Do you feel better or worse about your financial situation?
[cnn-photo-caption image=http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2010/images/06/14/art.cashregister.cf.gi.jpg caption="Do you feel better or worse about your financial situation?'"]
FROM CNN's Jack Cafferty:
While Washington touts the recovery, fewer Americans are feeling "better" about their own financial situation these days.
A new Gallup poll shows 50% of those surveyed say they feel better about their personal finances. But that's down 4 points from April... and so far the drop is holding in the month of June.
Not good.
The poll also shows that several other important measures of personal financial well-being are holding steady...including:
- 34% of Americans say they have more than enough money to do what they want.
- 77% say they have enough money to buy the things they need.
- and 21% say they worry they spent too much money yesterday.
These numbers have remained virtually unchanged in the past couple months.
But, the fact that more people say they're feeling worse about their personal financial situation could spell trouble.
For one thing, it's a turnaround from April when consumers were feeling better about their own pocketbooks.
There are several possible reasons for this decline, including the stock market having its worst month in 40 years in May.
Also, there's the ongoing and worsening financial crisis in Europe as well as the deteriorating conditions resulting from the Gulf coast oil spill. And the May jobs report was disappointing, showing an artificially high number of new jobs because of the hiring of temporary workers for the census.
Whatever the reason, if people are worried about their finances they're less likely to spend money – and without consumer spending, our economy has lost its motor.
Roughly two-thirds of the American economy is driven by consumer spending.
Here’s my question to you: Do you feel better or worse about your financial situation?
Interested to see which ones made it on air?
J.J. in Lincoln, Nebraska
I'm single woman, 43, earning less than $30K and definitely feel worse off since my wages are frozen and the prices ARE NOT!
Tunde in Maplewood, New Jersey
I actually feel better. All of this negativity and doom in the reporting about the economy have forced me to change my spending habits. Result? I'm spending less, shopping smarter, and my finances look dandy.
Bob
I feel worse. When the statistics come out about unemployment, I'm not counted because I am self-employed. I also don't qualify for unemployment since I am self-employed. I have my own carpentry business and I feel like a second class citizen even though I have to pay more in taxes than someone who works for someone else.
Tom in California
Better. We have a small business, and we were in serious trouble in 2008 and 2009, but we've turned the corner. Not on easy street yet, but things are looking a whole lot better. Activity and revenue are up 40% year to year.
Silas in Boston
Far worse, Jack. There's no money to create jobs. No money to upgrade our infrastructure … We're on the fast track to poverty and further division, Jack. We've no manufacturing base, our farmers are virtual sharecroppers to the agriculture industry and our politicians are beholden to special interests as opposed to the taxpayer.
Kim
Better. I had a few interviews lately and one offer so far. After months and months of no or little activity, things appear to be picking up.
Delia in Katy, Texas
Jack, I feel worse! 50 and unemployed doesn't bode well in this economy.
Bob in Tampa, Florida
Much better, Jack. Business is good and I am even afforded the time to waste, watching the Situation Room.
@jackcafferty on Twitter
What finances? I still can't find a job and now my unemployment insurance has been cut off so I have to decide which bills can be paid. But, I guess it could be worse, I guess.
South Carolina
Jack: I feel some what better about financial situation. I believe that more jobs will be created in the months June and July. Businesses will find they have more opertional credit than this time last year. More stimulus money will be spent in the next 6 months on projects which will cause contractors to hire more people. I think the unemplyment rate will be 9 % by December 2010.
The financial situation continues to deteriorate, with ObamaCare driving health care up 9%, in a single year, and that is with LESS benefits.
Taxes have increased, through loss of deductions.
All other insurance costs have increased.
All utilities have increased.
All goods and services have increased, from restaurants (offsetting drops in business), to retail clothing.
There have not only been no raises, but the continuing pressure on cut backs, make everyone concerned about their job, if they still have one.
The country is going broke, and so are the citizens.
Better that it's not getting any worse but worse that it's not getting any better. In other words, stuck in second gear. I could use a little clarity here. Anyone?.....Anyone?.....
Hello Jack Cafferty and CNN friends,
Due the economic crisis and the oil spill crisis in the Gulf of Mexico
I do NOT feel better about my financial situation!
Greetings,
Jurgen R. Brul
Slowly we are feeling the tiniest bit better about our financial situation.
Real, solid employment is more than needed now.
Time will tell ~ I do not expect life to be as we once knew it, in my lifetime.
Worse. Although I am not in debt, I see the government spending us into oblivion, with more bail outs for unions in the guise of jobs programs, and more spending for nonsensical social programs such as health care "reform". Our currency becomes increasingly worthless, and yet we are cajoled into giving the FED more power.
It's a pity that most people don't pay attention to the problems facing Europe, as one country after another faces massive cuts in their own social programs, including the insolvency of many German health care insurers. Socialism doesn't work, and we will all be the poorer for it...
And for all the economists espousing more spending and more spending: you have sold this country a bill of goods...
I bought a house at the end of the year 2003, and have 600K cash invested in it; and it is now worth a little over 500K! I am a self- made small business owner who is watching socialism destroy my worth! I see dead beats from the low income welfare lines to the dead beat executives of multimillion dollar banks being bailed out while the bead beats in my upper middle class neighborhood get rewarded for signing contracts that they don’t have to honor, while I get nothing but taxes and mandatory healthcare!
What do you think I think!
Do you feel better or worse about your financial situation?
I've been unemployed for almost 5 years Jack, I've never been counted as the unemployed because I graduated from college into this failed economy, and I am not able to get unemployment benefits.
Even though I have endured I have HOPE that president Obama will prevail and the economy will turn around.
Since Republicans got us into this mess I have NO FAITH in any of them and will not vote for a Republican.
Jenna
Roseville CA
Worse, Congress gave themselves a raise, I'm diabled and they refused a cost of living for SSI and SSDI, it was to be 250.00 and it sure would be helpful now.
Unless the Government decide to fire every social security recipient I guess I am fairly arranged to live the rest of my natural life with very high expectations.
