Here’s Your Hope and CHANGE…

Posted on by March 6, 2013


How do you like it now???

Item
January 2009
TODAY
% chg
Src
Avg.. Retail price/gallon gas in U.S.
$1.83
$3.85
79.6%
1
Crude oil, European Brent (barrel)
$43
$105

147.7%
2
Crude oil, West TX Inter. (barrel)
$38..74
$108

155.9%
2
Gold: London (per troy oz.)5
$853.25
$1,469.50
70.5%
2
Corn, No.2 yellow, Central IL
$3.56
$7.33
88.1%
2
Soybeans, No. 1 yellow, IL
$9.66
$13.75
42.3%
2
Sugar, cane, raw, world, lb. Fob
$13.37
$41.39

184.7%
2
Unemployment rate, non-farm, overall
7.6%
9.4%
23.7%
3
Unemployment rate, blacks
12.6%
15.8%
25.4%
3
Number of unemployed
11,616,000
14,485,000
24.7%
3
Number of fed. Employees, ex. Military  

2,779,000
2,940,000
2.9%
3
Real median household income

$50,112
$49,777
-0.7%
4
Number of food stamp recipients

31,983,716
43,200,878
35.1%
5
Number of unemployment benefit recipients

7,526,598
9,193,838
22.2%
6
Number of long-term unemployed
2,600,000
6,400,000
146.2%
3
Poverty rate, individuals

13.2%
14.3%
8.3%
4
People in poverty in U.S.

39,800,000
43,600,000
9.5%
4
U.S.. Rank in Economic Freedom World Rankings
5
9
n/a
10
Present Situation Index

29.9
23.5
-21.4%
11
Failed banks

140
164
17.1%
12
U.S.. Dollar versus Japanese yen exchange rate
89.76
82.03
-8.6%
2
U.S.. Money supply, M1, in billions (curr = 12/10 prelim)
1,575.1
1,865.7
18.4%
13
U.S.. Money supply, M2, in billions (curr = 12/10 prelim)
8,310.9
8,852.3
6.5%
13
National debt, in trillions
$10.627
$14.052
32.2%
14


Sources:
(1) U.S. Energy Information Administration; (2) Wall Street Journal; (3) Bureau of Labor Statistics; (4) Census Bureau; (5) USDA; (6) U.S. Dept. Of Labor; 
(7) FHFA; (8) Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller; (9) RealtyTrac; (10) Heritage Foundation and WSJ; (11) The Conference Board; (12) FDIC; 
(13) Federal Reserve; (14) U.S. Treasury


I would go cry in my beer, but I can’t afford a beer anymore… sigh…

Comments

Here’s Your Hope and CHANGE… — 20 Comments

  1. o.O Sorta hard to argue with those statistics, although I’m sure there are those who will try.

    I’ve gotta admit, I’m one of a few who is in a better spot right now than I was Jan. 2009. However, it was NOT by the grace of the handout, but by some blood, sweat & tears and a whole lot of hard work on MY part.

    I did take advantage of the Pell Grant and HOPE Scholarship, but there were no other “handouts” taken. I had to maintain a high GPA to keep my HOPE and considering the amount of income taxes I’ve already paid just this year, I’ve paid back my Pell Grants, too.

  4. Unfortunately, the majority of voters don’t understand or believe statistics. I’d give you my 2 cents, but with inflation, it’s a dime, and I can’t spare one at the moment.

  7. Very eye opening post.
    This should be on CNN.
    Yeah right.
    What..they aren’t listening, like Gunrunner, Pima, etc.?

  8. Ha.
    Beer/alcoholic beverage companies is a solid investment choice during these hard times.
    (You say you can’t afford it, but I’ll bet you end up buying and crying in it, no matter the cost!)

  9. This makes sense. I was beginning to think that I had been overspending somehow – I have less and less left over till my next paycheck. Now I see why, its not my spending – it’s the fact that everything costs more! I think it’s only going to get worse… unless something drastic changes. And I don’t mean the Hopey kind of change either.

  10. “But it’s not Obama’s fault! He Inherited this mess from Bush!” (Memo to MSM-Repeat over and over for the next 17 months until the The Anointed One gets Re-Elected. Source-White House Campaign Playbook).

  13. A hearty we told you so would seem to be in order for the minions of the mindless one………

    But, a hollow victory at best.

  14. DB- Heard that…

    Julie- I can’t bring my guns though 🙁

    Keads- Meee toooo

    Skip- One can only wish!

    GB- ‘Maybe’… 🙂

    FF- Agreed!

    Bubblehead- yeah, I know… sigh

    Calvin- Get it now, the price is going even higher!!

    Crucis- Thanks, wish I could take the credit, but I didn’t do it.

    Cranky- Yep!

  15. It’s misleading to say any President has the capacity to quickly change the economy.
    The private business engine is still guiding the economy. They are sitting on cash, and rightfully being shy about hiring and investing.
    America has always counted on the income from corporate taxes (the lowest since the 1950’s) but global trade is hard to compete with.
    We have chosen to lower our standards (wage, benefits, lifestyle) to meet the competition.
    We should be encouraging workers of the World to demad better wages and benefits from their employers, to meet our standards. We cannot compete against an Asian worker making $3.00 a day.
    It’s not a new idea, or practice, that Americans take their average monetary personal value and move to a less expensive country (like Mexico) and like like super rich.
    The actual price of a product, is no guide to people’s spending power.
    I long for the days when only one person in a household needed to work to pay the bills and have plenty to vacation, buy a second car, and other toys.
    We will never see that time again, if we continue to lower ourselves to the low standards of the rest of the World.
    I’m not an isolationist, but a little “buy American” practice, would go a long way to help our economy.
    They laughed at Bush when he said “Go Shopping” but he was right.

  16. Tom- Good points, but actually we (USA) now have the second highest corporate taxes in the world… And with the unknowns of this administration, I really can’t blame companies for holding on to what they have. We cannot drive prices in the rest of the world, and are foolish to think we can. People WILL work for what they can, wherever they are.

  17. Sad that it’s useless to try to change the course of the lowering of American standards. I guess it is what it is, and there’s nothing we can do but accept it. Sorry, I don’t accept that attitude, and I know we can change it. Maybe I misread your comment, but that’s what I gathered from it.

  18. Tom- I don’t think we can change WORLD standards, here in the US, that is a different situation… If control can be wrestled away from the unions, there is a good chance to get us back on an even keel. The problem will be to keep the government from suing like they did Boeing for the SC plant.

  19. what is it? who can tell me? i can go cry in beer,but i can’t afford it!how miserable it is !