British Airways suffered a blow today and they probably don't even know it yet...and they probably never will. I just read an article on the "Business In Blue Jeans" blog.

I just read a blog from one of my favorite sites - Crowdspring. The blog was titled "558,000 startups and small businesses.

Today, I had a very interesting call with a friend. This friend has a way of turning everything he is involved in, into a major money-maker. I mean MAJOR money-maker. He is one of those people who simply has a natural sense for trends and especially, trends that translate into massive business - and financial - success.

Starting, owning and/or operating a start-up or small business in this day and time is challenging at best.

All around, both online and offline companies are closing their doors including giants that should be able to muddle through this "recession" or economic distress. As a small business owner, this is disturbing and scary.