Five years ago this week, I called Motley Fool editor Anand Chokkavelu on the phone. "So, Lehman Brothers just filed for bankruptcy," I said. Thus began the financial crisis and the worst recession in 80 years.
Here's what's happened next.
"Lehman Files for Bankruptcy; Merrill Is Sold," The New York Times, September 14, 2008
It wasn't alone ...
"AIG struggles to survive financial tsunami," Reuters, September 16, 2008
The government came in ...
"U.S. to Take Over AIG in $85 Billion Bailout; Central Banks Inject Cash as Credit Dries Up," The Wall Street Journal, September 16, 2008
And pulled out all the stops ...
"US Senate passes $700bn bank bailout," Telegraph, October 2, 2008
The pain began ...
"Job losses reach worst level in five years," CNNMoney, October 3, 2008
And markets panicked ...
"Dow Jones falls below 10,000 as global markets melt," Telegraph, October 6, 2008
Bringing volatility ...
"Markets Surge to Biggest One-Day Gain Since Great Depression," The Washington Post, October 14, 2008
And a new face ...
"Voters tag economy as Issue No. 1, elect Obama," CNNMoney, November 5, 2008
A few silver linings emerged ...
"Average U.S. gas prices fall below $2," Toronto Star, November 21, 2008
But even more carnage came with it ...
"Fourth-worst drop ever for Dow," AZ Central, December 1, 2008
The horror set in ...
"U.S. Loses 533,000 Jobs in Biggest Drop Since 1974," The New York Times, December 5, 2008
The "d" word was used ...
"Obama Dismisses Great Depression Talk," ABC, December 7, 2008
Washington armed its weapons ...
"Obama Said to Favor $775 Billion for Stimulus Plan," Bloomberg, January 6, 2009
Others shook their heads ...
"Global Worries Over U.S. Stimulus Spending," The New York Times, January 29, 2009
The stimulus began ...
"Obama Signs Stimulus Into Law," The Wall Street Journal, February 18, 2009
From every direction ...
"Fed to Pump Another $1 Trillion Into Economy," PBS, March 18, 2009
It didn't seem to help ...
"Stocks fall to lowest level since 1997 as Dow drops below 6,800," USA TODAY, March 2, 2009
And Americans were getting crushed ...
"Housing Prices in 20 U.S. Cities Fall a Record 18.5%," Bloomberg, February 24, 2009
We realized this recession was different ...
"Job Losses Hint at Vast Remaking of Economy," The New York Times, March 6, 2009
It didn't seem to end ....
"663,000 Jobs Lost in March; Total Tops 5 Million," The New York Times, April 3, 2009
Some wondered how far it could go ...
"George Soros says US banks 'basically insolvent'," Retuers, April 6, 2009
American icons dropped ...
"Chrysler files for bankruptcy," CNNMoney, May 1, 2009
And dropped ...
"General Motors files for bankruptcy," MarketWatch, June 1, 2009
We became comfortable with the "d" word ...
"Global Economic Shock Worse Than Great Depression," Huffington Post, May 8, 2009
Some saw a light at the end of the tunnel ...
"Why the Economy is Showing Green Shoots: It Might as Well Be Spring," The Daily Beast, April 17, 2009
Not everyone agreed ...
"Warren Buffett: U.S. Economy In "Shambles" No Signs of Recovery Yet," CNBC, June 24, 2009
But glimmers of hope arose ...
"Dow Jones Reclaims 10,000 Milestone," CBS, October 15, 2009
For some it was better than ever...
"Goldman Sachs breaks record with $16.7bn bonus pot," The Guardian, October 15, 2009
For others the pain was just beginning ...
"Foreclosures hit record high," CNNMoney, January 14, 2010
But the carnage appeared over ...
"Jobs Report Is Strongest Since the Start of the Recession," The New York Times, December 4, 2009
And we were reminded that good news still exists ...
"Apple unveils the 'magical' iPad," CNN, January 28, 2010
The stimulus never ended ...
"Fed to buy $600 billion in bonds to aid economy," Toledo Blade, March 11, 2010
And the improvement became real ...
"Warren Buffett says economy showing real strength," BusinessWeek, May 3, 2010
Jobs still lagged ...
"U.S. adds jobs but unemployment rate rises to 9.9%," Philadelphia Business Journal, May 7, 2010
But Wall Street cheered ...
"Dow Briefly Reaches 11000 Level, Extends Historic Rebound," MarketWatch, April 9, 2010
The pain spread across oceans ...
"Debt crisis unsettles European economy," The Washington Post, February 9, 2010
As more change arrived ...
