Money Talk: About the Economy

Sooooo….everyone’s talking about the economy these days. Seems like we’ve hit a true recession, but some people are actually worried we’d have another Great Depression.

Well, they should all calm down. (What, a voice of hope!? Or at minimum, a voice of reason????) Yes it’s hard out there. Yes a lot of things have gone wrong:  banks screwed up left and right and now because THEY’RE hurting, loans are hard to come by for average people, as a result. Which means average people spend less money.  And so stores go out of business, and people get laid off. It’s a huge drag. Another thing that’s gone wrong is Detroit. The American car manufacturers were so busy cranking out huge SUVs and mediocre American cars they apparently failed to notice that European and Japanese car manufacturers were passing them by in sales - by like, A LOT. OOOPS!??! The Prius has a waiting list while no one wants these gas guzzlers? And gas was over $4 per gallon this summer? *Head scratch*  - you’d think for making um, lets see, over twenty million that the CEOs of GM and Chrysler could have seen the writing on the wall. Sigh. UNBELIEVABLE stupidity. But we’re ranting and that could go on all day.

Back to topic.

Yes. Banks messed up with bad mortgages and bad loans, and that’s costing jobs. Yes people are having a hard time making bad loan payments on overblown houses that arent worth what they paid for them. Yes the American car companies were too busy breathing gas fumes to notice the world was passing them by, while foreign automakers were making smaller more stylish and more efficient cars. BUT—— BUT—- Wait for it! Wait for it!

This will not spiral us into a Great Depression again for a few reasons. At least it’s very unlikely to.

The Bottom Line magazine recently had a great article. Here is a cool quote:

“Some speculate we have entered a great depression. We have not. Todays politicians may make mistakes, but they are unlikely to make anywhere near as costly as those of the thirties.”  It should take “a little more than five years” for the market to recover, but it’s “a far cry from the Great Depression.”

We’ve been through more than one rough patch before as a country. The government has learned how to handle it better each time. In the meantime, how can we all ride it out?

Stay positive. Being optimistic and not panicking is key. Panic was a huge part of what started the Great Depression.  Stay out of credit card debt. Use cash to buy what you need and only buy what you can afford. But keep spending when you can - if everyone gets scared and holds on to their wallets, that can cause a lot of our worst fears to come true.

It’s all going to be ok. Just work hard, be glad for the job you have if you have one, save a percent of your money, use cash when you shop, and ride out the hard times. The good news is, everything changes, always. We’ll be back to good times before you know it.

Q&A: Lame Ducks and Why the Big Delay

Question:  What’s a Lame Duck, anyway?

Lol, Lame Duck is one of the funnier political terms, we think. A “Lame Duck” is the name for the President who’s living out the very end of his term as President, while the President Elect waits in the wings.

You might be thinking, “Well - the election is over. Why can’t Obama just take over right now?”

See, there’s this thing called a ‘transitional period’ - the election is held in November for a reason, when the Presidents term does not actually expire until January.  What’s the reason? Why the big hold up?

Well, there are a few reasons.

1. These things take time. As listed earlier, Obama had advisors to appoint, positions to fill for his Presidential Cabinet.  He has to get his people in place.

2. Decorating the White House. Haha ok not necessarily, but seriously. There was another family living there. The Bushes have to move out, and the Obamas have to move in. There are rooms to choose, drapes to buy, drawers to sort out, closet spaces to assign. These are very real and practical things but it’s a reality for the Obamas just like it would be for you. He doesn’t just have a new job. His family has a new address!

3.  When the Constitution was written, we didn’t have the means of modern transportation and technology that we do now. Things happen faster today than they used to. The period of time for the transition factored in travelling by horse. ;)

DRAMA!!!!!!

Wow. Ok so for sure you’ve all heard about the craziness that is going down in Illinios. Apparently for some reason, Illinois Governor Blagojevich thought Obama’s recently vacated Senator’s seat was his golden ticket - the Governor is supposed to APPOINT the next Senator, not SELL THE POSITION. But that’s exactly what Blagojevich tried to do!! Wiretaps revealed the Governor saying  “I’ve got this thing,” Mr. Blagojevich said on one recording, according to the affidavit, “and it’s [expletive] golden. And I’m just not giving it up for [expletive] nothing. I’m not going to do it. And I can always use it. I can parachute me there.”

ARE YOU KIDDING??? Selling Government positions for your own, blatant financial gain seems pretty outrageous. But we suppose stranger things have happened.

He’s been accused, and arrested, and is awaiting trial - and officials are publically calling for his resignation. Yet Blagojevich is apparently unapologetic, and still has not resigned. Some people have all the nerve.

Obama Builds His Cabinet

So the latest news with our President Elect Barack Obama has been ALL about who’s going in his Cabinet. LOL…what’s a Cabinet you ask? And who is he trying to stuff in there? Before we talk about WHO Obama’s putting in his Cabinet, lets talk about WHAT a Cabinet actually is.

The Cabinet is pretty much the President’s posse, lol - a group of the most senior appointed people in the Executive (Presidential) branch of the government.  They are appointed by the President and are his most trusted advisors.

The Cabinet dates all the way back to el Presidente numero uno - George Washington. He named Thomas Jefferson as his Secretary of State, Alexander Hamilton as his Secretary of the Treasury, Henry Knox as Secretary of War, and Edmund Randolph as the Attorney General.

So, these positions are, in short, a very. big. deal.

Who’s Obama picked for his Cabinet? So far, he’s picked a lot of people that used to be his toughest competition! The most exciting appointment was Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State.  No one knew if she’d accept the role or continue to basically be her own boss as New York Senator.   But, she did, making this an unusual but formidable alliance.

She was the most exciting nomination, but here’s the full list:

NOMINATIONS ANNOUNCED:

TREASURY SECRETARY: Timothy Geithner, president of Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

SECRETARY OF STATE: Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y.

ATTORNEY GENERAL: Eric Holder, former deputy attorney general.

DEFENSE SECRETARY: Robert Gates, a holdover from Bush administration.

HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: Gov. Janet Napolitano, D-Ariz.

NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: Retired Marine Gen. James Jones.

STAY TUNED! Thanks for checking in - and feel free to write us with questions or comments!! info@urvotescount.com

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Youth Vote will Make the Difference in 08!

“A new generation is coming up, and they are more engaged than their predecessors,” said University of Maryland Research Scholar Peter Levine. “They are already voting more and also volunteering at a higher rate.”

It’s the truth, this election will be MADE by the young voters of America. Typically the ones labled “Least Likely to Show Up” to vote, historically, this election stands to break with tradition in a major major way. Maybe young voters learned last time what happens when you don’t vote (George W. Bush, cough cough)…but all current polls seem to show that *this* time they are determined to turn out, turn in their vote, and turn the tide of this country.

If you’re old enough to vote in THIS election, awesome. DO IT. We don’t care who you vote for! JUST VOTE. No matter what, we’re going to see a change. And that’s what we ALL need.

And if you’re too young THIS election to vote, we hope you voted at UR Votes Count. We WILL release the info to the press and be sure your voice is heard!