The more I think about it, the less this is like “slip-sliding into a recession” than “End of an Era.”

    Starbucks Corp. on Tuesday effectively ended its era of blanket expansion by saying it will close 500 more locations in the U.S. and cut 7% of its work force.

Starbucks — IPO 1992 — is as much a symbol of our times as Netscape or Google. Or as Toys R Us or McDonald’s of theirs. Which will it end up resembling more? Onward.