Our failing economy

How bad do you think it will get??? Does anyone in here actually care??

Everybody [I]should[/I] care, but probably don't.

The Fed keeps lowering rates to try and boost the economy and prevent a recession, which in the short term works, but not the long run.  In the entire history of the USA, it's NEVER worked (to prevent recession).  Actually, increasing rates has worked, but lowering them hasn't.  If anyone is interested in this, read about stagflation which is what we're on the verge of, if not already in.

This really sucks, but in the short term, buying a house with stupid-low rates isn't a bad idea, even if the value drops a little bit.  Where I live, we're about 3 miles from the ocean, and the coastal areas of So-Cal tend to not to get hit by price drops so much because they're the most desirable areas to live.  So knock wood, our place will hold steady and then creep up again.

We'll most likely take advantage in the next 3-4 months and refinance because they might drop the rate even further.  30 year fixed rates around 5.1 right now are great, if we can get high 4's, even better.

To me the rate drops are to make everyone feel better thinking the gov. is doing something. But like you said I belive raising rates to make people stop spending would be ideal but not a fav to the massess.

Not too sure what to think about it. I also heard about the bill to give Tax filers around a $800 bonus all in hopes that the money will be put back into the economy by the consumer. But then realizing that for them to give this much money away would have to have some sort of consequence. We either will end up paying for it through other taxes. Most tax payers I would think would use this money to pay bills or save it which won't do anything to help the economy.

Im on the fence...for one, I dont think there should be a bail-out for people who bought homes they couldnt afford....PERIOD. Ive worked too hard o see people who are financially stupid get another hand out.  It makes me wonder WHY I (and other responsible Americans) work so hard. 
 
Markets depend on speculation, but said speculation is getting outta hand. When an average joe guy buying less than 100 brs of oil can cause the price to spike over $100+, then speculation method needs to be done away with....or seriously re-worked.  He did it to be funny, but it cost the nation millions because idiots that are worth billions are following sum dude that doesnt have  pot to piss in. :pat: 
 
 
My personal opinion is the price of fuel is whats going to keep the country where its at....consumer spending is down because people dont 'just go' and buy stuff without thinking about the high price of gas. The stimulus plan isnt going to work because all it does is offset the price of fuel. People will have  few bucks left over to pay on credit cards....used to fill up their tanks  :(
 
They should get the gas prices down first.
 
On a personal level, I'll restructure a couple things and wait it out.  If you handled your biz over the last couple years, theres money to be made in the next few ;) 
 
just my opinion tho...I dont even own a credit card =)

This is due to shady mortgage companies and loose approvals in subprime mortgage. Citigroup is declaring 18 billion in losses for the last quarter of 2007. Most americans whom i.e. get an approval for a 200,000 home usually shop for a 200,000 home. It should be the other way around. If you get an approval for 200,000 then buy a 130,000 dollar home. Something which is manageable. The stimulus packages and mortgage rates dip are temporary band aids. We are going to be in some economic purgatory soon enough.

[QUOTE=Kuroikaze;120345]This is due to shady mortgage companies and loose approvals in subprime mortgage. Citigroup is declaring 18 billion in losses for the last quarter of 2007. Most americans whom i.e. get an approval for a 200,000 home usually shop for a 200,000 home. It should be the other way around. If you get an approval for 200,000 then buy a 130,000 dollar home. Something which is manageable. The stimulus packages and mortgage rates dip are temporary band aids. We are going to be in some economic purgatory soon enough.[/QUOTE]

i shouldnt have bought the home i bought.  ah well.

[QUOTE=DEE;120264]How bad do you think it will get??? Does anyone in here actually care??[/QUOTE]

Just an observation, but:
Barrels of oil coming from the middle east is going somewheres right?
Currency exchange for the USD is way way down.
We (the US) are still in great deficet.
The war will never end (been goin on for 100ths of years).
To avoid a Jumbo loan on a home in SoCal, pricing has to be under $400k and 20% of that is $80k= don't got it.
Bush is depleting treasury funds for tax relief and screwing up my returns.
Social security? What's that?
When ppl were spending, they should have been saving (during the real estate spike) and now they need to be spending, but they are trying to save.
Stocks are down.
Friends getting laid-off.:shrug:

I dont blame the mortgage companies...let the buyer beware. People need to take responsibility for their own actions. I get sooo annoyed with people these days who always look to blame 'something' other than their own stupid selves.
 
