The Economy?

[r5TPsooner]

Vote

[JohnnyMack]

We don't talk about it.

It's more important to discuss Obama's preacher. That's what matters.

[tommieharris91]

Congress would rather investigate our sports leagues.

[olevetonahill]

My Income Is set , My expenses are well within the Income . I just dont drive as Much .
I dont see how a Young family is making it with these prices .
I went to the store the other day to pick up a few things , Spent 153 .00 bucks .

[StoopTroup]

As bad as GW's answers to the Press Corp were this morning....

I'm worried.

He's not leading.

[Turd_Ferguson]

Can I turn the Vcash into real cash?

[r5TPsooner]

My Income Is set , My expenses are well within the Income . I just dont drive as Much .
I dont see how a Young family is making it with these prices .
I went to the store the other day to pick up a few things , Spent 153 .00 bucks .

I was talking about this with my wife last nite. If we were making the same amount that we made two years ago, we'd either have to eat a lot of beans, rice, and pork bologna, or max our credit cards out just to survive and live w/o the luxury of buying ourselves something whenever we wanted to.

Gas and food don't bother me so much as job security, which we all know that there is no longer any in this country which is a shame.

[olevetonahill]

I was talking about this with my wife last nite. If we were making the same amount that we made two years ago, we'd either have to eat a lot of beans, rice, and pork bologna, or max our credit cards out just to survive and live w/o the luxury of buying ourselves something whenever we wanted to.

Gas and food don't bother me so much as job security, which we all know that there is no longer any in this country which is a shame.

Its Times like these that you need to Tear them Cards UP .
I like beans an Rice :D

[r5TPsooner]

Its Times like these that you need to Tear them Cards UP .
I like beans an Rice :D


I do too just not every day.:D

[Frozen Sooner]

I wouldn't say it's starting to worry me.

Cue the standard "Are you worse off than you were eight years ago" loaded question, which asks you to swallow your pride and admit that your earning power may have gone down over the last eight years-and never mind that with the demographics of this board that many people had entry-level or no jobs eight years ago due to their age.

[r5TPsooner]

My Income Is set , My expenses are well within the Income . I just dont drive as Much .
I dont see how a Young family is making it with these prices .
I went to the store the other day to pick up a few things , Spent 153 .00 bucks .


As a matter of fact I'm making red beans and rice as I type. I want to add crawfish but the wife would kill me so we'll only add smoked sausage and some chorizo. Throw in some corn bread and you have a meal that I was raised on without the meat.

Then a butt load of Tobasco!:D

[Jerk]

The thing that bothers me is the dollar. Its value has been going down the toilet over the past several years. That's a big reason gas prices are so high.

I wish I could demand payment in silver dollars.

[royalfan5]

My little sector of the economy is clacking along nicely, and my personal financial position is solid. Of course, my profession thrives in highly volatile times like these so, I'm not too worried on a personal level for the time being. Things will sort themselves out eventually.

[tommieharris91]

Well let's just see what the Fed says tomorrow.

[Cam]

Gas and food don't bother me so much as job security, which we all know that there is no longer any in this country which is a shame.

No kidding. Waiting for HR to tap me on the shoulder for over a year has taken its toll.

[Frozen Sooner]

Just wait until oil hits $200bbl and gas prices stabilize at $10/gallon. Don't laugh-the president of OPEC says that this is a real possibility due to the weakness of the dollar and political instability in major oil-producing states.

Personally, if gas gets to $10/gallon, I'm just going to mothball the car and walk and bus everywhere during the summer and fall.

[GottaHavePride]

If it hits $10 a gallon I'll be riding a bike a LOT.

[SoonerKnight]

There goes America's weight problem! :D

[olevetonahill]

My little sector of the economy is clacking along nicely, and my personal financial position is solid. Of course, my profession thrives in highly volatile times like these so, I'm not too worried on a personal level for the time being. Things will sort themselves out eventually.

Didnt you Just get your 1st REAL job ?

[KC//CRIMSON]

Alfred E. Neuman is the best president ever.

[royalfan5]

Didnt you Just get your 1st REAL job ?

