Can we get the average Americans opinion?

The average American is over $10,000 dollars in debt. The banking industry is strong because of this. So we go further into debt and pay more interest. Life stays the same when everybody gets credit. We just feel bad because we are sinking and not paying off our debts. We still have bread on the table, but is is not really ours.

reply to post by Anonymous ATS

thank's to past president bill clinton and the NAFTA agreement and all the free trade all other countries want. i want FAIR trade.

bring the US to its knees...................................financially first.

I just read that people are stealing man-hole covers and grates in Flint Michigan to sell for scrap metal. They average $20 per and it costs the city about $200 each to replace them.

More and more we are having problems with people going through our trash by the curb in MI.

We posted a tiny job offer for a pet sitter job in our local paper and got 300 calls!
Of those 300 calls, 5 were scheduled for an interview. Of those 5, 2 didn't show up or call. Of the 3 that did, one lied and had a criminal record and drug problems, one didn't like domestic animals (wanted to take care of horses) and the last one was hired for about a week until we found out she was taking her job-less boyfriend into peoples houses with her. Not acceptable.

Everybody seems to like the idea of working, but nobody is willing to work

So yeah, if Michigan is any indication of the state of the US economy, we're in pretty bad shape.

I've personally never made much money in my 20+ year job history...but I've never gone hungry or been homeless thanks to friends and family, so it isn't much different for me these days, having always been without so-called disposable income. Around here in northern OK, people are still riding around in enormous vehicles and seem to be fairly comfortable, but who knows how much debt they're in??

I got hit with a huge gas bill in April and haven't paid it off yet, so I have no gas service at the moment-no hot water-it isn't the end of the world, so what no hot water, I can put a bucket of cold water on the patio and by 6pm it'll be nice and warm and I can wash with that.

Right now I'm doing odd jobs and making outdoor furniture to sell, and I am not nervous because I really don't have a lot to lose if the economy tanks...I should also say I don't have kids-do have pets-and they aren't as expensive to keep.

I thank the lord jesus christ, buddah, shiva, allah and every god there is that my air conditioning is electric!

I live in the North. I am waiting for the cold. Cold and increased fuel costs are a BAD combination.
For me the Winter of 2008 will point out the course to come.

reply to post by airteck


I am amazed, finally someone outside our country doesnt just want to take the media's word for something and are trying to get the facts. Well I will tell you this I live in Anchorage, Alaska..USA and the economy here is still going strong. We have low unemployment, housing is more affordable than ever. The one problem we have is if we go on vacation we have to fly and flying has become outrages because of the oil crisis but on the whole we still pay less for gas than just about any other country that uses fossil fuels. Once again I am a middle class person and I do not feel that the economy around me is a recession, I also have realatives in Oklahoma and Texas that are doing great. Sure there are lots of things which could be better but all in all things are good.

Originally posted by dbates
reply to post by airteck

 

This is mostly just sensationalism. While it's true that fuel and food prices have increased, I've noticed that most parking lots at shopping centers are still full of cars, and the movie theatre parking lots are still jammed with people paying $8.00 to see a movie and another $8 for popcorn and soda. People are trimming the fat off of what they spend money on, but America is still full of gluttons who have it far better than they know.

Agreed! Total Ooga Booga!

Of course a declining dollar will affect fuel prices, but I am not anywhere near suffering as a result. They are indeed blowing things out of proportion.

Of course if you are mired in debt, it's usually due to irresponsibility in most cases I have seen, then yeah your budget would probably be broken, but frankly I have never been in a better financial situation.

A lot of it is due to my friends here who got the forecasts out well ahead of time so the necessary adjustments could be made in reduction of expenses.

One thing people need to take into consideration is that the money is not going away, it's just changing hands.

The more people play into the fear mongering, the more they will fall victim with the ensuing herding behavior, and the more runs on banks there will be etc.

There are NO food shortages, there is no shortage of fuel, and I am not seeing any increases in pricing on anything other than fuel, which in my case is easily manageable with no excessive debt.

Oh and haha "Gluttons" this is so true! it's sickening. These are the people though who are most affected.

Personally, the economy is bad for me. I own a small environmental firm. We do a lot of inspections of residents for lead-based paint issues. Most of our work is government driven. However, with funds being allotted for war, banks, airlines, etc, there isn't much government cheese left to go to municipalities to get inspections done. Work has been slow to say the least. I've only been going into my office (50 mile round trip) when I have to, to save on gas for the trip there and back and to not rack up the utilities at work. So I've been doing what I can from home. Since work has been bad the last couple months, I have been job hunting since May. I haven't even had an interview yet. So no one is hiring (this has been with using my contacts as well.)

We traded in my husband's SUV a couple months ago because the gas was killing us. He gets twice the gas mileage with the vehicle he has now. It was a smart move. The trade value of that SUV has dropped significantly since we traded his.