[B]But[/B] I can say that I feel the people who thought that it was their only chance to grab a piece of the American dream....they gambled....and sum lost. Thats just how the game goes :shrug:  
 
I feel for the families who fell on hard times and are about to lose their homes,I just dont feel bad for people who got greedy: if you dont make 6 figures...u shouldnt have ur ass in a half million dollar house waitin on the [I]mortgage fairy[/I]
 
 
 
The rules are simple: Dont by shit u cant pay for. Same goes for cars (people who fix up leased cars:smiley-rofl: ) and everything else in life...aint no future in frontin =)

So, do we all miss Mr. Greenspan?

Economy is in a recession, and we need to get outta that war that is plunging us further in the shithole defecit. I think I'll move to Canada if the next pres. can't pull outta a stupid war. History shows that it should happen though. Who knows. 
 
What needs to be done IMO, is: Stop the war, Raise taxes (OMG did he just say that?) and restructure health care and shit like that that could be used to the advantage of the government. I'd pay more in taxes for health care. Canada does it this way right? You have a job you have insurance? 
 
Let SS and Welfare go down the drain, it doesn't need to be around. Too many people have abused it and use so many funds it's not even funny. 
 
Invest in gold if you want that money, gold has shot up quite a bit it seems. 
 
Don't worry about gas prices, you need gas to get where you are going, you are going to pay for it anyways. 
 
On CL they had a thread like this, and a man from illinois or something liike that said they stopped the gas tax for a certain amt of time (statewide or something) and it just drove the economy worse by not having that extra tax money to pay for stuff. IDK, read on CL if you would like to dwell further on it. 
 
That $800 dollar check that people are speculating, won't happen til around June, IF it goes through. 
 
It only applies to lower and low middle class tax payers with jobs. Depends on how much you make, and it's only like 40million tax payers that will get it. That's a lot of money, but i doubt it'll help much. 
 
People are saying it'd be better to do nothing than to try to toss money at people hoping they'll go spend it right away. Right now, I think more people would save it, or pay their debts off than spend it on stuff.

^^ well thats what im going to end up dong with the $800 going straight to my credit cards. i just think we should brace ourself this next couple of years might be a little rough.

so someone who is 19...starting a life with his female...and both of us going through college while im in the military(yes...sorry guys i need to get paid and take care of the family)..what would people suggest for the next few years to get ahead and not make many mistakes..other then saving my money....or should i do something else...emerald please chime and others. i kno there is very educated people here and i would love to hear the input.

Without starting a dissertation I will say this, I am concerned with the economic state of our country, however, if the Stock market continues to struggle it will only help my business short term.  Ultimately it will not be good though.  We need a real leader in the white house next election and the most of the candidates aren't gonna cut it.....

[QUOTE=urmyhero4now;120465]so someone who is 19...starting a life with his female...and both of us going through college while im in the military(yes...sorry guys i need to get paid and take care of the family)..what would people suggest for the next few years to get ahead and not make many mistakes..other then saving my money....or should i do something else...emerald please chime and others. i kno there is very educated people here and i would love to hear the input.[/QUOTE]

My advice would be to save as much as you can. With the market as volatile as it is now. I would not invest in anything moderate to high risk. Do not incur anymore needless debt. Yes, the price of gold is going up. Have you notice Fort Knox, lol? The government would rather run a tab then let go any gold bars. China has us by the gonads right now in terms of the biggest tab we have. Too many issues. I think the bigger issue we should look at once we hit recession. INFLATION!

Market is really  bad. The friends who I have kept in touch with since we graduated in the summer are not yet working full time. I still have my partime gig, but  can't seem to find a full time job because of this horrendous market. Some of the people who graduated, can't even find a job. It's actually a depression right now that is being covered up since all the focus is on the elections.

Anyone heard of Ron Paul?

The psycho who sells dreams to people? Yeah. He's pretty crazy. Have you been following the primaries and caucuses?

[QUOTE=Caoboy;120527]The psycho who sells dreams to people? Yeah. He's pretty crazy. Have you been following the primaries and caucuses?[/QUOTE]

Unfortunately, I have not been keeping up with the media... I mean politics.

