We’ve been telling you about the next big meltdown in the financial world—the credit card crisis.  See our reporthere. Now the story is going mainstream and the news isn’t pretty. An article in today’s New York Times gives some startling numbers and dire predictions of things to come:

All that easy credit with the over-the-top credit lines is biting back hard—for the lenders and for you.

For the past few years, the question on most people’s minds has been, “Are we headed for a recession?”  But now that economic shock has gone global, the recession question has become, “How long will it last?”  (So far, we’ve managed to avoid the dreaded “D” word.)

It’s natural for most investors to just hunker down during a recession while others make a mad dash for the exit. But panic is not a strategy and being too pessimistic can cause you to miss opportunities. Yes, the economy is in dire straits, but if you know where to look you can still find opportunities. It always helps to have the hearty pluck of a speculator—history proves that fortune favors the bold—but that’s not necessary.  Just using a little common sense can go a long way.