So do we divest of the stock we own in retirement plans and put it where?

[Skidmore]

[LuckyTheDog]

1. Do not sell

Don't panic.

[ramapo]

3. Now is no time to sell

Turn off the TV. Don't read posts about it.

[Skidmore]

4. Everytime I see one of these things and think about all the money

taken out of my paychecks for years which I have no access to even if I lose everything else, I feel like vomiting. I had a retirement plan worth $150K by yesterdays standards, diversified between annuities, bonds, and stock and reinvesting old monies with new. I can't touch it till retirement age even if I get ill. Then the lawyers and the doctors can fight over everything. It's that plain and simple. The investor class indeed. Everytime Zogby asks if I consider myself a member, I mark no because, given a choice, I would have handled my money differently. Participation was required for employment. Effin' bunch of leeches.

[LuckyTheDog]

9. Volatility happens

Don't freak yourself out.

This week shows why stocks should be considered to be a long-term investment. My advice: don't look at your portfolio for a couple months. If you sell now, you merely lock in the paper losses. Buy low and sell high. Do NOT sell low and then buy high!

[Deja Q]

14. I agree. And this sort of scenario has happened before.

I recall stocks taking something of a hit around 1999/2000 but went back up.

They went back up after 9/11.

They're going down again but will go back up again too. The system is not only complex, it is now globalized.

[LuckyTheDog]

11. Read this article

http://www.wwj.com/topic/ap_news.php?story=AP/APTV/National/f/f/APFN-Markets-Investor

Experts advise small savers not to overreact to stock market volatility
Friday, August 10, 2007
By EILEEN ALT POWELL
AP Business Writer
NEW YORK (AP) The stock markets may be in turmoil, but small savers don't need to be.

Financial experts suggest that Americans most of whom have market exposure mainly through their company-sponsored retirement accounts should stay calm and not overreact to what's going on on Wall Street.

``The best move right now is to do nothing,'' said Liz Ann Sonders, chief investment strategist for The Charles Schwab Corp., which is based in San Francisco. ``Individual investors should step back until things settle down.''

Sonders blamed the massive volatility in the market not only on investor uncertainty but also on trading by hedge funds and institutional investors the big players who are winding down their exposure to investments in mortgages and other assets that now seem to be riskier than earlier believed.

[Sanity Claws]

2. Mattress?

If you do, make sure it can float, in case you live in a place like New Orleans.

[Richard Steele]

5. Euros? nm

[rucky]

13. my first thoughts as well

but you would be wise not to take financial advice from me.

I'm betting it all on the Browns to win the Super Bowl

[Skink]

6. Managed funds.

[screembloodymurder]

7. Invest in a riot gun manufacturer.

I'm serious.

[ThomWV]

8. No

What you are seeing is a panic, not a problem that will bring the economy to its knees. The war will do that, but it will take longer. If you were to divest now you'd be selling at a low and the only place you could go is into bonds. As the interest rates increased because of the current problem those bonds will become worth less. So selling out now and going to the only haven available to common folks would be ultrastupid; selling at a loss to buy something that is decreasing in value.

[spanone]

10. stock market = long term.....repeat after me stock market = long term.....reapeat after me stock mar

[leveymg]

12. It's like the surfer's saying, "You should've been here yesterday."

Five years ago, I would've said defense stocks. Two years ago, residential real estate in suburban DC. Last year, oil futures and the Shanghai stock exchange hedged in Euros.

Today, I'd say you're lucky to have a retirement account.

[lpbk2713]

15. Invest in a bottle of Jack Daniels and sit back and try to unwind a little.

It's not that far off till January '09.

[AndyTiedye]

16. I'm Wondering if Some of This is the Markets Realizing That They're Not Leaving in Jan '09