I had a thought (Wow!) that someone would think I am being political about this, but I really am not.

I really would like to know.....was stock market? Something overseas?

It's kind of like the drought. They say things like "worst drought since . But, you know, that just says the previous one they compare to was worse than this, and we survived. The other day here (Texas), they were saying worst since 2005. Well, to tell you the truth, I don't remember 2005 being really terrible, nor do I note any lasting damage that effects me.

Here. Get some perspective and relax.

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:184025}}

I can get so concrete in my thinking I don't know when folks are joshing or not but I hope you are putting tongue in cheek and trying to put an optimistic spin on it..... but I think we are still entrenched in 2008 like the movie Ground Hog Day.

Bubbles bursting is what 2008 is about.

Oh, I imagine we'll survive but it ain't gonna be a joyride for good long while regardless of what we do at this point to contain it.

I remember 2008 as the year a lot of people, young and old saw their retirement portfolios and pension plans whimper and deflate or even disappear. It's the year that real estate stopped it's snowballing appreciation and started rolling back down the hill in price adjustments back to normalcy. That's when the real estate market gasped, and defaults started happening. It's when Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae and sub-prime became household vernacular. It's when banks started closing and being bought out by those who were considered more potentially solvent and the bail-outs started. It's when I had this gut feeling and ran down to my bank and took out a long-term, fixed rate CD and locked in the last decent interest I'll see in a long time. And when money markets started paying monthly interest you could count in pennies. And folks pulled out of stocks and started buying bonds.

What amazes me, however, is that my folks saw it coming way back in the 90s and warned me. And with only a few economics courses under my belt, I even saw it coming. I can't believe nobody else did.

I'm not being political either. If it is a political issue it's just like obesity or heart disease. It didn't happen in four or eight or twelve years it was insidious but the warnings have been there for a long time, so I won't finger point. It's also about societal attitudes, personal attitudes, big business, global influences and how we connect with them and we are not always at liberty to control that.

It's not something I'm terribly optimistic about but it's also something I try not to get sick over either. It is what it is and one just saddles up and ride through it as best they can. But, to me 2008 is when the proverbial poo hit the fan.

Thanks. You put things in order for me. There was a very real, all-of-a-sudden upheaval. I just had not remembered how sudden.

Your folks, and I am sure many others, saw it correctly. That was the beginning. Things were changing. But things couldn't keep on. Too many, wanted too much, too big and too costly. Maybe we have learned a lesson? Nope, I doubt it.

We had been having a building boom here. Everyone wanted a big house, with den, separate bedrooms and bath for each child, and room for football fields in the back yard. The idea of two or three kids sharing a room was terrible and one bathroom per house?......well, yeah, sometimes it's a pain, but that's all that was needed.

Want and Need are two different concepts. I think we may be seeing an adjustment in attitude.

You said it well, agnes.

calliope, explained it well. The recession in 2008 hit the retires hard in that their portfolios and pensions went south in a big way. The recent debacle in congress about raising the debt ceiling and the resulting vote will affect the people who has paid into, pensions (they are being cut),ss and other programs.
There is plenty of money in the world, as witnessed in my neighborhood here in Silicon Valley. The houses are in the $1 millon to 1.9 million catagory. They are snapped up the minute they come on the market and they have multiple offers over the asking price.
Money is not the problem, it is the distribution of money.