Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Just look at the outside evaluations of the stimulus. Perhaps the best-known economic research firms are IHS Global Insight, Macroeconomic Advisers and Moody’s Economy.com. They all estimate that the bill has added 1.6 million to 1.8 million jobs so far and that its ultimate impact will be roughly 2.5 million jobs. The Congressional Budget Office, an independent agency, considers these estimates to be conservative.
Yup. It seems to be working. The GDP has jumped over 12 points from 1st quarter of last year (when it was at -6.4%) to the 4th quarter of last year (when it hit +5.7%). That's a HUGE improvement for a single year.
Of course the REAL question is - can the economy continue to grow as the stimulus fades? I'm pretty confident it can, but we won't know for sure until it later this year.
When you talk to someone who is and has been working, you will likely get an opinion that the Stimulus has not done much. For them, that is pretty much true. I don't think those would be expecting another paycheck. But if you talk to those that are working as a result of Stimulus, you would get a different opinion. Then you have those that are still working that would otherwise, not, they wouldn't necessarily know why that is the case. For people to say that the Stimulus has not helped at great many people, is utterly ridiculous.
Last edited by florida.bob; 02-17-2010 at 10:34 AM..
As far as GDP, apparently there is some extra product stocking up in warehouses, but as for whether people are buying it, that's not the same story.
The economy is very weak and bleak. That's why Obama is cherry-picking numbers, and increasing numbers with the word "ABOUT" when he says "about 2 million".
The economy may a bit more stable than it was a year ago, but its still a very frail ecomomy. Partly the fruit of a Congress focusing nearly exclusively on a health care agenda.
When you talk to someone who is and has been working, you will likely get an opinion that the Stimulus has done much. For them, that is pretty much true. I don't think those would be expecting another paycheck. But if you talk to those that are working as a result of Stimulus, you would get a different opinion. Then you have those that are still working that would otherwise, not, they wouldn't necessarily know why that is the case. For people to say that the Stimulus has not helped at great many people, is utterly ridiculous.
Don't think I agree with you, but I will say that if you were to ask more than a few Obama supporters if it's working, they will immediately nod to the the affirmative not unlike a bobble-head doll.
As far as GDP, apparently there is some extra product stocking up in warehouses, but as for whether people are buying it, that's not the same story.
The economy is very weak and bleak. That's why Obama is cherry-picking numbers, and increasing numbers with the word "ABOUT" when he says "about 2 million".
The economy may a bit more stable than it was a year ago, but its still a very frail ecomomy. Partly the fruit of a Congress focusing nearly exclusively on a health care agenda.
No doubt that the economy is still weak.
What factors brought us here?
People still aren't spending money because the economy is weak.
As far as GDP, apparently there is some extra product stocking up in warehouses, but as for whether people are buying it, that's not the same story.
The economy is very weak and bleak. That's why Obama is cherry-picking numbers, and increasing numbers with the word "ABOUT" when he says "about 2 million".
The economy may a bit more stable than it was a year ago, but its still a very frail ecomomy. Partly the fruit of a Congress focusing nearly exclusively on a health care agenda.
Some companies are still cutting back while others are now hiring. What's important is whether there is a net gain or a net loss. We are right at the point where we can probably expect to see a net GAIN in jobs - if not in February, then likely in March.
Regarding people buying - well that IS starting to happen:
"WASHINGTON – The National Retail Federation (NRF) assessed retail sales figures released last week by the U.S. Commerce Department as modest yet encouraging. Those figures revealed that total retail sales (which include non-general merchandise categories) increased 0.5 percent seasonally adjusted over December and 3.2 percent unadjusted year-over-year."
January Retail Sales Continue Slow Road to Recovery (http://www.nacsonline.com/NACS/News/Daily/Pages/ND0216104.aspx - broken link)
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
