Do you think the recession is over?

It grew in auto and home sales. Paid for with money borrowed from our children and Grand-Children. Both will fall again because it can not be sustained. Each job made under the stimulas cost over $75,000, they would have done better to have just handed the money out at that cost. Government does NOT create jobs. Period. With all this talk of soaking the rich, and health care reform, show me an employer who is adding jobs without knowing what the cost is for hiring that employee.

The claim the recession is over is rediculous. I'm in the LTL freight business. We see the economic levels, and Wall Street see's what we see after we report quarterly on volume. Wall Street is going by th enumber sover the summer, which were in fact a little better than the prior year. However, since September, freight volumes have plummeted lower than the same period last year. As a guage of all business.....I truly believe it is safe to say that we haven't seen the worst yet. After Christmas, watch what Wall Street has to say. I'm very concerned the economy will be even slower this winter than last year....the numbers so far suggest that is the case.

Remember the growth is from the previous quarter; we are nowhere near 2007 and never will be. This is the new economy so those who can change will win. People and companies will get les credit which leads to less spending which will mean smaller growth and continued unemployment. The stock market and housing will never again reach 2007 highs. Numbers in the future may match but with higher inflation it will never match 2007 dollars.

Nice timing of this "advanced notice" report - 6 days before an election! of course when the actual report comes out it will be adjusted down, and next quarter will tank with the absence of government cash injection like cash for clunkers, combined with worsening unemployment.

I expect the pro Obama media to trumpet this all the way through next Tuesday's elections to help their situation in NJ and Carolina. I expect meet the press on Sunday to be full of "pro economic turnaround" thinkers.

We can expect the same next year when the bulk of the stimulus $$$ are spent in the 2 quarters leading up to midterm election (check the tracking sites)!

We need to take this country back by throwing out all partisan politicians, and stopping this frivolous spending - The focus needs to be JOBS NOW, not healthcare, not cap & trade, not more gimmicky hand outs. When the economy recovers then we can look an these things

I agree with Wulff in one respect. By job creation are, they talking about American jobs? or are they counting more on the outsourcing of our jobs and in-sourcing cheap labor. If it is either one of the above it doesn't improve the American citizens buying power. Unless of course they are talking about the buying power of the CEOs that are receiving bonuses and pay raises at the taxpayers expense. Until there are real jobs for middle class America there will be no real recovery.

As long as jobs are being lost most people are not able to afford basic needs, let alone luxury items. As long as our government continues with policies that put financial burden on small businesses while allowing Free Trade and governments without that burden a free lane to Wal-Mart shelves, the recession will either:

A. Contine

B. Come back in a hurry.

We need to create good paying jobs in this country, and then we need to protect them. The American Dream is not dead yet, put the Politicians have to stop trying to kill that dream. Both sides.

It grew in the way of cash for clunkers. Which has now ended and auto sales are back down again and a lot of those veh are being turned in because people can't afford the new payments. Then we have the $8,000 tax credit for first time home buyers. That has bumded that industry up also. But that is coming to an end so I think the last quarter will show a decrease.

What people are not understanding is the economic principals used in the determination of 'recession' or 'depression. A recession is a period where the GDP has dropped for anywhere from 1 to 3 quarters in a row. A depression is a period whered GDP drops for 4 quarters in a row or more. Since the GDP is again growing that is the official sign of the end of a recession. The qualification of the term 'recession' has nothing to do with jobs it has only to do with GDP. If next quarter the GDP drops again then that would/could be considered the beginning of a new recession.

The term "recession" has nothing to do with jobs, home sales, etc. . . it has only to do with the expansion or recession of the GDP.

The GDP consists of three parts. The only part that grew was the government. While the other two parts fell the government grew fast enough to raise the GDP 3%. Wow! Such expansion. It is a fallacy to believe that increase in government spending helps the economy. The only way it can is to stimulate the private sector to more spending and investing. This is basic economics people!

The problems actually started several decades ago in varying degrees, but they all moved to the forefront with the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 . . .

And it is not a matter of there being just one problem or even a handful of problems, because all the problems are interdependent, so nothing is very simple at the dawn of the early 21st century . . .

Yet, there are a few areas where the problems are so prevalent and so destructive that it is easy to identify and to recognize them:

(1) Terrorism

(2) Sneaky Weaseling

(3) Globalization

(4) Ethics

(5) Education

(6) Information Overloading

At this point, there are only a few historically verified strategies for solving the vast problems with the economy in our great nation, and for practical purposes there are just two strategies that over the years have been successful:

(a) Global War

(b) Massive Public Works Projects

And one cannot help but observe that of the two strategies, only (a) Global War is sufficient to end an economic depression, at least when one considers the history of the past 200 or so years . . .

