here, that arrow just refuses to turn green. the s&p lost more than 4%. the nasdaq sank more than that to 5%. it sank 5%. so what has rattled the markets this time? it's a combo platter of bad news, jobless claims are up, existing home sales are down. consumer prices are up and the plfrg industry has gotten weaker. no wonder a top economic adviser is flying to martha's vineyard next week to help president obama with his job proposal. then there was this report from morgan stanley, not paint ag pretty picture for the united states or europe. brace yourself. you're about to hear the r word again. here is our chief business correspondent, ali velshi. >> it said things we had all sort of thought, but now it was on paper. number one, it said we are dangerously close to a recession. dangerously close. it doesn't say it's entirely likely or it's their base assumption, but dangerously close. it says europe and the u.s. have made policy errors, policy errors. that's the central banks and the political system. it referred specifically to the drama of the debt ceiling debate in the united states. that has sucked the confidence out of invifters worldwide. number three, it says both the fed and the european central bank may need to intervene again. >> okay. may need to intervene again. so what the heck does that mean? how would it intervene? kristie lu stout, we believe you might have the answer. >> carol, i'm not coming across calls for more intervention outside the u.s. other than the usual appeals from china for more fiscal prudence. even that is on hold given the delegate diplomacy around joe biden's visit. china's president and xi jinping endorsed the u.s. company saying, quote, we believe the u.s. economy will achieve even better development as it rises to challenging. there could be negative reaction and calls for more intervention on monday. we'll be waiting for that, carol. >> we're waiting, too, waiting with bated breath. if you look into your crystal ball, how are the markets looking to close out the week? >> well, it's not looking good. global markets are in the red driven by fears of recession in the u.s. and a spreading debt crisis in europe. european markets all opened lower. right now the london ftse, the cac 40, the dax are all seeing losses between around 2% to 3.5%. that's probably going to continue this day. meanwhile here in asia, the markets are basically shocked into major losses. both the nikkei and the hang seng here in hong kong closed down about 2.5%. the shanghai composite closed down about 1%. the worst performer in the region was cos spee wii with a of 6.4%. there's a lot of fear out there. >> we'll try to remain calm. that's what everyone says. don't worry about it. lit be fine. kristie lu stout live from hong kong, thank you. developing news to tell you about out of afghanistan. a pair of suicide bombers attacked a british government compound in kabul. eight killed, ten others hurt. explosions and gunfire were heard hours after the attack. the taliban claimed responsibility. today is the 92nd anniversary of afghan independence from great britain. the united nations will send a humanitarian mission to syria this weekend to check out reports of violence and murder in president bashar al assad's crackdown on protesters and see if they amount to crimes against humanity. president obama has called for assad to step down. secretary of state hillary clinton delivered the message on camera. >> the people of syria deserve a government that respects their dignity, protects their rights and lives up to their aspirations. assad is standing in their way. for the sake of the syrian people, the time has come for him to step aside and leave this transition to the syrians themselves. and that is what we will continue to work to achieve. >> the administration has also frozen syrian assets under u.s. jurisdiction, banned americans from doing any business with syria and also banned syrian oil. congresswoman michele bachmann wants president obama's job. so you don't expect her to lavish praise on him. she's now saying the president should have called for assad to step down weeks ago and that mr. obama is leading from behind again. she also urged the president to kick syria's ambassador out of the united states and bring the u.s. ambassador to syria back home. bachmann, by the way, is in south carolina today. governor rick perry will be there, too. >> stop attacking middle class families, rick perry. stop attacking middle class families, rick perry. >> oh, it's the political year of the heckler, yes. stop attacking middle class families you heard. rick perry was being heckled, trying to order a pop-over. he ran into those hecklers in new hampshire. some yelled at him to keep his hands off their medicare, others held signs that said, quote, back off my social security. perry has referred to social security as a ponzi keep and a failure. our roller coaster economy has a lot of people talking about