Something to think about. According to the Federal Reserve, as of May 10 money in bank and money market accounts has increased to about $9.36 trillion. In May, 2007 this amount was $7.44 trillion!
American's aren't broke, but they are fearful. A substantial part of this money was pulled from the stock market. Take that, Goldman Sachs! People may be fearful, but they aren't stupid.
To give you an idea of how much moolah this is, consider that all of the employer sponsored retirement plans in the U.S. currently total "only" about $2.7 trillion.
Friday, May 28, 2010
Thursday, May 20, 2010
A Correspondence on Depression and Being in Resignation
Tom wrote, in response to my email:
"ok - i'm on a roll today - this is for all those who are depressed or sad for some lame reason...
you have so many thoughts there...
you should get a blog.... jus kidding...
yeah... i have a [relative] who is always depressed....
and it annoys the f*** out of me...
which is i think half the reason why i sent that out...
life is short....
my quote is....
if you don't like it,
don't complain...
do something about it... either accept it or do something about it but shut the f*** up.....
we are the luckiest country in the world and this country has some of the luckiest people in the world.
every day i wake up and spend a moment being grateful. period."
I replied:
"As for depression, that is sometimes what happens when people get "stuck" in their situation in life. Being stuck sometimes means realizing that what one is doing isn’t working but we lack the ability to take steps to move on. The result is resignation and we sometimes say we are "depressed".
At present, there at 10s of millions of people in the US who definitely feel stuck. Some feel trapped, and they are. They expected that their life would be a certain way; we were "invincible" and it would turn out because we willed it to be that way. Well, surprise. I have a favorite saying: "God loves us, but the universe doesn’t care." So it is.
It's unfortunate that the government manipulated the economy for as long a period as they did. That resulted in a very long period (nearly 40 years) in which the US avoided a really nasty recession. By that I mean one with at least 10% unemployment for at least 18 months.
As a result, everyone got "fat and happy". A few intermediate recessions would have given people the opportunity to "exercise" some of the muscles that have atrophied over the past decades, and deal with some serious unpleasantries. Now the "artificial" economy has collapsed and millions remain in hock up to their eyeballs, or stuck in a home they cannot sell, etc. I'm glad [a friend] did sell his house; that gives him and [his spouse] the opportunity to relocate or whatever. Many aren't so fortunate and are stuck and can't relocate; you should be glad you didn't purchase.
Then there are those who say "just do it" to which [a relative] and Nike belong. I've stated that I hate that quip. It implies that one never needs to prepare and that there are no difficult choices. True, one can just "do it" but I also think that if one does, then he or she should be prepared "to pay the price". There are choices to be made. Of course, the "smart rat" will say that "it is the way it is" because they "chose it that way." Yeah, right. So how about taking on one of the things I am avoiding to do and "choosing" to do that? I once told a proponent of "just do it" that each and every day I pick a task I really, really don't want to do and I do that. It's an exercise in preparation for making difficult choices, but I still avoid some of the more uncomfortable tasks.
I personally hate it when people pretend they have no choice. We always have a choice. It may be "expensive" to walk from a house that is under water. It may make us uncomfortable to relocate, or to take a risk. Or there may be a price, such as personal choice to commute to and from Chicago each day. Some years ago I turned down an offer to move and rent in the city; sure, I could reverse commute 35 miles each way each and every day; no thanks! I wasn't willing to spend 2 to 3 hours daily commuting. That's 10% of my life spend doing nothing, or something that works for them. But they still thought it was a good idea.
When someone has an agenda, their idea is always a good idea, since it supports their agenda.
Getting back to the subject of unpleasantries and depressions, since I met my spouse I frequently tell her that today might be the best day of our lives and we should brace for unpleasant times. I didn't mean simply financial. We have many elderly relatives. Life expectancy in the US is about 78 years. As I look at the ages of many relatives and it doesn't take a rocket scientist to realize that we may lose one or more each year. I'm not sure how the family will handle it when some close relatives leave this earth. Based on a recent funeral in which there almost wasn't a "public" ceremony, I can hardly wait for the next installment....
