Yahoo - "Breaking up big banks questioned as losses mount" (8-16-08)

"Break-up advocates, who for months have been clamoring for Citigroup Inc. to be dismantled, got some validation of their viewpoint this past week. Europe's UBS AG -- created through the combination of Swiss Bank Corp. and Union Bank of Switzerland in 1997 -- on Wednesday laid the groundwork to tear up its business model after another quarter of steep losses."

Business Week - "Bracing for Inflation" (8-16-08)

"Growing evidence suggests American consumers, businesspeople, and political leaders should all be bracing for double-digit inflation, probably as early as 2009."

Yahoo - "AP IMPACT: Weak rules cripple appraiser oversight" (8-17-08)

"Since 2005, at the height of the housing boom, more than two dozen states and U.S. territories have violated federal rules by failing to investigate and resolve complaints about appraisers within a year. Some complaints sat uninvestigated for as long as four years. As a result, hundreds of appraisers accused of wrongdoing remained in business."

Orange County Register - "Banks offer 28% discount to O.C. foreclosure shoppers" (8-17-08)

"ForeclosureRadar reports banks tried to lure investors with an average 28% discount in Orange County at foreclosure auctions, known as trustee’s sales, in July. That compares to 26% in June and a tiny 3% discount in July 2007."

Orange County Register - "O.C.’s Q2 home price drop 5th worst in U.S." (8-17-08)

"By NAR’s count, prices of homes in the Anaheim-Santa Ana metropolitan statistical area fell 23.9% over the same quarter in 2007."