the people hurt the most, the poor. jon stewart says billionaire warren buffett took it to a whole new level. >> bizarrely uneccentric billionaire warren buffett entered the fray. >> the billionaire says, while most americans struggle to make ends meet, we mega-rich continue to get our extraordinary tax breaks. my friends and i have been coddled long enough. >> or, to put that another way -- >> warren buffett, class warfare. >> if there's one thing the rich have learned, it's that class warfare is hell. >> he invoked the corporate jet class. >> soak the rich, it's their fault. >> it's disappointing. it's class warfare and the kind of language you would expect from a leader of a third world country. >> united states of america is not a third world country by any measure, except perhaps income inequality where we rank worse than the ivory cost, 64th! in your face, your guy, jamaica and uganda! >> the wage gap is really, really big in this country. the world's largest computer banker is pulling the plug on its tablet and thinking about exiting the personal computer business altogether. what's behind that move? that's coming up. first it's time for our quote of the morning. here's the quote "he's very, very tone deaf." i'll give you a hint. it's a newsmaker referring to the timing of president obama's martha's vineyard vacation. we'll have the answer in 90 seconds. it's eight minutes past the hour. releases armies of snowmen masseuse, who cuddle up with your soreness and give out polar bear hugs. technology. [ male announcer ] new bengay cold therapy. the same technology used by physical therapists. go to bengay.com for a 5-dollar coupon. with aveeno nourish plus moisturize. active naturals wheat formulas target and help repair damage in just 3 washes. for softer, stronger... ... hair with life. [ female announcer ] nourish plus. only from aveeno. [ male announcer ] get ready for the left lane. the volkswagen autobahn for all event is back. right now, get a great deal on new volkswagen models, including the jetta, awarded a top safety pick by the iihs. that's the power of german engineering. hurry in and lease the jetta s for just $179 a month. ♪ visit vwdealer.com today. discover aveeno positively radiant tinted moisturizers with scientifically proven soy complex and natural minerals. give you sheer coverage instantly, then go on to even skin tone in four weeks. aveeno tinted moisturizers. aren't getting enough whole grain. but actually, it's never been easier to get the whole grain you want from your favorite big g cereals. from cheerios to lucky charms, there's whole grain in every box. make sure to look for the white check. it is nine minutes past the hour. this is your "a.m. wake-up call." let's get back to that quote, shall we? the quote is "he's very, very tone deaf." that was sarah palin, the former republican vice presidential candidate and current fox news contributor. she was asked about the timing of the president's vacation of course on fox. here is her answer. >> she's very, very tone deaf. i can't believe that he, after three days in the heartland did not hear those things that i hear when i'm in the heartland and anywhere else across the u.s. and that's, come on, let's buckle down and let's be serious about getting the country back on the right track. >> sarah palin is predicting president obama may have to end his trip early to deal with the economy. maybe, of course, all the republicans and democrats who serve in congress could cut short their vacation, too. let's head to atlanta for a man always on the job. rob marciano, you're constantly working. >> even when i'm not here, i'm thinking about work, dreaming about work, wanting to work. >> that's sad. that's so sad. >> i get to take a little vacation next week. that may be cut short because of work and what we're about to show you. carol, some action in the tropics. we've been talking about this wave moving across the western caribbean now about to skim the coastline of honduras and head towards belize. tropical depression number eight, it could become a tropical storm in the next few hours. other than that, doesn't have a whole lot of time to strengthen. that's the good news. it will stay south of the u.s. forecast is for it to become a tropical storm briefly and make direct landfall in belize as we get later tonight and into tomorrow. tropical storm watches are up for that, and warnings may be issued later on. of more concern for the u.s. would be this little diddy out there in the central southern atlantic. a good chance of this becoming a depression or tropical storm here in the next 48 hours. this one has a little bit more danger threat, even though it's out there over a week. we'll watch it carefully as it makes its way towards the u.s., gulf of mexico and southeast coastline will be under the gun with that one. all right. thunderstorms across the new york city area today. so travel delays there and in d.c. and also in