However forceful Barack Obama can be, he is sometimes out of sync with the visceral anger of Americans who are losing their jobs and homes.

Given all the nastiness on the Internet — blog trolls, flame wars, vicious gossip, pornography, snark and spam — what better antidote is there than looking at pictures of cute animals?

Investment bankers, recruiters and psychologists say the current economic downturn, the cascade of layoffs and grim financial news have exacted an especially daunting psychic price.