There has been no going out to movies, malling around, going out to dinner, etc. The money isn't there. To top it off the IRS made a mistake with my payroll taxes. I'm stuck with a $2400 bill due to the IRS by August 4th, the day before my birthday.

It's enough to make you crazy.

The scheduled economic collapse and next great depression by the NWO Federal Reserve has officially begun.

Keep telling the sheep their economy is in shambles (thanks to trillion-dollar wars and running the printing presses 24/7 for the last couple years) and they'll act accordingly.

Be careful Western Canada, the voracious NAU and Amero is coming soon to a neighborhood near you.

reply to post by beforetime


Federal minimium wage is 5.85....doesn't make much of a difference.

And here in NH it is 6.50 and going to be 7.25 in August.

The prices are going up but no it doesn't eefect my way of life too much at all. We just try to drive less or car pool around where i am.

My mortgage is over 2Grand a month and the wife, kid and I get by allright, granted the wife works too now.

So my answer is mostly the media hype.

I firmly believe the situation you are in now has a lot to do with how you conducted your finances during the boom times. Yes gas and food are a lot more expensive but if you are NOT sending your hard earned money to the credit card companies or for car loan payments then you have more to spend on inflation. We are not only addicted to oil but also overconsumption and debt. Until we can return to the core value of thrift this cycle will continue to repeat itself. I've lived both lives. I was once in $28,000 in credit card debt and $10,000 in student loans not to mention a car loan. It took two years living with family and using every spare penny to pay down debts to get debt-free. That coupled with some smart home purchases and savings have shielded us from disaster now that everything is going haywire. (And we don't make that much money. )It can be done but it isn't easy. The rewards, however, far exceed any temporary thrill from going out to eat at Ruth Chris or buying an expensive handbag. Hopefully people will learn from these times and better prepare themselves for an uncertain future. The earlier post about learning to hunt and fish could be thought of both literally and figuratively.

I am somewhat LAUGHING at how good most Americans have it
where EVRYTHING is cheaper in the States as a previous
poster outlined whereas I live in Vancouver, Canada
which is a LOT MORE EXPENSIVE:


a gallon of milk cost's 4 dollar's
which is allot when u have 2 kid's
IN VANCOUVER: $5.47 U.S. for a Gallon of milk


gas cost's 4.20 cent a gallon here where i live.
IN VANCOUVER: $5.74 U.S. a Gallon ($1.52 a litre)

2 onion's cost me 4.50 cent yesterday at walmart
IN VANCOUVER: $33.00 U.S. for two 12 oz grade AAA t-bone steak
$9.99 U.S. a pound for tenderloin fast grilling steak
$3.99 U.S. a pound for pork chops.
$1.59 U.S. a pound for chicken legs
$8.00 U.S. for Sunlight Laundry Detergent
$1.49 U.S. for a single can of corn nibblets
$1.10 U.S. for a can of spaghettios
$1.17 U.S. for a can of chicken soup
$1.25 U.S. for a can of Coca Cola
$1.28 U.S. a pound for tomatoes
$4.95 U.S. for a dozen eggs
$5.20 U.S. for a pound of butter
$6.00 U.S. for a bottle of beer in a bar
$24.00 U.S. for a 12 pack of Beer (good quality 5.75% alcohol)


average rent for a 2 bedroom house is 600 dollars a month rent.
IN VANCOUVER: 2 Bedroom house $2400.00 to $4800.00 U.S. to rent depending upon area
1 Bedroom apartment - $900 to $1400 U.S. per month to rent depending upon area

...So my symapthy is a little worn thin since we're quite a bit more
expensive in Vancouver to live than in most parts of the United States.
Plus we pay a lot more taxes than you do...and...ADD ON ANOTHER
5% Federal GST tax and 7.00% provincial tax for many goods and
we have one heck of an expensive place to live,
althought is IS a NICE LOOKING place to live....!!!

Some of it is invisible. My 403B (that's what we have in public education, rather than 401ks, though I'm not sure why) has declined by ten percent since the beginning of the year. My house has likely dropped in value as well, though home prices in my area have held up pretty well. These things don't really affect my life right now, but they could in the future.

Gas doesn't affect me much, because I teach at a university and live only 2 blocks from campus, and this is a relatively small town where virtually all the businesses are within a mile or two. I have actually gone over two months on a single tank of gas. I have noticed food getting a little more expensive, but that's about it.

But I'm obviously not an "average" American.

Oh...I also forgot that if you want to BUY a 3 bedroom home in Vancouver
the AVERAGE HOUSE PRICE IS NOW $920,000 U.S. according
to current official figures.

