Why This Market Meltdown Isn't a Repeat of 2008 ... The end isn't nigh ... The U.S. economy and financial system are in a very different place. Notably, debt ratios within the U.S. aren't nearly as high outside the government. – Wall Street Journal

Dominant Social Theme: 2008 is ancient history. Let's focus on what's good about the present.

Free-Market Analysis: There's a difference between being optimistic and unrealistic. This article, above, seems a tad unrealistic. However, we have to consider the source. The Wall Street Journal is not apt to be overly negative about Wall Street or its main business of stock trading ... not even if it is warranted.

This is one reason why the Journal often seems mildly surprised when market disasters occur. The meme that the Journal and other mainstream media ascribes to is that the financial system is basically healthy. When things go wrong there are reasons and these reasons can be rectified.

After things have gone wrong, the Journal is apt to compose and post articles suggesting the appropriate palliatives. Once they are applied in some form, the Journal and other influential publications tend to lapse into silence, reporting the financial news as it happens until another disastrous interlude occurs.

These occur regularly, as does the Journal's damage control.

More:

The Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled Friday, falling more than 500 points at one point, as steep declines in oil prices and a bear market in China heightened anxieties that have pushed global stocks lower this year.

But there are crucial differences between now and those dark days, at least for the U.S. While losses could continue, the U.S. appears, at the moment, to be in a better position to weather them. That could keep a market downturn from morphing into a full-blown financial crisis that then leads to an economic one.

... After 2008, many investors have come to fear that every episode in financial markets is another black swan. They should remember there are white ones, too.

One individual who believes that current economic conditions ARE leading toward a "full blown crisis" is Michael Pento, president and founder of Pento Portfolio Strategies. Pento recently wrote a column for CNBC entitled "A Recession Worse Than 2008 Is Coming."

In simplest terms, Pento understands, as most do, that recessions – as generated by the current global economy – occur on average about once every five years. Thus, the West, especially the US, is overdue.

Here's how the article begins:

A recession worse than 2008 is coming ... The S&P 500 has begun 2016 with its worst performance ever. This has prompted Wall Street apologists to come out in full force and try to explain why the chaos in global currencies and equities will not be a repeat of 2008.