Does a China Stock Market Plunge Hurt the U.S.?

Watch out for any ripple effects from a Chinese stock market plunge. The U.S. depends too much on that country's economy. Remember, they keep us financial afloat by paying for our bills:

China's volatile stock market plunged nearly 9% Tuesday, biggest drop in more than 10 years, sending ripples through markets from Hong Kong to Australia.

Investors, who had just lifted Shanghai's benchmark index to a record Monday, dumped stocks to lock in profits amid speculation about a fresh round of austerity measures from the Chinese government to slow the nation's sizzling economy.

[Update: As of this writing (11:15am), the DOW is down 141 points. It seems my fears have been confirmed. Stay tuned]