Lets stop talking about this supposed recession...

[Last Post]

because we really should be concentrating on the upcoming DEPRESSION.

Why is everyone skirting the pending doom of this economy? Gas prices through the roof, jobs going overseas and evaporating in the US, housing prices going into the toilet devastating people's equity, food prices going higher, etc. ,etc.

You look around and it's all bad news. The local gov'ts can't continue to function because the local houses are being foreclosed upon and taxes aren't being collected.

We're talking collosal devastaton and people are still debating about a recession?

Let's stop pretending and start realizing things suck and are going to get suckier.

[greenjoker]

I guess Bush and Cheney will soon announce "Mission Accomplished" into making the U.S. a third world country.

[Saint Joey]

Last Post, in all his gloom-and-doom glory, gives a lot weight to this:

Cafferty File: Tell Jack how you really feel Blog Archive - Why are conservatives happier than liberals? « - Blogs from CNN.com

[danb]

From my experience over the years, liberals tend to be grumpy, cynical, negative thinkers, pessimistic, unable to laugh at themselves, very little sense of humor in general, and not very fun to be around.

Conservatives? Not so much.

[Last Post]

Originally Posted by Saint Joey

Last Post, in all his gloom-and-doom glory, gives a lot weight to this:

Cafferty File: Tell Jack how you really feel Blog Archive - Why are conservatives happier than liberals? « - Blogs from CNN.com

I see. So I am a liberal? You may want to ask ignot if he thinks so.

So things are really going okay then? Please give me some reason to believe this, after all I can cite web page after web page of how things are really going wrong.

[Last Post]

Originally Posted by danb

From my experience over the years, liberals tend to be grumpy, cynical, negative thinkers, pessimistic, unable to laugh at themselves, very little sense of humor in general, and not very fun to be around.

Conservatives? Not so much.

Are you like a major republican shill??

It's like the whole world to you is republicans and democrats. Are you a politician? Why are you so myopic?

[Saint Joey]

Originally Posted by Last Post

I see. So I am a liberal? You may want to ask ignot if he thinks so.

So things are really going okay then? Please give me some reason to believe this, after all I can cite web page after web page of how things are really going wrong.

[Last Post]

Originally Posted by Saint Joey

Was it really that funny? Has this become the snipets board and no one told me? Why are people laughing so much??


So you got nothin, eh Joey?

[Last Post]

Originally Posted by Saint Joey

C'mon Joey, lift my spirits.

Tell me of some companies that aren't laying off people and are hiring.

[lars]

Originally Posted by Last Post

because we really should be concentrating on the upcoming DEPRESSION.

Why is everyone skirting the pending doom of this economy? Gas prices through the roof, jobs going overseas and evaporating in the US, housing prices going into the toilet devastating people's equity, food prices going higher, etc. ,etc.

You look around and it's all bad news. The local gov'ts can't continue to function because the local houses are being foreclosed upon and taxes aren't being collected.

We're talking collosal devastaton and people are still debating about a recession?

Let's stop pretending and start realizing things suck and are going to get suckier.

You might be pretty naive or really young. We have experienced far greater turndowns in the economy than we are now. Heck..The 4th and 1st quarter both expanded at 1/2% clip. Which is not even a technical recession yet. You must not have lived through the seventies or early 80s. Even the late 80s under Bush1 was worse.

And then if you go back further in time (before my time) the country experienced many many severe recessions and we all are still around.

I think America is so spoiled. If you can't buy buy buy at the higher clip every year then somehow the world is falling apart. Geeze my grandmother used to save tinfoil because she didn't want to 'waste the money'. I bet you haven't reached that point. But when you do maybe then you can complain. You are far better off than people, 20,30 40 50 years ago. So you might have to cut back for a bit. Tomorrow will be a better day ..hold your chin up bud.

[Enrico Palazzo]

Originally Posted by danb

From my experience over the years, liberals tend to be grumpy, cynical, negative thinkers, pessimistic, unable to laugh at themselves, very little sense of humor in general, and not very fun to be around.

