By Lewis Krauskopf NEW YORK (Reuters) – As a painful decline in markets drags on, investors are grappling with a difficult choice: stick with stocks and hope for a turnaround or avoid them until better times arrive. The S&P 500 is down 23% on the year, with a brief rally in October threatening to crumble after strong U.S. jobs data bolstered the case for more market-punishing rate hikes from a Federal Reserve that has made fighting inflation its top priority. As markets have tumbled, wary investors have cut their stock holdings this year in favor of safer terrain, drawn by higher yields on eve…