Majority of Dumb Ass Americans Believe the Economy is in a Recession

About 50% of Americans also believe that Trump won the 2020 election and that Biden is not the legitimate President.

It was bad before, but Trump – and the pandemic – broke what was left of people's brains.

Because prices are still fucking high.

Look, I KNOW the stock market is up, but what good does it do me if I can’t afford bread, milk or gas?

It’s GREEDFLATION from price gouging that makes people think the economy is in the shitter.

Everything costs MORE, you get less for your money and the vast majority of us will NEVER get a raise.

They are not dumb. Most of the things people buy have become more expensive. And they are not in the stock market.

Biden should run on calling people dumb like OP.

My rent just went up $200 while my pay went down $400 because my employer decided not pay that in addition to the $700 per month they already pay towards my health insurance.

It may not be in a recession, but when people are struggling, it sure feels like it.

R3 and R6 are exactly right.

No one cares what economists or Wall Street says.

It's what we're feeling in our pocketbooks that counts.

The fact that there even is something in your pocketbook right now is thanks to the pandemic stimulus. It's either inflation now or a complete economic collapse back then, pick your poison.

Biden is losing. This is Hillary all over again. It is so obvious. Brace yourselves for 4 more years of Trump hell.

As people have explained, the economy is NOT in a Recession but the RICH keep getting richer and the working stiffs keep getting poorer. So the struggling people use "recession" and "unemployment" as words they know to express their frustration. Too bad not enough democratic governments have the spine to appropriately tax corporations and the very rich, and give the working classes more of the pie.

I'm really worried that's exactly what's going to happen R9. And it will be hell and who knows how everyone's lives will change and what lasting damage will be done. Gays are a target group for conservatives.

Something I've noticed recently is that all the usual political analysts and talking heads have stopped predicting who will win the election. The consensus seems to be that it's 50/50 and nobody will commit to anything other than that. Scary stuff.

I voted for Biden in 2020. But he is out of touch. The American Rescue Plan did exactly what many economists said it would = fed inflation. But Biden did it anyway. And watching Buttigieg push EV Cars, while people cannot afford food or rent shows he is out of touch too. Petey and the Government build EV stations so the rich people can charge their fancy cars. Yellen is also out of her league.

So you would prefer another Trump presidency R12?

Do I [bold] prefer [/bold] a Trump Presidency? Of course not. Biden is going to lose and it's going to be the fault of the Democratic Party for not asking Biden to step aside or put up ANY candidates. Biden won partially because idiot Trump was telling people to drink bleach in 2020. He is losing Michigan now. wtf?

According to the Dems, he has lost support of the sizeable Muslim community in Michigan because of his stance on the Israel/Gaza war but they're working on it R14. Dump will reinstitute a Muslim ban so it would be counterproductive for them to vote for Dump or not at all. They'll come around hopefully.

For me - it's a choice between Dump & Biden. That's the choice we have. Like it or not. So it's going to be one or the other.

You are dumb ass snob OP, for calling out people because they are not expert in economics and don't know the exact terms.

People see that the cost of living are at the post WW2 high while real wages are at historical low. If you are a renter you are living the life from Dickens' novels. This is the first generation in recent history that is living worse than their parents.

GDP is growing because due to inflation or rather price gouging, money is transferred from your pocket to big corporations. It is based on consumer spending, there is no productivity. I have read how one economist have said that GDP is silly criterion, because it grows highly after some major catastrophes due to public work on reconstruction.

In Europe at the moment Albania, Montenegro, Croatia, passive economies based on tourism and services ( and a bit of money laundry) have the highest GDP growth, while Germany and Sweden, industrial forces, have the lowest.

People don't know that in economic theory recession is used for the period when there is decline in economic and trade activities with GDP falling. Which is much healthier for society than the boost based on corporations robbing of people on wages on prices etc.

People know that their households are in recession and the fact that billionaires doubled their income doesn't help.

