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LegalSmash
5 Feb 2008, 04:07pm
Okay,

So we have all watched, read, and listened to the news, and the doom and gloom prophesies about the national economy, the impending recession, mortgage crises, credit crisis, and other events, all in an election year (and we are still complaining about abortion).

What ideas do you think could be useful to remedy this situation for the nation? Where can the new president/congress combination apply their collective/singular efforts to rehabilitate the national economy to a positive, acceptable level? What about health care, education.

Also, to what degree would you rely upon taxes.

Go.
:idea:

Slavic
5 Feb 2008, 07:57pm
Back To The Holy Barter System!!!

broncoty
5 Feb 2008, 08:05pm
cut taxes and encourage small business

phatman76
5 Feb 2008, 11:26pm
Okay,

So we have all watched, read, and listened to the news, and the doom and gloom prophesies about the national economy, the impending recession, mortgage crises, credit crisis, and other events, all in an election year (and we are still complaining about abortion).

What ideas do you think could be useful to remedy this situation for the nation? Where can the new president/congress combination apply their collective/singular efforts to rehabilitate the national economy to a positive, acceptable level? What about health care, education.

Also, to what degree would you rely upon taxes.

Go.
:idea:

I have an idea, stop worrying. It is a fact that the media is always looking for a recession, especially when there really isn't one. Just because the market slows down a little doesn't mean it will falter, it just means it slowed down a little. The solution is to not panic. Lower interest rates more to solve the housing crises and encourage investment. Keep taxes low to encourage more investment. Finally, give it some time. The natural cycle of the economy will take over as long as no one tries to screw with it. If it keeps getting worse, firmer action may be warranted, but at this point there is no reason to fear a serious recession or depression.

Red
5 Feb 2008, 11:53pm
I have an idea, stop worrying. It is a fact that the media is always looking for a recession, especially when there really isn't one. Just because the market slows down a little doesn't mean it will falter, it just means it slowed down a little. The solution is to not panic. Lower interest rates more to solve the housing crises and encourage investment. Keep taxes low to encourage more investment. Finally, give it some time. The natural cycle of the economy will take over as long as no one tries to screw with it. If it keeps getting worse, firmer action may be warranted, but at this point there is no reason to fear a serious recession or depression.

I like you phatman.

You watch Stossel?

phatman76
6 Feb 2008, 01:05pm
I like you phatman.

You watch Stossel?

I don't watch Stossel, but he has some good ideas. I am a fiscal conservative, so I basically think tinkering with the economy unless it has completely broken down and can't heal itself (which has basically never happened) is the only time for intervention. People just can't deal with the cyclic nature of the economy, they always think the next economic slow down or recession will mean the end of civilization. It always gets better, it just slows down sometimes. Being afraid of the economy is very human, we fear what we cannot control. Fortunately, the economy can control itself just fine. Government intervention almost always does more harm than good.

Jewpiter
13 Feb 2008, 08:27am
boom and bust, gentlemen. boom and bust.
Funny thing is about this economy, I have been watching analysts and economists on CNBC say that for the last 7 months we have been in a recession. Of course, take it with a grain of salt.

Blank
13 Feb 2008, 09:08am
The economy is very cyclic. Currently the US dollar is down versus the currency used in many other nations. This is good because it increases our exports. As our exports increase, so does the value of the dollar. Once the dollar value reaches a critical mass, this whole thing will start over again.

A good indicator of the economy is the trucking business and the sales of motorhomes (seriously) omong others. As the price of fuel increased, so did the cost of shipping (obviously). Since almost every consumable is shipped, the is increase affected the cost of goods sold which resulted in higher prices to the consumer.

Now about the motorhomes. Motorhomes is almost 100% descretionary spending. Since most people had less money, sales of rv's suffered. Occasional declines are expected, but sales for rv's has been steadily decreasing for a while now. But like most people, I expect this trend to reverse soon.

Now for something new. I think this may really screw up the US economy. It is very easy for people to get themselves buried in debt. A person is able to borrow more money now, than what the same person was able to 10 years ago. I think it is very irresponsible for banks to loan a person money for a house with little or no money down. People are able to buy houses with a "interest only" loan. Thus people are buying more house than what they can afford. I know a few people who have done this. Needless to say, they will probably be in serious debt for the rest of their lives.

VirDeBello
13 Feb 2008, 11:38am
Yeah, the only thing I believe that needs fixing is our political system. Other then that, the economy is fine. We have just reached a low and in years to come we will reach a high and so on and so forth.

Soviet
13 Feb 2008, 04:49pm
We need President Coolidge back. It wasn't the mildly obnoxious 20's, it was the Roaring 20's.

Political Joke :D



Anyway,

Yeah, the only thing I believe that needs fixing is our political system. Other then that, the economy is fine. We have just reached a low and in years to come we will reach a high and so on and so forth.

VirDeBello is right.

phatman76
13 Feb 2008, 07:10pm
I was reading this thread again and sorta want to add another two cents. The economy is not purely cyclic, it is spiral, it changes. This sub-prime thing is new.

This whole mortgage fiasco could have never happened just 30 years ago because back then there were no subprime mortgages because no one invested in them. What the problem is is this. Banks used to pay for all mortgage lending on their own. Then over the last 20 or so years they started to pay for them in big blocks, a thousand mortgages at a time say. They let investors pay the bank say, $10 million to pay for a section of those mortgage blocks, and the investors get some of the interest the bank gets from the home-buyers. Problem was, with this system banks began offering mortgages sub-prime, to people who couldn't really afford them but with higher potential payoff.

What is really hurting the economy here isn't people losing their homes because they can't pay mortgage. What is happening is that banks like Countrywide go broke because they lose their mortgage payments. Then the big investors who invest in the banks lose millions they had lent. Where did the money go? Most slipped through the cracks - the homeowners, who defaulted while spending on basic commodities. The investors have gotten so burned that they have stopped investing, and the banks are so burned they stopped lending. Meanwhile, those who can't pay their mortgages right now are stuck high and dry because they can't get another and overextended in the first place.

In hindsight, it was a stupid idea to lend to people with sub-prime credit. The government is doing something relatively smart, they are extending grace to homeowners and trying to stimulate banks and investors into spending and risking again with lower interest rates in the reserve bank. That is the top-down solution. They are also working the bottom up solution with a tax rebate, which will stimulate the people back into spending mode. People keep telling me "too little too late," but they are basically doing the smartest thing they can.

Point is, this isn't really just a "business as usual" sketchy period, it is a sorta novel one. While it will end, it is not something that should happen again. Expect banks to stop lending sub-prime.

MANFRA
19 Feb 2008, 10:30am
I like the idea of getting rid of the IRS and creating the 1% tax on everything idea. No credits for anyone.. just 1% on anything you purchase. Imagine having 1/3rd more of your paycheck in your hands every two weeks. Wouldn't you buy more? That would be taxed by 1%. What better to upstart the economy!! I don't know about you guys.. but if i'm getting an extra 1/3rd of my paycheck i'm most likely going to blow it.