I reported on the 35 lawyers who were laid off today, and that Meryll Lynch and Morgan Stanely warned of a recession on tuesday.

To add another harbinger of doom to the list, American Express has recently issued a similar warning.

Worst yet, the company, which is in a fantastic position to witness consumer spending as it happens, says it "is seeing signs of a weaker U.S. economy" that is impacting its cardholders' ability to make purchases and pay their bills.

American Express said in a statement that it will take a pre-tax charge of approximately $440 million in its fourth quarter, due to a combination of lower spending and higher delinquencies and loan write-offs.

Don't shoot the messenger.

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