philadelphia and boston. so we may see some action here as far as some of the more populated areas going forward. a couple of areas of concern and across the midsection, we've got a decent cluster of thunderstorms moving across missouri right now. here is what it looked like as far as damage goes across omaha last night. this thunderstorm complex dumped a ton of hail across omaha, nebraska, almost three inches in diameter. this did the damage just outside the airport there. they actually had to shut down the airport, carol. southwest airlines pilot was injured. he was on the jet way or near the jetway when this hail storm hit. people were on the southwest plane had to be deplaend. no word on what kind of damage that happened to two southwest planes at the time. those hailstones meant business. that cluster moving just to the south of st. louis and we'll show you a little more of that on the radar later this morning. >> can you imagine returning from your trip, getting off the plane and going to your car and seeing that? >> oh, yeah, that will make you not want to go to work and get back on vacation. >> exactly. thank you, rob. we'll get back to you. the world's largest pc manufacturer is looking to get out of the personal computer business. it's just one part of a radical restructuring plan by hewlett packard. the company has also killed off its touch pad tablet. despite slashing prices, its tablet wasn't flying off the shelf. they're shifting their focus to more profitable businesslike software servers and corporate technology services. up next, a computer chip that acts just like our brains. ibm has come out with prototypes. the idea, computers that learn from experiences and come to their own conclusions. could this be a bad thing? you know, like robots going rogue in the movies? ibm says technology like this could help monitor things like traffic lights and natural disasters, not take over the world. >> okay. we know about the warnings we get before a plane departs. now comes a warning before an in-flight movie that might make you cry. virgin atlantic made the move after a survey showed 41% of men on their flights hid their tears under blankets during sad movies. now they're going to have a warning on the screen, this is a sad movie. be prepared, if you don't want to watch, don't watch. if you change the channel or turn off the television, you'll miss the big news about burger king. the company is now more burger, less king. his highness has been forced to abdicate his crown. the scary man is gone. we'll be back. another good thing about geico is, they've got, like, real live people working there 24/7. so like say you need to report a claim, alright. a real person will be there to help you. then you can use geico.com to view photos of the damage, track your claim, print an estimate. you want an english muffin? they literally hand you a toasted muffin with butter and jam. (sigh) whaa. tasty. that's, that's a complete dramatization of course, but you get my point. vo: geico 15 minutes could save you 15% or more on car insurance. [ male announcer ] they'll see you...before you see them. cops are cracking down on drinking and riding. drive sober, or get pulled over. 16 minutes past the hour. time for a little laugh. president obama's trip to the midwest had comedian stephen colbert saying it's a jungle out there. what about your bus, "bus force 1." here is your punch line. >> "bus force 1" isn't even american. it was made in quebec. it's a canadian hybrid. it runs on gas an beaver meat. obama bag on his safari through the midwest. >> hey, how are you? i got a pie. [ cheers and applause ] >> he got a pie. come on, obama. at least throw it at a puma. in tough times we americans want a president who is a bad ass. if it's not you, it's going to be rick perry. >> he just makes me laugh. that perfectly sets up our political ticker with tim farley, host of "mourning briefing, host of "morning briefing." >> before we start up, let's slap up a few post cards released by the republican national committee, pokeing fun at president obama taking veil case because he's taking a lot of heat for that. they made up these fake post cards showing president obama, you know, having fun in martha's vineyard. we'll get them up there in a minute. but president obama is aware of the criticism he's tafacing for taking his vacation. >> bill clinton did this all the time. he took six of eight vacations to martha's vineyard. it's not that he's on vacation, it's that he's at martha's vineyard. they said he's the president wherever he goes. john bran nan was with him yesterday as he went to martha's vineyard. ultimately, two things will be important. number one, does anything happen while the president is there? if it does and he gets back to washington, no harm, no foul. more important when he comes back to washington in september when he gives us the speech on jobs, that's what people will be paying attention to. i'll go to