[quote]So you would prefer another Trump presidency [R12]?

R13 You are posing him the type of question: would you rather be hanged or shot by firing squad.

Nearly twenty percent of swing state voters think Biden is to blame for overturning Roe v. Wade. This is why we can’t have nice things, like a representative democracy. It’s also why we are going to lose them.

I live in a very wealthy, high cost of living area, and even the people here are constantly complaining about the high cost of everything. Most can easily afford it, but they still see it and think it’s bullshit. All of these reports are drastically out of touch with what people from all walks of life are experiencing with their own eyes and ears.

Armchair economists like r12 also are the reason Biden is getting blamed. The spending that drive inflation was actually from the Trump Administration’s Covid response. Look at spending from FY20 to 23: 6.55T, 6.82T, 6.27T, 6.13T. FY21- starting in October of 2020 - is Trump’s last budget and the highest at $6.82 trillion. All those forgiven loans to businesses, supercharged unemployment, and stimulus checks.

The reality is that the US is doing better than any country post Covid. The average person doesn’t care and blames Biden.

To R19's point:

[quote] Wealthy Americans are starting to spend more carefully

Americans with deep pockets have played a growing role in powering the US economy with their spending. But their days of splurging like there’s no tomorrow might be coming to an end.

US household wealth surged in recent years, despite the scourge of high inflation and the Federal Reserve’s bitter medicine of elevated borrowing costs to rein in price increases.

A robust stock market coupled with rising home values have boosted Americans’ wealth from 2019 through 2022, according to a Federal Reserve report on household finances. That increase is known as “the wealth effect,” and it has continued to shore up Americans’ finances as stocks shatter records and high bond yields beef up savings accounts.

Plus, Americans who locked in a low mortgage rate before the Fed began to hike interest rates in 2022 and have decided to stay put have been shielded from the effects of high mortgage rates.

Put together, that means many consumers have not only been able to withstand inflation, to a degree, but they’ve also been able to spend on travel, concerts and big-ticket items. US economic growth accelerated at a brisk pace in 2023, largely thanks to the US consumer.

And it’s Americans older than 54 who hold the vast amount of household wealth in the US, more than 70%, according to Fed data.

But the economy’s momentum has slowed a bit recently with figures on employment and retail spending for April coming in weaker than expected. While the broader economy remains healthy, including the job market with sub-4% unemployment, there are signs that an important corner has been turned. The shifting behavior of wealthy Americans is one of them.

“It’s well known that the lowest income consumer is really struggling with inflation, but from a purely economic standpoint, it is the higher quintiles of earners that do the most spending,” Nanette Abuhoff Jacobson, global investment strategist at Hartford Funds, told CNN.

There’s been some evidence of wealthy Americans growing cautious in the latest round of company earnings results.

British luxury retailer Burberry reported last week that its profits plummeted by 40% in the budget year ending in late March. Sales in the Americas dropped off by 12% over the year.

“Executing our plan against a backdrop of slowing luxury demand has been challenging,” Jonathan Akeroyd, Burberry’s chief executive, said in a statement.

LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton reported in its latest earnings results last month that demand for high-end liquors has declined sharply in the US, leading to high inventory levels for the French luxury conglomerate’s alcoholic beverages division.

Walmart, which traditionally caters to lower and middle-income Americans, even reported last week that its gains last quarter were “primarily driven by upper-income households,” or those making more than $100,000 a year.

R3. Inflation is rising price levels. A recession is declining economic activity which is usually associated with declining price levels or reduced levels of price increases. They are two totally different phenomena. What you are saying makes no more sense than to say, “I’m sure I have cancer because my blood sugar is so high.”

You’ve confirmed OP’s dim estimate of American intelligence

Yeah it's good for maybe the 25% at the top income levels. Everyone else it's not so great.

Does your company's top brass think about making the cost of living pay equal for all employees? Or are they content with the very top getting the huge bonuses (because they're talented and deserving).

They mean their income is receding.

