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Posts Tagged ‘economy’

Could the economy get even worse?

2011 will be remembered as the year of disaster capitalism. Almost $6.3 trillion was wiped from the global markets. While the Dow went through major upheavals almost daily, the net gain/loss for the year was absolutely flat. After all the drama, 2012 is looked to as the telltale year of global health for decades to come.

The Eurozone woes which began in earnest at the end of November are as yet unresolved, despite reassurances of European leaders and wishful thinking on the part of American analysts. In truth, European and US banks are broke. There is no new money to be found, and the engine of the global economy is running on fumes of mounting debt. At some point the whole thing has got to crash and many analysts see it all breaking loose in 2012.

Sovereign debt was a term that came into the public conscience in 2011, and in 2012 we may see the peripheral Eurozone countries so overwhelmed by their indebtedness that they will be literally owned by the financial institutions which have helped them simply tread water. Ironically, when countries such as Greece, Italy, Ireland and Spain are forced out of the EU, they will again fall back on the drachma or the lira, the currencies which will reinstate their sovereignty at the cost of their economies and their living conditions being laid to ruin.

China will become more a focus in 2012, possibly through a trade war with the US. The China economy is predicated necessarily of an 8-10% annual growth rate, and the country has fallen to 5%. It’s a bad situation and the only solution may be to lower tariffs to such an extent that they are giving away their own and made-for US products, hoping that the bulk of trade will make up for lost revenue. It’s a risky strategy in the current global downturn, and if there is no global turnaround, China might be forced to invest even more heavily in their military strength as the best and only economic driver. Already the prodigious growth spurt in new weaponry is causing a stir, and the China military industrial complex is being compared to the US circa 1945-60.

Taken as a whole, the health of the global economy is greatly dependent now on a demonstrable upturn beginning in 2012. Every country, including the US, is in jeopardy if the situation remains static or falls farther during the coming year. The potential for military upheaval in the Middle East and in Asia has the world is on edge.

Brazil is now one of the healthiest and most stable economies in the world. It is quite possible that South America, which is traditionally viewed as the largest aggregate of third world economies, may in fact be looked to more as driving the global recovery during the new year.

Ironically, it is the Mayan calendar which forecast disaster by the end of 2012. Let’s hope they got it all wrong.

This is the time of year that is supposed to be focused on the spirit of giving and of love.  However, many people stress extremely badly due to the gift buying ventures.  With the economy the way it is these days there is sure to be much holiday stress for many, many people.

Thanksgiving has come and gone.  Black Friday has also passed.  And this year there seems to be many more rumors involving fighting and stealing from others.

A young lady posted on her Facebook page that while she was shopping during Black Friday, two grandmas got into a fist fight over $1.28 towels.  Someone got stabbed and bloody noses were the result of this fight with the Police being called.  Now to me this seems like extreme behavior over Black Friday sales.

I live in a small area and the closest Wal-Mart is forty five minutes away from me.   This Wal-Mart is located in a small town also.  Even there, people reported that individuals were having merchandise stolen out of their carts.

Why is it that people are feeling the need to result to such behavior over the holidays?  Could this be indicative of our society and the crunch feeling of not having enough money to spend on others to give those gifts for the Christmas holidays?  I venture to say that it is.

It is no secret that holidays are stressful to most people.  People love the holidays.  Yet, there are numerous reports that the holidays are the most stressful time of the year.  Could this be because we place the stress on ourselves or because of the fact that there is just not enough money to go around doing what we need or feel that we need to do?

Many people have a hard time maintaining or even finding a job.  Many companies have shut their doors.  Industries have made many cut backs and jobs that once were full time jobs of 40 hours or more, have now become part time jobs.  There seems to be little to no new job growth in our economy today.

If a person has spent any time at all at the grocery store this year, then they are very well aware that grocery prices have increased dramatically.  One news report stated that the average Thanksgiving meal would cost one double to prepare this year.  After purchasing the stuff needed for our Thanksgiving feast, I tend to agree with that report.

