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Old 01-17-2008, 10:53 AM
 
419 posts, read 2,015,791 times
Reputation: 386

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They say that consumer spending is over 80% of our economy. So if we are to escape a recession we all have to keep spending money on things we really do not need.

At my employer they have been laying off people like crazy ever since the economy turned in the fall of 2007. Many of the people laid off have not found a job yet and are going through their savings like crazy. I bet they wished they had not shopped so much and saved their money.

So are you spending or saving in 2008?
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Old 01-17-2008, 12:06 PM
 
Location: Looking East and hoping!
28,227 posts, read 21,793,137 times
Reputation: 2000000990
Thankfully neither of us are "impulse" buyers and shop around when we do decide to purchase something. Pay credit cards off monthly. Hubby says I save him $$ as everything I get is usually on sale.
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Old 01-17-2008, 12:07 PM
 
Location: Arizona
667 posts, read 2,296,649 times
Reputation: 535
I am such a penny-pincher.
I will go through the weekly ads, write down what specials interest me, make my grocery list, then hit the 4 nearest grocery stores according to sale just to save the money. And they are all within 5 min. of my house, so I'm not spending any more on gas to get to 3 or 4 different stores.

My hubby & I live paycheck to paycheck, so we really HAVE to keep a tight budget & watch the spending. And we don't save money very fast anyways, bc our checks are already spent before we get them!

I'll be saving alot more this year. Sending cards instead of mailing presents (there's $150 a year, excluding Christmas), eating out only once a month, I've got my garden going to save on produce, now all I need is a cow for milk (I hate spending $5 a gallon) & chickens for eggs! Too bad I rent a duplex with no option for chickens...
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Old 01-17-2008, 02:20 PM
 
Location: North Adams, MA
746 posts, read 3,492,861 times
Reputation: 815
Buying more "stuff" is not going to save the US economy. What a ridiculous load of manure they try to sell us. Paying our bills, and keeping a balanced budget, both individually and as a nation is more likely to help. What is needed is more investment in America, not in retailing Chinese products, and outsourcing American jobs.

The current problem is due to our lopsided balance of trade, and the declining value of the dollar as compared to other currencies.

That makes the cost of oil, and everything else, just continue to rise.
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Old 01-21-2008, 12:18 PM
 
Location: State of Being
35,879 posts, read 77,192,049 times
Reputation: 22751
Quote:
Originally Posted by litlux View Post
Buying more "stuff" is not going to save the US economy. What a ridiculous load of manure they try to sell us. Paying our bills, and keeping a balanced budget, both individually and as a nation is more likely to help. What is needed is more investment in America, not in retailing Chinese products, and outsourcing American jobs.

The current problem is due to our lopsided balance of trade, and the declining value of the dollar as compared to other currencies.

That makes the cost of oil, and everything else, just continue to rise.
Thank you for a very intelligent, well thought out response.

May I add - consumers should be working on paying down debt and not using credit cards.

If we quit buying Chinese goods, perhaps places like WalMart will quit importing them. As long as we are willing to settle for cheap goods made in China, this trade deficit is not going to go away. (Maybe it is too late to change it).
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Old 01-22-2008, 10:56 AM
 
Location: Silver Springs, FL
23,410 posts, read 36,874,167 times
Reputation: 15560
have y'all heard about the $800 that the prez wants to give everyone to buck up the economy? Whats that gonna do? I was watching about that on CNN this morning.... how short-sighted. So many other things could be done.
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Old 01-22-2008, 11:45 AM
 
Location: Oz
2,238 posts, read 9,737,540 times
Reputation: 1398
If I don't need it, I don't buy it unless I can pay cash. I don't remember the last time I actually used one of my two credit cards. As a result, I don't have any debt and have no fear of the real estate market crash, unemployment, stock market crash, etc.
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Old 01-22-2008, 12:00 PM
 
Location: Silver Springs, FL
23,410 posts, read 36,874,167 times
Reputation: 15560
Quote:
Originally Posted by RoaminRed View Post
If I don't need it, I don't buy it unless I can pay cash. I don't remember the last time I actually used one of my two credit cards. As a result, I don't have any debt and have no fear of the real estate market crash, unemployment, stock market crash, etc.
Amen to that! we own our home and property outright, same with our vehicles. We have 2 credit cards we keep for emergencies, we charge about $20 a month on them, and then pay them off every month.
I realize not everyone is as fortunate as we are, we worked like dogs for years to be able to do this. I worry about those souls that this is going to affect.
One of my best friends husband committed suicide yesterday because of the mortgage mess, he was a broker, and the biz was going to go belly-up. He did straight "A" paper loans, no sub-primes or exotics, I fear we are going to see more things like this. I am VERY sad for my friend, she will lose everything she has worked so hard for.

Last edited by kshe95girl; 01-22-2008 at 12:01 PM.. Reason: spell
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Old 01-22-2008, 12:35 PM
 
Location: gold coast fl
96 posts, read 275,109 times
Reputation: 87
Default economy

Hey,
pay off all debts and quit supporting the banks (the rich) with interest pd
on the loans and mort. pay offf the cars.... take the time to figure out how
much you pay in interest and it should make you sick...
read labels and only buy UNITED STATES products....NOTHING from
China, NOTHING from Mexico....NOTHING from other countries....the trade def.
should tell you how out of balance things are.....buy U.S.A. products only...
I do not know how true it is but I read that HERSHEY has moved to
Mexico ,,,leaving Pa. U.S.A. I no longer buy there products as I would
rather support AMERICANS than any of the above....

YOU CAN NOT BUY CHEAP FORIGIEN PRODUCTS IF YOU HAVE NO JOB.

DO NOT BUY U.S.A. PRODUCTS THAN YOU HAVE NO JOB.....SIMPLY..THINK..

WAKE UP AMERICA

If i worked in a auto factory i would buy that car that goes by me all
day that is being built here in the U.S.A. just to keep my job and my
future pension in force.....why on earth would i buy a car made anywhere
else????? it stops to reason that if i don't buy the car that i help make
pretty soon i won't be making that car...

WAKE UP AMERICA

LOVE THE U.S.A.
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Old 01-22-2008, 12:38 PM
 
Location: southern california
61,289 posts, read 87,176,206 times
Reputation: 55550
a depression in the US would bring china and the mideast to their knees? and stop illegal immigration?
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