My financial situation is far worse. We've just been replaced with programmers from India, on H-1 Work Visas. We're in a jobless recession with no end in sight made far worse, from no leadership in Washington D.C. Anyone that votes for an incumbant this November and perpetuates the insanity is a fool.
tampa, fl Last year I thought it couldn't get any worse. I forgot we have politicians working for us, so I was wrong, my situation is worse and not getting any better even with an election coming up. No one is pandering to me unfortunately.
Financially I am surviving and all my bills are current but the future looks bleak. At 71 I am still working but many of my peers are not and they're in dire straits.
Gerry
Ash Fork, Az.
It has hurt. Bush left our country broken. However, I am relieved that we have a strong, thoughtful leader, and a few congressmen who are willing to make the politically unpopular decisions and have averted a much larger disaster. It will be a slow climb up the slipper slope we slid down, but I see a new economy emerging and, if we have learned our lessons, a more realistic one. Big business does not have the greater good of people at heart, they are selfish and greedy. People have begun to realize that greed is not a virtue, even when it is redefined as productivity. If we could just gag the advertisers, who continue to brainwash us about how much we NEED in order to be happy, successful and survive, then we might actually grow a green and honest economy.
How can I feel anything but worse? My portfolio has been taking a non-stop beating since the dot com bust, interest rates have dropped to invisible, my taxes have skyrocketed, my home value is less than I paid a decade ago, the prices of just about everything I buy continue their relentless reach for the sky (pun intended) and my income has dropped. Where does the word “better” fit into that sentence?
Jack,
At the moment, I am satisfied with my financial situation. I have has steady employment since 2007, no debt, and even though I don't make a lot of money, I've been able to save a few hundred dollars every month. It could always be better but given the tough economic times, its the best I can do. Have a good day.
I try to stay positive, but the reality of bringing in income and money for a small business during this period is daunting. See potential but not reality.
Jack, I finally get it; you're trying out new material for you're up-coming comedy tour. Please let me know the dates and clubs you'll be appearing at. Layne A. Antioch, Il.
Compared to the rest of the world and most of our country we are doing ok today, enough food to eat and we can pay our bills at this time. No complaints Jack.
Same as I felt after the last election.......pretty rotten.
I guess I feel worse because that's what I'm being told to feel. I wonder what it was like during the Great Depression – was everyone being told everyday that things were in the dumper? It becomes self-fulfilling prophcy, just like bull and bear markets take on a life of their own, the ecoomy is subject to the same mass hysteria. Maybe things will get better when people realize that no matter how bad things are right now, the US remains the greatest country in the world to live and we will overcome this present adversiy (particularly if everyone stops shopping at Walmart, the great vaccum for Amercan money to go to China).
Worse. As a baby boomer that has planned very well for my upcoming retirement I fear that all my years of working hard and sacrificing to be able to contribute the maximum towards my 401k were done in vain. The trend appears to be punish those who have planned for themselves to help those that have enjoyed life and spent every dollar they ever earned and then some.
Worse! What got us into this mess has not been fixed. Also, unless there's a change in the economic order, and deficit spending is stopped, it's only a matter of time before there is global financial collapse. Right now, we are living on borrowed time.
I feel far worse about my financial situation after receiving 6 pages of tiny print informing me of enormous changes to my Blue Cross. They are hiking pretty much every co-pay I have to $50 and adding new ones of $175 in many situations. They are changing prescription coverage for the worse and excluding necessary medical supplies – especially implanted devices like pacemakers and insulin pumps. They are disallowing many of the new co-pays and expenses from our maximum out-of-pocket, and doing away with countless other benefits. Plus, next year, when I reach 65, they are kicking me out of the program based on age, even though I still work here and do the same job. And in addition to all that, they haven't given us our premium change notice yet - the other shoe has yet to drop. Is this healthcare reform???? So no, Jack – I definitely don’t feel any better about my financial situation.
i am 72 yrs. old on s.s i voted dem all my life and voted for obama .i don't know want kind of dem he is suppose to be but he is not my kind i will never vote dem the rest of my life
Easy answer, Worse!
Jack, I'm better off than many of my nieghbors because I am retired yet I am disabled. Congress says no cost of living increase (COLA) for this year. President Obama pushed back against Congress's plan and provided relief through reduced income taxes. My insurance company loves Congress and cancelled most of that relef so I am making about $1.10 a week more this year. No matter what the President tries to do to help me, Congress stands in the way. If I can get my insurance costs down and my electric bill down, I will have a better summer. But the RepublicaNOs in Congress have a plan to defeat my plans for an economic recovery. Dean D. Ellis, Palm Springs, FL
I play as much golf as I want to, still have money to dine out often, have money to spend on the grandchildren, do some traveling and pay my bills, don't really need much else so guess I'm doing ok.
What recovery? I must have blinked and missed it. Darn !!!!
Jack, I've considered cutting my own wrists. But, since I can't stand the sight of blood, maybe an overdose of sleeping pills might be better. Suffice to say, desperation has set in. I'm down to panhandling on the street for money to pay my green fees.
Gary in Scottsdale, Arizona
I feel better over the past 12- 16 mths, than I did over the past 7+ yrs before. In my line of work, real estate appraisals, the feds have put more on us because of greedy lending instutitions. The de-regulations that the republicans preach is what got us into this trouble. It began under Reagan.
Scared to death! Having saved enough for my future based on old tax requirements, knowing that the spending spree isn't slowing down and that repayment will have to come from somewhere. Feeling sick that my future plans are being flushed and there's not a darn thing I can do about it.
I can't honestly say that I feel anything when it comes to my financial situation Jack. Half of what I pay in taxes goes to China to repay debt.. Over half of what I buy goes to China because we don't make anything in America any more but debt. Therefore my financial future lies solely with China. My own country has sold myself and my entire family out in treasury bonds that we can never repay.
Jack,
I feel about the same. My wife of over 40 years and I, live off of a small pension and smaal social security check. We don't have much but we at least have each other, many people are in far worse shape than us, we are very thankful we can at least live and pay our bills, with hardly no extra's.
I feel worse about my finances, alas however, that's due to some poor decisions on my part. I've made the steps to correct and just have to cross fingers that no emergencies arise to stall my financial health from returning.