Second real job, and eating tends to be the last thing people will give up, so I got that going for me. Plus the fact that the Chinese love to spend their American dollars on American commodities.

[olevetonahill]

What I mean tho Is like you the Low man on the Totem pole.
Whats gonna bring this country back around Is Healthy Savings By the average Citisen. Being conservitive with Debt. And Kicking the **** out of OPEC.
Just sayin

[royalfan5]

What I mean tho Is like you the Low man on the Totem pole.
Whats gonna bring this country back around Is Healthy Savings By the average Citisen. Being conservitive with Debt. And Kicking the **** out of OPEC.
Just sayinBut without me, they would have to do the ****work themselves. That's good for my security.

[tommieharris91]

Isn't the yuan pegged to the dollar?

[Blue]

Like Vet, I'm Worried about the poorest first. I do see oil going to 200 and 8 bucks a gallon atleast. Food shortages will only get worse if that happens. It might not affect me right away but would affect everyone eventually.

What gets me is that the market doesn't lie. If that's the case, why are investments in defense and security more than alternate energy? Bc they know we're ****ed?

I need to stop reading doomsday websites...:D

[tommieharris91]

What gets me is that the market doesn't lie. If that's the case, why are investments in defense and security more than alternate energy? Bc they know we're ****ed?


Because that's where your tax dollars are. Well, those and Bear Stearns.

[Vaevictis]

We really need to get the earliest primaries the hell out of Iowa and into a state with a more well-rounded economy.

[MR2-Sooner86]

Just wait until oil hits $200bbl and gas prices stabilize at $10/gallon. Don't laugh-the president of OPEC says that this is a real possibility due to the weakness of the dollar and political instability in major oil-producing states.

Sorry, don't buy it.

1. If gas was $10 a gallon you would see this country stop dead in its tracks.

2. Do you really think OPEC would let their biggest customer die? No. They want our money, we want their oil. They learned their lesson from the 70's and won't let us suffer. Sure they can jack up the price and let us squirm like we are now but they won't hurt us to put things in danger. All they have to do is sit on the stuff and give us just enough to get by and watch the money roll in.

3. We have our own reserves. The U.S. uses about 20 million barrels of oil a day. It has been stated we have reserves of over a trillion barrels of oil in the Rocky Mountains and in the Gulf of Mexico. Now you may say we only have a few billion to last us a couple of years. Yes that's what we have right now. We know where the big stuff is, but it could take a whole lot of time and money to get to it to meet our demand.

4. Even if we didn't have reserves, OPEC said themselves they can meet the world's demand until 2030 and after that they're unsure. So what's with the price? Well, one thing is for sure, OPEC does NOT hate money.


When you get down to it folks, it's all about the money. Isn't OPEC changing their money reserves from the dollar to euros? Hmmmm, something to think about.

[texas bandman]

My wife and I are both school teachers. We are at the top of the salary schedule meaning that our salary doesn't increase. So we've been making the same salary for 2 years. Luckily we have emergency savings that we've been able to tap to keep up with rising prices, but at the current rate we'll tap it out in another 12-15 months. After that, I don't know what we'll do. Inflation is kicking our butts right now.

[tommieharris91]

Sorry, don't buy it.

1. If gas was $10 a gallon you would see this country stop dead in its tracks.

2. Do you really think OPEC would let their biggest customer die? No. They want our money, we want their oil. They learned their lesson from the 70's and won't let us suffer. Sure they can jack up the price and let us squirm like we are now but they won't hurt us to put things in danger. All they have to do is sit on the stuff and give us just enough to get by and watch the money roll in.

Not really. They can say they will stop providing oil to us if they don't like something we do, and that will bring this country to a halt. That and oil supply is falling quickly.


3. We have our own reserves. The U.S. uses about 20 million barrels of oil a day. It has been stated we have reserves of over a trillion barrels of oil in the Rocky Mountains and in the Gulf of Mexico. Now you may say we only have a few billion to last us a couple of years. Yes that's what we have right now. We know where the big stuff is, but it could take a whole lot of time and money to get to it to meet our demand.