Like Caoboy mentioned, gold is real strong, but silver is underrated by many.  The price of silver has been going up steadily just like gold has, and silver could really soar shortly. Regardless, gold and silver are, and always have been, safe bets.  We have a bunch of physical silver which is cool cause you can actually hold / touch it, and have money in GLD which is a fund you can buy like stock, but it's backed by physical gold, I forget how much, but it's over 10 billion worth.  The only downside to putting money in metal is the tax on profit when you sell is higher than the tax on stock, the Govt. treats it differently.  Same thing with the funds like the GLD fund, the Govt. treats it no differently than owning physical gold.

[quote=urmyhero4now;120465]so someone who is 19...starting a life with his female...and both of us going through college while im in the military(yes...sorry guys i need to get paid and take care of the family)..what would people suggest for the next few years to get ahead and not make many mistakes..other then saving my money....or should i do something else...emerald please chime and others. i kno there is very educated people here and i would love to hear the input.[/quote]
 
any children?

[quote=SkidMark;120516]Anyone heard of Ron Paul?[/quote]

Yep heard of him, but I'm supporting Obama.

[quote=Wald GS;120867]Yep heard of him, but I'm supporting Obama.[/quote]
 
As long as you don't support Hillary, it's all good. 
 
He seems to have a strong support, lets just see if it holds well enough.

Frankley, I like the Clintons...and Obama is a great motivator, but i'm concerned about his experience. On the other hand, I would more than likely vote for Bill again opposed to Hillary.

Well all the articles and discussions i've read on her, she seems to flip flop to what she thinks people want to hear...now, that's just what i've read. 
 
They say romney is the same way. 
 
Obama and McCain speak how they feel, though some people believe that obama holds more truth. 
 
McCain is just too old...it's 72...it's too old to become the leader of a country...while others are retired and just not active as they used to be, he's out trying to become president? Come on, think about it, an 8 year pair of terms, the dude would be 80, if not dead by then. How many people who are between 72-80 are quick witted and tend to know exactly what's going on all the time? 
 
BUT i'm getting off track here, and this isn't a Gov't thread.

Yay! I'm getting 600 extra after tax season. I guess I'll stimulate the economy by buying more car parts!=)

A lot of people made it thru the Bush administration off of money made while Clinton was in office. I figure it would be a two fer one deal if she won...but im on the fence between her and Obama. ANYTHING would be better than what we have now....nowwhere to go but up when you're sittin at rock bottom :smiley-rofl:
 
[quote=Kuroikaze;121106]Yay! I'm getting 600 extra after tax season. I guess I'll stimulate the economy by buying more car parts!=)[/quote]
 
Damn!! Well, Make sure you spend it in the states and not directly to Japan. :biggthumpup: 
 
 
...sux, Im not getting any of that freebate money. :sad:

I'm not sure what we get but I think it's 800 + 300 for our kiddo.  We were planning a trip to Desert Hot Springs anyhow so I guess we'll pay with that!  I said we can use the rest towards an LCD TV, but no, the financial mgr (wife) says we'll pay off the credit card.  Sigh..

I don't think Clinton flip flops, I think for the most part she stands by her decisions.  Personally, I like all the Democrat potentials and have figured it would be either Clinton / Obama (whatever order, I don't care) or Clinton / Edwards.  I actually like a couple of the Republicans too but I agree about McCain, he's just too old.

That tax rebate, is UP TO 600. Then again, it did also say that low income families, that are on food stamps etc. would be getting 300. So I'm thinking between 300-600 is what single tax filers will be getting back IF you make less than 75k a year. Another thing is, this hasn't passed one of the 2 places to be passed, either the senate or the house, i can't remember which. So it's still on the fence whether we'll be seeing a little extra money in june or not. 

150 billion down the drain, if people don't use it the way it's supposed to be used.

Im gonna havta rob someone :signdammit:

Nah, just make less money. That's what you get for being 'baller' LOL oh god the CL thread about balling...lol...

Gotcha, but I'm pretty sure you get 300 for a kid too on top of whatever you get.  But yeah, it hasn't passed the Senate yet, so it's still not for sure.

It's something like 6-1200 with bonuses for dependents or children? i was reading it on msn.com. we'll find out when its official and when we actually receive the check. i'm not counting on it.

