Today’s global stock sell-off really started on Friday, when the U.S. suffered its worst bank failure of 2009. Alabama-based Colonial Bank gasped its last breath late Friday. With roughly $25 billion in assets, it was the biggest bank failure since Washington Mutual back in September.

I just can’t make up my mind:  Is Hank Paulson committing premeditated murder of the U.S. economy, or merely negligent homicide?

It’s almost too much to digest at once, the new revelations over how various aspects of the sundry bailouts came about.  The information is too much, the outrage is too much.  But let’s try.

Andrew Snyder says this credit crisis could eventually go down as one of the most profitable periods in US history. The country’s biggest and oldest companies are selling at an unprecedented discount. Andrew selects four blue chip stocks set to make huge recovery profits over the next two years.

Andrew Snyder says stock investors should look out for more market sell-offs around October 23 and November 4 and 5. This is when WaMu (OTC:WAMUQ) and Iceland’s bankrupt institutions face their CDS settlements.

At 2pm New York time,the settlement auction for $400 billion of credit default swaps connected to bonds issued by Lehman Bros (NYSE:LEH) is due. This opaque derivatives market is a mystery to most investors. Dave Gonigam says the revelation of major losses is the last thing the market needs right now.

Analysts have been warning for some time that Washington Mutual (NYSE:WM) was on the brink of collapse.

Last night they were closed by the government and banking assets were sold to JPMorgan Chase & Co (NYSE:JPM) for $1.9 billion. Shares of Washington Mutual plunged $1.24 to 45 cents in after-hours trading.

Another day, another round of bad news from the brokers and the banks.

More losses… Currencies rebound… Jumping off the bandwagon…  Slowing renminbi appreciation? And Now… Today’s Pfennig!

Citigroup Inc.’s (C) highly anticipated first-quarter earnings missed analyst’s expectations, as the largest U.S. bank posted its second straight loss and announced it will cut 9,000 jobs this year.