Juneau AK
Worse. All this stimulus money went to retain and hire government workers and teachers. None of it went to the private side to actually create jobs or grow the economy. I don't work for the government so why should I feel better about my financial situation? Now we've wasted all that money and it will have to be paid back at some point.
Compared to what, whom? Ask the people of Kyrgyzstan, Haiti or the fisherman on the Gulf coast right now if they give a shit about my financial condition.
Jack–
I feel worse. I think we're in a plateau period. My daughter can't find work anywhere in this area, and she's been looking since early March. Her six kids have no health insurance and neither does she or her husband. A year ago she had a good job with good benefits. I don't think we're anywhere close to being out of the proverbial woods.
I still waiting for mine. I being held down by Corparte America GREED!
I was laid off in February but have since found a new job. I had to take a 20% pay-cut but at least I'm working. I know many others who are much worse off. I do not feel secure at all.
I do feel the economy is improving but I know that the financial crisis dubbed "The Great Recession" will take more than a year to turn around. I imagine it will be years before I feel as secure as I did in 2007.
Sally,
Baltimore, MD
Let me see, real wages are down, jobs are not coming back, college tuition is ghastly, gas prices are too high, the wealthy and corporations have had a fantastic 30 yr. run by milking the middle class, and the politicians that should be trying to fix it are telling us everything is just fine. I'll take worse for 100 jack.
I live in Florida. Our housing market stinks. It has never recovered, even partially, and gets worse continually. Those of us who bought a home before 2003 can't even get our money out, now 7 years later. Our job situation stinks. Now we have what could be the final "nail in the coffin," the Gulf oil spill courtesy of BP, which has been and will continue to cause havoc with all aspects of tourism. Sad, sad, sad!
I'll be happy to answer as soon as I find a job.
i'm not making plans for any major spending. until i can see that the government actually has a plan to deal with the debt, beyond that of just juggling the numbers and employing more fuzzy math, i worry that the rug can still be pulled from under all of us at any moment. i remain wary and have little confidence that our political leaders have a defineable plan to actually improve our economic situation.
NC
I consider myself as frugal. Others may call me a tight wad. Other than my house, on which the mortgage will be paid off in one year, I have no debt. I never fail to pay off credit cards in full when due. I live well withen my means. When I retire in five years I will be able to easily live off my social security and use my personal savings and 401k money as extra fun money. In short, I am more than comfortable with my financial situation. It has been easy Jack. I made a financial plan and I have lived by those plans.
Jack
Obviously, your polling does not include the homeless living on the river banks and under bridges. While Nationalized Banks board up their homes in an effort to stabalize housing values. Banks should be forced to sell homes within 90days of foreclosure or face county demolition. zoning
I track my net worth every month. There are fits and spurts, but it's basically flatlined since the end of 2008. You have to remember that in this economy, those lucky enough to have jobs have no shot of getting decent bonuses or cost of living adjustments (unless you're on wall street). So as prices begin to creep up, noticeably at the gas pump, the money I do have isn't going as far.
Not to mention the fact that if Robert Reich is right and we're headed for a double dip recession, I am not optimistic the my job situation is going to last.
Worser than worst Jack, I can,t even afford to eat at home forget about eating out! I can,t even take advantages of the 2 for 1 deals most restaurants are offering out there. I even shut my car off at a red light to save gas. I would tell you more but i have to shut down to save energy.
Victor
Oldsmar Fl.
Definitely no better. Income does not match expenses which have been stripped to the bone. No funds for social outings. It is even more depressing when the CEOs who created this mess get pay increases and multimillion dollar bonuses for job nonperformance and incompetance. Why aren't their bonuses used to replace the monies loss taken in my accounts and many others due to their incompetance and greed?????
The company I work for just lost a city contract. That was my job. So, I am putting out applications with the company that got the contract and with local casinos. That is life in the real world as long as I have been working. Nothing new with that. I don't feel better or worse. I see the opportunity for new situations, and an extended vacation.
The American Auto industry and it's supplies used to be the largest employer in the country. Now it's the federal, state and local governments that are. That's fine as long as they're getting more in taxes (from working America) than they're paying out.
Except they're not! Our governments(fed,state,local) spend more than they take in. So they run into a deficit. To balance the books our governments borrow money. And it's that borrowing where we are in trouble. We borrow money from anyone, including Communist China. But, that's ok. Because they manufacture all the things that we used to manufacture here by American workers, who used to pay plenty in taxes to run our governments. I'm retired and have an annuity w/ medical and I'm happy. It just makes me sick to my stomach to see where America is going.
I actually feel better. All of this negativity and doom in the reporting about the economy has forced me to change my spending habits. Result? I'm spending less, shopping smarter, and my finances look dandy.
Feeling worse. I worry about my IT job everyday (whether it will be offshored or replaced by H1-B) and if I can keep from incurring more debt. I'm holding my head above water barely. I'm not greedy, but the downward pressure on salaries in IT is crazy. Guess I should have been a Business Management major instead of science in college. I never thought I would be in this situation 10 years ago.
It is worse. I actually work right down the street from you Jack. You are more then welcome to come down and I can show sales forecasts. everything is costing so much more and wages are just not keeping up. I work in a medical/retail environment and it is a rollercoaster ride, and I work in an affluent area. Gas, Electricity, INSURANCE, are all going up faster then wages, while companies want to pay everyone 10 dollars an hour, if that. The new workplace is making people do more with less, in which an underlying frustration being that folks will not spend money. If my sales goals are down, which they are, how do you expect me to contribute to anyone elses business, they aren't helping mine, so I won't help your mentality is now what I am seeing now. Email me Jack, we can have a lunch and a drink on me buddy and maybe we can solve some of these issues, if it isn't to late. hey at least the restaurant might get some business, since this is about the only luxury I can afford every pay period. There is a corvette with my name on it, but it might not happen in this lifetime.