Bailing-out banks and corporations does not work, and pretty much nothing else along those lines works, because it does not create jobs for the common folk or as they are called in classical Marxist theory, the "proletariat" . . .

Keynesian economic theory is the only solution that works--other than a global war--but it requires an intense commitment by the Congress and President, along with considerable help from federal bureaucrats and regulators . . .

Applying Keynsian solutions can transform the economy virtually overnight, but the key to implementing Keynsian solution successfully is to do create massive projects (a) with significant work starting immediately and (b) with follow-up work guaranteed and generously funded, all of which requires the strongest possible commitment from the Congress and President . . .

When you examine the postwar economy in the 1950s and 1960s, which actually included near-global wars in each decade, (a) the first massive project was the Interstate Highway System, which was started by President Eisenhower and (b) the second massive project was the NASA lunar missions of the 1960s, which were started by President Kennedy, although it got a bit of a kick-start during the latter part of President Eisenhower's second term . . .

And both of these massive projects ran simultaneously most of the time, which is a key aspect of the combined strategy, because while building and upgrading highways, bridges, dams, levees, rail systems, and so forth and so on create jobs primarily for so-called "blue collar" and trade workers, including heavy machinery operators, NASA projects create jobs primarily for high-technology workers across the spectrum . . .

Most importantly, both of these types of massive large-scale projects create virtual festivals of what one might call "satellite" or "peripheral" jobs and opportunities, because the primary workers have sufficient money to spend for a wide variety of goods, services, entertainment, education, hobbies, and so forth and so on, including housing and whatever . . .

And the reason that this is something that only can be done by the federal government is that the funding requirements are so vast that the private sector simply cannot do it . . .

So, one of the first and most important things that needs to happen is that the Congress and President realize what needs to be done and start doing it on a vast scale, where the level of funding is in the trillion of dollars . . .

Of course the sneaky weasels and slower folks will argue that committing trillions of dollars to rebuilding bridges, highways, dams, levees, and rail systems, along with building new high-speed rail systems, and embarking on a huge series of NASA manned space missions, including permanent lunar bases and Mars bases is too costly or whatever, but all those folks are in "get small" mode, which is yet another disturbing aspect of the overall problem with the economy . . .

Yet another reality is that the majority of the economy is controlled by sneaky weasels who are in "get small" mode, and the result is that slowly but surely, little by little, they walk companies and business into the dirt, at which time they sell the dirt and move to another corporation or business that they can destroy while extracting as much of its value and worth for themselves and their sneaky weasel cohorts . . .

Offshoring and using foreign workers in America to displace American workers is another plague on our economy, and the jobs that are offshored and displaced locally by foreign workers are gone and will not return until there is a fundamental change in the way the Congress and President focus with respect to their duties, obligations, and leadership, which in the most simple terms maps to putting America and her citizens first in every respect . . .

As patently insane as it might be, it is a bit fascinating to observe, but only in a curiously strange way . . .

For example, at any given time I think that it is reasonable to suggest that there are from 50 to 75 million American citizens who have no health insurance and have no choice but to rely upon indigent health care when they simply cannot avoid seeking help for medical problems, and when one understands this, it is mind-boggling that the Congress and President cannot understand that when essentially one sixth of the citizens of our great nation have no option but to forgo even the most basic health care then something is terribly wrong . . .

Similarly, when one takes the time and has the required skills to wade through the maze of obfuscation that pervades the Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics and computes the real national unemployment rate, as well as the real number of American workers who have been removed from the workforce, it is not so difficult to understand how truly dismal the economy is, as well as how much more dismal it will become with each passing day, because the jobs that were lost beginning immediately after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 are gone, and until there is a major change in attitudes and perspectives at the federal level the lost jobs will not return . . .

And for the folks who might want to argue that there is not enough money to commit trillions of dollars to massive public works projects and to major NASA missions on a scale the dwarfs the Lunar Missions of the 1960s, I refer them to the fact that over the past 15 or so months (spanning two administrations and two sessions of Congress) the federal government in collusion with the Federal Reserve (FED), FDIC, SEC, Department of the Treasury, and so forth and so on has "gifted" from 10 to 15 TRILLION DOLLARS to a virtual festival of sneaky weasel banks, insurance companies, investment companies, foreign banks, sovereign investment funds, and so forth and so on . . .

http://www.surfwhammys.com/music/08_M-O-N-E-Y-3-5-MP.mp3

The information is in the news in bits and pieces each day, but most of it is just online in easily found places for a few hours at a time, so when you find a bit of news, it is best to make a copy of it, because the more honest and truthful it is, the more likely it becomes that it will vanish very quickly, at which time it becomes very difficult to find . . .