Conservatives? Not so much.

considering liberals live in reality and conservatives on fantasy island, that makes sense.

Last Post, you are starting to figure out jokey.

[Last Post]

Originally Posted by lars

You might be pretty naive or really young. We have experienced far greater turndowns in the economy than we are now. Heck..The 4th and 1st quarter both expanded at 1/2% clip. Which is not even a technical recession yet. You must not have lived through the seventies or early 80s. Even the late 80s under Bush1 was worse.

And then if you go back further in time (before my time) the country experienced many many severe recessions and we all are still around.

I think America is so spoiled. If you can't buy buy buy at the higher clip every year then somehow the world is falling apart. Geeze my grandmother used to save tinfoil because she didn't want to 'waste the money'. I bet you haven't reached that point. But when you do maybe then you can complain. You are far better off than people, 20,30 40 50 years ago. So you might have to cut back for a bit. Tomorrow will be a better day ..hold your chin up bud.

Can you live off of $5,000 a year? I can and do. I save those fridge plastic seal bags and wash them, then re-use them, is that the same as your grandma?

I'm definately not bad off compared to many. I am pretty damn lucky. I'd say I'm better off than 90% on this board whom if they lost their job just might end up in bankruptcy court within a year.

I wasn't looking for pity or sympathy for myself. I'm asking for some ray of sunshine in this otherwise gloomy horizon. I read about all of the financial problems across the state and the issues that are hurting everyone....or will soon enough.

It seems like it's just too big to just dismiss. What is going right? How can you have 1 in 30 houses foreclosed upon? That is insanity. That is something from the Grapes of Wrath. How can you have oil spike up in price by over 100% in less than 12 months? And the job market? Damn, where to go there?

Tell me where the good news is! And don't quote me BS crap from CNBC like GDP growth and labor statistics, or stock market analysis.

[spartans134]

Things will get worse on the current path we're on. The Fed keeps printing more and more money causing the dollar to go down in value day after day. We can't afford all of these government programs.

[Negotiator]

Originally Posted by Last Post

Can you live off of $5,000 a year? I can and do.

OOC, how does that work?

Assumptions:
$200/mo food
$150/mo utilities (gas/elec/water/cable/internet)
$100/mo gas
$200/mo insurance
-------------
$650/mo total, car and house owned free and clear

I'm already clocking you out at $7800/yr. I mean, I thought I was relatively frugal but $5k/yr? Dang.

[GRR Spartan]

If you question anything boy wonder Bush2 has done Joey, danb and others will call you a liberal.

The have no thoughtful response much like the kneejerk radio that fills their brains 30+ hours a week.

Dollar is worth less than 75% of what it was when Bush2 got his US Supreme Court mandate and the US economy has added lower paying service jobs to replace the higher paying manufacturing jobs that have been lost. A shrinking middle class that has driven the consumer economy that buys now more expensive imported goods (including energy) due to the shrinking dollar just doesn't paint a pretty picture.

[John Deere]

Originally Posted by Negotiator

OOC, how does that work?

Assumptions:
$200/mo food
$150/mo utilities (gas/elec/water/cable/internet)
$100/mo gas
$200/mo insurance
-------------
$650/mo total, car and house owned free and clear

I'm already clocking you out at $7800/yr. I mean, I thought I was relatively frugal but $5k/yr? Dang.

You have factored in the negative taxes that OOC would receive back when you are part of the working poor. Don't know the exact amount at $5,000, but it will be in the $1,500 to $2,000 range.

Insurance doesn't cost $200 per month (and neither does gas over a 12-month period) but you forgot to add in the cost of an internet connection to continue posting on the RCMB.

We're there.

[John Deere]

Originally Posted by GRR Spartan

If you question anything boy wonder Bush2 has done Joey, danb and others will call you a liberal.

Exactly.