Jack, I feel worse. We, the taxpayer, funded a fortune to get Wall Street and Bankers Row out of trouble and they've crapped on us. We spent another fortune on job stimulus and it only stimulated White House jobs. The White House printed a "fortunes fortune" in money "we can't back" nor have they produced a budget to reduce anything in this century. Mortgages are still in dire straights, homes are being lost, there has been what 150,000 mortgages redone. Banks are laughing all the way to "their bank". We have a slew of "party baggers" on the war path to clean house one way or another, and their actions have caused more mess. So yes, I don't feel like my personal financial situation is stable let alone good.
Better, definitely...slow but certain progress is being made..
As a country, out annual deficit has tripled... with no end in sight.
We are running the country without a budget, just spending bill by bill by bill.
As a non-union member, I won't receive any of the benefits of all the latest round of unfunded spending. That spending will go to Public unions.
My increased taxes are being used to ensure public unions can continue to work, rather than for my own family or for savings.
Unions should stop using their money to influence elections and use that money for their workers. If they did that, and reduce their benefits/pensions to taxpayer level benefites, then no layoffs would be necessary.
In high school, I was given the impression that going to college would guarantee me a job, and that it was the only acceptable path for a smart kid. My four friends and I graduated college in 2004 and 2005. Only two of us works at a job related to our degrees, and it took me a year to find mine. I hate it, but it keeps me afloat and in this economy I have to feel grateful for it. In retrospect, I wish I had taken a year off after high school to understand what it was I really wanted to do versus what I was told would get me a job with good pay. Even if I didn't make a six-figure salary, at least I'd be happy.
Worse. Fact is anyone having lost their job can fool friends and neighbors by continuing a lavish lifestyle after loosing their job. That's easy, foolish and in the Govt's case a crime our politicians are comitting on the U.S. The fact that they are hiding bills by not creating various programs and even next years budget until after the mid-terms I believe will utimately end up putting more than a few of them in jail.
I feel worse.An economy based on glottony and having "stuff" reaps the reward we see today. It cannot be sustained.The world will suffer till it's last breath of polluted air.
Jack.......
I am "fence sittin'" on this one....a better part of the time the feelings are mostly unsettling, and these come when I fill an Rx or grocery shop, etc.
I could budget better if I knew how much longer I will live !
Jack, I really feel great !! I'm a year older now (73) I still have the same small amount in savings so I'm a year closer to having enough money to last me the rest of my life ! Life is good..
I felt the same through-out this whole ordeal. Most people I knew before 2008 felt then they could afford things that they really couldn't...Ironically, these same people feel the same now...Not much has really changed, people will always have the tendency to spend more than they should instead of saving it like they should for these so called 'bad' times.
Much better Jack. Business is good and I am even afforded the time to waste, watching the Situation Room.
Worse. It's bad. It's sad. And I don't see it changing soon.
When the president took office I doubted even he could keep the nose diving economy from crashing world wide. His ability to get America and the nations of the world to believe in each other has been nothing short of a miracle and what I now feel is relieved.
I don't know as though I'm any better or worse. I know a lot of people that are definitely worse off and I know a small few that are actually better off. However, I think as a society we are all worse off because we do not seem to want to address the root causes of why we're in this mess. The "all for one and all for me" syndrome in our society. We seem to have become a very self-centered, what's in it for me bunch not interested in making sacrifices for the betterment of all. Look throughout history. All great societies have come apart when they began to believe their own press and that they could do no wrong. Sound familiar? We need to get a clue before we fall like Greece, Egypt and Rome.
Worse, and scared. As far as Congress is concerned, we’re in a recovery and all is just peachy. They don’t have a clue what’s been wrought out here. They have theirs’, after all, and a lot more where that came from as long as they suck up to their corporate masters. It took an economic meltdown for me to realize our politicians place little to no value on us. Who knew American exceptionalism was for only those who could buy it?
I can honestly say it is getting worse jack,and I feel sometimes you can't see the light at the end of the tunnel.I get so angry with the politics,greed , and lying. I don't think there is one person ,democrat or republican that could tell the truth, they all go to work with after they leave office, and become lobbyist, who are the succumb of the earth.Y ou have goldman sachs accussed of wrong doing ,now fannie mae wants more money, and you have all these illegal immigrants coming across like cattle. You tell me Jack , your a smart and outspoken person who says it like it should be. I am just a god dam dummie, somebody please tell me.
Jack, how about MUCH worse. The Congress can't find money to pay for the Medicare Dr. fix ($375B), the President wants $50B to bail out the state teacher's unions, and has no way to pay for that. The economy is almost dead in it's tracks because of deficit spending, the EU, unemployment, and the nearly bankrupt states. The deficit is passing $13T like it isn't even there. Next month I & my wife will be without health care when Dr's no longer accept Medicare, and hyper-inflation is just around the corner, which will put us on welfare. So, tell me, what is there to feel good about? NOTHING!
My financial situations is OK I still have a job but the country financial situation is like the oil leak ,PLUK THE LEAK.
My financial situations is OK I still have a job but the country financial situation is like the oil leak ,PLUG THE LEAK.
Jack if two-thirds of the American economy is driven by consumer spending then why do the major corporations and other business keep sending jobs overseas? Not everyone is retired or children of the rich.
I feel better about my own situation because Bush-Cheney are out of office. Those two should be down in the Gulf answering questions. Wait a minute, if they were they would just find another way the scam americans.
There is no way I can feel better.Every politician have a hand in destroying AMERICA . I can't understand what they are thinking.
I'm beginning to feel better about my financial position as I have become more used to being either broke or near broke. I can't spit between the two.
This has been the worst year I've ever had. I make less and I spend less and the way this economy is going it will continue to get worse and I don't see some nanescent glimmer on the far horizon.
Being Canadian my financial situation took a real kick in the gonads because 80% of our economy is tied to the US. When you guys go down we get hurt too. The difference is I don't blame everything on the government (or yours for that matter) I got on with it. The day Americans stop listening to all the doom and gloom on CNN and FOX they will start making their situation better and things will turn around. America doesn't deserve this "poor me" attitude any more than Canada deserves a dollar at or near parity to the US.
No, I feel less optimistic about the economy and the total financial situation in the U.S. It is touch.