For example, using the most conservative data from the Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics--where in this context, "conservative" is used in the mathematical definition and maps to the least amount of guessing rather than to a political philosophy--the real unemployment rate is approximately 20 to 25 percent, but my perspective is that it probably is higher . . .

It is all very complex, and there is no way to explain all of it in a few posts to Newsvine, but this is a pretty good overview, all things considered, which is fabulous . . .

Fabulous!

The recession may be coming to a end; however the depression is about to start.

Baldenario,

You seem to think the funding for all these wonderful government programs grows on trees, citing the "gifting" of trillions to the special interests as evidence that it must exist. So wrong. The money has simply been printed (the money supply has expanded more in the last 6 months than it did in the previous 30 years!), which does nothing but devalue every dollar that's already in circulation. And don't kid yourself, we'll all be paying for it sooner or later. To reimburse the coffers (because you can't squeeze blood out of a turnip forever) the money will be taken from us, one way or another, either directly or indirectly:

Directly, in the form of the higher taxes that are taken right out of our wallets.

Indirectly, in the form of soaking the rich, who will simply have that much less to invest or to spend, either of which is the activity that creates jobs in the first place. (I think a lot of people truly think the rich hoard their money in a vault somewhere and it rots. Patently false: the only way they got rich and the only way they stay rich is to employ that money in various productive ways. Even if they don't spend it (which creates jobs) or invest it (which also creates jobs) but only park the money in the bank, that bank can then lend it to the machine shop down the street that wants to expand and hire more people. It's amazing how many people in this country don't understand basic economics.) Long-story-short, soaking the rich is another highly effective way to kill jobs. In fact, by shifting the tax burden so disproportionately on them, you simply motivate the capitalists to move off-shore, where there are plenty of developing countries that would love them and their capital.

Also indirectly, in the form of borrowing the money (National Debt) so that our children and grandchildren simply get stuck with the bill. What a legacy to leave them, all because we lacked the fiscal discipline to control government spending.

There's been plenty of evidence presented over the years to suggest Keynsian Economics doesn't work, for many reasons, but primarily because the bureaucracy necessary to manage it adds so many additional layers that the added inefficiencies ultimately kill any value created. The Great Depression ended in other parts of the world well before it ended in the U.S. largely because Keynsian New Deal policies stifled investment and growth. I think we'll see a repeat pattern in the coming years.

Who controls the numbers Obama they report what they want you to see not the real numbers. They don't count people that fell off unemployment they don't count people that took part time jobs. Once health care is passed those having part time jobs will be the first back on the streets, part time jobs will dry up forever. Obama’s plan is to bring this country down to its knees and you are going to get change like you never seen in your life. This is the only way to convert this country to Obama’s socialist, Marxist agenda all signs are there, health care, cap & trade, auto and bank take over, you people need to take to the streets before the country come crashing down around you.

You are correct about the value of the money, but I think people might want to consider an option likely being played out in government halls in Washington.  They aren't as stupid as we think they are.  Consider:

They spend wildly as they have over the past year.  The dollar virtually goes to a zero-value state.  The government has attempted several solutions with no response (CPR on a dead man).  The President ( might not be during this term, nor might not be O) sells the pubilic to scrap the mighty dollar for the Euro.  He (whoever is chief) gets to virtually right away trillions in debt and gtes a new currency to go do some more shopping with, does away with capaitalism as we know it; private business has to play catch up for a while to get up to speed with the new monetary system, all-the-while government takes control of the monetery system in total.  And he gets one added benefit; he gets to do away with "In God We Trust" on our money system, all without a brutally tough legal fight.  He gets exactly what he wants (I say he, it could be she), and we become serfs under feudalism again.

I have the answer to the question, were was the claimed 3.5% growth in the economy. Its very easy to explain" First; providing the claimed growth of 3.5% is real, and not some government or media fantacy. designed to prop up the Obama' Administrations pathettic first year of doing nothing' but! Taking over the economy' piece by piece' and adding over a trillion to the national debt! That 3.5% rest assured' was gained in the Federal Government, and knowhere else!!!

You have to be kidding!!!! I'll believe the recession is over when my two sons who were laid off, and my underemployed 3rd son who had his hours cut, regain full employment. Until then, any talk of the recession being over is just fluff and political spin. We live here on Main Street, not in the make-believe world of politicians and bankers.

You won't get specifics. For that to happen, Obummer would get caught in a lie. The quick and easy answer is to keep feeding us BS in the hope that we will sooner or later believe it. Maybe it is time for Obummer and Congress to be put on the unemployment line...

