Are you better off than you were (4) years ago?

[stogies]

worse then ever. no job! ecom is trash. no damn jobs and gas is higher!

that explains why you got so much time to sign up a dozen ghost at sbr. testme, blahh, masta, yes dear, blindd. sbr should ban all your cheating accounts.

[newguy]

The fact that anyone blames Bush for this situation is really really funny. I will say the same thing in 4 years when people are blaming Obama for the fact that they are worse off. The President certainly does have a lot of control over the country - but you should also look closer to home. Did you, as a person, do everything you could to ensure you would be better off 4 years ago? Did you continue increasing your skillset, understanding that the markets are ALWAYS changing, and that the job you do today may not be available to you 5, 10, 15, 20 years from now? Were you always ensuring you were a top performer at your job so that when it came time for cuts to be made (which - let me give you a hint - happens cyclically in EVERY company in the world)?

Do you live in a place where the demand for the type of service or job you provide is high? I am a consultant for a major accounting firm, I can't do my job if I live in Gainesville, Florida as there is no need for my services there. Similarly, if I am a line worker at a manufacturing plant - I am probably not going to try and live in Miami, Florida - where there may only be 1 mfg plant in the area. Look around you now - if the job you do can't be found at a couple of other places - maybe start looking for a new skillset that would allow you to be employed if you ever get laid off.

So many people complain about what the Government did to them, and how they got screwed by the man, or big business, or someone else. Look inside - what the hell are you doing to make yourself better. To the person who is collecting unemployment because its BS that you were offered less today than you were in 1986 - GUESS WHAT - you are doing the same f-ing job you were doing in 1986 - and its a job that ANYONE can do. You did nothing to re-train yourself to ensure your salary kept going up. Now you are sucking off the Government's teet - taking the money that I make and using it for yourself.

It is what it is - but THAT right there has more to do with why our country is where it is then any politician ever. If we didn't have people who were looking to free-load off the government, we would all have more money!!! So if you are worse off - first ask yourself: did I do everything I could to give myself a better life? Then ask yourself: Am I doing everything I can today to make sure I am better off four years from now?

off my soapbox

[mojomaker11]

I would say about the same.

[jwbama23]

The fact that anyone blames Bush for this situation is really really funny. I will say the same thing in 4 years when people are blaming Obama for the fact that they are worse off. The President certainly does have a lot of control over the country - but you should also look closer to home. Did you, as a person, do everything you could to ensure you would be better off 4 years ago? Did you continue increasing your skillset, understanding that the markets are ALWAYS changing, and that the job you do today may not be available to you 5, 10, 15, 20 years from now? Were you always ensuring you were a top performer at your job so that when it came time for cuts to be made (which - let me give you a hint - happens cyclically in EVERY company in the world)? Do you live in a place where the demand for the type of service or job you provide is high? I am a consultant for a major accounting firm, I can't do my job if I live in Gainesville, Florida as there is no need for my services there. Similarly, if I am a line worker at a manufacturing plant - I am probably not going to try and live in Miami, Florida - where there may only be 1 mfg plant in the area. Look around you now - if the job you do can't be found at a couple of other places - maybe start looking for a new skillset that would allow you to be employed if you ever get laid off. So many people complain about what the Government did to them, and how they got screwed by the man, or big business, or someone else. Look inside - what the hell are you doing to make yourself better. To the person who is collecting unemployment because its BS that you were offered less today than you were in 1986 - GUESS WHAT - you are doing the same f-ing job you were doing in 1986 - and its a job that ANYONE can do. You did nothing to re-train yourself to ensure your salary kept going up. Now you are sucking off the Government's teet - taking the money that I make and using it for yourself. It is what it is - but THAT right there has more to do with why our country is where it is then any politician ever. If we didn't have people who were looking to free-load off the government, we would all have more money!!! So if you are worse off - first ask yourself: did I do everything I could to give myself a better life? Then ask yourself: Am I doing everything I can today to make sure I am better off four years from now? off my soapbox

I agree 100%, as for myself yes I am better off today than I was 4 years ago. My income has increased about 15-20% yearly over the past four years. I was living in an apartment four years ago and now am building a nice home in a nice neighborhood and my mortgage payment will be just a hair higher than my rent was then. Ive been able to save several thousand dollars and a few years ago I couldnt save a penny because I needed every penny I made to survive. I was in debt now Im out of debt (other than this mortgage). The recession is merely a mindset really. I tell you what its a great time to buy anything because deals are everywhere.

[crustyme]

1. bush invaded iraq...... cost $2 trillion & 4500 us lives

2. bush passed the american dream downpayment act in 2003.....which gave homes to the poor with awful credit. we all know what happened next.

