We make whatever we want that is viable and there are virtually no barriers to entry into the marketplace. We have the most supportive economy for entrepreneurship and the largest, most open, vibrant economy in the world. Even now.

The strength of the American Economy is that we are free to act upon any viable idea we may have so long as we have the capital to enter the market. TVs, Phones - that stuff is not viable to make here, but there is a lot of stuff that is and if you look around you'll see a lot of people making and selling things.

theres no politics or pride in economics, theres data. Look at the data. Look at what we produce, look at what we owe, look at we save. Look at what got us where we are today. Where a consumer nation thats out of money.
Let me put it this way, 20yrs ago there were no "yuppie" fishing stores live SWE, guys didnt spend 600+ on a fsihing reel, 25+ on plugs, etc. All of that is the result of the 90s boom, easy credit. Those days are done, period. Argue all you want and many have, but noone is showing me DATA to prove me wrong. I have seen a lot of data suggesting that this countries opportunites for growth, a relatively stead increase since WWII is over. Like it or not.

sounds good Joe, but reality is, we invent something, then ship it overseas for them to produce, sure the stock of the inventing/owning company goes up, but the production is done elsewhere. Prove me wrong? What major consumer product is made here? Van Stalls? Clothes? Penn reels? Cars? Corn? what??? You might say computers, but you'd be wrong, all those parts are made in Korea and Mexico.

I dont know what everyone here does for a lving and I dont want to sound pompous, but I am informed working for one of the largest investment companies in the world. I know Wee Wee/Poo poo works in this industry too. Search his posts, he is as negative as I am. I believe he suggested putting all your money in gold bars in your basement. This is NOT a standard recession, you guys need to take a step back and LOOK.

I worked for one of the larger if not the largest investment companies here in the states and the truth of it is the one tradable commodity in America is Money….

The issue is we have no industry 60-70% of American cars are made over sees …… we buy lumber and some food stuffs from Canada its crazy…. we invest and offer insurances that is our leading industry. The issue is how long can we depend on one thing with no back up we are like every Hollywood starlet making big cake with nothing to fall back on. Sure we were once great and we can be there again…

We need to bring American industry back to us soil… I agree with RIJIMMY

I just want to be clear. You are now listening to and quoting some of the same guys who never saw this coming, and if they did see it coming, failed to inform each and every one of their clients of the impending doom correct?

Because now in hindsight for the casual market observer, the DATA was clear as day for those in the business.

TPI, which is your HOME STATE pushed alot on the CF engineering front of wind turbine blades.

You should drive by there and look at the number of blade molds they have in the lot, definitely more than when they were primarily building boats.

ps: They're hiring STILL.

No, this analysis is from the highest level economists who did see this coming and warned about it. These are not the fund manager.sMy firm was not involved in the mortgage/credit issues. This analysis is for what we (the company) should invest in. Since we are a global investment company, we are looking for opportunites anywhere. All the opportunites noted are exteral to the US. China, emerging markets. That is where the growth will be.
To be clear I am not saying we become a third world country. I am saying opportunites will be much different for us. The standard of living many have been accustomed to, will be lower. Think of wall street alone - those firms payed bonuses every year whihc are over the average US employees salary. And thats not just for the top execs. Those days are over. Think of the massive impact that has! How much less "extra" money will people be spending? I remember I commented on a tread years back on why there were so many luxury car commercials in december/january. Its beccasue firms are paying out big bonuses, we're not talkking a ham and a $50 check. 50,60,70, - 1Million plus are the bonues financial firms pay........

you're looking in front of you and not ahead. Who is a major component of their work? The Military. Lets see, economic downturn, democratic president. So, do you see an increase in defense spending? Layoffs will be on the way.
And blade molds in the lot, means unused inventory. talk to me when the lot is empty.

Jimmy,

All I want to know is what impact will all of this have on the price of eels in the coming months?

thats easy! since gas $ is lower and there will be less discretrionary income for most people to spend, I predict a surplus in the eel market from 2009 to 2010.

