As the economy tightens, more people are finding it difficult to pay their monthly bills. They have mortgages, insurance, auto loans, student loans, credit cards, and utility payments that have to be paid every month. Many people are struggling to meet their monthly financial obligations. Some people are turning to short term loans that charge exorbitant application and set up fees and then high interest rates to boot! Some people are filing for bankruptcy, or going to credit counseling.
It is a sad and scary time. I hope that when the election is over, the economy improves quickly.
Unfortunately I have been very busy the past couple of weeks so I have not been able to “keep up” with all of what’s going on with the big banks, and Wall Street as much as I’d like to be “informed” about the big mess. I know that it is all going to effect each and every one of us in some way, so I like to be informed. I guess I have some homework to do! I did notice in yesterday’s paper that the government is going to be buying shares of some of the big banks. I also heard on the television news that some people are concerned that this big bailout package is bringing our country closer to “socialism” which has been a big “hated” phrase that most people that I know think is a code word for “evil.”
So many people talk about how this country is a democracy, and yet I learned in school that it is NOT a “democracy” it is a “republic” which is different. It would be very interesting to see or hear some news stories about THAT!
From time to time I see an article that sings the praises of telecommuting. I think that telecommuting is a great thing because it saves the employees a lot of time and money when they don’t have to drive to work. The only problem I’ve run into is that some companies only allow telecommuting to a select few management employees, and refuse to allow non-management employees that opportunity. I know quite a few people who feel that they could do their job just fine from home but their company won’t allow it. It seems that the company doesn’t trust the non-management employees to do their work if a manager isn’t standing right over their desks breathing down their necks.
Posted in:
Life,
News,
Opinion
I was hearing that many consumers in Texas are still without their electricity after Hurricane Ike wreaked its havoc on Texas. It has been two weeks! I would hate to think what life would be like in this area without electricity! I love the conveniences electricity brings to my life. I love being able to just flick on a switch, grab a soda from the refrigerator, watch a little television, and be able to shower or do laundry if need be. Without electricity, I would not be pleasant company for very long! I need white noise to sleep - and that takes electricity! If we have a power outage that lasts more than two hours around here, I go nuts! I can only say that going two weeks without electricity would truly be a nightmare for me! I feel bad for all those people who have had to deal with that situation.
Well Wall Street sure has been having its share of troubles lately! I heard someone explain that there are two emotions that drive Wall Street - greed and panic. We’ve been seeing a lot of that lately - in the extreme! I own stock in several companies, and I’ve been careful to NOT see how their stock is doing. In times like these I think it is best to NOT look. When I bought the stock, it was with the intention of holding onto it until I am old enough to retire. Hopefully by the time that comes around, the stock market will have settled down and I will have made a little bit of a profit. The best advice I’ve ever heard anyone give about the stock market (besides buy low and sell high) is to never invest money in the stock market that you can’t afford to lose.