3. us dollar lost 50% of value under bush due to overspending.

4. bush manipulated gas prices by taking 50 million barrels of oil off the market in 2002. price of oil doubled overnight. invading iraq took over 1 million barrels of oil offline per day.

5. bush ignored repeated 9-11 warnings and mortgage meltdown warnings. too busy falling off his huffy bike and choking on pretzels.

gee i wonder why people blame bush....

[crustyme]

[GoCougs!]

I am better off now than I was 4 years ago. It's really not even close. Things in America are obviously worse, but we should all be smart enough to realize it isn't just Bush or Obama that got us here. Things have been getting worse for a long time.

Can people blame Bush? Sure, go ahead.
Can people blame Obama? Sure, go ahead.

What people NEED to do is quit bitching about what has happened and how crappy their situations are and actually try to do something about it.

[newguy]

Compare that to a graph of government spending over what it brings in. Jobs are being created - but its all with government money - all on credit which isn't sustainable long-term. So its great that this is happening - unfortunately once the government CC gets shut off (which look at credit rating agencies and that kind of thing - they are already starting to talk about downgrading US Debt ratings) - so as soon as that goes - so does all the money supporting all these jobs. Look at the whole picture - I don't have the data - but do the same thing for when Reagan was in office and Clinton and Bush Sr - its cyclical. Obama has done literally nothing to change the real reason we went into a recession - all he did - by spending all that money on things that don't have sustainable growth - was to make it that much harder for the next person. Same thing every politician has been doing for years - kick the can down the road - let someone else figure out how to fix it!

[crustyme]

without gov't bailout we'd be knee deep in another great depression. we're talking 30-50% unemployment here.

for example look at the auto industry. gm & chrysler were bankrupt, entire industry was collapsing. then obama introduces 'cash 4 clunkers' which most republicans opposed and revived the entire industry to record sales all without any additional bailouts the past 2 years. even gm is now profitable.

just look at the original depression, president hoover did nothing cause he believed it was a normal busines cycle. this led to 10+ years of 30-40% unemployment and suffering and only ended due to record spending by the gov't in ww2.

even bush gave citibank nearly a billion in bailout before leaving, which coincidentally is owned by a saudi prince.

bottom line we are in this mess thanks to bushs awful policies. imagine had he spent those trillions on our economy instead of a backwards country half way around the world.

[rsnnh12]

without gov't bailout we'd be knee deep in another great depression. we're talking 30-50% unemployment here.

for example look at the auto industry. gm & chrysler were bankrupt, entire industry was collapsing. then obama introduces 'cash 4 clunkers' which most republicans opposed and revived the entire industry to record sales all without any additional bailouts the past 2 years. even gm is now profitable.

just look at the original depression, president hoover did nothing cause he believed it was a normal busines cycle. this led to 10+ years of 30-40% unemployment and suffering and only ended due to record spending by the gov't in ww2.

even bush gave citibank nearly a billion in bailout before leaving, which coincidentally is owned by a saudi prince.

bottom line we are in this mess thanks to bushs awful policies. imagine had he spent those trillions on our economy instead of a backwards country half way around the world.

Lol you still haven't learned, have you? Amazing.

Cash for clunkers was a massive waste of money used inefficiently-

http://reason.org/blog/show/was-cash-for-clunkers-successf

Ford did okay without the governments help, huh?

You seem to forget the New Deal under FDR... that was massive government spending that extended the depression for a decade. Its funny that you think Hoover doing nothing extended it while FDR's WW2 spending got us out, when the New Deal was actually the reason unemployment remained high throughout the 30s and the economy didn't recover. Hysterical

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304024604575173632046893848.html

[BGS 9.5]

I became self-employed and took a 70% paycut, but I am going to say yes

[Grandmaster B]

It took Bush 8 years to get us into this mess and you expect ANYONE to get it better in 2 years? Get real

[Grandmaster B]

without gov't bailout we'd be knee deep in another great depression. we're talking 30-50% unemployment here.

for example look at the auto industry. gm & chrysler were bankrupt, entire industry was collapsing. then obama introduces 'cash 4 clunkers' which most republicans opposed and revived the entire industry to record sales all without any additional bailouts the past 2 years. even gm is now profitable.

just look at the original depression, president hoover did nothing cause he believed it was a normal busines cycle. this led to 10+ years of 30-40% unemployment and suffering and only ended due to record spending by the gov't in ww2.

even bush gave citibank nearly a billion in bailout before leaving, which coincidentally is owned by a saudi prince.

bottom line we are in this mess thanks to bushs awful policies. imagine had he spent those trillions on our economy instead of a backwards country half way around the world.

