Bulls threw a party on Friday, as they were sure the Christmas season would be a huge success and an explosive Santa Claus rally lay dead-ahead. And, in anticipation that today would be a replay of Friday, they sent our stock-index futures up almost 1% last night -- buoyed, no doubt, by many stories that cited the strength in Black Friday shopping.

But when all was said and done, it turns out that U.S. consumers spent 3.5% less over the weekend than they did at the same time last year. (Source: National Retail Federation.) I'm sure a weak holiday season is exactly what we should expect, as the undertow from the receding real-estate bubble impacts spending.