We are just a day away from the sequester, which is Washington-speak for $85 billion worth of  federal spending cuts. The people who will feel the pinch first will likely be federal workers, some of whom could lose 20 percent of their pay. After the closing bell on Wall Street yesterday, J.C. Penny reported plunging sales and a half a billion dollars in losses for the last quarter. What's got the retailer down? And bankers in Europe are facing a cap on their bonuses as early as next year.