This is the first time (today) I have felt compelled to make any political comment about anything in public. President Obama should say," I want you to know the facts about the Gulf oil diseaster:
1. There will be criminal and civil prosecution of BP by the United States Government.
2. BP has lied about both the magnitude and the projected costs of the spill. The gallons of oil spilling into the Gulf will be hundreds of millions of gallons and the costs to reimburse clean-up efforts and loss of revenue to business people will be in excess of $100 Billion.
3. Neither BP or the United States taxpayers are going to pay for this.
So, I feel much worse about my financial future.
I feel a lot better about my future and my finances. I have more money this year then in the last 4 years. My advice to people is to use these tough times to find a way to get your foot in the door.
Eric R.
Washington D.C
My economic situation is getting worse and worse as each day goes by.
I am afraid of the future and hope I do not wind up living on the streets eating from garbage cans. I only have 11 years left to save for retirement and I am afraid inflation will have burned thru my savings before I even try to spend it in 11 years and that the economy will totally tank before then and S.S. will be broke.
I feel so doomed and powerless.
Worse. The debt will kill us all.
Jack:
The hard times pressed me to fix my lawn mower accelerator cable. I could not believe it but I did it and saved 14 bucks. Now, if I could only EARN 14 bucks !
We have too little money to pay for the things we need, much less invest in the future for retirement. I know I'm not alone, but it's sad comfort to think of all the people who will be out in the streets when they become too old or sick to work. And who will hire us? And what kind of jobs could we elderly land? There are only so many positions at McDonald's and there will be so many more young people who have dropped out of high school who can't do anything more either. Sad, sad, sad.
Far worse, Jack. There's no money to create jobs. No money to upgrade our infrastructure but there's plenty of cash to fiance election campaigns. When somebody can spend $80 million in a primary for Governor, one has to wonder about the distribution of wealth in this country. If political expenditures end up being a percentage of our GDP in 2010, what happens next year when there's no election to fund? We're on the fast track to poverty and further division, Jack. We've no manufacturing base; our farmers are virtual sharecroppers to the agriculture industry and our politicians are beholden to special interests as opposed to the taxpayer.
We are on a fixed income and most could not live on it. However we do the best we can and our wants are less then most.
The Media should have picked up on this situation when Bush was in office, since his wars, tax cuts for the rich, derugulation, etc. is what caused this problem. Cheney and Bush need to be investigated about their wrong doings rather than blame the present President.
I wonder who keeps taking these polls? Are they true or fabricated? I just don't trust polls.
Definitely worse. It gets harder and harder each month to make social security stretch – if it does – to the next month. No raises for ss, but everything else keeps going up and up.
I decided long ago to move to Walden Pond.
Nothing has changed for me, I have been living at poverty for the past 40 years.
Jack, I feel worse! 50 and unemployed doesn't bode well in this economy.
Worse or Better? How about Scared?
I feel like the poor people needs to take advantage of this because only people on social security will be approoved for loans .
I am 58 and would like to apologise to my grandchildren for the world they are being handed. The downward spiral of the American continues.
Better . .we have a small business, and we were in serious trouble in 2008 & 2009; but we've turned the corner. Not on easy street yet, but things are looking a whole lot better. Activity & revenue are up 40% year to year
Worse. Last week of unemployment. Took a sick friend to dinner last night and now I'm kicking myself, seeing as my car need a brake job so I can keep looking!
I feel like we are running in place and stuck in neutral. At least we are not sliding into the abyss.
Andrew
Fukuoka, Japan
My husband and I took a big hit on our 401K when it all went to hell in 2008-9. We feel worse now because we lost so much as a young couple. We were saving to buy a home with a good down payment. Instead, we invested it, then lost it.
I have a new job and it is a temporary teaching job. I lost my district teaching job last year as well. As a new teacher burned by the terrible Los Angeles system, I will not be going back to the profession. I will try my hand elsewhere. It used to be you could be a teacher and make a good life for yourself. Not anymore.
Margaret Bennett
Better..had a few interviews lately and one offer so far... After months and months of no or little activity...things appear to be picking up...
Worse I am about to loose my job
I feel worse, when the statistics come out about unemplyement I'm not counted because I am self employed. I also don't qualify for unemployment since I am self employed. I have my own carpentry business and I feel like a second class citizen even though I have to pay more in taxes than someone who works for someone else.
Jack,
My husband and I feel worse!
No jobs for either of us, no money & no medical insurance. We were both in construction and there is none. We have worked hard since leaving high school, saved and followed the rules and now have very little to show for it. "The American Dream" does not exist, we will be on the streets shortly.
Jack let me put it this way, I was part of the underclass before the so called financial crisis. If there is no miracle I'll be in the underclass after the country recover. I am disable veteran, I am blessed to be able to have health care, I am grateful to have some type of income. I always look at life this was jack God knows it could be worst, I am grateful for what I have.
David
Martinsburg,WV
I feel much worse. I was living on my pension ($750/mo) and a low stress job and doing quite well. My job went to part time and then disappeared completely. This was not my plan for my retirement at all. Now I have to watch each penny twice as much and I have no insurance. I trim here and I trim there but a dental or auto problem can knock my poor little budget into a cocked hat.
Tucson, AZ – Economics is not called the "dismal science" for no reason. Even when the economic news is "good", economists find signs that things might be getting worse instead of better. On the numbers, the economy is up, inexorably up, driven by more than ten months of increasing manufacturing output and demand. Employment is not picking up like gangbusters, but it is up, and employment always goes up last. What people are not looking at., which they should be, is that the financial reform bill is still stuck in the Senate, so the financial industry is still holding instead of lending, so credit is still too tight and small business cannot grow, and small business is the biggest source of new employment. The single biggest thing that can be done now to stimulate the economy is to pass a financial reform bill, ANY bill, just to get the lenders off their asses and back at their jobs, lending money!
You've got to be kidding with this question?
We have so much copaired to any other country in the world.
What I worry about is our ability to have compassion and care for others when we are in a survival mode.
Sharing is something I grew up with as a manditory part of our society – today narsisisum seems to be the the norm
God help us 10 years from now if we don't turn this around!
