Some still hopeful, most say lack of confidence has made the difference. Corporate India has added a new word to its jargon: the C-word. Ask any CEO or banker about the difference between the slowdown in 2008 and now, the answer is almost repetitive: “We can still live with the S-word, but the C-word has made all the difference this time”. What it means is simple. The deteriorating macro numbers (see chart) tell only half the story. While the slowdown has been a common factor in both 2008 and 2011, what makes it worse this time is that confidence has taken several hard knocks, courtesy an “almost lame duck” government, an unreasonable Opposition, which has gone for the kill, and a global crisis yet to unfold fully.