This week a technical glitch in electronic trading sent the stocks of nearly 150 companies, like Bank of America and GE, on a wild ride.
It was the latest in a string of stock market snafus, including NASDAQ's botched Facebook IPO in May and the "flash crash" of 2010 when the Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged 600 points only to recover minutes later.
For some, the unwanted hubbub has shaken their faith in the soundness of the market.
Bill Gross, co-founder of PIMCO, the world’s largest bond fund, called the steady 6.6 percent average return of the past 100 years "an historical freak" and "a mutation," in his August investment outlook.
In his view, the era of buying and holding stocks is over, and investors will fail to see the returns they're used to as the global economy slows.
So, is it time to get out of the stock market? And if not stocks, then what?
Rana Foroohar of Time and Joe Nocera of The New York Times weigh in on the state of investor confidence in a market that seems increasingly prone to screw-ups.
"Eat Mor Chikin"?
Plus, fast food chain Chick-fil-A is facing criticism and boycotts over statements by its president and COO Dan Cathy that show the company does not support same-sex marriage.
"We are very much supportive of the family: the biblical definition of the family unit," Cathy told the Baptist Press. "We are a family-owned business, a family-led business, and we are married to our first wives."
While the comments alienated many gay marriage supporters, Chick-fil-A's "record-setting" sales Wednesday suggest the media attention has galvanized the support of gay marriage opponents (or maybe just chicken-lovers) across the country.
Money Talking takes a look at what happens when the business arena becomes a battleground in a cultural war.
