things are looking bad

[hurt at work]

i was reading some news this early morning from google and things dont look good.i have to wonder if my money if safe in my 401k????the stock market is like a roller coaster and im lossing money fast,if this keeps up there wont be any money left to worry about.
around here even the malls are going into forecloser because no one is spending money,there are countless other stores asking for protection to stay afloat.this is going to be a long down slide for the economy and it makes me wonder where it will stop.this wont be a easy fix like obama thinks,but i guess we will see what he does or if he do what he says he can do to get things rolling again.
my old employer has never laid off but they are now,if only the banks would loan money to the buyers to buy a coil of steel they could run as much steel as they could make.all of this make one wonder whats to come in the new year.
so what do you all think????im seeing employers that never have layed off workers cut shifts,production and laying off.my wife would like to have another baby but these economic time scare the he** out of me and to think of the cost of another baby rite now,im not sure thats a good idea.maybe im making to much of this economy but i want to be money smart at this point in our lives,she doesnt see what mean about how the economy is going.its funny i told her that the selling of her late fathers buisness and equipment would slow done and we needed to sell as much a possable while people were spending and that it would slow way down and guess what i was rite,she is seeing this happen.thankfully i sold the three buildings and land last friday to a local guy as long as it goes through that will be great and that only leaves the house to deal with and i think that wont sell very fast.
do any of you have any thoughts on what you see in your towns and cities as far as the economy???here were i live its not good.tell me what you think.thank hurt.

[bronco54501]

Well in our town thats happening too, some companies took thier 3rd shift away and has laid off lots. The constuction companies are starting to fade as no one wants to spend or just dont have it to spend. Our local Ford dealership has been here for ever, well there closing thier doors. --I think it is going to get worse before it gets better.

[Still in Limbo]

I'm 46 Years of Age, and have been on My Own since 16, and this is going to be a Hard Ride, so try and look for Bargains, and think before You Spend. There is a True Difference between Needs and Wants, and Our current Generation is going to have to Learn the Difference, and to Spend Wisely. We will Bounce Back though, it's just going to Take a While!!

[jayne]

Here in our small town things are slow but not scary yet.......most of us are retires or railroad workers......most of us are not the kind that keep up with the joneses but are from the depression era parents.......we can a large garden and raise stock to eat(sorry monster)some do deer hunting(not my thing)I did do things this year I normally dont.....I scaled back my garden and put in fruit trees and bluberry bushes....I dont normally mess with fruit trees cuz they are alot of work and fruit around here is normally cheap.....Not this year so in went the trees...I still need a crab apple to use for pectin and a granny smith apple tree...in my green house is a orange and a lime and will look for a lemon this year.....its going to be a really hard ride for those of you that depend on Grocery stores,my advice is to stock up when you can and look for a bent and dent grocery near you...Our church is going thru a co op and ordering staples in huge lots we will share....so far our gas is going down but it did its damage already and the prices in the stores are still showing it.....Next I gotta get up the nerve for bee hives......I just cant yet I hate those things....My kids are getting a smaller christmas than normal but they will do better than alot of children this year as they will have plenty to eat and be warm

[Tuffy]

Jayne, Be thankfull you have the resourses and the land to do all that you do, There are many famlies that can"t. and have to reley on grocery stores etc, It sometimes takes 2 incomes to just survive in some areas, We here in the Midwest where I live are mostly manufacturing and that is where the problem is as the businesses are going under, Large and small. Couples who have owned there homes for 20 plus years are now in forclosure because of loosing there jobs and noone hiring. It is becoming sad, So cross your fingers and say a prayer that things will take a turn for the better.....

[jayne]

Tuffy I wouldnt trade my place for anything it is big enough to support my family and small enough to keep up.....

[hurt at work]

im glad to see im not the only person that sees this change coming.others think im nuts,ya im only 38 years old but i have been around the block for my age.i have been through hard time when i was a kid,then in my early 20s now in my mid thritys.i am the money handeler in the family and i now how to make money in hard times,legal money that is no drud crap so you know what i mean.but the wife cant see it yet,the economy issue they think im nuts,well so be it,but i now how to save and find bargins......i know this was off the wall but i wanted to see what you all think no affence but some of you are older than me and if i see it i know you do also.thanks all.hurt.

[AQA]

It will take time for the economy to bounce back, but it will. I feel that it will take a year, maybe two. The government is in uncharted waters. meaning, there is no clear cut plan that they know will work. Unfortunatley, that means that there will be some guess work invovled in getting the economy back on tract.

[red1030]

The issues you described have been here in NJ for quit some time now. NJ was a garden state which has changed to more of a gas manufacturing state and then professional state. When the towers went down, an economic lost was noticed here and that has not recovered. Now there are massive lay offs at the gas manufacturing plants and they are even being moved overseas versus working here in the state. The hospitals are giving more and more patients to the nurses so the hours per patient day for a nurse is rising and their salary is dropping as nurses are not being hired so the demand is greater. Jobs are scare here for the plant worker or the professional alike. The governor is cutting funds to the county which budget for the schools, police and firemen. Most of the firemen are not paid in NJ. They are volunteer workers except for management. The schools have cut out all arts, sports, or music of any kind this year ...they are teaching the 3 R's. The kids are not even having science, social studies, or history in this state at this time. Since the new program "no child left behind" came in to place, the federal government gives the states who in turn gives to the countys for the schools money based on the grade of the kids of the 3 R's only...so it is all based on the testing at the end of the year. There are a lot of changes. I wish sometimes that we all had our land in Oregon so that we could do exactly what jayne is talking about. I grew up that way, but now I live in a city with manucured lawns and bright lights. I love it here also, but feel that food is going to get more difficult to purchase as we grow less and less here. However, living in Okinawa, I realized something very important here, and that is that American's are very spoiled. In Okinawa the people lived very happily in 400 sq ft home that were built on top of each other. They rolled there beds up in the morning to have room to get dressed etc. THere kitchens had enough room for one meal only, a compact refrigerator and a two stove burner. Most didn't have an oven due to know room. The gas there cost in American dollors $10.00 a gallon. The markets sold food for triple what the states sold it for. This is a typical every day life of the people living in Okinawa and they do fine so we will do fine as well...just have to tighten our belts, change our thinking about wants and needs as Still referred to etc.

I do believe that Obama will make a strong effort toward correcting this mess and finding a way to create new jobs, and I don't believe he thinks it will be easy, but I do believe that he is the type to see the opportunities in every little aspect of a situation versus the negativity ..that often walks side by side with changes. Knowing and believe this, I believe as AQA stated that our economy will bounce back, but maybe not to where it was but to a livable satisfying style. The stock market will come back over time, the government will get it together in time, and we will all become more comfortable with whatever lifestyle we are left with. Nice discussion hurt. Love Red

[RNvic]

Things are getting tight her in southern IL. Gas is down , but compamies are laying people off and businesses are closing. Every day more and more stores are closing. Even Cat is going to lay off after the first of the year. John came home and said they were told January 1 1000 people at the plant will be layed off, He is just praying that he will not be part of the lay off. They reason they are laying off is not enough orders but unable to get the suplies needed to build the big trucks. Thank goodness John just finished his testing and has only to sit though some classes to move up in rank and is looking to become a safety officer. Hope this will help keep his job.