something that nelson spiegel man, the martha's vineyard "times" yesterday, if the president gets a picture of fishing with the daughters, then probably no one will give him guf. there's no problem with a dad and his kids on vacation. >> i don't know. in this political climate, there may be. >> maybe. >> let's talk about another ad out there causing a bit of controversy. i would have thought this kind of thing would be in like flint, but oh, no. tell us about it. >> this is one of the ron paul supporters who is evidently concerned about rick perry and decided if somebody can come forth with information about rick perry's dalians, which nobody has made accusations of. larry flint offered a bounty on people who had been hypocritical about their past. those ads being run right now, have you ever had sex with rick perry? this is the fighting in the republican party and we'll see how well it plays on the campaign trail, just another sign of the ugly times i guess when it comes to politics, carol. >> really ugly, reaching out to strippers across america, have you ever had sex with rick perry? no evidence he's ever strayed from his marriage. an ugly political climate. tim, thank you so much. >> i'm going to sing about my job all weekend, starting a theme here. >> that's so depressing. i'm not. as soon as i'm off work, i'm out of here, mentally and physically. tim farley, thanks for joining us. how can you call yourself burger king when you've sacked your king? burger king will try. the number two burger chain is changing things up a bit. one of the changes, they're getting rid of the king character. the company wants more people to come in the door and that means kicking his highness to the curb. he was a little weird anyway. he might have scared children a bit. i'd say yes. they're meant to protect soldier's most delicate parts, boxers or cups? which do they prefer? first, whether you like it baked, fried or mashed, be sure to fill up on potatoes today, it's national potato day. it's 21 minutes past the hour. e. excuse me? my grandfather was born in this village. [ automated voice speaks foreign language ] [ male announcer ] in here, everyone speaks the same language. ♪ in here, forklifts drive themselves. no, he doesn't have it. yeah, we'll look on that. [ male announcer ] in here, friends leave you messages written in the air. that's it right there. [ male announcer ] it's the at&t network. and what's possible in here is almost impossible to say. while i took refuge from the pollen that made me sneeze. but with 24-hour zyrtec®, i get prescription strength relief from my worst allergy symptoms. so lily and i are back on the road again. with zyrtec® i can love the air®. it's pro-cool technology releases armies of snowmen masseuse, who cuddle up with your soreness and give out polar bear hugs. technology. [ male announcer ] new bengay cold therapy. the same technology used by physical therapists. go to bengay.com for a 5-dollar coupon. discover aveeno positively radiant tinted moisturizers with scientifically proven soy complex and natural minerals. give you sheer coverage instantly, then go on to even skin tone in four weeks. aveeno tinted moisturizers. with aveeno nourish plus moisturize. active naturals wheat formulas target and help repair damage in just 3 washes. for softer, stronger... ... hair with life. [ female announcer ] nourish plus. only from aveeno. 24 minutes past the hour. following developing news out of kabul, afghanistan. a pair of suicide bombers attacked the british council killing at least eight people. let's head round the world with zain verjee. she's live in london. what more can you tell us about this attack? >> this really underlines, carol, the fact that the taliban are showing they can strike anywhere. this is a very rare thing to happen, an attack in the capital of kabul. it was at the british embassy compound targeting specifically the british council offices. at least eight people have been killed, all of them we understand to be afghan security forces. basically what happened, there was a suicide car bomb. it exploded. a compound wall came down. the insurgents went through and there was sporadic gunfire and phiing for a long time between security forces and those militants. this is also significant, carol, too, because this is actually a day which is the anniversary of afghanistan's independence from the u.k. back in 1919, and the other thing, too, to keep in mind here, security in the capital was really stepped up before this date. and the night before. what it shows is militants can smuggle in weapons, suicide vests, and attack a british embassy compound in spite of the stepped up security. it raises questions about the competency of afghan security forces. carol? >> of course, that complicates things as far as u.s. troops leaving afghanistan as well. zain verjee, live in london, thanks so much. a bench-clearing brawl in china is making headlines this morning. it happ