It's not over, and trust me I wish it were. People are NOT rushing to buy houses that have come on the market, and when they do sell are 25% less than their value a year ago! Xmas is going to be very telling - if people don't spend their money either on presents or on major goods like washers, dryers, etc (that go on sale in Jan), things will take another downturn. I know for that I'm generally thinking twice before I spend money on myself and my home. Unless it's a necessity, it's not being purchased. What we need is for the White House to tell the banks that home mortgages are going to be 4% for 30 year mortgages - that will free up cash, get people buying cars, houses, large appliances etc. and put a lot of people back to work!

All these complaints are just the 'downside'. Be happy. We will ALL be millionares!!

Hey Uncle BO, print me up some $100's.

to tax-mule: thank you for making me laugh! I truly did not think it was possible to laugh about anything related to the economy and politics. I needed that.

They think every body is stupid but them. Boys we got news for them. They are the ones who is out of touch.

Baldenario's strategy for the holidays is to follow in the footsteps of Benjamin Franklin by creating what I like to call "Holiday Savings Time™", where the general idea is to move the calendar three months forward when Benjamin Franklin's "Daylight Savings Time" begins in the Fall, which among other things allows one to miss Thanksgiving, Christmas, and having to watch "It's A Wonderful Life" yet another time . . .

It also makes for some outstanding holiday shopping discounts later this Spring, so that there will be plenty of Christmas presents underneath the tree just before the calendar is rolled backward six months at Summer Solstice . . .

And since there are some outstanding sales on left-over Thanksgiving turkeys this Spring, Baldenario is filling a freezer or two with them, which takes several days, since at the current discount price of 40 cents a pound there is a limit of two per customer, which maps to making 20 or so trips over two days and three shifts, which is fabulous . . .

Fabulous!

My lord, you must really like turkey? Do you make your own turkey bacon to?

The endless lies from the LIAR IN CHIEF and the state run lap dog media just keep on a comin'.

Hey, just for fun, let's pretend this was a repub admin. The headline would then read "FOR THREE OUT OF FOUR AREAS, NO RECOVERY IN SIGHT". What a bunch of homers in MSM. Are we really as stupid as you think we are? I sure hope not.

Totally a pack of lies! Marietta, Ohio is listed as one of the recovering areas and it is not recovering. The Wal-Mart there is nearly empty daily and people aren't buying Christmas gifts because they have no money to buy anything with. No jobs in the area ! Where do they get this stuff from. It is just not true.

Obama and his administration are trying to brainwash the taxpayers into believing this crap. The more the say it the more people are supposed to believe but it only takes a pair of eyes to see the truth.

The thing is that we have not bottomed out on unemployment and even when we do, it will not get better for years because the jobs have been destroyed for good or handed to the Chinese and until something different takes their places there won't be any jobs for the unemployed to go back to.

This is a discussion about economic indicators. The main problem with Economics is that virutally everyone involved in the profession works for a bank, university or Gov't. Now since the Gov't and Banks are basically the same thing, we get "analysis" slanted to whatever they want to hear ... otherwise you are unemployed too! So a recession is defined by a bunch of Academics who are employed directly or indirectly by the Gov't/Bank group all agreeing that things are "turning around".

The real issue is what makes a recession for real people. the answer is this:

1. unemployment - jobs are hard to find.

2. lack of credit - money is hard to find.

3. Balance Sheet declines - Houses, 401ks, investment accounts declining.

By all those measures we are in a recession still, one which will continue for the next 3 - 9 months at least .....

I have the distinction of living in the county in Ohio with the highest unemployment in the state. Nothing is getting better. And no, houses and cars are not moving here. I have real estate friends that can't sell anything and they are hurting. We have yet to see any good come from the so called Stimulus. I think it was a ploy by the govt. to make themselves look like they were doing something, when in reality, they don't have a clue. (Well, except how to spend money that they don't actually have.) Vote out the fools in 2010 and 2012. We need new blood!

The pure numbers don't lie.

The Dow has slowly moved up, foreclosures are slowly decreasing, unemployment is slowly decreasing - and all about 4-years ahead of schedule.

Most economists didn't think the recession would end until 5-years from the time Obama became President, the speculation being a 2nd term would be difficult if the economy was going to take that long to recover.

Barring any unforeseen disaster, the economy should be humming by the time the next election comes around.

The Dow has slowly moved up, foreclosures are slowly decreasing, unemployment is slowly decreasing - and all about 4-years ahead of schedule.

When you say unemployment is decreasing I am assuming you are looking at new claims for unemployment since the absolute level of unemployment is clearing not declining but going the other way. By now every schoolkid knows that unemployment is a lagging indicator, but what many people dont know, or care to know, is that new claims for unemployment is a leading indicator. While the trend for that is down from a horrendous figure, so far new claims are still high, just the trend is down, another words, less worse:)

Stockmarket, another story, it was bound to go up, having been oversold and now that things have settled and we know the market is a leading indicator tht things are now less worse.

