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Pejuta, those are very good points you make and I'm sure most will agree with them. I too think that prisons are too overcrowded and many people are in there for crimes that seem too petty for the punishment (ie: marijuana, stealing cars, vandalism, etc.). Sure, these are crimes that deserve punishment but when someone gets a 5 year sentence for stealing a car then it's just gone too far.
I went to the courthouse once and there was a guy having people sign a petition to keep funding for 4H and other youth activities. Rapid City wanted to stop funding these youth programs so they could add another level to the county jail. EXCUSE ME?!?!
People on set incomes can't afford to let their kids join special activities so if they lose funding there is nothing else for these kids to do but get in trouble and get thrown in jail.... but hey, at least they'll be on the new floor!
Pejuta, as always~that's a very good post. The problem is there's starting to be an even wider divide between the rich and the poor and middle class is losing ground fast. The top execs are the decision makers so that's the reason they keep their jobs and the rest of us lose ours. Sad situation.
They have had programs in our state where the people in prison improved things. They're the ones who wired the schools when Janklow was in office. They also do smaller projects like rebuildings/painting bicycles to be distributed to less fortunate children. They often pick up garbage along medians~or at least they used to.
I was just reading in another state forum~Fl., possibly (?) that they plan on starting to charge prisoners a certain amount per day while incarcerated. The ONLY problem with that is they will become too discouraged and not make any efforts once they are released. Who wants to spend 5 years in prison and get out and have a massive debt to pay off? Might be a different side to my line of thinking though, but it's rough for the rest of us taxpayers to have to support them.
I hope all is well for you and it's always so nice when you check in on us and let us know you're ok.
DWU poll: Obama nets 62 percent approval rating in South Dakota |* The Daily Republic *| Mitchell, South Dakota (http://www.mitchellrepublic.com/articles/index.cfm?id=32831§ion=News - broken link)
I found this kind of interesting. It's very possibly linked to the fact that our economy isn't totally down the tubes like in many parts of the country.
There's also an article in the paper that says our unemployment jumped from 4.6% to 4.9%. I'm still confused as to why we were over 6% and now we're lower. Maybe there were a few jobs out there that were left and snatched up by the people who were laid off?
The original question of this post was "are you feeling the Recession?"
Short answer, yes. We are not buying anything we do not need, are setting up and using a budget and trying to pay off all the debt we can.
It was mentioned in here that people are saving and paying cash for cars. If you have a car and can save the equivalent of a car payment every month for 6 to 12 months you can get a decent used car for cash, and you can always get a better price with cash. Do this for a couple of years and you now have a real nice, possibly new car.
I own and drive a semi truck and have a couple of trailers, run a flatbed long haul over the road in the winter and pull a belly dump working on road projects in the summer. For years have brown bagged it as much as possible, freezing leftovers and bringing them with me. I have done more sitting around looking for good loads the last 6 mos than I have ever done before, so yes the recession is affecting me.
As for health care, I am a Veteran but because I wasn't hurt, didn't run in for every paper cut or disabled and my time of service was between wars I do not qualify for medical benefits. I am on the fence regarding the Nationalized Medical program tho will have to research it more, as it stands my only real info on this is hearsay. But past experience tells me that anytime the Government gets involved in something it has a tendency to overbuild and complicate it to the point it doesn't work.
BTW this is a favorite quote,
Quote:
The government solution to a problem is usually as bad as the problem. Milton Friedman
Seems to me there where some other points I was going to address but it looks like I have rambled long enough.
I sell Real Estate in Lead/Deadwood. Market isn't too bad, the phones are a little quieter though. A lot of agents (there were too many to begin with anyway) are starting to give-up or cut back hours which has opened the door for the die-hards that show up and put-in the hours, and maintain contacts. Whenever we head out the door we often ask everyone around, need anything while I'm out or in Sturgis etc? Helps on gas. My kids work some too so they have gotten used to the idea that if they may just have to figure out how to get "things for themselves".
In comparison to much of the U.S., looks like S.D. isn't doing so bad.
I know here in Kentucky our unemployment rate is now at 9.9%. The only parts of Kentucky that still have significant growth in the real estate market are Lexington, Northern Kentucky and suburban Louisville, but that is just rural outfill into metropolitan areas; the job markets in the cities are almost akin to cities in Michigan, Oregon or North Carolina, for example. (I should know.)
The recession is tough right now. But, its something that can be dealt with. We just need to reset the economy. NOT KEEP POURING MORE WATER INTO THE DAM. Its going to overflower and hurt people and create a lot of damage. I truly feel that its a mistake for our government to be bailing out these companies that have failed. There are a lot things happening right now. Its fortunate that i work for a company that is more financially sound then some. Wallyworld has an advantage, but their bubble is going to burst. You get what you pay for is the saying.. you buy cheap, You get cheap, With that being said. Wallyworld will prevail through the recession because of return buyers. Simple mind games in retail.. You sell something thats cheap.. throw away prices.. the people will come back to buy the same thing over and over. we are all part of that. But I find that even with myself. I am now paying more for more quality product. Product that is going to last me some time vs lasting a little while and then having to go and buy another when it breaks in 3 months (typical DVD Players.. the cheap ones) Instead, I buy the one that costs 100 more, and it lasts me 10 years instead of 3 months.. In the long run, I save by buying quality.
When the bubbles started bursting here in 2006. I figured wow.. The little guy is finally going to get to the top now. All the greed, and lies of those who took us to this will finally be brought down and our generation will pay for those things and my children will be able to succeed. Once the Economy resets itself.. You will see new jobs, new brands with meaning and old brands dying off. I wish us all luck as we try hard to meet ends meet. But there is light at the end of the tunnel. Remain positive, and things will come out positive. Good luck everyone.
Scott.
Kinda confusing in a way, but the national unemployment rate has now jumped to 8.9%.
The news stories keep saying that the economy is turning around and it has to some extent. The people who recently lost their jobs is less then it has been, but there is still job loss. I don't know how accurate it would be because some of the first people hit by the recession may not be counted in the stats anymore because their unemployment would be running out by now even with the extention.
I don't remember what the unemployment rate actually ended up hitting by the early 80s, but they did say it is now comparable to 1983. That was different then what they said a few months ago when they said it's the worst since the 1930s. HMMMM, wish I could understand the different news stories and how they figure things.
Kinda a tangent I have been doing some studying of come crimes of the 30s around South Dakota. There were some scary things happening then. In studying the goings on then and comparing them to the present age. Yes these are scary times. Some things of the 30s were pretty scary too.
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