The have no thoughtful response much like the kneejerk radio that fills their brains 30+ hours a week.

Actually, sometimes there is no response to a whiner that would work.

Dollar is worth less than 75% of what it was when Bush2 got his US Supreme Court mandate and the US economy has added lower paying service jobs to replace the higher paying manufacturing jobs that have been lost. A shrinking middle class that has driven the consumer economy that buys now more expensive imported goods (including energy) due to the shrinking dollar just doesn't paint a pretty picture.

Seriously, you don't think that the dollar has always been artificially high relative to other currencies (except growing economies like China?) and its drop is Bush's fault? And that our economy - at some point - would have to start looking like other economies in wealth distribution?

Seriously, now...

[WixomSpartan]

Originally Posted by Last Post

So things are really going okay then? Please give me some reason to believe this, after all I can cite web page after web page of how things are really going wrong.

There's no arguing with the blogosphere...

[Todd Farkman]

Originally Posted by Negotiator

OOC, how does that work?

Assumptions:
$200/mo food
$150/mo utilities (gas/elec/water/cable/internet)
$100/mo gas
$200/mo insurance
-------------
$650/mo total, car and house owned free and clear

I'm already clocking you out at $7800/yr. I mean, I thought I was relatively frugal but $5k/yr? Dang.

Yeah, my big hitters are taxes, insurance and utilities.

I don't eat more than $100/mo for food. Typically I spend about $60. And I eat decent food. The key is to have time to prepare your own meals in large quantities then freeze the extras.

Utilities: I have solar panels so my typical electrical bill is around $10 but can get to $30 in the winter as I have a furnace fan that is really bad. I have a solar heater and I keep the heat low with really good wall insulationso my gas is not too bad.

I was spending about $80/mo on gas but right now I bike everywhere that I can and I am unemployed! So I can effectively get this to zero if I wanted to.

I dropped my cable TV after I bought some HDTVs. The reception is so incredible for HD why do I need cable? Outside of missing some sports events cable is pretty useless: channels and channels of advertisements and BS that I don't watch. I can just use NetFlix for $10/mo to get better movies than cable....OR just download the movies for free off the internet!

Did you know there are 3 different HD PBS stations for free? I didn't. ANd they'll play some movies that rival cable, have home improvement shows and documentaries. Besides, I can download half the stuff off the internet that I see on cable.

I'm unemployed but I have enough savings to last me 2-4 years!

[lars]

Originally Posted by Last Post

Tell me where the good news is! And don't quote me BS crap from CNBC like GDP growth and labor statistics, or stock market analysis.

So in otherwords. Don't tell me anything that might be optimistic or news that isn't bad because I will just

So if the facts make you upset. Things have been FAR worse than today. By all accounts every demographic lives better than ever before. Sure about 1% of homes nationally have had trouble with mortgages but lets just write off the other 99% of the nation because the sky is falling.

Our economy has grown bigger than it was last year, the year before and for the last century. We are all benefiting. Are things at a slow down. Sure. But, that the way economies work. They grow. then they slow or slide back for a short time only to return to growing. The US economy is the most resilant in the world. It will bounce back. That I am sure of.

[Last Post]

Originally Posted by lars

So in otherwords. Don't tell me anything that might be optimistic or news that isn't bad because I will just

So if the facts make you upset. Things have been FAR worse than today. By all accounts every demographic lives better than ever before. Sure about 1% of homes nationally have had trouble with mortgages but lets just write off the other 99% of the nation because the sky is falling.

Our economy has grown bigger than it was last year, the year before and for the last century. We are all benefiting. Are things at a slow down. Sure. But, that the way economies work. They grow. then they slow or slide back for a short time only to return to growing. The US economy is the most resilant in the world. It will bounce back. That I am sure of.

In Stockton 1 in 30 homes are being foreclosed. That's over 3%....just being foreclosed on. Now throw in everyone else who can't sell their homes or are upside down on their mortgages. The housing mess is affecting more than 1%....a LOT more.