Puester wrote:

> Gregory Morrow wrote:
> > blake murphy wrote:
>
> >> jesus, george. the media are reporting it as the worst financial
crisis
> >> since the depression because it *is* the worst financial crisis since
the
> >> depression.
> >
> >
> > It's not even as bad as the '82-83 recession, blake...
> >
> >
>
>
> What planet are you on, Greg? Millions of people are out of
> work and losing their homes,
> businesses are closing left and right.


I live in Chicago, and in the early 80's Chicago was the buckle of the Rust
Belt...unemployment in the this SMSA was almost 13%...in downstate Illinois
in some areas it was around 20%. The Midwest was HAMMERED by the
manufacturing crisis and also by the farm crisis...

I got canned from my job in late '82, and lemme tell ya, if it had not been
for some help from my family I would have been on the streets, there were NO
jobs available at all, not even menial ones.

NPR and other outlets this morning reported that 49% of those that have lost
their jobs recently have found new ones...some of those jobs are not as
highly paid, some are not full-time, but 15% found *higher-paying* gigs...

Fortunately our Chicago economy diversified; there are still "help wanted"
signs out there, even though these are not dream jobs if you want to work
there is *something* to do. That was simply not the case in the early
80's...

Many made foolish and immature decisions their finances, many of those
foreclosed upon had no business getting a mortgage in the first place,
others over-extended to afford lifestyles which they could not sustain. We
are seeing the fallout from that. It's ugly, sure, but hopefully some will
learn a lesson from this...we shall see.


Have you been to a
> restaurant lately? They are like ghost
> towns and offering specials all over the place to get people
> in the doors.


And there are plenty of restos that are thriving, some are doing better than
ever, and I know tons of folks in the F&B business. The key is to offer
good value and good service...

Pay close attention to the economic indicators, all is not gloom and doom.
I laffed when one prognosticator in January said that the very worst will be
over by May, but maybe he was not talking in jest. Of course unemployment
will continue to increase, but that is one indicator that "lags"...

Peeps toss around the term "Depression" but go back and read some history,
we are nowhere *near* a Depression...better yet, talk to some folks who
lived through the Depression, that'll put our present crisis in context.


--
Best
Greg

"The trouble with socialism is that you eventually run out of other
people's money."~~~~Margaret Thatcher