The economy has a great effect on how people behave these days.  The lack of money and not knowing how far a penny can be stretched, brings about many levels of stress when an individual is thinking about providing on a daily level.  Add in the cost of preparing special meals and gifts to an already tautly stretched rubber band budget, the stress levels go through the roof.

So what do you do about it?  Do you go to the store and beat someone up because you want what they have in their cart just because it is on sale?  Is it really worth going to jail over and getting a record?  How are you going to let the holiday stress affect you?

The super committee?  Well here it is again folks.  How many times have we heard lately that our economy is going downhill?  Our so called congressional super committee is supposed to come up with the solutions to all our problems.  Is it really such a surprise that the so-called super committee has failed so miserably?

Watching the news today it really came as no surprise to me that our special committee failed.  The lack of compromise is what is being said to be the blame for the failure.  Go figure.  It’s always been that way in this great country. Is this symbolic of how the nature of our entire country is becoming on a grand scale? Are we a country that is full of human beings that are unwilling to compromise about anything?

However, when it comes to the future of the human beings that our senators and representatives are supposed to be making decisions for, they seem to never have a second thought as to how their actions will be affecting those that support them.  Do they even give a second thought to their constituents?  My personal opinion is no they do not.

What happens when their actions cause people who live on social security to lose that income?  I know a woman right now that has worked all her life.  She became disabled due to an illness that she in no way asked for. She is living on $504 dollars a month social security.  What happens to her when that income is pulled because some congressman on a committee felt that she was not worth the effort of compromise?

Then there are the people who live in nursing homes.  Seems to me if they lose the help of social security and other social programs set to help fund their life (if you can call that a life), that common sense tells you that they will have no place to go.

For those that are fortunate enough to have families, they might, and I do say might, be able to move in with them.   What about the others who do not have family?  What happens to them?  Will they be tossed out onto the streets like a wadded up piece of trash thrown into the garbage dump?

Soon we will be electing new blood for congress.  I have to wonder if the ones that are there right now are really thinking about the needs of the people or their own needs.  Seems to me to be a call of action coming on.  Either the Congress gets their act together or they lose the confidence that they were voted in with.  This voter has definitely, lost the art to comprise with her vote and will fail to vote for things to continue as they have.

Selling Structured Settlement Payments

In this world of real and make believe, it sometimes becomes difficult to tell the difference between the two.  The interests, values, and securities we once possessed, we believed to be real.  Now with the economic crisis, we question what is actually real.

Headlines recently supporting this claim state that if banks or other mortgage holders reach an agreement, the value of the mortgage would decrease to 110% of the home value.  The Government would engross half of the cost of the decrease and the bank would absorb the other half.  With the Government and the bank factual in this equation, where does that leave the people?

It leaves the people in doubt.  Doubt that there will be any assurance in the near future for their securities.

The news of Europe’s exposed debt reaching an inclining point has brought concern to the global economy.  The turmoil Greece and Italy are presently in threatens the economic recovery of the United States, bringing frustration to an already irritated American public.

The reality of this is that the wrinkle of the global crisis is that Europe is heading into a recession.  Investments will have to be made in conservative companies with dividends and high emerging companies on the market.  The United States has slow growth and some growth in the emerging markets, while Europe is in a long term no growth state.

It is make believe if the people believe the problem is going to go away in 2012.  Repairing the economy is going to be a long haul.  The people are discouraged with views aimed towards decades to come.  The reality is now, next week, and surviving next month.

The Super Committee in Washington can make believe their closed door meetings are going to find solutions that the American people are looking for.  The reality is that the people have a big interest and need to be involved in the decisions.  The public should have a right in more of the deliberations.

We, the people, should wake up from the make-believe fairytale we see in play.  We can completely reposition ourselves out of a decaying industry into a real bargaining commerce.

There is always news coming out of Washington D.C. informing the people of the latest economic crisis and strategies.  Tactics and plans are in play to find a cure for our country’s illness, the economy.  I’ve questioned Washington’s maneuvers, and I think I now understand their strategies.

Here is how I see it work.  Our politicians seem to have a lot of interest in lobbyist and company shareholders.  These people including those who own shares in dividend dealing companies are the very rich.  They are the people who are not going to have a rough time in this economy.  So which side is our politicians concern for, the very poor or very rich?