What it comes down to is if you are the lagging indicator, people who are unemployed dont really give a rats ---- about statistics, they want a job. As far as the statement that "most economists" predicting a 5 year recession, thats the first I have heard on that subject. What many economists predicted was a jobless recovery, that could last 5 years, not a 5 year recession.

Foreclosures are not slowing. They are just getting started.

foreclosures are slowly decreasing?

foreclosure filings are still up 19 percent from a year ago, RealtyTrac Inc. said Thursday, and rising job losses continue to threaten the stabilizing trend.

More than 332,000 households, or one in every 385 homes, received a foreclosure-related notice in October, such as a notice of default or trustee's sale.

unemployment is slowly decreasing? unemployment 7.6% January 2009 Unemployment October 2009 10.2%

Dow up? October 11th, 2007 14,198.10 - November 18,2009 10,388.29

National debt 2008 $9,958.8 Trillions

National Debt 2009 11/16/2009 $12,031,299,186,290.07

Yep!!every thing that should be up is down and everything that should be down is up.

Might try this link ;) OOPS sorry/ yrros SPOO (; knil siht yrt thgiM

http://dyslexia-adults.com/

No... the economy is not turning around.

How can it? What is there to point to and say "There's a growing sector!" (That is ... excluding the jobless) And with the government that is now in place... that will continue to be the growing sector.

All the hoopla of "Hope" in this administration has turned into a drunken party on the street corner. The champagne has turned into "Red Mountain wine.... in the jugs!" What hope has this President and Congress brought? What American values do they share? Hoping in them for a turn is just wrong headed. All you have to do is take off those shaded glasses... your job may be the next import.

mrpitchfork,- You are right. Look at a chart that shows when the 787 Billion in stimulas is spent, in the two consecutive quarters before the mid-term elections.

It's all politics. I am not seeing any recovery whatsoever. Obama will want the public to recognize the justification for the spent billions in economic stimulus that has somehow "helped" the economy recover. He will shove down our throats that "if it wasn't for the stimulus package we wouldn't be where we are now"...bs. The economy would have recovered on it's own.

Until I see my 20% paycut back in my pocket and the home values creeping back up in my neighborhood, I won't recognize any economic recovery. It's time for the politicians to look outside the box and think about the people who elected them before opening their mouths.

The definition of recession is: When your neighbor has lost their job.

The definition of depression is: When YOU have lost your job. The figures, here are lies at least and manipulated at best. The only jobs the gov. can create are paid for in TAXES! ONLY private sector jobs can grow the gdp which pays the taxes for the gov. jobs! These people in washington KEEP lieing to us and SOOOO many sheeple out there believe them. I really can not see how people can be THAT STUPID!! We are in for a rough ride guys...get ready for it if you can.

Don't forget the 3rd element of your definition:

Definition of a recovery is: When Barack Obama loses his!

(apologies to RR)

Tom: I have not seen recovery because I am in the construction industry (architectural end). I am still seeing firms folding here in Arizona left and right and until I stop hearing about my industry shrinking I will never agree the recession is over. Like I have said before, I've had a paycut (like so many other Americans). My wife is barely holding on to her job in the mortgage industry. She has already been laid off once and barely escaped another by switching companies before the one she was at laid everybody off. Don't you dare say that I choose not to look for signs of recovery...I am! EVERYDAY!!! I hate being a paycheck from losing everything. You probably are not in the same boat so you will never relate.

People do not understand the technical terms of 'recession' and 'depression.' These qualifications are based SOLEY on the GDP. As the GDP is expanding again, technically the recession has ended. Jobs, home sales, and how you feel has no bearing on the term.

You know, I really don't care about the technical terms of a recession vs a depression. What I care about is the human cost.

Eddie,

Tom probably works for the government!

America First-1103439 Ya I going to get a Billion dollars next year

And your better alternative was?......

We were screwed no matter who got in.

I beg to differ" The better alternative was the one that wouldn't" bail out/pay off and take over" everything he's laid eyes on the first year in office! Strapping the youth of this country with massive debt for decades! All the while, every piece of legislation thats come from Congress since 2006. Seems to cost the people of this country, Jobs, Money & freedom! The Better Alternative was? S***! i was a better alternative!!!!

the economy was an absolute mess before President Obama got in. This fact can be argured but he did take on a situation that had not been dealt with by the previous President. Bush 43 had eight years to set things straight for the American people and 8-9 years ago was no where near like it was when Pres Obama came into the WH. Bush 43 let too many thing pass. He did not pay attention and we are now experiencing the results of his non-actions on everything from the economy, war, 9/11, mortgage mess, and corporate fraud. The people on this post that are arguring about Pres Obama' faults are the ones that voted Bush 43 in, TWICE!! You can't fix the economy in one year!

