The! Biggest! News! of! the! Day! - Not Blackstone, Cognos, Intel, Recession Concerns, or a Potential Oil Plunge

Here are some of the contenders for today's biggest...news...of...the...day...

• Recession concerns as it is said "Some economists argue that the U.S. is teetering on the brink of a recession, if it isn't in one already"...
• An earnings miss from Blackstone Group (BX)...
• A new chip from Intel (INTC) that is "both smaller and more efficient"...
• IBM's purchase of Cognos (COGN)...
• Expectations that "Losses from the falling value of subprime mortgage assets may reach $300 billion to $400 billion worldwide"...
• A warning that "Rising fuel prices that businesses and consumers took in stride earlier this year may now be near the point of pushing the weakened U.S. economy into recession"...
• Concerns [subscription required] that "that booming global growth -- for years the engine of the world's financial markets -- may have trouble pulling U.S. markets out of their swoon this time around"...
• An article that says Al Gore is "is teaming with a legendary venture capitalist and bigtime moneyman to make over the $6 trillion global energy business"...
• A "warning" [subscription required] that oil could be set to plunge...
• A look into "fortress stocks" which are described as "companies that could fare well even in the worst of times"...
• AOL's purchase of Yedda Inc...

While those are all stories worth watching, I think it is obviously clear that the biggest story is this - 'Mr. Toilet' builds commode-shaped house...according to the article, "Sim Jae-duck has made his political career as South Korea's Mr. Toilet by beautifying public restrooms. Now he's got a home befitting his title: a toilet-shaped domicile complete with the latest in lavatory luxury"...

For those who believe that a toilet-shaped house is the ultimate in luxury, be aware, "Mr. Toilet" is "seeking a guest to pay $50,000 to stay one night "...

$50,000??? I have a shed that I could convert to look like an outhouse - maybe I could charge "just" $5000 a night???