With economists moving from the R-word to the D-word, look out for more tabloidesque stories about women selling their eggs and renting out their wombs to make ends meet. The Wall Street Journal reports that some IVF clinics are already reporting a surge in interest. "Whenever the employment rate is down, we get more calls," says Robin von Halle, president of Alternative Reproductive Resources, a Chicago agency where inquiries from egg donors have risen 30% in recent weeks to about 60 calls a day. "We're even getting men offering up their wives. It's pretty scary... "Now that we have more donors, it's become a buyer's market."

A California agent says clients no longer have to wait six months for a surrogate mother. "Many of these women have college loans to pay off or they want to help buy a house or provide for their own kids' education," he says. ~ Wall Street Journal, Dec 9