I haven't been too concerned about the losses in the stock market lately, mainly because most of my life's savings is now in brick and mortar. This is not to say that I'm not doing something risky, especially given the recent collapse of the housing market. And I know that house values in NYC are tied to the fortunes of Wall Street types. For some reason, though, having your house lose value is not the same as watching the numbers in your investment accounts go down. There is a comfortable haze around a house losing its value, despite the fact that the losses may be just as great. Perhaps it's the fact that eventually I, and hopefully some tenants, will still be able to sleep in the house, whether it depreciates in value or not.
Another plus: you don't have to feel like a hypocrite for supporting the young people involved in the Occupy Wall Street protests. "Down with Corporate greed!" you can cheer as you pass by their little tent city in Zuccotti Park, knowing that you no longer own shares in those evil corporate entities headed by the 1% of people who control 42% of the wealth.