[Grandmaster B]

1. bush invaded iraq...... cost $2 trillion & 4500 us lives

2. bush passed the american dream downpayment act in 2003.....which gave homes to the poor with awful credit. we all know what happened next.

3. us dollar lost 50% of value under bush due to overspending.

4. bush manipulated gas prices by taking 50 million barrels of oil off the market in 2002. price of oil doubled overnight. invading iraq took over 1 million barrels of oil offline per day.

5. bush ignored repeated 9-11 warnings and mortgage meltdown warnings. too busy falling off his huffy bike and choking on pretzels.

gee i wonder why people blame bush....

[BigdaddyQH]

It took Bush 8 years to get us into this mess and you expect ANYONE to get it better in 2 years? Get real

This is the lament of the typical ignorant Liberal excuse maker. Does Bush have to saddle some of the blame? Absolutely. But the fact is that the Liberals like yourself ran Congress from 2006 to 2010, when most of the damage was done, and Obama has been in the white House for two of those years. You Liberals have nothing to fall back on, so you use that old, stupid excuse.

Obama is a complete and total failure, and you Liberal fools simply cannot admit that. His Foreign and Domestic policies have failed miserably. Onlh a complete illiterate would think otherwise. Liberalism has been a cancer on the economy and the welfare of this nation. It must be eliminated, just like the fools such as yourself and Golf who back these moronic policies. Your use of the "blame it on Bush" excuse just verifies how ignorant you are.

The Republicans are going to ake the Senate in 2012, and keep the House. Hopefully, they will rid the white house of that cancer that is now occupying it. After that, we will rid the coungtry of Liberals like yourselves who try to poison the minds of thinking american with your Bull S**t. We will defeat you , and then we will put people like you and the other Liberals in here in your place.

[crustyme]

reason.org... lol.

here are the facts:

2008 saw the worst in cars sales since 1992....

http://www.autoobserver.com/2009/01/2008-us-auto-sales-are-worst-since-1992.html

2009 also saw slow sales which is why obama implemented 'cash 4 clunkers.' it was a huge success as nearly 3/4 million cars were sold through the program.

2010 also saw a rise in sales especially for ford, gm and chrysler.

new study found 'cash 4 clunkers' was even more successful than originally thought.

http://www.maritz.com/Press-Releases/2010/Maritz-Research-Findings-Cash-for-Clunkers-More-Successful-Than-Previously-Reported.aspx

the new deal came 4 years after the start of the great depression and fueled a rapid recovery from 1933-7 until the recession of 1937. but had hoover acted immediately to stem the tide it would never have gotten as bad as it did.

otoh, obama acted right away which is why it never got as bad and we are now seeing a faster recovery.

[MWade]

hey americans,
the world is laughing at you

[Grandmaster B]

This is the lament of the typical ignorant Liberal excuse maker. Does Bush have to saddle some of the blame? Absolutely. But the fact is that the Liberals like yourself ran Congress from 2006 to 2010, when most of the damage was done, and Obama has been in the white House for two of those years. you Liberals have nothing to fall back on, so you use that old, stupid excuse.

Obama is a complete and total failure, and you Liberal fools simply cannot admit that. His Foreign and Domestic policies have failed miserably. Onlh a complete illiterate would think otherwise. Liberalism has been a cancer on the economy and the welfare of this nation. It must be eliminated, just like the fools such as yourself and Golf who back these moronic policies. Your use of the "blame it on Bush" excuse just verifies how ignorant you are.

The Republicans are going to take the Senate in 2012, and keep the House. Hopefully, they will rid the white house of that cancer that is now occupying it. After that, we will rid the coungtry of Liberals like yourselves who try to poison the minds of thinking american with your Bull S**t. We will defeat you , and then we will crush you.

[Socrates]

Same or worse.

[BigdaddyQH]

reason.org... lol.

here are the facts:

2008 saw the worst in cars sales since 1992....

http://www.autoobserver.com/2009/01/2008-us-auto-sales-are-worst-since-1992.html

2009 also saw slow sales which is why obama implemented 'cash 4 clunkers.' it was a huge success as nearly 3/4 million cars were sold through the program.

2010 also saw a rise in sales especially for ford, gm and chrysler.

new study found 'cash 4 clunkers' was even more successful than originally thought.

http://www.maritz.com/Press-Releases/2010/Maritz-Research-Findings-Cash-for-Clunkers-More-Successful-Than-Previously-Reported.aspx

the new deal came 4 years after the start of the great depression and fueled a rapid recovery from 1933-7 until the recession of 1937. but had hoover acted immediately to stem the tide it would never have gotten as bad as it did.

otoh, obama acted right away which is why it never got as bad and we are now seeing a faster recovery.