As for the depressed relative who annoys you, I suggest you don't let him or her, or any one else get to you. Focus on yourself and your relationship with [your girlfriend].
The rest of us can deal with our own lives in our own manner. We are all adults and it is insulting to treat anyone as something else. Yeah, I know we all want and need sympathy at some level. So what. As a very hard employer once told me when I was struggling "If you need sympathy, you can find it in the dictionary between shit and syphilis." He was absolutely correct.
As a story, I have a relative who always gets involved in helping those he selects and defines as the "little guy" or those who are struggling. So now he has lost just about everything and part of it was he refused to keep his eye on the ball. I have suggested that he enter the ministry or some such if that is his purpose in life. Otherwise, stop screwing around and live his life well and be an example to others. Same advice as I give to anyone. The best he can do for his grown children is be self reliant and be "available" as a father. I suggest no hand-holding, no pseudo therapy, no feel good crap."
Comment:
The above slightly edited from the original to remove personal information.
"ok - i'm on a roll today - this is for all those who are depressed or sad for some lame reason...
you have so many thoughts there...
you should get a blog.... jus kidding...
yeah... i have a [relative] who is always depressed....
and it annoys the f*** out of me...
which is i think half the reason why i sent that out...
life is short....
my quote is....
if you don't like it,
don't complain...
do something about it... either accept it or do something about it but shut the f*** up.....
we are the luckiest country in the world and this country has some of the luckiest people in the world.
every day i wake up and spend a moment being grateful. period."
I replied:
"As for depression, that is sometimes what happens when people get "stuck" in their situation in life. Being stuck sometimes means realizing that what one is doing isn’t working but we lack the ability to take steps to move on. The result is resignation and we sometimes say we are "depressed".
At present, there at 10s of millions of people in the US who definitely feel stuck. Some feel trapped, and they are. They expected that their life would be a certain way; we were "invincible" and it would turn out because we willed it to be that way. Well, surprise. I have a favorite saying: "God loves us, but the universe doesn’t care." So it is.
It's unfortunate that the government manipulated the economy for as long a period as they did. That resulted in a very long period (nearly 40 years) in which the US avoided a really nasty recession. By that I mean one with at least 10% unemployment for at least 18 months.
As a result, everyone got "fat and happy". A few intermediate recessions would have given people the opportunity to "exercise" some of the muscles that have atrophied over the past decades, and deal with some serious unpleasantries. Now the "artificial" economy has collapsed and millions remain in hock up to their eyeballs, or stuck in a home they cannot sell, etc. I'm glad [a friend] did sell his house; that gives him and [his spouse] the opportunity to relocate or whatever. Many aren't so fortunate and are stuck and can't relocate; you should be glad you didn't purchase.
Then there are those who say "just do it" to which [a relative] and Nike belong. I've stated that I hate that quip. It implies that one never needs to prepare and that there are no difficult choices. True, one can just "do it" but I also think that if one does, then he or she should be prepared "to pay the price". There are choices to be made. Of course, the "smart rat" will say that "it is the way it is" because they "chose it that way." Yeah, right. So how about taking on one of the things I am avoiding to do and "choosing" to do that? I once told a proponent of "just do it" that each and every day I pick a task I really, really don't want to do and I do that. It's an exercise in preparation for making difficult choices, but I still avoid some of the more uncomfortable tasks.
I personally hate it when people pretend they have no choice. We always have a choice. It may be "expensive" to walk from a house that is under water. It may make us uncomfortable to relocate, or to take a risk. Or there may be a price, such as personal choice to commute to and from Chicago each day. Some years ago I turned down an offer to move and rent in the city; sure, I could reverse commute 35 miles each way each and every day; no thanks! I wasn't willing to spend 2 to 3 hours daily commuting. That's 10% of my life spend doing nothing, or something that works for them. But they still thought it was a good idea.
When someone has an agenda, their idea is always a good idea, since it supports their agenda.