Why do Washington politicians say they have a White House economic team anyways?  Teams demonstrate showmanship while working together to achieve success.  Perhaps Washington’s team should be benched from future sessions.

I can always tell when Congress is back in session.  That’s when consumer spending is down, gas prices are up, and attendance at the Country Club stays the same.

Do you know that Senators make (notice I didn’t say earn) around $160,000 a year.  And they believe Congress should vote itself pay raises because they contribute back to the economy.  Even though their contributions go toward liquor stores, DUI’s, and blackmail.

The President says his economic plans will generate millions of new jobs.  How and where, during deployment to Afghanistan?  President Obama just announced his plan to send 30,000 more American troops to Afghanistan.  That means at least 30,000 people will have job security.  Hope this job’s medical plan is up to par.

What makes it worse is that most our politicians are planning to run for re-election.  I know right, where else will they get a job in this economy?

The White House has to be concerned about the financial debt.   Stocks are expected to drop even more before the holidays.  Wall Street will find a whole new meaning between sharing and bonding.

The economy has been handled sluggishly.  Our government has to look at our economy as a more serious concern.  Only then will I and others like me take them just as seriously.

“Yesterday I dared to struggle, today I dare to win.”  These were famous words spoken by British Parliament socialist, Bernadette Devlin.  In today’s economy, when it is a fearful time for people to survive in, those words should mean something to us all.

The economy has been painting an ugly mask of our country in the last decade.  An enormous budget deficit, increases in unemployment, banks being bailed out, state and federal programs being cut; these are among just a few of our country’s struggles.  Here in 2011, the gap between the rich and poor is larger than it has ever been.

How do we solve the US economy?

Our country is living under a constrained economy.  As a result of consumer debt, mortgages, credit cards, and other commitments has forced consumers to tighten up on their spending.  Also, a loss of assurance in banking systems entitled to bad loans has caused a credit crisis.

The economy’s future faces a deficit where there will be more pressure on interest rates.  Upcoming groups will be obligated to pay back a higher interest payment from the expenses of private sector investments.

In addition, the aging population will worsen the national debt in our future.  An     increased need on health care and pensions will worsen the national debt in the future due to the aging population.

Barack Obama said, “Change is never easy, but always possible.”  For our country to make a success of surviving our economy we have to see a goal and target it.   If the people have an objective in which they can trust, there is no finish to the amount of things they can achieve.

There can be solutions for our government if they create and pass a long term strategy to minimize short term grief.  This plan would have to assist all people, not just special interest groups or lobbyist.

All people who our facing financial hardship in this economy are relying on structured settlements and falling on their annuities to help with what they need to survive.  There are options out there to help us through our struggles.  Our country is capable of change for the future if we have the perseverance to make it.

Structured Settlement

Gary and Sheila have fallen on hard times.  With today’s economy the way that it is, it is really easy for this to happen to anyone.  They never thought that annuity that they invested in years ago as their rainy day fund would come in such good use now at this time of the economic stress.

Gary and Sheila have been married for 30 years.  They are purchasing their home and raised their family there.  Both have worked for at least 25 years at their current jobs.  They felt that life is great.

Then the economy of the United States began to falter.  Gary lost his job due to the company closing its doors due to bankruptcy.  Sheila’s job has cut back on hours.  They wonder how they are going to make ends meet day to day due to the stress of their financial losses.  Sound familiar?

Then they remember that years ago they invested in an annuity for a rainy day.  Little did they know when they did that it would come in so very handy at this time of need.  They check into selling that annuity to ease the money crunch that they are feeling.

They begin by checking out different structured settlement buyers.  Once their research has been done, they make decisions on which companies that they wish to contact.  They find that some companies they can just ask for a free quote online.  Others they have to call but most are toll free numbers.

Once they talk to the companies they make their choice and sell their annuity.  They pay off that mortgage and car payments.  That makes their lives easier when it comes to making those monthly payments.

Gary and Sheila are so thankful that they invested in that annuity so many years ago for a rainy day fund.  It really saved them in their time of need.

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