SP500 index ETF. A good source of funds during market sell offs without having to carry a large cash balance. The market is down 5% and some companies you like are down 10 or 15%. Sell some SPY buy the stocks. Later, when the market sell off abates, build back this sourcs of funds by a stock you are no longer happy with. If the market is rocketing past all time highs. Take some profits in your high flyers put it into the SPY. When the sell off happens - Sources of funds.

Aerospace and Defense ETF. These companies are very complex with equally complex products and services. Researching this sector can be time consuming. Additionally the Pentagon and a pork barrel congress work hard to insure no one company can Bill Gates all his competitors and monopolize the business. This ETF contains 55 companies with wide diversification across sub-sectors and congressional districts. If you have an edge in gaming Congress and the Pentagon and feel you can do better picking specific stocks here, I'm happy for you. These stocks traditionally do OK in recessions, but beware.

A regional bank ETF. If you believe the Fed will cut rates, regional and community banks could see an increase in net interest margins which will flow through to earnings. So goes Jim Cramers thesis and this ETF is his pick on August 20, 2007. I waited his recommended 5 days before adding it to this list. Check out the return on the tracking feature at left. See how it works out. This ETF has 50 regional and comminity banks. If you feel that you can comb through dozens or hundreds of regional and community banks and pick best of breed more power too you.

A global basic material's ETF. We are in a commodity boom (at the time this was added). However many of the companies involved are foreign and dependent on only one or a few commodities. This ETF containing 113 companies will not leave an investor overly concentrated in strange ccommodities in strange places. This is a volitile sector: an ETF will dampen some (but certainly not enough) of that volitility. Some timing skills may be required.

iShares Medical Devices' ETF A way to play the health care industry without the underperfroming big pharma stocks.

Food and beverage ETF. A recession play alternative for the Consumer Staples ETF.

An oil ETF weighted more towards Exploration and Production companies than Major Integrateds.

Gold ETF. Easiest way to get straight gold exposure.