Hmmmmmmmm, time to build that swimming pool I've always wanted for bulk eel storage. By the time we come out of the great depression part II, I'll have the market cornered.:devil:

Ok, I'm getting this thread off track here.....back to the gloom and doom, please...:behead:

And then do WHAT after we look? Are you saying that we are erasing all of the 'prosperity' achieved since WWII? Or maybe since 1992 forward. How far back are we going in terms of the world economy?

...also, we have the greatest educational/research institutions in the world

Sure india and China may have more computer scientists, but they where do they come for the PhDs, the great US of A.

Education needs to be affordable for the domestic youth. The kids are dumber than the adults these days, it needs to be the other way around.

Who runs the technology in your house?

Maybe a sea change is what we need.
Wall St is great brain drain on the country - all these very smart people moving money around that only enrich a few lives. The best and the brightest could do so much more.
Maybe after they get laid off they'll take down the Gordon Gecko poster, put away Sun Tzu's Art Of War, and start companies that put people to work.

The auto companies don't suffer from a lack of innovation, they suffer from labor unions and a giagantic oil lobby that stifles innovation domestically.

There never has been much high-tech manufactured in the USA, but there's plenty of product design going on, and that's where the innovation really happens...and a lot of it right here.

-spence

Add slowing consumer demand and obsolesence to the list too. We're basically looking at a %$%$%$%$ty business from the top down. Bailouts prolong the inevitable. I also read many of the UAW members receive almost 80% of their compensation when they're laid off too. They need to "save" these companies so the union hacks can survive. It has nothing to do with changing the business model or product.

Thats not true!!!!






***its actually 95%*** :shocked:

and they wonder why they are in a financial mess

Excellent post.

take a look at what this guy thinks is going to happen. Won the nobel prize for economics....

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Paul Krugman, winner of this year's Nobel economics prize, said on Monday that the world could face a Japan-style, decade-long slump.


Paul Krugman of the U.S., winner of the Nobel Prize in Economics for 2008, gives his Nobel lecture at Stockholm University in Stockholm December 8, 2008. REUTERS/Bob Strong
Speaking in Stockholm where he will collect his 10 million Swedish crowns ($1.3 million) prize, U.S. economist Krugman again called on policy makers to spend liberally to cushion a withering global downturn.

"A scenario I fear is that we'll see, for the whole world, an equivalent of Japan's lost decade, the 1990s -- that we'll see a world of zero interest rates, deflation, no sign of recovery, and it will just go on for a very extended period," he told a news conference.

"And that's unfortunately very easy to see happen."

Krugman added that in his worst case scenario there would also be a series of extremely serious crises "in particular countries that are in big trouble."

He said there were already premonitions of economic and political crises in line with those in Argentina and Indonesia in the 1990s-early 2000s, particularly "in the European periphery."

Iceland and Latvia are among European countries that have been hit hard by the global financial crisis.

"We can easily be talking about a world economy that is depressed until 2011 and maybe beyond," Krugman said.

"If there's a safe place I can't see it."

Krugman is in the Swedish capital for the "Nobel Week," when laureates attend news conferences and events culminating with the prize ceremony and a gala dinner on Wednesday.

(Reporting by Anna Ringstrom; Editing by Victoria Main)

Ahh..you know, Krugman writes op-ed pieces for the NYT - so whatever he says has the hammer and sickle stamp of the mouthpiece of the DNC. Can't go by that.

I dunno, Joe - I think he's right, the way things are going, we could all ending up living like a bunch of Latvians...

Wait a minute, where in the hell is Latvia...:huh:...and how does their GNP compare to ours? Don't know if I'd use Iceland as a prime example either.

Well, with that 1.3 mil Nobel prize, that should stave off his fears of recession.

Yup, just what the world needs - another pundit :hs:

The people of Latvia suffer the most clinical depression of any country.