MyNameIsNotMervGriffin: Er... Seems to me that if the guy points out we are suffering illegitimate panic over bogus economic indicators, the better plan is implicit: Ignore the bogus indicators.

Yeah, they're all bogus indicators because we all know everyone has large amounts of stock, bonds, annuities, properties, et al.

They're closing another plant around here (paper, well diapers/other absorbents). All those people aren't seeing their economic futures prospering. Let's go a bit further. Several of my younger brother's friends left one job, and went to another for less because the contract was given to another company. This company, like the last, has no health insurance or retirement options. The difference is that this one pays a buck an hour less, but what are they going to do? Not many like to be on the dole.

Go to school you say? Nice try, but many do not have a schedule that's conducive to school to say the least or many times the money. Many are already carrying other debt (some responsible, some not). The paper plant workers might end up better off if they can get a NAFTA provision. That would cover retraining / schooling. Even then they'll have to get lucky choosing the right schooling, draining investments they might have to pay the bills until they're closer to done and then getting lucky enough to find a job in that area!

You want another good economic indicator for an area, see how long residental, commercial, and industrial properties stay vacant. We could go further and say the volatile price of oil, the weakening of the dollar, or even the dismal value of replacment jobs for many displaced people but I digress.

Please go on thinking everything is without worry. I worry because I have a great deal to lose if the gap between the rich and the poor grows too wide. I know better than to assume that many Americans are rich in stock. I know better than to assume in job security. I know better than to believe that everything is rosy.

Perhaps you do not.

JudgeReinhold: If your income equals your consumption, then you have problems (medical expenses excepted). Live within your means, give some loot to charity, and save the rest to provide for your retirement.

Or one could say that many people saved and bought into the American dream of a house (a money sucking entity). However that is just a lottery with better odds.

Incidentally, do you have any idea what would happen if people slowed down buying things on credit? Near chaos. The retail machine would grind to a halt.

lelio: If you were making $120k and now can only work as a greeter then the problem is with you, not with the market.

Not in a world where the average person is getting the pink slip and their job moving to another country. In a world where countries intentionally hold their currency low (see China) and get away with it you'll see more.

Damba: Most people become wealthy from capital gains, not from income. If a man starts a company and builds it for 20 years and then sells it, the proceeds from the sale are capital gains. And this is how most people become wealthy -- a slow progression of investments that culminate in a large capital gain.

Most people do not have capital gains to speak of. Tell me of thy neighbor in the average neighborhood (median income) who becomes rich by selling their major investment. The major investment for most Americans. The American home. Most people do not become rich from that sale. Stock sales then? Most Americans do not own large quantities of stock. Many have a 401k, or 403b, et al, but these are averaged returns. Nothing like the capital gains you speak of. They never get the killing return that really kicks in capital gains tax.

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No folks, the new American way is simple. Heck it's almost the pirates creed from the Disney movie. Take all you can, give nothing back.

Show no loyalty to your employer. Sell them out the instant you get a choice. Don't get me wrong, no illegal actions. However if your circumstances permit, stab them in the back before they stab you first. Change jobs on a regular basis. Never get attached. The next time you hear anything of "employer / employee loyalty" try your best not to laugh.

Do the least amount of work for the most pay while demanding things like tuition assistance. A good portion of my contract spells out school related expenses billable to whatever current employer I have as continued training to complete the project.

Squeeze every penny out of the useless bas***ds you can before they toss you aside. Remember that it's only a matter of time before they toss you aside, as almost all companies are now driven by the next quarter rather than even one year hence.

Don't buy a house unless you can pay for a major portion (at least 33%) with cash left over. That old adage about how it's better to pay yourself? Great in theory, lousy in a bad market. Foreclosure nets you zip.

Finally remember that supply-side economics is for morons who want their cake and believe they can eat it too. The only responsible way to lower taxes (a laudable goal anytime) is to lower spending. So until the people who write the government checks (Republicans who cut and spend, and Democrats who tax and spend) have the stones to say enough profligate spending, it will never get better. To do that we have to be willing to say "no we don't need that bridge" or post office, or subsidy to a profitable company. We have to be willing to say enough.

Enough corporate welfare, enough taxes, enough runaway debt.

I have little faith that will happen anytime soon.