T. Boone Pickens says we use 85M bpd (http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?video=726059896&play=1) (hate him all you want, he makes the oil and gasoline market move). The US uses about 7 billion barrels/year. The oil fields we keep finding consistently dissapoint. We severly overestimate how much oil is in those fields. The only way oil prices will fall right now is to allow drilling in ANWR.

BTW, the numbers have actually showed that, during the past 2 quarters, oil demand has fallen. Gasoline contracts fell $.09 today on this news.


4. Even if we didn't have reserves, OPEC said themselves they can meet the world's demand until 2030 and after that they're unsure. So what's with the price? Well, one thing is for sure, OPEC does NOT hate money.


When you get down to it folks, it's all about the money. Isn't OPEC changing their money reserves from the dollar to euros? Hmmmm, something to think about.

2030 is actually pretty close, and it would be pretty ugly for the US if OPEC started trading oil contracts in euro (Iran and Venezuela are already doing this). It would be a lot worse for the US if the price of oil was based on how strong or weak the dollar is. It is a huge convenience for the US consumer having the oil contracts traded in dollars.

[Blue]

A war, an attack, an earthquake, hell a mis-timed fart would send the price skyrocketing.

They look for any excuse nowadays. "Oh, you need a new Johnson Rod for that pipeline!" "Oh, well we gotta have a Johnson Rod!"

[tommieharris91]

My wife and I are both school teachers. We are at the top of the salary schedule meaning that our salary doesn't increase. So we've been making the same salary for 2 years. Luckily we have emergency savings that we've been able to tap to keep up with rising prices, but at the current rate we'll tap it out in another 12-15 months. After that, I don't know what we'll do. Inflation is kicking our butts right now.

Inflation was gonna get to you sometime if you haven't got a raise in years. Ask for a raise.

[Blue]

What about Hyper-inflation?

[tommieharris91]

What about Hyper-inflation?

We ain't quite there yet. Thank God price levels don't triple in a year's span here.

[olevetonahill]

Inflation was gonna get to you sometime if you haven't got a raise in years. Ask for a raise.

Pay tention
They Cant ask cause they at the top .

Band Yall need to Trim some and do it Fast
Just sayin Bro .
I wish yall the best .

[Blue]

We ain't quite there yet. Thank God price levels don't triple in a year's span here.

If gas goes to 8, won't that be the case?

[tommieharris91]

So what if they're at the top! Their income level has lost about 10% in real terms over the past 2 years. People should be asking for wage raises every year if the price level keeps rising (and it is supposed to, but not as rapidly as it is right now).

[Frozen Sooner]

http://www.sxc.hu/pic/m/b/bu/bubbels/88377_gasoline_pump.jpg

This one goes to 11.

:mad:

[Frozen Sooner]

So what if they're at the top! Their income level has lost about 10% in real terms over the past 2 years. People should be asking for wage raises every year if the price level keeps rising (and it is supposed to, but not as rapidly as it is right now).

Being at the top of your pay grade means that they can't give you a raise. Asking doesn't really help. Particularly for employees under a CBA.

[olevetonahill]

Being at the top of your pay grade means that they can't give you a raise. Asking doesn't really help. Particularly for employees under a CBA.

In other words Tommie . They can ask In one hand and **** in the other .

[Blue]

Considering that logic...if gas is now 4 a gal and goods and services depend on that, shouldn't teachers or whatever make double what they made 3 years ago?

Forgive me, I'm a lowly Auburn business grad and we never got past milkin cows in school. Seriously though, I hated econ and Finance.

[Frozen Sooner]

Considering that logic...if gas is now 4 a gal and goods and services depend on that, shouldn't teachers or whatever make double what they made 3 years ago?

Forgive me, I'm a lowly Auburn business grad and we never got past milkin cows in school. Seriously though, I hated econ and Finance.

Not quite. The CPI doesn't track one to one (or even nearly so) to the price of gasoline.

[olevetonahill]

Considering that logic...if gas is now 4 a gal and goods and services depend on that, shouldn't teachers or whatever make double what they made 3 years ago?

