Scared yet? Sure, but dont panic

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- This is one of those days you probably wished you stayed in bed.

GM (GM, Fortune 500) is suspending its dividend and cutting jobs. Investors are speculating about more bank failures and appear to lack faith in the government's "rescue" plan for Fannie Mae (FNM, Fortune 500) and Freddie Mac (FRE, Fortune 500). Inflation at the wholesale level grew at its fastest clip in 27 years. The dollar hit a new low against the euro.

Gold, the ultimate safe haven in times of turmoil, is nearing $1,000 an ounce again, a level it hasn't seen since the height of the Bear Stearns-inspired market fears back in March.

(Note to all the gold bulls who've been e-mailing me about my last gold column...yes, it looks like I may wind up being wrong about gold not getting back to $1,000. I clearly underestimated the fear in this market and put too much faith in the dollar.)