Recession or Depression?

[turasultana]

Taking this to another direction.. I just came out of a 1 1/2 hour presentation on consumer trends and the economy.

There's a free white paper (haven't looked at it yet but I believe its the same subject matter of the presentation) here: http://www.darwiniangale.com (edit: just looked and you have to fill in info to get it, be forewarned).

Basically how we've gone from an age of indulgence to an age of consequence where folks are more aware of the consequence of risk. They will still spend but prioritize their spending more and shop on value not just price.

Technically we're no longer in a recession but slow growth recovery (with bumps in the road).

Anyway, not going to bore you will all the details, but I took notes

[Ldyluck88]

Originally Posted by turasultana

Taking this to another direction.. I just came out of a 1 1/2 hour presentation on consumer trends and the economy.

There's a free white paper (haven't looked at it yet but I believe its the same subject matter of the presentation) here: http://www.darwiniangale.com (edit: just looked and you have to fill in info to get it, be forewarned).

Basically how we've gone from an age of indulgence to an age of consequence where folks are more aware of the consequence of risk. They will still spend but prioritize their spending more and shop on value not just price.

Technically we're no longer in a recession but slow growth recovery (with bumps in the road).

Anyway, not going to bore you will all the details, but I took notes

Thank you for your post. I guess it may depend on where you live. Here in CA, it said: The number of people unemployed in California is 2,308,00--up by 31,000 over the month, and up by 362,000 compared to March of last year.
I hope you are right and jobs do become available to people. The government needs to find a way to create new jobs to help the economy grow once again. Keeping my fingers crossed!!

[SuperFemme]

In these types of conversations I often wonder why nobody brings up all the undocumented workers who DO pay taxes, pay into Social Security and Disability but can never file for those tax benefits?

The amount is astronomical.

[julieisafemme]

Originally Posted by SuperFemme

In these types of conversations I often wonder why nobody brings up all the undocumented workers who DO pay taxes, pay into Social Security and Disability but can never file for those tax benefits?

The amount is astronomical.

THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!! Bit also brought this up a page or so back.

[MsDemeanor]

Originally Posted by SuperFemme

In these types of conversations I often wonder why nobody brings up all the undocumented workers who DO pay taxes, pay into Social Security and Disability but can never file for those tax benefits?

The amount is astronomical.

And that they buy food and gas and clothing and merchandise and services that contribute to the economy and to the tax base.

It's difficult to rant about a group of people sucking the life force out of the US economy if you have to acknowledge that they contribute to that economy. Better to just ignore the facts that are inconvenient.

[apretty]

immigrants: myth vs. facts

http://www.immigrantslist.org/myths_vs_facts

The 12 million undocumented immigrants in the United States, who comprise nearly one-third of all immigrants in the country, are not eligible for public benefits. According to the New York Times, “Illegal immigrants are pumping the Social Security system with as much as $7 billion a year and contributing to Medicare in payroll taxes, yet they are unable to collect on the benefits…Starting in the late 1980’s, the Social Security Administration received a flood of W-2 earnings reports with fake Social Security numbers. It stashed them in what it calls the “earnings suspense file” in the hope that someday it would figure out whom they belonged to…$189 billion worth of wages ended up recorded in the suspense file over the 1990’s…”

lots more condensed information on the site, immigrantslist.org

[Medusa]

It always grosses me out a little (ok, a lot) to hear a Queer person look to illegal immigrants (which almost always seems to be about "those damn Mexicans") as the source of "what they see wrong" with the employment system in this country.

I guess I expect more from us? Or I at least assume Queers will think twice before helping to marginalize another group of people since, well yanno...we have been marginalized so often ourselves, especially when it's due to ignorance, intolerance, or some form of 'ism or 'phobia.

I am getting to where I don't even like the term "illegal immigrant". Human beings are not "illegal". It seems unfair and problematic to me to attach what I perceive to be a negative connotation (the word "illegal") to an Immigrant who may not have the right political pull, thousands of dollars, or years worth of patience for our system to get it's head out of it's giant, smelly, racist, eurocentric ass so that they, too, can live the American dream.

Especially since 90% of the people in this country who point to "The Mexicans" as the "problem" won't do the research on where they, themselves, came from. I suspect a biggo boat full of Irish, Romany, Dutch, or German settlers might be somewhere in their midst.

[Soon]