We join everyone in taking a moment to reflect and even celebrate upon the news of the killing of Osama bin Laden over the weekend. In a sense this brings to an end a very difficult era for our nation, one that began on September 11, 2011, and has led us to suffer through two economic downturns, two or three wars, and a whole lot of human loss.
It's been nearly ten years since that sunny Tuesday morning. Here's what the financial world was like back then:
* The S&P 500 was sitting at 1092, but it promptly plunged down to 965. It's now up to 1363 - for an average gain of about 2.5 percent a year.
* Unemployment was at 5.0 percent, which is more or less the range it would stay in until the recession took hold at the end of 2008.
* Inflation was at 2.65 percent, and after some ups and downs, it's right back in that range today.
* In 2001, the federal government ran a surplus. These days, the federal deficit is running at around $1.6 trillion.
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