Are you smoking fruit loops? You have to look further than 8-9 years ago. Take a good look into the mid 1990s when the idea of short selling and the idea of giving many that cannot control their "wants" vs. "needs" were able to buy up many things on credit since President Clinton signed the bill allowing easier lending to those who cannot control their materialistic ways. There's only so much credit you can accumulate before it falls. If you want a realistic view of profit, research every American and business who have actually made a profit on finances/income which was earned not borrowed (to include credit cards purchases) and then you can take a good look at the real statistical view of "profit" of the businesses and institutions in our economy in the last 15-20 years.

Dacoter,you must have forgotten 9/11,had the past dem. administration been minding the store instead of chasing interns around we would be in a much better shape now and a lot more people alive.

jma, Let's don't cloud the issue with facts, that torque's the weak minded. It is and will always be Bush's fault to those who only want a hand out. The jobs being created are government jobs and " non-profit" jobs, neither has a company paying any taxes. The spendulas web page we ( tax payers) spent 14 MILLION having built has one college getting NO MONEY but creating jobs, another has a district THAT DOES NOT EXIST in Arizona creating 14, 000 jobs out of 27 million, that is like 1928 bucks a year, WOW. Even the pompous one himself removed 60,000 bogus jobs created or saved because it was SO obvious a lie! We are in for a long ride with the media in his pocket, the Translator in charge can regurgitate all the false info and it WILL be reported as truth by an untruthful state run media.

Same as Florida! Unemployment is stil climbing.

Same as Ohio.... We have lost 8 factories in our small city, one is on its way out and that leaves 3 still laying off.... Please, let those in D.C. come see how we really live in rural America, how hard it is to make your mortgage and pay your bills on unemployment. They have NO clue!!!!

Arizona too, plus the state is a billion in the red and they can't even get a budget! the disaster here in AZ is the result of decades of Repubs running the state with their tax cuts and more tax cuts to the wealthy and to the big corporations. Now the only thing they can think of is even higher sales tax! Which already is one of the highest in the nation!

LyndaAZ: The republicans didn't destroy Arizona, it was the Dems. Remember Napolitano? And your comment about sales taxes being one of the highest in the nation, you are so wrong. Chicago/Illinois far surpasses Arizona. Arizona reps spend on everything Hispanic and not on Arizona. Open your eyes and listen before you speak.

Please see my comments above, specifically #1.9 with regard to technical definitions.

The term "recession" has nothing to do with jobs, factories, home sales, or your feelings it is a technical term based soley on the GDP

Same applies to Massachusetts. Thanks to our high cost of living/doing business here in the state, companies are flocking elsewhere. We have tremendous schools and lots of talent, but an insufficient number of employers.

Wisconsin is just as messy as the other states listed here. I have been out of work since 2/09. I am in accounting and have 20+ years experience. I have sent out 200-300 resumes (not all in my field either because I NEED A JOB) and had MAYBE 2-3 interviews - still no job though.

In regards to our kids/grandchildren paying this debt, what's new (won't apply to my kids, as we can't have any)? We are paying debt from how long ago? This is how it works. The current government cranks up the debt and the following generation(s) pay DEARLY!!! I am not guaranteed social security, but it has been coming out of my paycheck for 23+ years.

As far as the economy recovering, the basis that is used to judge this is totally screwed up. Although, big shock, it is determined by our government. Unemployment rates are screwed up because they only account for people actually ON unemployment. What about the people who have run out of those benefits and the extensions and STILL cannot find work. Those numbers don't hit the "unemployment factor". Wonder how many people are living in cars and shelters now!

LyndaAZ, hey it is expensive for the dimocrooks to buy votes by promising endless handouts, someone has to pay for it eventually-look how we ended up with complete failure we have as Panderer in Chief!!!!

As scary as those figures are I think you are right Indigo. Gives the youth of our nation something to strive for. Both of my son's are in Law Enforcement, both just had their hours cut to 32/week and another 50 in each department got laid off totally. I hear the highway patrol is also laying off 120 in our state. Criminals can now go rampant. What a joke why doesn't the government get rid of their craz and worthless positions and leave those who really do something for the country employeed.

If you are referring to NAFTA, then let's all remember that was Clinton, not GWB.

Anita,

Did GWB do anything to reverse NAFTA?

Nope, he was to busy lining his and his friends pockets, before they got out of office.

No, he didn't, and neither did congress under his tenure. Now.. welcome to 2010, where GWB is no longer president. Live in the NOW.

Ever since 1980 this country has been replaced with US, Inc. In the NOW, we are actually serfs, peasants, slaves, whatever you want to call it. The way to change this is for each individual to become incorporated. Play them at their own game.

