Statistics tell a story....Psychology flummoxes it.

Some recent data:

1. One out of five U.S. mortgage holders is now underwater, according to First American CoreLogic's latest review of 45 million mortgages in its database
   
2. A Merrill Lynch currency trader has been suspended after racking up more than $400m in undisclosed losses in recent months, raising further questions about the financial health of the investment bank bought by Bank of America last September.
3. Adding Up the Government’s Total Bailout Tab Beyond the $700 billion bailout known as TARP, which has been used to prop up banks and car companies, the government has created an array of other programs to provide support to the struggling financial system. Through March 2, the government has made commitments of nearly $9 trillion and spent $2.1 trillion. Here is an overview, organized by the role the government has assumed in each case.
4. City short-circuited...Circuit City, that is.
5. General Electric Co., to its quarterly payment 68 percent, to 10 cents a share, from 31 cents. Wells Fargo to reduce dividend by 85%, to 5 cents from 34 cents.
6. Freedom Bank of Georgia was seized by regulators, the 17th bank closed this year, as the recession persists and a jump in unemployment pushed more borrowers behind on home loan payments.
7. U.S. Bancorp's dividend will be cut to 5 cents per common share from 42.5 cents per common share.
   
8. More hotels are facing foreclosure, bankruptcy.

Now to the Flummoxing of the Intelligentsia...

College music programs booming despite economic bust
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3. Dolce & Gabbana The Makeup marks P&G's first foray into upscale cosmetics, a huge jump from its drugstore CoverGirl and Max Factor brands. The move is an extension of a partnership forged three years ago to produce fragrances. But it comes at a time when luxury stores are suffering some of the biggest sales declines in all of retailing.

4. Procter & Gamble Co. is planning to extend its cleaning services from car washes to dry cleaners, this time relying on the strength of its brand Tide. The Cincinnati-based consumer products maker, which has operations in Greensboro, plans to open three stores in the Kansas City area, according to the Associated Press, which interviewed Gary Coombe, vice president for new business development at P&G. They will be called Tide Dry Cleaners.