Getting back to the subject of unpleasantries and depressions, since I met my spouse I frequently tell her that today might be the best day of our lives and we should brace for unpleasant times. I didn't mean simply financial. We have many elderly relatives. Life expectancy in the US is about 78 years. As I look at the ages of many relatives and it doesn't take a rocket scientist to realize that we may lose one or more each year. I'm not sure how the family will handle it when some close relatives leave this earth. Based on a recent funeral in which there almost wasn't a "public" ceremony, I can hardly wait for the next installment....
As for the depressed relative who annoys you, I suggest you don't let him or her, or any one else get to you. Focus on yourself and your relationship with [your girlfriend].
The rest of us can deal with our own lives in our own manner. We are all adults and it is insulting to treat anyone as something else. Yeah, I know we all want and need sympathy at some level. So what. As a very hard employer once told me when I was struggling "If you need sympathy, you can find it in the dictionary between shit and syphilis." He was absolutely correct.
As a story, I have a relative who always gets involved in helping those he selects and defines as the "little guy" or those who are struggling. So now he has lost just about everything and part of it was he refused to keep his eye on the ball. I have suggested that he enter the ministry or some such if that is his purpose in life. Otherwise, stop screwing around and live his life well and be an example to others. Same advice as I give to anyone. The best he can do for his grown children is be self reliant and be "available" as a father. I suggest no hand-holding, no pseudo therapy, no feel good crap."
Comment:
The above slightly edited from the original to remove personal information.
Education in America
The Wall Street Journal posted an article today entitled "U.S. Reading Scores Stall in Urban School Districts" A link to the article is contained at the end of this post.
The reality is the demographics are changing. Ask any large school (inner and outer city) teacher and, if it is safe to speak honestly, they will tell you that they deal with "immigrants" with many languages and lots of other "language" problems; English may be the second language or not used at all at home; I know of one teacher who told me that her middle school, with 1500 students, has about 20 languages, some children who are technically "homeless', which is to say from displaced families, and so on. Then there are the single parent families, in which "mom" is attempting to raise a family and work or go to full time school. So guess what? Kids don't learn to read.
Our government is, as usual, blowing smoke. This is a losing battle and everyone will blame the unions, the school districts, etc. The fact of the matter is, the problems start at home where homework and reading fall behind just about everything else. I have seen statistics that indicate the U.S. has a 45% at basic or below literacy rate overall. And that "proficiency" is decreasing!
Even in middle class "stabilized" families, sports and other extra curriculars displace reading.
Charter schools, which are in many cases nothing more than a subsidized and bleached version of parochial schools, won't work unless parents take something at stake. Handing them cash and telling them to spend it on the school of their choice is about as dysfunctional as handing a home to people via no money down loans and telling them they are "homeowners". We see where that got us. Thank you Sen. Frank for "rolling the dice" with the citizens money.
The only advantage to the charter school concept is that, like the parochial schools, the school could technically boot students and parents who aren't interested in learning. Of course that simply marginalizes a growing group of disinterested or disabled students. So how do we deal with them? And who are we going to pay to teach the unteachable? I think people need to be honest and realize that part of the problem in some of the inner city schools it that no one in their right mind wants to teach the unteachable. Its a thankless job which will suck the life out of any teacher.
No one really has an answer that is palatable to the parents, many of whom are children in adult bodies and unequipped for adult hood, parent hood or just about any other hood I can think of and that includes living in the "neighborhood"
Today, with school districts struggling with reduced financing, adding specialized "literacy" teachers or aids is not a viable option. Meanwhile, our congress continues it's emphasis on leaving our borders open and unprotected, and allowing "immigrants" to flood the schools. Believe me, I don't have a problem with immigration. I do have a problem with politicians who create these problems and then turn their backs on the citizens of this country. I also have a problem with politicians who create these problems and then again, turn their backs on the social issues they create and leave it up to the citizens to clean up the mess. Currently, the U.S. government is abrogating much of its responsibility in education and the funding thereof. I am tired of politicians who insist upon "social engineering" and then walk away from the messes they create.