Congress 101 - bills are not put on the floor unless they will pass. Both parties do this. The votes weren't there for a repeal of NAFTA. The whole reason the health bill passed the house was because enough resisters were bought off by changes or PORK.

There are exceptions like the banking reform bill of 2005 - was finnally brought to the floor by the then in charge republicans 2006. The democrats didn't even bother to fight cloture in the senate, only 42 of the 54 republicans voted for the reform. This is called wisely spending political capital.

NAFTA is a Lose lose bill. You lose if you have it and you lose if you don't. Cancelling it might trigger a trade war.

Sue you are spot on. They should have tried using the trickle up model that Japan used. Put the money in the people hands to pay of debt and if they had money left over then they would have spent it. The banks would still have gotten the money but it would have come from the bottom up no directly from the treasury. Instead they got their money from the Fed and just sit on it or used it to remodel their offices and go on vacation. How did that help the economy???

Tom, the whole problem is because the banks, realty market, auto industry and everything else the gov. has and WILL get their hands on is manipulated, and i am talking about both parties being responsible. Leave the industries ALONE and if they fail then they deserve to. Someone will come along and make it work. We do NOT need a nanny state.

The goverment actually tried this during the Bush Administration a few years ago. What the government discovered was that the people were using this money to pay down debt, not to pump it back into the economy. Thus, the government decided this time around to give the money to state and local governments so that they could create public works projects in their respective areas. I'm not saying that this will work better; that simply is what they have done.

oh yeah, i remember that Peter.... the infamous "rebate" program. So I think you are agreeing with Sue. She states give the money to the people and they will pay their debts to the banks and you are saying that during the 'rebate program' people just paid down their debt (which went to the banks). Of course the major difference is, the Bush "rebate" program dolled out less than $1,000 per family and based on the BILLIONS disbursed to the banks, I saw some where that equalled to about $10k per tax paying household.... hmmm, seems to me a win-win.... but its too late for that even though i did my part by writing my congressmen offering my suggestion of 'bubble-up' economics rather than the broken 'trickle-down' economics of the Reagan era. The interesting situation always happens, when the money comes in it gets hoarded away or contained within a close circle and never reaches main street americans. Its time to hit the big RESET button....

I dunno....that rebate money came at the right time, as my washing machine broke down. So the appliance store got some stimulus through my buying a new washing machine.

Sue,

I have been telling everyone that since the government announced this stimulus plan.

The banks were too afraid they were not going to see any free money, so they pressured the government to give it directly to them.

From the mouths of the CEOs, many MANY of the banks did not want the money. There are plenty who have already paid it back... do you know who they are?

Please refer to my comment 1.9, jobs have nothing to do with the technical term 'recession'

I agree Ray, we know 6 families in our area that had their home's foreclosed on and they are currently living in a campground on the edge of town. Some in small campers, some in tents. ? The new tent cities? We live in Northern Iowa, and winter is coming I know this isn't just happening here what are these people going to do?

Ray you are clueless. To compare actually numbers of unemployed during the great Depression to today is completely misleading. I do agree that today the percentages are misleading from the great depression in that we have more self employed that are not counted. However we have not even reached the levels of 1980 unemployment and until we do we should not compare it to the great depression. Second if the Recession ended all ready it will be shorter than 1980. Does no one remember the 1980s and how people were committing suicide because the economy was ending????? not sure we are there yet either. Now I am not old enough to have lived during the great depression but we got through 1980 and we are not even close to that yet.

That is a flawed statistic. The population of the US has more than doubled since the Great Depression. Of course we are going to have more people who are unemployed.

you have it all wrong is an appropriate name becasue he does have it all wrong. The unemployent rate is worse than has been since the depression. Even the guru hank paulsen and ben bernake have admitted that we were on the verge of a meltdown unseen since the depression. I have seen hundreds of jobs lost and not replaced in central PA and many car dealerships close in central florida. I known people (including myself) who had paychecks bounce. people like us who quit because of bouced checks are not entiled to unemployent. Take em to court you say? what good does that do when there is no money? we need paid now not several years from now when the sell assests. Some of you simply dont get it. Just cause a bunch of guys in suits are Betting money on a chart going up or down, means nothing to a guy who is trying to earn a steady paycheck. JOBS IN AMERIC AND Low Unemployment are KEY to rebuilding. no money, no spendy, comprendy?

The determination of the term 'recession' has nothing to do with statistics. It is based only on the GDP an actual number, which did grow in the last quarter.