If you want to downsize to a 1 or 2 bedroom condo be prepared
to spend between $410,000 to $650,000+ U.S. if you like Metro Vancouver
Outside of that be prepared for around $280,000 to $350,000 for a condo

Houses in the outskirts are STILL $400,000 to $700,000+ for a 3 bedroom

Good Luck!!!!

reply to post by airteck

Yes it is bad here in the United States, expecially in Texas, gas is to high and food has skyrocketed. It seems like that you cant make enough money to pay the bills.

Things are still normal, as my carwash business is still functioning. We raised our prices recently and we are still doing pretty good. I thought 4.00$ gas would negatively effect us more, but so far so good.

With that said, I really believe that things are about to get extremely bad, economically speaking.

reply to post by airteck


I think what is really hurting Americans is the gas prices and the cost of living. Inflation is so out of control that it's termed "Hyper-Inflation" now. When you have a moron president that only really cares about the richest 2% by cutting their taxes in half and then going to war. Someone has gotta pay for it right? So instead of taxes going back up for the richest 2%, we barrow money from China and this puts us back in debt.

So , Bush and Cheney will hand the problems back over to the next President (Obama) while they leave office more wealthier and plan the next phase for the next crook to get back in office.

Inflation has gotten out of control and health care cost are bankrupting people due to inflation and gas prices. A lot of employers don't offer affordable health care.

So for some areas in the US (as in Michigan), yes it's very bad but in other parts of the country and I know they are doing ok. E.G. (Chicago, Denver, Arizona)

It' depends on what part of the country you live in, its forcing college grads to move out of their states after graduation so they can obtain decent wages.

The mortgage meltdown is not all predatory lending. I know a lot of good educated people that worked for very good companies and were laid off when their business shut down. Then , they can't make their mortgage payments.

This is partly due to Globalization.

I live in Ann Arbor MI,

So we seem to be doing OK for Michigan at the moment. Michigan is starting to turn around and becoming more green with job creation in this new market. I see a lot of hope here and there is no doubt that Michigan will be one of the leading states in about 3 to 7 years in Environmental Jobs.

It's just a rough transition, but it's looking better everyday.

You just have a very bad President (I like to add I never voted for twice) that's making his friends rich before the dependence on oil ends in our bright future.

Hopefully the Earth wont be destroyed by egotistical lunatics that are running the show behind the scenes in this Trans-National Shadow Government.

I would also have to agree to a point about the sensationalism by the media, but I continue to see that people will not look at the real culprit for most economy based problems within the U.S.
'The Federal Reserve System' The illegal taxing of americans on their wages, which falls neither under apportioned or unapportioned taxation, but is a combination of the two.
Now in Canada I do not know your laws, but here, if everyone had that 27-38% wage tax back in their pockets every week or month and not being robbed, that money would be dumped back into the local economies fueling growth and prosperity. The money most people are robbed of only goes to pay the interest on the money we let the reserve system print for us at interest. ..... Sorry for the lesson here, I do not want to offend anyone here, because i know most of you pay wage taxes every week and feel you have to, but you do not, you are being robbed and if this system was shut down and the gold standard was returned we would all be much better off by having paper which is backed by real money(gold) and not a credit backed system, which will forever be the cause for inflation (the printing of too much money)

That being said... The standard of living in america, compared to those of our grandparents ( I am 41), we would need to live to be roughly 200 years old, to experience the rise, in standard of living.

Sensationalism, yes to a point, but mainly the standard of living here in the U.S has fallen so much is because it's people are not willing to stand up and truly make change... the overwhelming majority continue to be hypnotized by the illusion that America is a Democratic Nation by free election. It doesn't matter who we elect, the same people continue to make our National and international policies. (the Federal reserve bank, the World bank and the international monetary fund)

reply to post by airteckhelp this country is going down # is way to expensive my wife and i want to flee to canada the popaganda is the worst here . its like the 50s with the tell on your nabor because he a comie.i got to go to europe when i was 17 and now im 37 and it gave me such insite to the rest of the world and the way things are veiwed out side the u.s so we seek help to imagrate to the new u.s canada!!any body that can ofer help in the way of info to legaly or otherwise send message to [email protected] canada!!!!!

Well i think it is hyped up in the media. As of now its not really affecting most people. People are not all becoming homeless and starving.

This has happened somewhat slowly, no rapid economic crash, and we were also spending so much on entertainment and useless stuff. Like that really cool $60 plastic dinosaur you sick on your ball hitch on the back of your truck. HAHA

so as of now i think people are just deferring some of their entertainment funds to the hike in gas and food. But also people are buying cheaper foods now. No more high priced pasteurized organic milk, but WALMART brand milk! just purchasing inferior good. Cheaper Toilet paper, cheaper off brand sodas, etc. i know everyone doesn't do this but in general this is what is happening.

also I run my own company and i have noticed that my items are not selling like they were just a year ago. People just aren't spending as much! people are holding their money more.