[QUOTE=urmyhero4now;120465]so someone who is 19...starting a life with his female...and both of us going through college while im in the military(yes...sorry guys i need to get paid and take care of the family)..what would people suggest for the next few years to get ahead and not make many mistakes..other then saving my money....or should i do something else...emerald please chime and others. i kno there is very educated people here and i would love to hear the input.[/QUOTE]

How long have you been in the military?  What branch (has nothing to do with your question, just asking out of curiosity)?  If you haven't already started look into investing into the TSP plan.  That is a decent way to start off until you've come up with a better investment plan.

Also, that 'freebie' check, is going to be taxed for next year too. As in you have to pay taxes on it. Yay. I guess they have to make that money back somehow right?

[quote=DriftGirl;120385]I dont blame the mortgage companies...let the buyer beware. People need to take responsibility for their own actions. I get sooo annoyed with people these days who always look to blame 'something' other than their own stupid selves.
 
[B]But[/B] I can say that I feel the people who thought that it was their only chance to grab a piece of the American dream....they gambled....and sum lost. Thats just how the game goes :shrug: 
 
I feel for the families who fell on hard times and are about to lose their homes,I just dont feel bad for people who got greedy: if you dont make 6 figures...u shouldnt have ur ass in a half million dollar house waitin on the [I]mortgage fairy[/I]
 
 
 
The rules are simple: Dont by shit u cant pay for. Same goes for cars (people who fix up leased cars:smiley-rofl: ) and everything else in life...aint no future in frontin =)[/quote]
 
 
 
 
i agree, the housing market has to do with our bad econmy... they bought house that they thought they could afford but now there stuck with a fat mortgage that they cant afford...  so with the increas in gas, food, etc. they don't have money for lots of other things, lik fixing there cars, shopping, etc... so that hurts everybody to everything... im a tech at toyota and i can't even upsale anything anymore since everyone is so conservative, that in turn, lots of people are getting laid off, can't find jobs since everywhere is so slow... and when they get laid off, they can't pay the mortgage that they thought they could afford,  house goes into foreclosure... etc...its just lik a common thing i see alot lately.. 
 
lik mentioned before.. i see lots of my friends unemployed, struggling off mortage, etc.. i miss the old days where money wasn't an issue, everybody was living good, shittin out money was fun... 
 
i hope it gets better... maybe not overnight but in the near future...

I'll address a few issues here but I hate getting political about anything unless there's beer involved since politics, religion, and sex are better with beer hahahahaha :smiley-rofl: anyways.. first off the economy is in a slump due to greed... people who couldn't afford certain things started doing whatever it took to get them, while the people selling said things decided to increase the amout of those things for sale hmmmm... over-supply with a declining demand due to an over inflated market? how could people not expect to lose?
 
I'll be the first to say it for those afraid to highlight it I MISS REAGANOMICS!!! Clinton didn't make us money while in office period, he rode the curtails of an economy that had been produced by 12 years of Reaganomics. the plan was simple yet very effective.... 16 years of taxes that were to be slowly increased to the displeasure of us all, while trimming the size of government. Albeit we did have the cold war in effect so build up was necessary but it was all figured in to the deal. What were the results? we don't know.... since years 13-16 belonged to Clinton who took credit for a surplus that was there due to Reagan's economic policy. Everyone credits Clinton which is ridiculous I'm sorry. No U.S. president has ever INSTANTLY affected our economy! What they do and what laws they create usually stimulates the economy AFTER they leave office.
 
Enough with that. Anybody who has a home purchased previous to the last two years and either can handle the adjustable or high APR for the next, you need to wait till the Fed drops the rate one more time and then refi into a beautiful 30 year fixed with a ridiculously low APR. Just a suggestion really, and any business owners... the tax breaks and incentive packages in the works are going to be just as equally advantageous. 
 
Regardless of who ends up in office (please don't let it be the crooked duo Clintons....PM me for info) they will be coming in to an economy that will require them to make decisions like a conservative republican.... they will raise taxes and cut federal aid programs like unemployment and welfare.....unless the person is hardcore liberal dem...then they'll do all that and create more programs instead so we will not see any economical improvement for a while.
 
sorry for the rant but like I said.... this would be so much better with beer!!! ahhahahaha :biggthumpup:
 
Now flame on!!

