The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) Optimism Index plummeted 5.6 points, bottoming out at 87.5 last month. This is the weakest small business confidence reading since March 2010. NFIB chief economist asks: “Between the looming ‘fiscal cliff,’ the promise of higher healthcare costs and the endless onslaught of new regulations, owners have found themselves in a state of pessimism. We are forced to ask: is this the new normal?”