The economy is bunk. The relief for small businesses is NOT THERE. A small business that's in trouble and really needs help can't get it because banks are clenching the neck of the funds bottle and the only help from DC are TARP funds. Well, a business in trouble DOESN'T QUALIFY FOR RELIEF UNDER TARP FUNDS!!! The funds ultimately come from a bank, banks are greedy and won't let go of the money. Same deal with the SBA. The loans guaranteed by the SBA have to be APPROVED BY A LOCAL LENDER! The same lenders that are not lending money to businesses who are in trouble. It's impossible to get ahead! Businesses are failing hand over fist in the rural area I'm in and it's just sickening. I don't care about the techincal definition of Recession vs Depression and how it all boils down to Gross Domestic Product... It's lingo for DC to wear like a technicolor dream coat. False information used to try to pump the people who aren't in trouble because they're the ones that line the pockets of the politicians. Hypocrits, all of them! I haven't gotten a paycheck in three weeks because there's no money. Can't get any from the bank, can't get any from the gov... Wouldn't be any different if the government lined up all small business owners who struggle and shot them via firing squad... That's what's happening, we're getting killed by the government due to their interference in absolutely everything!!!

You are right on the money (no pun intended). What will happen to the economy once the govt stops handing out money? We as a country are so use to being taken care of that we have forgotten how to take care of ourselves! I am now worried that high taxes are just around the corner. Imagine the state of our country then? Nothing like prolonging the inevitable! Great job D.C.!

you are exacly right

We need to change. The government spending is giving us time to change. There is no doubt we will be back in a recession if we do not change. I have all ready started to look at how I sell my services. Instead of getting in and out of projects and selling my service for that task, I am now looking how to take on some of the risks and rewards withthat client. You are correct with one thing though if you do not change you will all ways be in a recession. However there are many more of us out there that will be looking to the future and growing. Remember do not create goals to get you back to 2007 create personal and business goals to move forward.

You have it all wrong, you have it all wrong... Talk about a steaming pile of you-know-what. What planet are you from? The concept you describe, spreading the risk evenly is nothing more than code-speak for socialism. I don't want to share the risk, I don't want to share the reward. I want to keep more of what I earn and give less to the gov't. People continue to flood into this country for one reason, limitless opportunity. However, with limitless opportunity comes limitless failure. That's the beauty of this country. Sky's the limit but if you fall you land on your face. It's up to you and only you. That's the deal (or at least it used to be..) and I wouldn't want it any other way... Freedom...

Unless you are a bank, of course .... in that example you destroy the economy through what really amounts to a Ponzi scheme, arrive in DC on your Gulfstream G4 with a tin cup in your hand for some TARP money.... then you go back with your wad of TARP cash to dole it out in huge bonuses, a PR campaign to say that your working with homeowners to adjust their loans when you are not and load up your lobyist organization to pay off some politicians. Then to increase your profits just a little bit more you raise everyone's credit card interest rates and fees before the CARD act takes effect. While you are doing that you lower everyone's credit card limits to skew their FICO scores to justify increasing their interest rates for another round.

Meanwhile, the american middle-class writes the checks for taxes, writes the checks for their higher interest credit cards, writes the checks for the higher gas prices and writes the checks to cover the checks they've already wrote. While this is going on the middle-class also watches their jobs go off-shore to India, Thailand, Vietnam, etc. We then get to 'hear' how the economy is recovering just before the holiday shopping season so we feel inspired to go spend money.... puleeezzzeee

Ima Democrat not a loony liberal:

Socialism =

The major banks are now under the thumb of the government. How is this not socialism?

Agree. The rich get richer, the cheaters on wall street keep on cheating, and congress basically knows how to fix the problems but refuses. I see people living on the streets homeless and everyday the number of homeless numbers grows. Things to fix the economy are not rocket science and most are common sense fixes but in congress "common sense" ended years ago when the lobbist and wall street took control. Lets all shut down the ecconomy by 1. buying only goods made in the USA 2. withdraw every single dime out of the banks, closing all savings and 401Ks and deposit only in your local credit union 3. every american stop paying one red cent on your credit card balance (just mail em back). In about 60 days congress and the big banks would finally realize middle class americans are fed up and not going to take it anymore. I dont blame the president....I blame the banks and wall street and jobs will return when the banks and wall street are fixed.

If the govt could simply end both wars, which of course they can't, how would that put less strain on our economy? Do you really think they'd spend that money here? Think again. If it were that easy, they could simply halt all financial subsidies to other nations. Imagine how much money that would put back into our system?

Think about it logically. Like it or not, our military costs money to maintain. Feeding, clothing and equipping our soldiers creates alot of jobs. Now, imagine eliminating that demand, combined with the return of our men and women in uniform, all of them looking for jobs. How would the end result look financially?

I'm with you jp. The stats are made up. Built entirely on derivative trading. In future months, they'll quietly revise them downward. Rout them out of DC, but it's time to rout out Wall Street too.

I don't think the stats are made up. I think they are just way over-hyped. Obama is losing his approval rating and he needed a boost. Why not use the economy?