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This is a fun game you can play at home. Go to Google Trends and see what Americans are searching for online more frequently than the term “financial crisis.” I have an example below, in which I set the time period to September 2008. Turns out “wizards,” “cupcakes,” and “sex toys” retain their popularity in times of national emergency.

Several search terms dwarfed “financial crisis” so thoroughly that they made the chart unusable. They included:

“Bristol Palin”: searched for 17.5 times more often than “financial crisis” in September

“Puppies”: 24.4 times

“Vacation”: 28.6 times

“Fashion”: 44 times

“Fantasy Football”: 44 times

“Baseball”: 50.5 times

“Sex”: 292 times