"We really haven't noticed just how far things have gone to hell" [View All]

[TwixVoy]

Are We Really Better Off Than We Were a Year Ago?

This guy makes a great point about how we are actually worse off than at the same time last year, but because we don't have massive firms going under (thanks to government aid) people are just frogs in slowly heating water.

http://finance.yahoo.com/tech-ticker/article/379461/Are-We-Really-Better-Off-Than-We-Were-a-Year-Ago;_ylt=ArPmw7k7tSjV6Hh8.ur.VB27YWsA;_ylu=X3oDMTE2b20xYTdrBHBvcwMxMARzZWMDdG9wU3RvcmllcwRzbGsDYXJld2VyZWFsbHli?tickers=spy,dia,qqqq,xlf,%5Edji,%5Egspc,fas&sec=topStories&pos=8&asset=&ccode=


Here's just some of the reasons why:

Since Lehman, we have lost 6.2 million jobs
The unemployment rate is 10.2% now, versus 6.2% the day before Lehman collapse
Real gross domestic product is still down 3% since the summer of 2008
Housing starts are down 30%
Auto sales are down 23%
Bank credit has contracted by $500 billion, or 8%
Household net worth is down $7 trillion
Home prices are down an average of 10%
Apartment-vacancy rates are up a percentage point to 11.1%
Consumer confidence is down 11 points
The budget deficit has tripled