This is a loss we could ill afford,

The Iraq situation is going to loom pretty heavily. Some of the things I'd hoped would provide a stimulus, like the earnings announcements, haven't been there. We're going to be stuck in a trading range.

I commend Selectman McAuliffe and offer full support.

I'm going to have to tell them that their tax rates are not going to be like mine. And they won't want to pay that.

It will be a big step in terms of getting out all the information on Iraq. I'm hoping it will provide some sort of catalyst for the market.

It was a gut check. I thought, 'Let's assume the market comes back and we actually survive this. What will the fruits of survival be?

(It's) not that expensive when you consider what women shell out over time.

There's a lot of momentum around the economic numbers. It's reaffirming the idea that the economy will pick up and that we can start to outperform in the second half.

This is when it starts to get fun. You can stay local, stay a small boutique and do very interesting business, but not if you want to be involved in global deals.

Once we get a clear picture of when the war will end -- when we no longer hear the excuse of 'wait for the war to end' and we can actually see a pickup in business spending -- we can then refocus on earnings news.