It's the ECONOMY.....stupid....

[radfringe]

in the past couple of weeks I've heard more than one repug whine about the economy -- they are not whining that the economy is doing bad, but rather whining because "people" do not see the economy as "booming"... they continue with saying that they have to "sell people on the idea that the economy is booming" during this campaign season

don't know about you - but if the economy is booming - I don't see it. nary a trickle, nor a dribble - our house is in drought conditions

Channel surfing last evening - I paused on Pat Buchannon yaking with Tweety about the 2006 midterms and are GOPers in trouble. Not sure if it was a "freudian" slip or not - but when the economy was brought up - Buchannon said "..it's booming for the top 20%..." Then tweety cut in and blathered over the rest and I couldn't hear the rest of Buchannon's statement

is the economy "booming" for you? Are you better, the same or worse off than you were last year?

[Earth_First]

1. I had to go the route of self-employment in order to stay afloat...

Granted there were advantages to filing for sole proprietorship, yet the biggest was to stay afloat in the economy.

We'll see how easy the small business mantra is according to the Republican talking point, I'll get back to you in 9 months.

[TrogL]

2. The economy is booming on play money

Take out the goods and services paid for by people mortgaging their bubble-market priced houses beyond 100% and a bond market bought up by the Chinese and there's nothing.

[texpatriot2004]

3. So true. The economy I live in is the worst I've ever seen nm

[obxhead]

4. yeah right.... maybe if I ran a church or

was a lawyer could I call the economy "booming"

[sandnsea]

5. For the top 20%

So people who cater to them are doing okay. I haven't completely decided about my economic situation right at this minute. I thought it was okay until about a month ago, when it took a sudden and decidedly STEEP dive south. I'm waiting for some February sales numbers to see if it was a trend or just something specific to me. If it's a trend, all I can say is LOOK OUT!

[unblock]

6. sure the economy is booming. mexico's, that is!

also europe's and latin america's, and india's and china's.

also, things are great for oil companies (outside of iraq, of course).

and sucking on the government teat has never been better for big banana republican donors like credit card companies.


and don't worry about the america worker, there will always be a job for him. in india....

[BR_Parkway]

7. Amazing that they can think the economy is booming AND that they have

to sell others on the idea that it is at the same time - don't they have any type of disconnect?

Back when the Mighty Clenis' economy was actually booming, you didn't have to sell anyone on it - we knew it, we lived it, we reveled in it.

[B Calm]

8. Ya think those delusional cheap labor cons are taking the same drugs

as Rush Limburger?

[teryang]

9. Outsourcing, H1-B visas, loss of manufacturing and hi tech jobs

The government and the press is blatantly lying about the economy. Paul Craig Roberts discusses the job market statistics the government and press conceal from the public. This article is a gold mine of truth.

http://www.counterpunch.org/roberts03062006.html

A Nation Polarized Between Rich and Poor
America's Bleak Jobs Future
By PAUL CRAIG ROBERTS

<...However, the jobs record for the past five years tells a clear story. The BLS payroll jobs data contradict the hype from business organizations, such as the US Chamber of Commerce, and from "studies" financed by outsourcing corporations that offshore jobs outsourcing is good for America. Large corporations, which have individually dismissed thousands of their US employees and replaced them with foreigners, claim that jobs outsourcing allows them to save money that can be used to hire more Americans. The corporations and the business organizations are very successful in placing this disinformation in the media. The lie is repeated everywhere and has become a mantra among no-think economists and politicians. However, no sign of these jobs can be found in the payroll jobs data. But there is abundant evidence of the lost American jobs.

...For the past five years US job growth was limited to these four areas: education and health services, state and local government, leisure and hospitality, financial services. There was no US job growth outside these four areas of domestic nontradable services.

Engineering jobs in general are in decline, because the manufacturing sectors that employ engineers are in decline. During the last five years, the US work force lost 1.2 million jobs in the manufacture of machinery, computers, electronics, semiconductors, communication equipment, electrical equipment, motor vehicles and transportation equipment...

The top ten sources of the most jobs in "superpower" America are: retail salespersons, registered nurses, postsecondary teachers, customer service representatives, janitors and cleaners, waiters and waitresses, food preparation (includes fast food), home health aides, nursing aides, orderlies and attendants, general and operations managers. Note than none of this projected employment growth will contribute one nickel toward producing goods and services that could be exported to help close the massive US trade deficit. Note, also, that few of these jobs classifications require a college education.>

He notes that H-1B visas are a fraudulent subsidy to corporations at the expense of American jobs.

[liberal N proud]

10. India and China are doing great!

Them and the top 20% of AmeirKa

The rest don't exist in the republican minds.

[fasttense]

11. If I look back just one year, it's about the same.

But when I look back about five years ago, there is a marked change. I've had to use up all my savings in order to make ends meet. I've had to sell all my stock at a loss so I could pay off debt. My husband has an awful job, I'm retired from the military but congress wants to up my medical premiums by 204%. I've got two kids in college and I'm worried things will only get worse.

Maybe they need to sell this awful, I mean booming economy because it ain't' real. It's just in a republican's wet dream.