If Obama's program and GM bailout worked so well, perhaps you would like to explain to the audience why the government is now selling all of it's ingerests ion GM AT A LOSS!!! That's right Obama lovers, the Government is going to take a loss on the GM bailout, NOT make a profit like those lying Liberals promised us we would see. I suggest you know what you are talking about before you go running your mouth off about the successes of Obama.

[King Mayan]

This is the lament of the typical ignorant Liberal excuse maker. Does Bush have to saddle some of the blame? Absolutely. But the fact is that the Liberals like yourself ran Congress from 2006 to 2010, when most of the damage was done, and Obama has been in the white House for two of those years. You Liberals have nothing to fall back on, so you use that old, stupid excuse.

Obama is a complete and total failure, and you Liberal fools simply cannot admit that. His Foreign and Domestic policies have failed miserably. Onlh a complete illiterate would think otherwise. Liberalism has been a cancer on the economy and the welfare of this nation. It must be eliminated, just like the fools such as yourself and Golf who back these moronic policies. Your use of the "blame it on Bush" excuse just verifies how ignorant you are.

The Republicans are going to ake the Senate in 2012, and keep the House. Hopefully, they will rid the white house of that cancer that is now occupying it. After that, we will rid the coungtry of Liberals like yourselves who try to poison the minds of thinking american with your Bull S**t. We will defeat you , and then we will put people like you and the other Liberals in here in your place.

[BigdaddyQH]

When the GOP wins the Senate in 2012, I am going to personally kick every Liberal's tail in here (verbally ofcourse). Each aned every one of you fools is going to be walking around with your tails rapped around your shoulders. You scum bags disappeared last year when I successfully predicted the outcome of the 2010 elections. You will probably do the same in 2012, because you do not have the balls to admit that you were wrong.

[King Mayan]

When the GOP wins the Senate in 2012, I am going to personally kick every Liberal's tail in here (verbally ofcourse). Each aned every one of you fools is going to be walking around with your tails rapped around your shoulders. You scum bags disappeared last year when I successfully predicted the outcome of the 2010 elections. You will probably do the same in 2012, because you do not have the balls to admit that you were wrong.

GOP fukked up lil kid.... They voted to take Medicare away from the elderly, now you will feel the wrath.... the same way they voted against the dems in 2010 because of obamacare........

[rsnnh12]

That's a ridiculously stupid chart. Basing a state's policies and party-lean on 1 election? For example, New Hampshire is listed as a Democratic state, when it is far from it. It has always been minimal government, minimal taxes (no sales and no income tax), and usually elects Republicans and fiscally-conservative Democrats to its leadership positions. But you're right, that qualifies as a Democratic state

[King Mayan]

That's a ridiculously stupid chart. Basing a state's policies and party-lean on 1 election? For example, New Hampshire is listed as a Democratic state, when it is far from it. It has always been minimal government, minimal taxes (no sales and no income tax), and usually elects Republicans and fiscally-conservative Democrats to its leadership positions. But you're right, that qualifies as a Democratic state

sorry pal, it clearly states in 2008 in voted democrat.

[rkelly110]

Definitely worse. Oh, the repukagain's have been in majority for over 100 days.
From the party of NO for 730 days + the 100 days= 830 days of nothing.

If the dumb ass public would quit flip flopping and keep the people in who are trying to
accomplish something, maybe they WILL accomplish something.

[rsnnh12]

reason.org... lol.

here are the facts:

2008 saw the worst in cars sales since 1992....

http://www.autoobserver.com/2009/01/2008-us-auto-sales-are-worst-since-1992.html

2009 also saw slow sales which is why obama implemented 'cash 4 clunkers.' it was a huge success as nearly 3/4 million cars were sold through the program.

2010 also saw a rise in sales especially for ford, gm and chrysler.

new study found 'cash 4 clunkers' was even more successful than originally thought.

http://www.maritz.com/Press-Releases/2010/Maritz-Research-Findings-Cash-for-Clunkers-More-Successful-Than-Previously-Reported.aspx

the new deal came 4 years after the start of the great depression and fueled a rapid recovery from 1933-7 until the recession of 1937. but had hoover acted immediately to stem the tide it would never have gotten as bad as it did.

otoh, obama acted right away which is why it never got as bad and we are now seeing a faster recovery.

You're right, 700,000 cars were sold... but only 125k were from the program. The rest would have been sold anyway-

http://www.edmunds.com/about/press/cash-for-clunkers-results-finally-in-taxpayers-paid-24000-per-vehicle-sold-reports-edmundscom.html

At $3 billion and only 125k extra cars sold, was it worth it?

