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Originally Posted by dude1394
Just my opinion.
1. Iraq war puts a downer on everything.
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Good point. I think when I hear the dollar amount of what is regularly being spent in Iraq I get a bit squeemish. How long can we keep doing this? Even if the answer is "for a long time, don't worry", the reality is that a billion dollars a month (or whatever it is) is difficult to get your mind around. The perception is that this one expense is an economic train wreck waiting to happen if we don't offset at least some of those expenses with cuts in spending.
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2. The media does NOT want republicans to win office. They just don't so unlike bubba they don't tout it.
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I am assuming when you say media, you are referring to ABC, NBC, and CBS nightly news. There are data to support the claim that these media outlets are talking more negatively about the economy than it deserves. But, don't people also listen to Fox news and a variety of mostly conservative talk shows on the radio? In fact, aren't these outlets very, very popular? I believe there are pockets of bias, but it goes both ways.
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3. The wages have not been going up as quickly as some would like. A lot of that is why inflation has stayed lower.
4. Outsources makes everyone nervous in general I think. Seeing the economy change so much just makes folks nervous.
5. We are moving from a company focused (pension, benefits, etc.) to an independent focused (same). This also makes folks feel nervous.
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Good points that do help me see why there might be increased anxiety levels about the economy.
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6. Folks do understand fundamentally that our politicians are broken when it comes to reigning in spending. They really WANT their own congressperson to bring home the bacon but they know that it needs to be reigned in. I'm not sure americans have the stomach for reduced spending however,..some very brave politicians are going to have to force it.
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Somehow, someway we do need to face reduced spending. If the war on terrorism is going to continue to be a big budget item then something has gotta give somewhere else (and I do not mean we need to raise taxes). I think in the end this is what really has me concerned. If we are going to live with multi-theater wars for a long period of time then we have to get a grip on spending at home (actually regardless of the cost of these military operations, we need to get a grip on spending). Not a popular message or one that will help you get elected, but probably one based in reality. Interesting.