"It Might Be A Recession"

There's an old saying, it's a recession when your neighbor loses his house job, a depression when you lose yours.  Americans are losing houses, jobs, incomes and their middle class status in waves and have been for some time but Federal Reserve Chief Ben Bernanke grudgingly admitted yesterday "we might be in a recession."  Hold the presses folks we have breaking news!

The Bush people are taking great pains to avoid admitting the economy is in the tank.   Piled upon bad news from Iraq, increased numbers of those who are uninsured, record foreclosures and tight credit markets, they fear the weight of all these issues on the voting populace come November.

Here's a news flash:  the voters already know we're in a recession.  They're the ones who have seen the real wages decrease over seven years of failed trickle down policies, they're the ones losing their jobs and their homes.  They are the ones who are losing home equity due to a rash of foreclosed homes in their neighborhoods.

The arrogance of those in power these past seven years is staggering and one of the causes of our ennui.  Everything was deregulated and nothing enforced.  Markets ran wild and the rich got richer while the poor got poorer.  Millions of middle class people fell into poverty under George W. Bush because they were more focused on gay marriage than their own financial stability.  These people have awakened the hard way, asleep in cardboard boxes under bridges and more are on their way.

It's nice that Bernanke has realized "it might be a recession."

Comments

[Dave M.]

Not true. Most of the deregulation was under Clinton, who signed the 1994 banking deregulation bill and again in 1999 when Clinton repealed Glass-Steagal. The 1994 act almost eliminated all requirements for home ownership. Even the socialists admit these facts.

http://www.wsws.org/articles/1999/nov1999/bank-n01.shtml

In addition, George Soros, (no friend of George Bush) in his new book, released yesterday, book explains the causes of the current meltdown, a crisis he says has been in the making since 1980, and the trades he put in place this year to protect his wealth, much of it in his Quantum hedge fund.

So for you to put this blame on Bush is just another case of liberals engaging in illogical Bush bashing. And we have seen plenty of that lately.

[Peter Bonny, Jr.]

Oh please, you know that's not true. Ronald Reagan was/is still the king of deregulation. Under his concept of "New Federalism," he shifted federal programs to state level even when it endangered people's lives (for ex. health and safety codes). When Clinton did things like that to appeased the Right, it was because they took over the Senate, because of the 1994 Congressional sweep. I believe that your reaction is a sad case of head-under-sand-and full-of it-ism.

[son of truth]

Oh, please. Reagan does it and he's the king of all evil. Clinton does it and he's just doing it to appease the right.

[Peter Bonny, Jr.]

You a'int kidding about that old saying. In York County, businesses are closing up like hotcakes, so much so that there's this local show on public access that has a guy literally driving around the city with a camera showing all the businesses, including big businesses, leaving the area or shutting down altogether. Meanwhile, gas prices are $3.25 a gallon and truckers are striking, because they can no longer make a living driving on these prices. To the higher ups, it's a surprise. It seems that you have to have a whole car blow up before the driver sees there's a fire.

[Peter Bonny, Jr.]

Well, when Reagan did it, he made it his philosophy, his mission, his demonology. No one put a gun to his head to go "screw the poor" with his trickonomics.

[John Morgan]

When, in the last 7 years, did Bush regulate the banking, financial or mortgage industries? Show me. They were left to run amok. Anyone watching with any degree of participation saw the amount of fraud going on and the Fed actually actually encouraged these risky variable rate loans.

[John Morgan]

Son of Truth: Bill Clinton as, and is, thought of as a conservative Democrat. His method of triangulation turned off many liberal Democrats and is one cause of the firm support Barack Obama has among liberals. He did embrace some of the conservative GOP ideology and liberal Democrats haven't forgotten or forgiven him for these policies. The blowback is being felt by Hillary.

Don't think that just because Clinton did some of the same things that all Democrats agree and supported them. We didn't and we don't.

[Dave M.]

""When, in the last 7 years, did Bush regulate the banking, financial or mortgage industries? Show me. They were left to run amok. ""

There were no regulations to regulate! Clinton got rid of them.

""Anyone watching with any degree of participation saw the amount of fraud going on and the Fed actually actually encouraged these risky variable rate loans.""

And you blame this on Bush? The Fed is independent remember? Clinton kept re-nominating Greenspan, if you want to get specific. Come on, man! If you want to have a serious blog, you need to examine the facts, use logic and employ critical thinking skills. Otherwise you just look like a silly left-wing moonbat.

[Dave M.]

Besides, even if you do want to find a way to blame it on Bush, consider the alternative if things went the other way in the 2004 election...If Kerry had won, and came up with the same "ownership society" plan whereby minorities had easy access to buying houses. Probably the same situation would have developed as now, but you Kerry supporters would have been making excuses right and left, saying that it was a noble idea and the cause was just and we'll do better next time and this and that...etc.

Loss of 80,000 jobs last month, 200,000 so far for the year, but we're not in a recession...