Forgive me, I'm a lowly Auburn business grad and we never got past milkin cows in school. Seriously though, I hated econ and Finance.

Bro I aint an Econimist , Its just that the prices are risin so damn fast, Incomes aint gonna keep up.
3 Months ago I went to the Grocery store spent 150 bucks and Got enough food to last this Old dude a long time , I went the Other day to pick up a few things I thot I needed and spent another 150.
Why Im sayin Trim the fat from yer spending habits and Get rid Of those Debil C Cards
Cut em up or Your Gonna Be so far in the Hole you aint Gonnabe able to die

[tommieharris91]

If gas goes to 8, won't that be the case?

Sadly, this kind of inflation isn't the same as the hyperinflation experienced in Latin American countries recently. What happened there was their central bank printed extra money to finance debts because of civil wars tearing apart their infrastructure and/or the country could not get long-term loans from it's private banks or borrow in its own currency abroad. As much as the national debt scares me, the US will never print money to finance debts unless the North decided to secede. Oil prices are spiraling out of control because the world is so attached to it that breathing on a pipeline right now can move the price of oil up $5 and people will still buy it at that price.

[tommieharris91]

Being at the top of your pay grade means that they can't give you a raise. Asking doesn't really help. Particularly for employees under a CBA.

This I did not know.

[tommieharris91]

Bro I aint an Econimist , Its just that the prices are risin so damn fast, Incomes aint gonna keep up.
3 Months ago I went to the Grocery store spent 150 bucks and Got enough food to last this Old dude a long time , I went the Other day to pick up a few things I thot I needed and spent another 150.
Why Im sayin Trim the fat from yer spending habits and Get rid Of those Debil C Cards
Cut em up or Your Gonna Be so far in the Hole you aint Gonnabe able to die

OleVet, if everyone listened to this advice, the economy might actually be good.

Srsly, I hate using my credit card.

[royalfan5]

The Argentines I went to school with would laugh their asses off at this thread.

[Blue]

I think oil is just going to where they want it to be. I wonder about Peak oil. You wouldn't hear about it until it was here. Everybody would freak out.

[Blue]

And we're trying not to end up like your Argentine buddies.

[tommieharris91]

Considering that logic...if gas is now 4 a gal and goods and services depend on that, shouldn't teachers or whatever make double what they made 3 years ago?


My Econ prof this semester has a graph that shows that the productivity of the average worker in the US has increased over fivefold (or some astounding number) in the past 30 years, but the average real wages have not increased half of what production has. The right people to ask about this issue are John McCain, Barack Obama, and Hillary Clinton.

[tommieharris91]

The Argentines I went to school with would laugh their asses off at this thread.

So where did I go wrong? :confused: I'm kinda in the middle of dead week studyin for this stuff...

[Frozen Sooner]

My Econ prof this semester has a graph that shows that the productivity of the average worker in the US has increased over fivefold (or some astounding number) in the past 30 years, but the average real wages have not increased half of what production has. The right people to ask about this issue are John McCain, Barack Obama, and Hillary Clinton.

Barack Obama has discussed this in his second book IIRC. Unfortunately, all we hear about in debates is flag pins, bowling scores, and who's awake at 3am.

[olevetonahill]

The Argentines I went to school with would laugh their asses off at this thread.

Then I LMFAO at them Argentinies . Those ****ers !

[royalfan5]

So where did I go wrong? :confused: I'm kinda in the middle of dead week studyin for this stuff...

Are you not familiar with Argentina's propensity for bouts of actual hyper-inflation, and managing to melt their economy down on a frequent basis. Makes our economy look like a walk in the park.

[olevetonahill]

Barack Obama has discussed this in his second book IIRC. Unfortunately, all we hear about in debates is flag pins, bowling scores, and who's awake at 3am.

Ok Hes a 1st term Sinator,Why he so smart on the country already ?:pop:

[olevetonahill]

Are you not familiar with Argentina's propensity for bouts of actual hyper-inflation, and managing to melt their economy down on a frequent basis. Makes our economy look like a walk in the park.