And just wait til QE2 ends in June... we'll see just how "recovered" our economy is then

[rsnnh12]

sorry pal, it clearly states in 2008 in voted democrat.

So that makes it a Democratic state? And that all of it's previous legislation is based on Democratic ideals, as opposed to Republican/conservative ones?

You sho am smahhht

[TR88]

hey americans,
the world is laughing at you

[Grandmaster B]

GOP fukked up lil kid.... They voted to take Medicare away from the elderly, now you will feel the wrath.... the same way they voted against the dems in 2010 because of obamacare........

[King Mayan]

So that makes it a Democratic state? And that all of it's previous legislation is based on Democratic ideals, as opposed to Republican/conservative ones?

You sho am smahhht

Ok buddy, you can have that state...2 repubs states in the + column now...

[crustyme]

You're right, 700,000 cars were sold... but only 125k were from the program. The rest would have been sold anyway-

http://www.edmunds.com/about/press/cash-for-clunkers-results-finally-in-taxpayers-paid-24000-per-vehicle-sold-reports-edmundscom.html

At $3 billion and only 125k extra cars sold, was it worth it?

And just wait til QE2 ends in June... we'll see just how "recovered" our economy is then

ignoring facts again, i see.

like i posted above, there was a comprehensive study done on the effectiveness of cash for clunkers which blows the previous edmunds claims out of the water.

http://www.maritz.com/Press-Releases/2010/Maritz-Research-Findings-Cash-for-Clunkers-More-Successful-Than-Previously-Reported.aspx

Cash for Clunkers Spurred More Than 500,000 Incremental New Vehicle Sales
The NVCS findings show that the Cash for Clunkers program created 542,000 incremental new car or truck sales, meaning that those auto buyers and lessees would not have existed without the incentive program. Previous estimates put resulting incremental sales at somewhere between 125,000 and 346,000.

CARS Did Not Mortgage Future Automotive Sales
The Maritz study also debunks concerns that CARS was mortgaging the future by stealing sales that would have occurred anyway at a later date. While experiencing a slight dip in sales in September 2009, most likely due to a shortage of auto dealer inventory, the Seasonally Adjusted Annual Rate (SAAR) from October through December 2009 shows that automobiles continued to sell at a higher pace than before the CARS program was implemented, according to statistics from the U.S. Department of Commerce Bureau of Economic Analysis.

Cash for Clunkers Creates Jobs, Not Just Sales
Not only do we now know the incentive program created sales that otherwise wouldn’t have occurred, a body of research also proves that Cash for Clunkers created jobs throughout the automotive industry, including those at manufacturers and their suppliers. According to NHTSA’s Report to Congress, CARS resulted in a $3.8 billion to $6.8 billion increase in gross domestic product and “created or saved nearly 60,000 jobs.” And, according to the Ann Arbor, Michigan-based Center for Automotive Research, 40,200 new jobs were created including about 11,000 in Michigan and Ohio alone (for a list of states where the most jobs were created due to CARS, please visit www.cargroup.org/pdfs/Cash_for_Clunkers_Report.pdf).

Cash for Clunkers Generated Sales Resulting in a Positive Impact on Energy Stewardship
Maritz’s research further supports NHTSA’s data on the positive impact CARS had on the environment and energy savings. According to the NVCS, half of all trade-ins were more than 10 years old and had more than 100,000 miles. Older vehicles such as these only averaged 15.8 miles per gallon and were replaced with vehicles averaging 24.9 miles per gallon, according to NHTSA, which estimates that “the reduction in fuel consumption over the next 25 years to be 824 million gallons…saving roughly 33 million gallons annually.” NHTSA also reports, “The estimated reduction in carbon dioxide emissions and related greenhouse gases over the next 25 years is nine million metric tons, a reduction with an estimated social benefit of $278 million over 25 years (in 2008 dollars).”

[Grandmaster B]

the bush family sure is ... he as to be the worse president in the history of the usa $ wise , and lb johnson is next. dam he hated the white man

[Grandmaster B]

hey americans,
the world is laughing at you

[NYSportsGuy210]

When the GOP wins the Senate in 2012, I am going to personally kick every Liberal's tail in here (verbally ofcourse). Each aned every one of you fools is going to be walking around with your tails rapped around your shoulders. You scum bags disappeared last year when I successfully predicted the outcome of the 2010 elections. You will probably do the same in 2012, because you do not have the balls to admit that you were wrong.

Why don't you shut your stupid h*ck @ass up already......the only thing people like you are good for economically is keeping white trash bars afloat.