Today is being billed as another "special edition" of The Clark Howard Show. Clark realizes this term is overused, but he hopes his listeners notice his general tone of lightness on the topic.

We are not toast, as the media might have you believe.

Clark was at the YMCA working out this morning. A woman came up to him and said, "You said everything is going to OK -- and now it's not!" But the reality is that everything will be OK in the long run.

Having said that, Clark wants to clarify his previous statements about the current state of financial difficulties lasting for 7-12 years. This does not mean that the "mess-a-day" pace will continue all decade long. What it means is that the reckless borrowing of the last 6 years -- both on government and individual levels -- will be a drag on the economy that may last a decade.

This drag on the economy does not mean doom and gloom or even a recession (though Clark believes we're already in one!). But don't expect to see Hoovervilles or apple-selling carts on the street anytime soon. It's not going to happen.