreclosure rate continues to climb, with some areas experiencing 10 to 20% forclosure rates in certain low income communities.  Many of these people bought homes for the first time a few years ago when the sub-prime lending boom was in full swing.

The Commerce Department also is offering gloomy news, with a recent report detailing U.S. factory orders down double what was expected.  The two months now reported in 2008, January and February are both significantly down.

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