[quote=urmyhero4now;120465]so someone who is 19...starting a life with his female...and both of us going through college while im in the military(yes...sorry guys i need to get paid and take care of the family)..what would people suggest for the next few years to get ahead and not make many mistakes..other then saving my money....or should i do something else...emerald please chime and others. i kno there is very educated people here and i would love to hear the input.[/quote]
 
Your off on a good start.... most 19 year olds aren't doing jack. I went the same route. Got married young while in the military and had 3 kids. Got out after 8 and got a good job based on military exp. which means alot in the civ world. Don't let them get you into thinking theres no life after the military tho. The only thing is that if you do get out .... you gotta get yours.... it's not gonna get you. BTW what's your job in the military??

[quote=DEE;122902]Your off on a good start.... most 19 year olds aren't doing jack. I went the same route. Got married young while in the military and had 3 kids. Got out after 8 and got a good job based on military exp. which means alot in the civ world. [B]Don't let them get you into thinking theres no life after the military tho[/B]. The only thing is that if you do get out .... you gotta get yours.... it's not gonna get you. BTW what's your job in the military??[/quote]
 
 
 
very true... my sister was going to college and went to the military at the same time, she was studying in the medical field at school, and went for the medical field in the military also... after all said and done, she now works at the hospital making 6 figures at the age of 26.. not bad if u ask me... nowadays, people r trying to hire strong people with good backgrounds....

[QUOTE=Caoboy;120431]Economy is in a recession, and we need to get outta that war that is plunging us further in the shithole defecit. I think I'll move to Canada if the next pres. can't pull outta a stupid war. History shows that it should happen though. Who knows. 
 
What needs to be done IMO, is: Stop the war, Raise taxes (OMG did he just say that?) and restructure health care and shit like that that could be used to the advantage of the government. I'd pay more in taxes for health care. Canada does it this way right? You have a job you have insurance? 
 
Let SS and Welfare go down the drain, it doesn't need to be around. Too many people have abused it and use so many funds it's not even funny. 
 
Invest in gold if you want that money, gold has shot up quite a bit it seems. 
 
Don't worry about gas prices, you need gas to get where you are going, you are going to pay for it anyways. 
 
On CL they had a thread like this, and a man from illinois or something liike that said they stopped the gas tax for a certain amt of time (statewide or something) and it just drove the economy worse by not having that extra tax money to pay for stuff. IDK, read on CL if you would like to dwell further on it. 
 
That $800 dollar check that people are speculating, won't happen til around June, IF it goes through. 
 
It only applies to lower and low middle class tax payers with jobs. Depends on how much you make, and it's only like 40million tax payers that will get it. That's a lot of money, but i doubt it'll help much. 
 
People are saying it'd be better to do nothing than to try to toss money at people hoping they'll go spend it right away. Right now, I think more people would save it, or pay their debts off than spend it on stuff.[/QUOTE]

All that you wrote could be simply replaced with a limited sized government.  Yes, move out of the middle east and limit the size of government = no tax hike and financial relief for the people.

The psycho you claim whom sells dreams to people could quite possibly bring America back to its feet.  Ron Paul is the only one who will bring us out of the war and into a true and honest humble foreign policy.

While, this rebate check seems like a good idea, the government is only prolonging the effects of the economy.  I think along with this rebate check, we should be informed to save this money and/or make safe investments with it.  Most of America will just spend it on useless junk that they won't use after a couple of weeks...sad but true.

Like Emerald said, don't buy things you cannot afford.

Yep. Now look at Ron Paul. [url]http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22419475[/url]

He's got 4 delegates. I don't think he really has a chance to win. He's just staying in to stay in. Him and McCain are too old to run the nation. McCain is for the war, Paul is against war period. 

Obama and Hillary are in a tight race....one thing that might change it though, is if Obama speaks about his religion, which he tends to change the subject when it is asked about. Many believe he may be Muslim, which definitely would kill his chances. Also means that McCain will probably win. I don't think Hillary will become president, or the Dem party nom. We'll see....

A lot is going on here, and alot will change in the next few years hopefully. Either better or worse, depending on who becomes president. I feel that Obama is the best choice out of the three main candidates. 

I don't really know about romney, except from what i hear, he says what you want to hear, not what he wants to say.

HAHA this thread is 3 years old... but damn some people were on point.