Actually mid class has been gone for quite a while now.. In some ways SO & myself are lucky/blessed? he has been working tons of overtime. Hasrd on an aging fat cat! lol Also another thing I nioticed (which is very scary) is that even tho Obama admin. has set up things so thjat homeowners can refinance as to not lose their homes??? well the mortgage co. are not complying.. I do believe that things overall are getting better. But you must realize that the "black hole" the Bush admin. threw us into is not gonna be easy to get out of (if we ever do)
Layla, I would be interested in where you gathered your statistics. I found some of them suspect. I am one of those people who lost their home to foreclosure which resulted in huge financial losses and will affect both my credit and my way of life for many years to come. Despite that I'm doing all right. I have a roof over my head, food on the table and except for tightening my belt a bit more than is comfortable, life goes on.
My brother lost his job as part of this economic fiasco but he's not living on the street and he's not collecting food stamps. He lives with me and we get by on my salary and the money he is able to bring in from odd jobs and temporary work. I consider myself middle-middle class. Most of the people I know are the same. Most of them are getting by, although with a little less than they once had, but they are not in as dire straits as your post would suggest.
It is my opinion that we will recover from this depression just as we recovered from the last one and that better days are ahead of us. It's not quick. It's not easy and if we have even half our wits about us, it should change the way we live. More people should be putting money into savings and fewer should be living beyond their means. We should be learning to use things up, to make do with less and to always err on the side of caution when making big purchases.
I have a tremendous amount of faith in the adaptability of the American people. We are resourceful and determined and we do not give up easily. Nothing would make me happier than to prove your source dead wrong.
Thanks Merlin for the "pep talk" too often we get caught up & the "gloom & doom" thing.. Then when we shoulda been paying attention, welll no one did. And the few who spoke up were denounced as evil.. LaylaTX ya got a link?
merlinsflame- I get an rss feed from "Current" news and I copied those numbers from that feed this morning.
In my family of 4, 50% have been unemployed for more than a year and one of the two that have jobs just got a site closing notice and will be out of work the end of Jan. That brings my family to 75% unemployment.
Turns out that it is a Huffington Post article.
view link
Thanks for the link LaylaTX! Here is the link to another related topic we had here a couple months ago..
view link
I understand times are hard all over the country. As I mentioned before, my brother has been out of work for over a year. Both my son-in-law and my daughter had their hours cut for several months but are now back to full-time. My daughter-in-law just took a voluntary lay-off because she is pregnant and would be going on maternity leave shortly anyway. Her husband, my son, has been working under the table for the past year waiting for his employer, the same man who pays him under the table, to put him back to work, or more accurately, back to work on the books. My ex-husband and his girlfriend (the reason he's my ex) have been employed only part-time for three years now. However, I put the responsibility for that on them. Either, or both of them, could have sought full-time employment with someone other than the person for whom they work but they chose to down-scale instead.
It is my opinion, but borne out by my personal experience, that a good many of the unemployed are actually working in a more non-traditional capacity than before. I know a couple of people who used to supplement their income by selling pot to friends. Their entire income is now based on the sale of pot. I know several people who are working under the table for the first time in their lives and others who do work out of their homes or garages that they once did for an employer.
The landscape of our economy has changed and may continue to change. We may move towards a less "cash" system to more barter and trade. I have faith that we will do whatever is necessary to feed, clothe and house our families because it's what we do.
I doubt your numbers simply because so much of what I've posted here will never hit the government's, or anyone's, balance sheet.
What I am saying here is that the government wants us to think things are getting better and only supplies the best information to make their point. Also nobody puts it all together to get the broad picture.
True families are pooling resources and sharing homes. We are too. My son who has been out of work for over a year has gone back to college so his life will be getting better and in the meantime he lives with his sister. I share my home with my youngest daughter. It all works out and we adjust. Ways of getting money or just living day to day change and we all hang on tighter. That is good and right.
What I want is the whole truth. Not just the best of the bad news. Don't tell me it is getting better if it is not. We are not a nation of children that need to be shielded from the truth.
That's my point of view from what was the middle class!
didn't it take us about 8 years to get where we are at now and just wave a magic wand it will be over in a couple of years?i doubt it.enough of the blame game.
no it doesn't do anygood to preach gloom and doom and yes some families are hit harder than others.who knows why and a lot of times a ripple effect catches others in the process.
my question is this.is our or your representitive just giving lip service of what they are doing ?
looks like a coalition of business and labor market could get together for a solution and instead of rewarding said business and company for outsourcing off shore they should face a hefty tax.how in the hell can the middle class pay taxes if they are not employed?
as some said those that are without are living with relatives. and after having my kid here for a couple of weeks the cost of running a household almost doubles.