Dayum , I missed that Class :O

[Frozen Sooner]

Ok Hes a 1st term Sinator,Why he so smart on the country already ?:pop:

'Cause he's a smart dude?

How is a guy who's been in the Senate for 20 years trying to cast himself as an outsider?

[tommieharris91]

Are you not familiar with Argentina's propensity for bouts of actual hyper-inflation, and managing to melt their economy down on a frequent basis. Makes our economy look like a walk in the park.

I know that hyperinflation has at times put their government in "original sin." I also know that their country has experienced something like 5000% inflation before. I've heard about their problems...

[olevetonahill]

'Cause he's a smart dude?

How is a guy who's been in the Senate for 20 years trying to cast himself as an outsider?

:confused:

[GottaHavePride]

I think oil is just going to where they want it to be. I wonder about Peak oil. You wouldn't hear about it until it was here. Everybody would freak out.

http://www.marriedtothesea.com/100706/peak-oil.gif

[Frozen Sooner]

:confused:

McCain likes to cast himself as a maverick and an outsider.

He's been in the Senate for an awfully long time.

[Blue]

OK GHP. One day it will be a reality and hopefully we'll have a better idea by then.

I'm not worried about it. I **** 87 Octane.

[Frozen Sooner]

OK GHP. One day it will be a reality and hopefully we'll have a better idea by then.

I'm not worried about it. I **** 87 Octane.

Too bad you're running a high compression engine.

Eh. That's the best I could do on short notice.

[Blue]

I love the phrase, "I **** Excellence." That was close, so I took it.

[olevetonahill]

Too bad you're running a high compression engine.

Eh. That's the best I could do on short notice.

JM is a Maverick and an O/Sider
I have a 5.3 In My Truck and Ive never Put anything In it cept 87
Hell If I could Buy 79 octane Id try it .:D

[Frozen Sooner]

Heh. I think mine's 10.6.

Stupid Germans.

[Vaevictis]

*snort*

You don't get to be chair on any committee in Congress by being an outsider.

[Sooner_Havok]

What we need is a revolution, a Ron Paul Revolution!:rolleyes:

[tommieharris91]

http://www.cnbc.com/id/24389398

The Federal Funds rate and the discount rate were both cut .25% to 2.0%.

[mdklatt]

http://www.cnbc.com/id/24389398

The Federal Funds rate and the discount rate were both cut .25% to 2.0%.

:mad: :mad: :mad:

Before long you're going to actually have to pay the bank for the privilege of them using your savings.

[OUDoc]

Just wait until oil hits $200bbl and gas prices stabilize at $10/gallon. Don't laugh-the president of OPEC says that this is a real possibility due to the weakness of the dollar and political instability in major oil-producing states.

Personally, if gas gets to $10/gallon, I'm just going to mothball the car and walk and bus everywhere during the summer and fall.

I'd just have to live at my office all week and commute home on the weekends.

[TexasSooner01]

What concerns me is the price of oil is going to get so high that it will crash again. I remember what happened in the 80's...it was a very tough time 'specially for those of us whose main income was the oil industry. My family came close to losing everything... my daddy was laid off and couldnt get a job for some time b/c all of his experience was in the oil industry and he was "overqualified" for everything else. I just hope it dont get that bad again.

[Frozen Sooner]

:mad: :mad: :mad:

Before long you're going to actually have to pay the bank for the privilege of them using your savings.

*snort*

Savings? Who are you, Bruce?

[MR2-Sooner86]

Some more questions to ask.

The Euro is killing the dollar, right?

In Europe all of their public transportation like buses and trains are run by electricity or hydrogen fuel cells. Why don't we try that?

In Sweden all of their gas is at least 25% ethanol. Why don't we try that?

There hasn't been an oil refinery built in the U.S. in over 30 years. Why not?

Why is the U.S. sending the materials to build them to China, who we all know is our rival when it comes to wanting oil?

Is the U.S. Government really run by big oil?

Questions, questions, questions.

[mdklatt]

*snort*

Savings? Who are you, Bruce?

