BSC pops a hole in the Manhamptons bubble

Remember the foreclosures in the Hamptons? See how with a clever portmanteau word in my title I linked the property values here and there? We can start expecting short sales.

Across [Bear Sterns], executives and employees... expressed raw dismay, their voices heavy with sadness and shock.

“My life has been flushed down the drain,” said one person. There was talk Monday that with their life savings nearly depleted, some executives had moved quickly, putting their weekend homes on the market.

You know the life of a New York investment banker is a history of firings, where you collect your severance, take a world tour or buy a boat, and start on the next job. It's getting through that that's got limited currency.

“Basically we’re all wondering first, if we’ll keep our jobs, second, if we’ll get severance if we don’t,” said an investment banker on a cigarette break outside Bear’s headquarters, declining to give his name. “And then we’re hoping that Lehman won’t go under because then there will be way too many bankers looking for jobs.”

He's not even worried about my ETF. It's all about the people and the jobs.