I'm feeling a lot better. This time last year I was working for a big retailer, worrying about how many hours I'd work from week to week and dealing with cranky customers & managers. Now I'm working a job that gives a solid 40 hours every week (and overtime!), the management's a lot better, and I'm a lot less worried about my finances.
Getting better every day Jack. Getting Better every day.
GOD BLESS YOU ALL AT CNN
Manny Whitlock
Jack
At least I'm not singing
"Buddy can you spare a dime?"
YET!
I feel better about my finances as I found 2 jobs this month after 6 off...however, child support people wanna throw me in jail, no excuses allowed. Who does this help? Not my child or golddigging ex, nor me when I get out and have no work again! Somebody revamp child support policy please!
Definately worse! I've been able to work only 5 weeks so far this year in the electrical construction trade. Nearing retirement my 'Blue Collar's' faded an worn...pensions are suffering and without work I'm not contributing...Health insurance ran out months ago; Thankfully, even after 30 years, I have VA health benefits to rely on for health care needs.
you know i heard that if Oboma gave the American people the bail-out money instead of the big corporations each tax payer would have got $40,000 now thats how you stimulate the economy! But to answer the question no i dont feel better about my financial situation and probably wont for a few more years when things truly get back on track i just hope i can hang on that long
as a 73 year retiree, i dont worry about my finances because i have invested wisely through the years. im from a different generation that needs all the electronic gizmos, or shop at high end stores. i buy off the rack, buy at food discount stores. even sometimes at 2nd hand stores. that may be the scenario of the future for the present generation. being frugal is something that i have done for many years and we planned for only 2 kids and have tried to instill on our children but sometimes it falls on deaf ears. only when they experience the do without for lack of money , maybe they will come full circle.
Much better! I'm a senior on Social Security and Medicare and happy that we have a President that cares about seniors, the middle class, small business and the poor. Now that the "spend and borrow" GOP can't favor the rich and big business, we have a chance to return to an economy that benefits all of us. It will take time to get out of the ditch that Obama inherited, but at least we now have a chance that didn't exist before he took office. I didn't like being "trickled down on," Jack.
Retired. Everything going up, insurance costs, food, even ice, but not pensions.
i feel better, we will make i last mortgage payment,at the end of the month.
We don't feel better. Not for a few years now. 5 caucasian adults live in my household. I am a home-maker who can't find work. My husband was fired from a career job at Walmart. He quickly became self-employed in the insurance business. Last month's commissions ammounted to $800. My elderly mother lives with us, draws social security, has worked all her life and is still working part-time. My 22 year old daughter had to drop out of her junior year of college back east and move back home. We could no longer afford her tution, she can not find a job and she can not afford to repay her student loans. My 19 year old son is in a local community college. If as a family we are not making it, what does this say for the rest of the world?
Far worse. With all the financial crisis surrounding us, bailouts, wars, environmental disasters,world financial markets are unstable, social security (who knows that status!!) We have a lot to be uneasy about.
I'm just hopfull I maintain employment for the next 10 years! Maybe then retirement will be on the table (I will be 68-70 by then)
John
Feel better; things have improved but still have a long way to go. If both parties worked hard to support our President and his efforts, our economy would be a lot farther along in it's recovery. I am glad that we have such an intelligent and caring President. I believe he is doing everything in his power to restore our economy and improve life for all of us.
My generation feels “Better”… at least for right now. The sad part is we realize we’ve just been given more of the one thing we didn’t need, more debt. Our elders didn’t want to go through the withdrawal of debt addiction so the sold our generation a box of rocks.
Welcome to the "New Normal"...
We've called our elders and pleaded with them to save us a piece of the "pie" we helped pay for. With a mouth full they respond, "you'd better hurry it's almost gone." The only people not suffering "as much" in this depression are those receiving "entitlements" . Since they helped pay for it, some of them feel they're entitled to eat the whole pie while our generation will be left to starve. They hold T-Parties one day and cash their entitlement checks the next.
Pardon us if we hope you choke.
I definitely feel worse; having finally gotten a temporary job after 5 months of unemployment, I make less than I did as an intern when I was just starting out. I'm having to choose between paying bills on time and food; with that said I'm living off of PBJ and tuna. I too believe the job numbers are misleading as most employers are hiring on a contract or temporary basis and getting away with paying people less with no benefits on the horizon. The job numbers shouldn't count unless they are full-time with benefits. I'm working on a grant project and just pray that the money comes through so that I'll be able to stay on a little longer. If not, it's back in the tank with the sharks. Did I mention I feel worse about my financial situation?
Recently found work, so better, but Jack, your negativity has gotten so bad maybe you should apply at that other cable network!
I feel great and optimistic about our ability to recover personally and nationally because of President Obama. He is a brilliant leader and he cares about each and every working family. He is a good and decent man who does what is right and what is smart and good for our long-term future.
What a breath of fresh air to have an intelligent President who is actually doing his job to work for the PEOPLE. He has met every challenge with solid solutions.
Can you imagine what a worse mess this country would be in if a Republican were in charge? They would be opening an oil theme park in the Gulf and praising BP for what a great company they are. Republicans are corporatists and could care less what happens to the People of our country. No leadership. No solutions. NONE reelected in November. Republicans are enemies of the People and we would not have this oil crisis or financial mess were it not for their 'deregulate everything" stupidity.
Thank you President Obama. With you, we have hope for a renewed America and that BP will be held fully accountable for their criminal attack on our Gulf coast.
With more grocery and retail stores lowering their prices have made it possible for me to now buy items that a few months ago I had to walk away from. Now I'm getting more bang for the buck and enjoying it at the same time which makes me feel a little bit more empowered.
I can only pray that one day I will come out of this financial crisis that the country seems to be sharing; however if you really want to do something about our economy please someone get the grand total of our 9 year and running war. So please lets keep killing innocent women and children while the citizens here at home continue to suffer, and lets also thank the guilty party of keeping the list of war vets growing.
San Diego, Ca
I went through the recession of 1975, the recession of 1987, and now the recession of 2009. They all were rough. !975 was the worst, only because my children were so young. I hope our government helps the families with small children, so their parents can keep their self worth and be role models for their family.
