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US Has Been In Recession Since December 2007
The National Bureau of Economic Research said Monday that the US has been in a recession since December 2007. The NBER is a private, nonprofit research organization of academic economists who determine business cycles. The stock market took a dip on the news that reached double-digit percentages for some tech stocks.
step aside intel 45 nanometer chipset, cloaking materials, telepathic controllers, and internet technology....its time for an economic recession story from the National Bureau of Economic Research.
you nerds can thank us later after you're done spending your way to patriotastic victory over the stock plunge and housing crisis.
Good people go to bed earlier.
This year, like the previous year, and the year before that, I will definitely NOT shop my ass off for Christmas, nor will I stuff my face silly on Christmas, only to feel bloated the next day and have to diet so I can stomach New Year's eve binge (which, in case you didn't guess, I never do either).
Christmas, like Halloween, father/mother/grandma/grandpa days, are commercial inventions, fake joy and fake happiness destined to make you shell out your hard-earned money and, since the great Bank Robbery^H^H^H^Hbailout plan, supposedly help the economy recover.
Well, I paid my loans, I don't live on credit, I spend my money cautiously, even when there's no "crisis", so I fail to see why I must buy Christmas junk to support those who don't.
(half my retirement funds are now gone).
Like most things in your post thats wrong. Stop believing in the Obama campaign as the source of all your financial info. The correct statements would be pick one:
My retirement fund is now worth half what it was
This recession has actually caused my retirement fund to shrink
Or my personal fave:
What the hell ! You mean we can't buy big houses, SUV's and rack up credit debt endlessly ?!?! What do you mean we have to 'compete' for jobs ? Whats this crap ?? Dont choo kno I'm an American !!!
Its time to sort the wheat from the chaff. Man the fuck up. (and spread that to your friends, and their parents too - the great depression was FAR FAR FAR worse than this and they were not whining as much as people now either.)
"Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the the universe." --Albert Einstein
- "We don't believe we're going to have a recession though." [Vice President Dick Cheney, 1/30/08]
- "I think the experts will tell you we're not in a recession." [President Bush, 2/10/08]
- "The answer is, I don't think we are in a recession right now." [Council of Economic Advisers Chairman Edward Lazear, 2/11/08]
- "First of all, we're not in a recession." [President Bush, 4/22/08]
- "The data are pretty clear that we are not in a recession." [Council of Economic Advisers Chairman Edward Lazear, 5/7/08]
- "I don't think we are" in a recession. [Director of the National Economic Council Keith Hennesy, 6/3/08]
- "I think we have avoided a recession." [White House Budget Director Jim Nussle, 7/31/08]
- "I don't think anybody could tell you right now if we're in a recession or not" [Dana Perino, 10/7/08]
Well, I paid my loans, I don't live on credit, I spend my money cautiously, even when there's no "crisis"
You, sir, are a sucker.
Virginia is for lovers. EVE is for griefers.
The other thing is, even the "real" production is useless crap that has designed obsolescence.
They talk on the news about how holiday spending is going to be low and how much its going to hurt the economy. Do we really want an economy based on the sales of what amounts to Christmas toys?
Did you know that when the Core Inflation rate is calculated they disregard things like milk, bread and fuel? You know the stuff that people...need.
Eschew Obfuscation
You haven't actually lost anything until you decide to sell at the lower value. The market will come back, it always does.
That's great, unless I'm 65 and expected to live on the money I get from selling my house, moving to an apartment, and liquidating my investments. The stock market, had I got in 10 years ago and invested in a safe S&P 500 index fund, has done absolutely nothing. Zero return in ten years. Ten years is pretty close to "long term" in my book.
"day traders" are responsible for all the major flux in the markets, and at all times. they should be put to the wall
Day traders are responsible for the unprecedented and unequaled liquidity in the US stock markets. They are the reason you can *always* sell or buy a stock. AIG and other bailout recipients have problems because they held onto assets, like CDS, that now are completely illiquid. They can't sell at any price. What they need is a CDS market filled with day traders who are willing to speculate on those assets and are willing to buy them at *some* price. Without speculating day traders, there is no market for you "long term" investors.
... and that's when the C.H.U.D.'s came at me.
What's good for a person and what's "good for the economy" are often completely at odds.
According to politicians, the patriot will be completely overextended with debt, barely making all his or her payments, one paycheque away from oblivion.
According to common sense, the non-idiot will try to have as little debt as possible, using it only for major capital expenses rather than trying to live off of it.
According to politicians, the patriot will spend every penny, so the money he or she makes will have maximum exposure to the economy.
According to common sense, the non-idiot will try to have savings, so if something happens they can just coast on savings until the crisis is averted.(Politicians hate that idea. How can they pander to people who aren't on the verge of collapse?)
According to politicians, the patriot will buy a new laptop, car, and house TODAY using credit. They don't have to pay until 2011 anyway, so DO IT! DO IT NOW!
According to common sense, buying things with cash will save considerable amounts of money. First, the interest accrued on debt never takes place. Second, the fees involved with taking out debt never take place. Third, it's easier to get deals and bargain with cash in hand resulting in lower prices.
The rational actor is unpatriotic. Their actions are contrary to maximizing economic growth in the short term.
On the other hand, my personal belief and experience is that debt works differently than economists think. It increases the volatility in the economy. Individual actors add massive amounts of money to the economy, but are suddenly extremely limited in their ability to participate in the economy.
Consider two people: A person with debt, and a person without debt.
The person with debt adds 10k to the economy by buying a new Toyota Yaris. The economy recieves his 10k. For the next year, as he pays back the debt, his ability to participate in the economy is reduced by $900/month, and he is effectively locked out of making any further contribution to the economy. The economy spikes in Q1, but is minimal in Q2, Q3, Q4.
The person without debt doesn't buy that car, but is capable of spending $900/month on the economy. Economic output is constant in Q1, Q2, Q3, Q4.
Now think about this: Many people have 50 year, $500,000 mortgages as a result of the housing bubble. With the economic spike done and over with, what remains?
It's been a long time.
The news media has accurately predicted 23 of the last 2 recessions.
Subprime lending has very little to do with the current recession. The default rate is only slightly higher than average. The real problems have to do with derivatives, naked shorting and other financial shenanigans that Washington has refused to regulate. When we repackage debt, and insurance on said debt, and resell both dozens of times over, even a slight increase in defaults will knock over the whole house of cards. When we allow people to sell stocks they don't even own, and haven't even borrowed as in regular shorting, nothing but chaos can ensue.
In short, it is not the poor, who were simply patsies, who caused this mess. It was, as always, the greedy rich. Blaming the poor and those who try to help them get a fair shake is simply despicable.
- None can love freedom heartily, but good men; the rest love not freedom, but license. -- John Milton
Why is this a troll post?
Mod parent insightful.
I'm also a sucker. I similarly stayed out of debt, didn't take part in the dangerously overinflated housing market, used credit cards responsibly and generally lived within my means. Not that it was painful, I've got reasonable means as a software engineer. But I didn't join in the great-big-debt-party with everyone else.
Why am I a sucker? Because the government will now tax me to prop up people that did get too far in, that did take that dumbass high multiple on a house, that did get into debt. We can't have the people of the country actually paying for their actions, no. Rest assured, I really am a sucker for thinking that keeping my own finances in order was an advantage.