"Obama signs health care reform into law," Dallas Business Journal, March 23, 2010
A new crisis unfolded ....
"Greece accepts bailout package," CNNMoney, May 2, 2010
Computers crashed the party ...
"Dow's Brief Fall of 1,000 Points Sets Off Anxiety," May 5, 2010
While a new age of health care began ...
"Obama signs sweeping financial overhaul into law," AP, July 21, 2010
And as Europe continued teetered ...
"Financial Crisis Spreads Throughout Europe," NPR, May 27, 2010
America found a new worry ...
"Oil Spill Growing off Gulf Coast after Rig Explosion," CBS, April 27, 2010
Old names reemerged ...
"GM files paperwork for massive IPO," MarketWatch, August 18, 2010
Just in time for a new downturn ...
"Double-dip feared as US economic growth loses pace," Telegraph, July 30, 2010
Was this a new recession? ...
"Dow plunges below 10,000 amid bad news on euro and US jobs," CSM, June 4 2010
Maybe, but the financial crisis was over ...
"TARP repayments exceed outstanding bailout debt," Treasury says," LA Times, June 12, 2010
And the cheerleaders came out ...
"Administration Kicks Off "Recovery Summer" with Groundbreakings and Events Across the Country," White House, June 17, 2010
But the recession's scars couldn't be ignored ...
"Fears grow over length of US jobs crisis," Economic Times, December 3, 2010
Political fights ensued ...
"Obama signs bill to extend Bush-era tax cuts for two more years," The Washington Post, December 17, 2010
But the market kept rallying ...
"Dow 12,000: Just Getting Going?," MarketWatch, January 26, 2011
The recovery seemed to heat up ...
"Big Jump in Private Jobs Bolsters Recovery Hopes," The New York Times, March 4, 2011
Just in time for more political games ...
"Obama: Raise debt ceiling or risk global recession," Bloomberg, April 15, 2011
And threats ...
"Bachmann: don't raise federal debt ceiling," Seattle Times, April 29, 2011
Led to consequences ...
"United States of America [Credit] Rating Lowered To 'AA+' Due To Political Risks, Rising Debt Burden," Standard & Poor's, August 5, 2011
Markets panicked ...
"Dow plunges 512; worst 1-day action since 2008," Albuquerque Business First, August 4, 2011
And the spotlight turned to Europe ...
"Financial crisis: Italy could tip euro into abyss," Telegraph, August 7, 2011
The stimulus continued ...
"Federal Reserve launches Operation Twist," CNNMoney, September 22, 2011
Familiar business names continued to die off ...
"R.I.P. Borders: Book Chain Shuffles Off Into Liquidation," Reuters, July 18, 2011
And a new asset captured Americans' imaginations ...
"Gold tops $1,900, looking 'a bit bubbly'," CNNMoney, August 23, 2011
Corporations were doing better than ever ...
"Companies near record profits amid high unemployment," Raw Story, August 1, 2011
For the most part ...
"FBI raids bankrupt solar venture Solyndra," CNNMoney, September 9, 2011
Wall Street showed it still knows how to have a good time ...
"MF Global Files for Bankruptcy," Bloomberg, November 1, 2011
And not everyone was happy about it ...
"Occupy Wall Street: Civil society's awakening," LA Times, November 22, 2011
More Wall Street games continued ...
"Libor Probe Said to Expose Collusion, Lack of Internal Controls," Bloomberg, February 14, 2012
As new icons were born ...
"Facebook Goes Public," Politico, May 18, 2012
And as innovation flourished ...
"Apple Shares Top $700: iPhone 5 Euphoria Setting In," The Wall Street Journal, September 18, 2011
So did the recovery ...
"Unemployment falls in 41 states in September," USA TODAY, October 19, 2012
Mother nature showed her anger ...
"Hurricane Sandy's Economic Impact Likely To Be Immense," NPR, October 29, 2012
And Americans went to the polls ...
"Analysis: Obama reelection driven by economy, turnout," Reuters, November 7, 2012
Just in time for more political games ...
"U.S. approaches 'fiscal cliff,' and world watches from the sidelines," The Washington Post, November 2, 2012
But nothing could stop stocks ...
"Dow Jones hits new high, closes above 15,000 for first time," Washington Times, May 7, 2013
Or innovation ...
"Tesla outsells Porsche, Jaguar in California," CNBC, August 26, 2013
And we end this story right where we started ...
"Five years after Lehman, Americans still angry at Wall Street," Reuters, September 15, 2013
Check back every Tuesday and Friday for Morgan Housel's columns on finance and economics.
