“There’s a hell of a lot that needs to be done to fix this.”

Those were the words of finance expert Dr. Robert Miller, who spoke candidly Thursday afternoon at Barsema Hall about what needs to be done to fix the deflated economy.

In front of a standing-room-only crowd of about 400 people, Miller and four other experts in the fields of finance, banking and regulation participated in the panel discussion on the current financial crisis. Covering hard-hitting topics such as subprime mortgages, the availability of loans, the decline of American banks and the passing of the multi-billion bailout bill, the forum was split into two parts: a discussion and a question and answer portion.

“This is actually a historic event; we haven’t seen anything like this before,” said Dr. Marc Simpson, chair of the finance department. “Understanding it would be important for anybody who wants to be an informed citizen.”

Finance expert Dr. Gerald Jensen echoed that sentiment, saying that the country is in a state of financial insecurity, especially when it comes to Wall Street investors. Jensen feels the controversial bill, which passed in the Senate Wednesday, would shore up investor worries, then take care of the rest later.

“I think right now we need to get something done to restore the confidence,” Jensen said.

Jensen also said that while confidence in the economy is at a critical low, the country is still far ahead of where it was in other previous crises. Using post-Great Depression America as an example, Jensen showed a diagram of how the problems we face now could be much worse. Unemployment, for instance, was at an all-time high in 1933 at 25 percent. Today, unemployment levels rest at just over six percent, he said.

The panel seemed to agree that the bailout is a necessary function to restore the economy.

“You have to look at it as an investment on our part,” Miller said. “If we don’t do anything, we all lose.”

Junior accounting major Greg Broughton attended the forum because he was curious as to what’s being done to fix the country’s economic problems. He said the individual experts helped him understand both the short-term and long-term effects a struggling economy can have on his own life.

“It allowed me to have more insight into the situation,” Broughton said. “The future of our economy is very important; it’s going to affect my kids down the road, and the generations to come.”