I live within my means. Being a cheap bastard has its advantages.

[r5TPsooner]

Sorry, don't buy it.

1. If gas was $10 a gallon you would see this country stop dead in its tracks.

2. Do you really think OPEC would let their biggest customer die? No. They want our money, we want their oil. They learned their lesson from the 70's and won't let us suffer. Sure they can jack up the price and let us squirm like we are now but they won't hurt us to put things in danger. All they have to do is sit on the stuff and give us just enough to get by and watch the money roll in.

3. We have our own reserves. The U.S. uses about 20 million barrels of oil a day. It has been stated we have reserves of over a trillion barrels of oil in the Rocky Mountains and in the Gulf of Mexico. Now you may say we only have a few billion to last us a couple of years. Yes that's what we have right now. We know where the big stuff is, but it could take a whole lot of time and money to get to it to meet our demand.

4. Even if we didn't have reserves, OPEC said themselves they can meet the world's demand until 2030 and after that they're unsure. So what's with the price? Well, one thing is for sure, OPEC does NOT hate money.


When you get down to it folks, it's all about the money. Isn't OPEC changing their money reserves from the dollar to euros? Hmmmm, something to think about.


Obviously you haven't heard that the US has gone green. We wouldn't want to hurt Bambi or Little Bear by drilling in Colorado or Alaska. Besides that, the US hasn't built a new oil refinery in like forever.

The US is ucked if we don't realize that it doesn't matter how "green" we are if none of us are around to see it.

We should have started drilling in Alaska during the 1st Bush administration. I'd rather the planet be a little less green than see families starving to death.

[mdklatt]

We should have started drilling in Alaska during the 1st Bush administration.

And then what once that runs out?

[r5TPsooner]

And then what once that runs out?

Move on to Colorado, New Mexico, then pull out all of our troops in Irag, and overthrow Mexico in less than 24 hours. It's not like the Messicans like Mexico anyway so we'll just annex it for oil.:texan: :D

[texas bandman]

Inflation was gonna get to you sometime if you haven't got a raise in years. Ask for a raise.

I can ask for a raise, but they'd laugh in my face since to hire my wife and I the school doubled their expense on band directors, since we're both at the top of the salary schedule, and we replaced young 'uns. They are happy with our job performance, but to give us raise would bump us above our principal's pay since he's a young buck. Just sayin' a pay raise isn't going to happen and I doubt the Texas leg will give all teachers a raise, the cheap bastages.

I remember the recession of '73-'74 well, I just hope that it doesn't get that bad. My wife is frugal (she makes me drive a 1988 Ford Ranger pickup that we've owned since 1992). So we don't have a lot to cut. We could stop saving for retirement, but I really don't want to have to be getting on a yellow dog travelling hours to football games when I'm 70 years old. Not that I don't enjoy football, but I'd rather attend them when I'm not in charge of 90 screaming kids. :D

[Chuck Bao]

For what it's worth, Asia is still doing pretty well. I've just raised my estimate for first quarter GDP growth for Thailand to 6.18% and full-year 2008 estimate to 6.00%.

So, US economic growth in first quarter was 0.6%, better than expected given all of the troubles with housing and financial crisis. And, the Fed just cut interest rates by a quarter percentage point.

On CNBC, some of the guest commentators were saying that a recovery won't come until 2009 and some said not until 2010. Personally, I was hoping for a quick V-shaped recovery.

How long do you think this thing will last?

[tommieharris91]

I'm more bullish about our economy. I think the Fed will start raising interest rates in October. A lot of the major indicators had a decent April. The bonds market has priced in rate increases very soon. The dollar has started to strengthen a little bit in the past 2 weeks.

[r5TPsooner]

I'm more bullish about our economy. I think the Fed will start raising interest rates in October. A lot of the major indicators had a decent April. The bonds market has priced in rate increases very soon. The dollar has started to strengthen a little bit in the past 2 weeks.


When the fed quits bailing the banks and mortgage companies out by killing the dollar, then we might see a "stabilization" on oil prices which means gas at the pump.

Same way with wheat and corn.