With talk of trillions of dollars being casually thrown around when discussing our various economic debacles, the fact that AIG lost $61.7 billion in the fourth quarter of 2008 doesn't sound so awful–that is, until you put that record-breaking number into a context that average people can understand!

The Associated Press ran a series of real world comparisons this week to help us get our heads around the incredible depth of red ink AIG was swimming in during the last three months of 2008!

Indeed, AP reported:

–$62 billion could have funded the salaries of every player of every Major League Baseball team in 2008, about 23 times.

–The U.S. government provided $62 billion for immediate relief and rescue efforts in the months after Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

–If $62 billion was spread across the U.S. population, Americans could each get about $200.

This next one is my favorite:

–It would take a person spending $1 million per day, everyday, for the next 169 years to spend as much money as AIG lost during the fourth quarter.

Those are some amazing comparisons! Can you think of any more???

Special Reports /

AIG's Loss Boggles The Mind!

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