Worse. . .much worse. I would never have imagined, five years ago, that we would be in this horrible financial situation today. In my huband's sibling group of four; three have been unemployed this past year and his sister (the only one that has the same job as the year before) husband lost his. We are all in between 45 – 55 in age. Many of our friends have lost their jobs including two of my friends husbands that lost their jobs this past week alone. My husband lost his and found one 3 1/2 hrs. away from me that is paying less than what he was making before. This would be good news that he found a job IF we were able to sell our home! However, with the housing market, like it is, that isn't going to happen in the near future. So, not only do we have a mortgage but are also paying for rent on an apartment with all those expenses too.
Jack, it's been a long time since I have had a good nights' rest, if that tells you something. Just when I was starting to work up enough nerve to glance over my investment portfolio, the DOW shaved over a thousand points. Now, like the past two years I can't bring myself to look. This time Greece holds the blame, before that it was the greedy banks here in the States that brought us to our knees. Why are we constantly punished for the mistakes of others? When will the average American worker be rewarded for all their efforts? Maybe, Wolf has some answers!
I feel about the same as I did about 2 months ago when I concluded we're in for a long period of austerity. With the housing overhang and diminished values; rates of unemployment both here and around the globe; demographic changes and its impact on publicly funded services including Medicare and Social Security; and, the staggering recdent run-up of U.S. debt, not to mention debt levels in other countries, we're basically screwed. Our kids and their kids have been sold out because our elected representives don't act responsibly and don't have the guts to right their past wrongs. No wonder there's an emerging state of discontent.
We feel WOrste. We are getting ready to move from DE. because we are getting priced out. We can't afford to live here anymore. We have to move out of state and hope we still can survive. IT'S WORST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Anyone who thinks their financial situation is better needs a real dose of reality. I am amazed daily of how much more things cost. It may take the financial analysts some time to calculate inflation, but anyone who shops for their groceries, buys any clothing, or pays any type of repair bill knows the dollar isn't worth as much as it was even a year ago. Inflation is alive and well in 2010.
Even though I am one of the fortunate ones who still has employment, with forced furlough days off, an increase in health insurance co-pays, and many fixed household bills increasing even slightly, I am, for the first time since I was a young professional unable to meet my expenses. With cut backs in education in our state, parents are having to pick up additional costs so our children have an education that will prepare them for college.
I have had no option but to take on a second job now. As a working, educated professional, at age 50....things aren't looking so good right now. Many of the working middle class are becoming the working poor.
Worse, much worse- Doctor says I can't drive, ( Bad eye floaters) so I applied for disability: Got turned down because I don't have enough work credits. Well, I've been out of work for 2 years because I CAN'T DRIVE. It"s a vicious catch 22, Jack.
What have the wealthiest Americans done for me lately? They haven't hired me. They haven't hired anyone. They haven't spent a penny on investments in our country. They haven't built any bridges or roads. They are actually a very self-centered lot. They can spend $80 million to get their Republican nomination for governor. I say we must tax the hell out of them and make our government actually start spending money on roads and bridges like we were promised during the last elections. Otherwise, what good is government? What good does it do to be an American citizen? I pay my taxes and for what? Two wars I didn't want to fight. Road and bridges that are becoming increasingly unsafe to travel. Illgal aliens taking American jobs, driving wages lower, and taking public monies for welfare and education. Time to vote the bums out, I guess.
Basically receiving only Social Security benefits, but still allowed to work (if I can get hired), and needing to work to live, I get to do 200 hours of school counseling this Fall as part of my Master's program in school guidance counseling...however, this 200 hours is unpaid, but it is a foot in the door at a school I would love to be part of.
This is the worse economy of my lifetime – my unemployment ran out, I haven't had work in over six months, my savings and retirement are gone, and today I'm applying for food stamps and general assistance.
I have a yard sale every weekend just to keep the lights on, and I don't have much more to sell. I'm on the fast tract to homelessness, and I don't think anyone in Washington DC has a clue that the public is going down the poverty drain. I used to try to shed 20 lbs – and now I worry I've lost too much weight.
I need a job today, and there just aren't any. Somebody better do something fast. If I'm spending any money, it will be for the medication I need, food, rent and paying my utilities.
I feel worse of coarse. Everyone who works in my industry feels worse as well! Why? Because we haven't been making as much money as we used to! I am only making 30% of what I used to 2 years ago. You are probably wondering what it is that I do... I am an exotic dancer. I am an independant contractor so I do not get any benefits. No health insurance... nothing... Our whole industry has been hit very hard. All the girls are making 70% less than what we used to!
I do this job so that I can pay for college. Things are so bad right now that I am being forced to take time off school so that I can work more, so that maybe I'll be able to afford my classes next semester. I've had to push back my graduation date. Everyone please support your local dancers!
in2009 i lost all my money in my ira due to the financial meltdown. i am 75 years old and had to sell my meager amount of furniture and go live with my son. that did not last as they have a hard time subsisting. i left new york and came to oregon to live with my daughter. she is a single parent with a son almost ready to attend college. isee the people affected by the oil spill in the gulf (god bless them) are recieving renumeration from bp. why didn't the government insist that the financial co.s did not have them pay the many people that lost everything then. they government instead bailed out the financial institutions that are now back on thir feet and i am destined to spend the rest of my life in poverty. thanks for listening. I DO NOT FEEL VERY GOOD ABOUT MY FINANCIAL FUTURE IN CASE ANY BODY CARES
Jack, I feel better to know that none of you in the media have been laid off while regular people that are lied to by the media are losing their jobs. Whenever I see people like you losing their job, then I will know that we are really in recession. I wish they will start laying the media off bgecause your job is worthless. All you do is spread lies and gossip.
I think it all depends on what people really need or what they think they need. I feel more secure today than I have in two years when my husbands business slowed almost to a halt. It is not what it used to be but it doesn't need to be . We have learned that we wanted more things than were actually needed. I think that this recession and the oil spill for that matter might actually be a blessing in disguise. We have been addicted to things and money for far to long and we have lost our souls because of it.
i, like jenna from roseville am democrat and i dont vote republican because they dont care about common folks like myself. they give tax breaks for the rich and are able to shelter their income in off shore accounts and not pay taxes. im hoping obama can get us back on the right track without the party of 'no' being in the way . meg whitman says she will fix calif.. we shall see how that plays out. lobbyists and special interests will spell her doom like they did for schwartzeneger
Better, life goes on regardless of if it is better or worse. You take the good and take the bad, take them all and then you have the facts of life.
