"Economy"

What does this mean now? I view the current referrenced "Bad Economy" as purely emotional based...Or am I stating the obvious? I don't know about all of you, but the only affects I can realize out of the "bad economy" retoric is people not squandering their money so much as recently practiced.....(That's not entirely true....parking lot's are still full while people continue to go out to eat....Shopping carts are still being filled with junk food....You still see one person in just about every car...the roadways continue to be congested with people driving when really not neccessary...)...

I heard the other day a news spokesperson comment as to the latest $350bil "bailout"; One guy used an analogy of a house on fire; Only 1/2 extinguished...how we needed the other 1/2 to completely put the fire out.....The other gal says.."But what if the house really isn't on fire?"....I'm with her.....

Americans have been squandering there money...Now they're starting to save...It'll be painfull, but in the long-run, we'll prosper....HOWEVER, this continual "bail out" crap may just prolong it, or make it much, much worse....

Whattya think?>>>

HOP; I like it;..."M--dF--K"...That's a good way to put it!!!! Because, that's exactly what it is. Why someone/something would want to perpetuate it is mind-BOGGLING...Possibly "the Bush-haters" had a good deal to do with it?...After-all, "the economy" was a key element to Obama's success. Now that "they've" created this mess, it's bit'em in the butt....(and alot of innocent S.S. citizens)....>>>

Gotchya. Thanks, and no disagreement here.>>>

Mike, I think allowing Biden the position he will assume at 12:00 tomorrow is at worst putting the fox in charge of the chicken coop, and best sheer negligence. He is not only the banks foremost lobbyist, but now also a co-signee of all they ask for. People filing for bankruptcy was not the direction of my post, although there are many, I'm sure who never used the system to get ahead with the knowledge that they could always file bankruptcy to get out of debt. College grads for instance, there was a picture in this weeks Rolling Stone of a college graduate carrying a sign that read: 4.0 Grade average No job offers $80,000 in debt Where's my bailout? He, and so many other students like him may not be in that position were it not for the iresponsible lending practices of the likes of MBNA. >>>

Jed,

Maybe I'm misreading something, but I asked because I took your post above mine as if you were flogging Biden for trying to make it more difficult for people to file bankruptcy.

Been a lot added since, and I haven't read the rest of the thread yet, so I'll catch up now. :)>>>

jackpinesavage - ??? "keys"? Are you talking about the Florida Keys? If so, the answer is yes. Housing prices have really fallen. Work is slow because the speculative buyers are gone and so is the easy access to money. In the past 90 days or so, we have scene a huge drop in our calls. Right now is the time we normally expect to be slammed but the phones are hardly ringing at all. Historically, in the spring things slow down. The rainy season is the summer and we usually see a big increase in calls again. We will have to wait and see.

Regarding the so called "experts" forecasting several more years of decline; why should we believe them? Most have been wrong and I didn't hear anyone forecasting our current crisis (until it had already started).

I find myself glued to the TV looking for any good news about the future and I'm usually disappointed by what I hear. But, I am an optimist. I believe the media has perpetrated this enormous mindfuck, but I don't yet know why. For most of us, we still have to pay our mortgage/rent, still have to buy groceries, still have to pay our phone bills and other utilities. We still have to drive our cars and provide our families with cloths, shoes and medicine. Life still goes on. I'm not suggesting that we put our heads in the sand. To the contrary, I want our government to stop spending my unborn grandchildren's future incomes. How many generations will it take to payoff the trillions in taxes being given to mega corporations so that they can retire their bad debt and acquire new investments at Wall Street's fire sales?

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I heard that the keys are really haveing a hard time with everything from work to houseing prices droping like a rock not a good place to live. :side:>>>

http://projects.nytimes.com/creditcrisis/recipients/table

Nice to see that Capital One is getting a nice fat chunk too. Obviously a bastion of free enterprise and absolutely no governement involvement or special laws have ever passed for them or their industry. it is always good and refreshing to see these scum advertise on our nations airwaves too. Good for the economy, of course. Bad for people and bad for American'T.

But HEY! America employs no lobbyists.

What's in YOUR wallet? :huh:

Change? :laugh: Yeah, that'd be the "change" we are geting!! :huh:>>>

We should have listened to Ron Paul when he had input on the bailout, he is one sharp cookie when it comes to government finance and economics. Most think he is an old crazy doctor....but not I.

My only worry right now is work. If I can find work we will be ok, but trying to win bids right now is like pissing in the west wind! I have never in my 15 years.....had to compete against so many low life jack leggs. Our unemployment rate is nearing 8-9%....and everyone you talk to is looking for work. Only guys who are working are the commercial guys. I have no commercial contacts to speak of, since we have always been residential and new construction.

I use to get a lot of work with the mortgage companies and real estate agents but now they have all went to using nationwide companies that sub the work to you, after keeping a chunk.....but I cant even get them to call us back, lol.

Enough crying from me. One thing about it...my life has never been "easy", and I wasnt born with a silver spoon handed to me, so I will do what I have always done.

Try to survive......and hope things get better and a big hail storm comes my way :woohoo:>>>

On one hand, I'd say, how "prepared" we are simply depends on how much kool-aide we drank/or, how deep we bought into the "credit" mentality, artificial inflated values, (real estate/stocks, fiat money/etc....)....The kool-aide drinkers would simply die-off or get really sick before recovering...

However, with this "bail-out" crap,(IMHO), it will most-likely serverly affect all of us; Once again; To what degree, depends on our degree of "buy-in" to the above referrenced phenomenon(s). Personally, I withdrew all stocks 8-10 years ago figuring I could do better on my own....Unfortunately mostly in real estate.....We all knew, (I should say, the non-kool-aide consumers), the R/E market was over-inflated also...We'll just have to accept the fact we accumulated a more realistic amount of wealth....

Of course, if you had bought-in "full tilt" with the sheeples, and say, had a $250,000 home with a $50,000 mortgage a few years ago, and opted to sell and buy a $500,000 house, accumulating a $ 300,000 debt. hoping to increase your net worth a couple hundred thousand without really trying.......now there's no work, because of "the economy", the R/E prices are coming back into focus of where they should be...., Oh, and don't forget that 401k that took a $100,000 hit,.....Well,...there ya go....

I remember viewing a news clip awhile back; A news reporter was interviewing a participant following an Obama rally, (in Florida I think)....She was overcome with emotion...in tears, said ..."...Oh,...I'm just so happy...that I won't have to worry about filling my gas tank or making my mortgage payment; If I take care of HIM, he'll take care of me"......

Just sit back and relax......It'll all be okay......LOL or maybe COL....?????

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The above quote was from a response by HOP which has since dissapeared.>>>

"Immoral and Predatory businesses should not be afforded special protections under the law."

.....Re: The senator from MBNA >>>

Thanks>>>

We all prepare as much as we can. Keep your powder dry!>>>

I'll bring my take again. I have been ridiculed as a gloom and doom guy. Listen It doesn't matter if it is emotional or the media what ever it is ...........are you " prepared " cause it is happening and it is going to get worse much worse around the second or third quarter of this year. I have warned you .>>>

I don't know, why do you ask.>>>