Perhaps it is time to take the "free" out of "free" education and charge for all extra-curricular activities. If this results in kids on the street and the US government wants to get kids to get off the streets, let the Obama Administration and congress put its money where its mouth is and come up with the $billions it will take to do that. If the congress want the borders open, then perhaps they should come up with the additional $billions to fund the schools and other programs necessary to integrate these "immigrants" into our country. Instead of making mandates and simultaneously reducing funding. As far as I am concerned, it's "put up or shut up" time and considering how some of the politicians have been unusually quiet, I assume they decided to "duck and cover".
Click for Article "US Reading Scores Stall"
Click for Average Literacy Scores
A definition of "homeless" as applied by a nearby school district:
"The definition of homelessness is broader than people may think. You or your family are considered "homeless" if you are:
The reality is the demographics are changing. Ask any large school (inner and outer city) teacher and, if it is safe to speak honestly, they will tell you that they deal with "immigrants" with many languages and lots of other "language" problems; English may be the second language or not used at all at home; I know of one teacher who told me that her middle school, with 1500 students, has about 20 languages, some children who are technically "homeless', which is to say from displaced families, and so on. Then there are the single parent families, in which "mom" is attempting to raise a family and work or go to full time school. So guess what? Kids don't learn to read.
Our government is, as usual, blowing smoke. This is a losing battle and everyone will blame the unions, the school districts, etc. The fact of the matter is, the problems start at home where homework and reading fall behind just about everything else. I have seen statistics that indicate the U.S. has a 45% at basic or below literacy rate overall. And that "proficiency" is decreasing!
Even in middle class "stabilized" families, sports and other extra curriculars displace reading.
Charter schools, which are in many cases nothing more than a subsidized and bleached version of parochial schools, won't work unless parents take something at stake. Handing them cash and telling them to spend it on the school of their choice is about as dysfunctional as handing a home to people via no money down loans and telling them they are "homeowners". We see where that got us. Thank you Sen. Frank for "rolling the dice" with the citizens money.
The only advantage to the charter school concept is that, like the parochial schools, the school could technically boot students and parents who aren't interested in learning. Of course that simply marginalizes a growing group of disinterested or disabled students. So how do we deal with them? And who are we going to pay to teach the unteachable? I think people need to be honest and realize that part of the problem in some of the inner city schools it that no one in their right mind wants to teach the unteachable. Its a thankless job which will suck the life out of any teacher.
No one really has an answer that is palatable to the parents, many of whom are children in adult bodies and unequipped for adult hood, parent hood or just about any other hood I can think of and that includes living in the "neighborhood"
Today, with school districts struggling with reduced financing, adding specialized "literacy" teachers or aids is not a viable option. Meanwhile, our congress continues it's emphasis on leaving our borders open and unprotected, and allowing "immigrants" to flood the schools. Believe me, I don't have a problem with immigration. I do have a problem with politicians who create these problems and then turn their backs on the citizens of this country. I also have a problem with politicians who create these problems and then again, turn their backs on the social issues they create and leave it up to the citizens to clean up the mess. Currently, the U.S. government is abrogating much of its responsibility in education and the funding thereof. I am tired of politicians who insist upon "social engineering" and then walk away from the messes they create.
Perhaps it is time to take the "free" out of "free" education and charge for all extra-curricular activities. If this results in kids on the street and the US government wants to get kids to get off the streets, let the Obama Administration and congress put its money where its mouth is and come up with the $billions it will take to do that. If the congress want the borders open, then perhaps they should come up with the additional $billions to fund the schools and other programs necessary to integrate these "immigrants" into our country. Instead of making mandates and simultaneously reducing funding. As far as I am concerned, it's "put up or shut up" time and considering how some of the politicians have been unusually quiet, I assume they decided to "duck and cover".
Click for Article "US Reading Scores Stall"
Click for Average Literacy Scores
A definition of "homeless" as applied by a nearby school district:
"The definition of homelessness is broader than people may think. You or your family are considered "homeless" if you are:
- Living in a shelter, motel, vehicle, or campground;
- Living on the street;
- Living in an abandoned building, trailer, or other inadequate accommodation;
- Doubled up with friends or relatives because you can't find or afford housing;
- Waiting for a foster-care placement."
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