But is this just a temporary blip, or has the great shaking of the financial markets finally begun?  Many stock market investors are very much hoping for the former, because the pain is already becoming quite severe.  The Nasdaq has fallen more than 5 percent this week, and it is headed for its second consecutive weekly loss.  But the bond market has actually been making even bigger news.  On Thursday, the yield on 10-year U.S. Treasuries actually exceeded 1.6% at one point, and that was the highest level that we have seen in quite a long time.  Some pundits are calling what just took place a "flash crash", but it certainly appears that yields could move even higher in the days ahead.

Throughout the COVID pandemic, stock prices have just gone higher and higher, but everyone knew that the party would end eventually.

Have we now reached that point?  The numbers tell us that Thursday was the single worst day for stocks so far in 2021…