First: I'm a true Blue Democrat and Liberal. That being said, what makes America the engine of the world's economy is the narrow line we walk between government regulation and laissez faire economics. We're a nation of people who believe that each one has an equal chance at striking it big. It's always been that way for us and it will always be, no matter how unreasonable it is that we'll all succeed the same. Sure, that means that once in a while we get carried away and let our corporations run amok. But it also means that we're always actively working toward more efficient means of profit. As great as it sounds, no centrally planned economy has ever created something as powerful or evolutionary as the United States. Your retirement account will recover - hopefully by the time that you need it - and that's because Americans won't ever give up on creating wealth.