We're living the American dream of the new millennium.
Two years ago I had to retire.
6 months later I filed bankruptcy.
Today our home is in foreclosure.
So hell Jack, things are looking up as we've pretty much hit the bottom.
I am much worse off than a month ago. Costs go up every day and social security only goes so far. This economy is breaking the backs of the very people that made her what she was yesterday. What she is today is the fault of the money changers, ie the stock market and the greedy bankers. Maybe they can spend all of their money in their next life because america is becoming too poor to survive much longer president obama is doing all he can, it is congress that i blame.
I have a small business. I'm bringing in more money than the past two years, but I'm working twice as hard to do it. But I also have less to spend at the end of the month even though I am grossing more. Yes things are worse.
Rich S.
Worse. I'm a baby boomer that has planned and saved for my retirement like the government asked me to. Now it looks as if all those years of sacrificing better cars, vacations, etc. were all for nothing. It seems our Let Them Eat Cake Congress is out to punish those who have tried to take care of themselves in order to bail out those that have enjoyed material things in life and spent every dollar they made with no thought for their own future. My savings sit idle and haven't made any kind of interest in ages and the Yes We Can gang wants to tax what I have left over to death! Don't raise taxes to pay off the country's debt...STOP SPENDING!! It's that simple stupid!
Jack,
The same things that plagued our finances in 2008 still are plaguing us, two years later. We bought a house for $380,000 in August 2007. Within a year its value plummeted by two-thirds - it's now worth about $229,000. We are semi-retired and so our income is primarily from interest on savings. Treasury bills fell so far (to a fraction of a percent) that as mine matured I pulled the money out and put it in bank cds. But cd interest that was 4 or 5% in 2006-7 has fallen to just over 1%. The value of my stock portfolio has rebounded somewhat. But I have significant funds in municipal bonds, and those are precarious investments now in California. We paid off our mortgage because we couldn't refinance it - those great under-5% rates weren't available to us because we weren't in trouble! We just can't make any money on our money, and that's our source of income. So we are living on less and have gone to a cash basis for everything. Credit card is for emergencies only, such as major car repair. And although we did petition to have our property taxes reduced commensurate with the decline in value of our home, other taxes are going up. Some California cities are enacting new taxes because the state government has raided their funds. And here's the capper - we're browbeaten by utilities to conserve resources and so we do. When everyone conserves, the utility's revenue declines, so they raise rates. What kind of reward is that for saving on water and energy?
Worse....though I have found temporary work by leaving my state, I was out of work for so long that I am not even close to paying my debts off because I'm barely keeping even with living expenses in the state I am working in now, I cannot seem to get ahead and yet I'm busting my butt.
Politicians don't do a damn thing to help except spend us into more debt with a country we have no business dealing with...China. And where is all that Chinese Reinvestment and Recovery Act money going? To large corporations and government sponsored jobs....
Here's a new idea...STOP SPENDING MONEY WE DON'T HAVE!!!!
There's so much to say on this subject, but for fear of redundancy, I'll just say that I agree on points made above mine: Silas Kain from Boston is one....he makes good sense. I say it's time to secede from the union, or change the government we have. The Constitution allows us that still...doesn't it?
WORSE, and I fear it will continue to get worse. cost of living continues to rise but low income workers and seniors on social security is not worthy of cola help this year or next, according to the president and congress, but they as usual get their increases of course. meanwhile the economy does not appear to be recovering to help the nation or it's working people. I pray that the voters are mad as hell at the voting booth this november.
Worse insofar as there are problems that government is not even considering. Every layoff since the last Millennium has caused further decrease in aggregate demand – we talk about the confidence of the consumer but now how to put idle productive talent to use for an income that will sustain demand in the American economy. We bail out banks, but we do not set up a comparable loan program for small businesses so that we generate jobs. We do not have a high employment rate among recent graduates which means that they do not have money to buy assets from baby boomers and enable baby boomers to retire comfortably, The list goes on, but the first step is to get the topics on the agenda.
I feel much worse about my pocket book. The "recovery" is nearly making me homeless, and each month I am out of any money before the month is out. And there appears to be no light at the end of the tunnel. My retirement years have almost become nightmare years
Off topic...
"Drill baby, drill"?
Come on! Where are the proponents now? Lack of oversight? Obvious. Lack of a plan? Clearly. Where are the republicans now, except to blame our president, when he clearly inherited a "sleeping with the enemy" policy?
They all must think they are stupid.... PS... I am sure we could fill a truckload of hard workers from MI for $18/hour plus housing...... no shortage here!
Our financial situation is the same as it was before the recession. We are retired living off retirement funds and my husband's part time job. No change.
WORSE! My husband and I both work hard for our money, unfortunately for us (with the exception of our salaries) everything has gone up – gas, groceries, utilities. We have turned off our phones and TV, never eat out and have cut out trips, gifts and anything other than food, just to save, but still are struggling. Have a son going to college in the Fall so I figure we are about to get even poorer, if thats even possible! We are barely hanging on....with no end in sight! Life pretty much sucks here in the good ole' USA!
I feel just about the same. I am surviving this, but I am waiting for it to hit the fan. The government will raise interest rates, taxes and fees. The price of gas is going up and so is everything else. I have been on a wage freeze for two years now and I guess I have to change my mind. I feel worse. Everything is going up in cost and I have not gotten a raise, so I have to leave a great job to get more money and I have to actually find someone that is hiring.
While Obama is trying to protect the high wages, bonuses, and guarenteed overtime of teachers, police, and firemen, he kills the old folk. He denies their social security cost of living increase because he claims there has been no cost of living increase. I need to know where he shops! He works to keep interest rates low, interest which the old depend upon to support themselves. Now, they must live on the principal of their savings for as long as it lasts. I sincerely hope that the black, hispanic and union votes will not be enough to keep this man in the white house!