FUCKS NEWS wins again 🏆

Americans are being gouged by greedy corporations, so I'm going to vote for the guy that will always side with corporations over people!

It doesn't help that 'woke' progressives, who've had a lot of influence within the Democratic Party in recent years, are constantly going on about how horrible a place America is/was.

They have turned many young liberals into anti-America radicals.

Wait, isn’t inflay shun and recess shun the same thing?

The Biden campaign is being run by amateurs.

Americans are stupid.

Just ask Vladimir Putin. He never had to use a military force to fuck the USA. He just turned our own ignorance, intellectual laziness and the internet to bad use.

And it worked.

Don't take my word for it. Read any summary of the Mueller Report. It's all in there.

I'm just glad I didn't have children and, barring sudden fatal illness or accident, I'm not going to be around after a couple of more decades.

R26 nicely boils it down to brass tacks. Yes, dumbasses. Is this new? No. Social and cultural issues are used as part of the smoke and mirrors.

Growing dependence on the gig economy

About that many also believe in magical sky fairies too.

Yes the the Biden campaign is being run by idiots. And he is in cognitive decline.

And absolutely nobody wants Harris as president. The democratic party has fucked up beyond belief. That's not to say that Trump isn't in serious cognitive decline as well and that he runs a cult of fascists and thieves despite which with inflation of housing and food makes him look better to a lot of people. Yes a lot is smoke and mirrors but when it hits the wallet in reality this badly the Dems are in trouble. And under Biden we are seeing growing anti semitism to a shocking point in this country (and yes I know it is world wide but in this country?!!)and anti gay sentiment growing. This is real and don't pretend it isn't. Extremist liberal morons becoming more powerful under Biden are adding fuel to the fire of hatred.

Apparently politicians only pander to the ivory tower or the trailer court. Note the lack of in between.

I wonder about the meta analysis - whether Americans are "dumber" about politics and the economy than citizens in other countries are. America certainly has a class of super achieving smart folks keeping USA at the top of the lists for innovation, industry, STEM and even the arts. Now and then I see media analysts and sociologist and anthropologists of contemporary culture who argue the challenge for American wisdom is too many people have been brainwashed for a couple decades into very polar, binary positions. More so in USA than in some other countries. This must surely be true. Americans are content to say - my church/party/milieu says it's like that - and then all their "intellectual" decisions are not reasoned - just whatever fits the party line. Media and internet sell them "one good side good" and the other "bad side" and that's the end of critical attention to the matter. I know as a prof in a francophone culture that French-educated young people don't blurt out any unreasoned argument they think about something cogent and reasoned to say, then say it. I'm not talking about the brainiacs only. Just average college students can do this. Workers can engage in "discourse" with some skill. Discourse and debate has gone down the tubes in USA. It's just shouting from echo chambers.

And Penny Pritzker the billionaire heiress must be a self hating Jew. She was the head of the board who made Caudine Gay the president of Harvard. A disastrous do gooder. If she weren't a heiress she'd be working at the customer service desk in a supermarket selling cigs and lottery cards. She certainly has the brain for it.

Biden probably thinks it will be good for the US to have another four years of Trump. If Trump gets reelected then Democrats can stand on the sidelines being critical for the next four years and have no accountability. He doesn’t particularly care if Americans suffer, as long as the opposition is blamed.

Americans are painfully stupid. Remember the polls during Obama's presidency where people said they hated Obamacare but liked the Affordable Care Act? A big part of the problem is that almost nobody reads a newspaper (not even online) or watches TV news anymore, so they are clueless about what's happening in the world. All their news now comes from viral videos or conspiracy theories shared by their friends or relatives on social media. And Republicans have done a much better job than Democrats of flooding the zone on social media.

R39 that's all true but are Americans "more stupid" in these contexts than people in other countries are such contexts?

Making fun of the average American for not understanding the finer points is precisely the problem. If the average person is barely making ends meet and feels every single consumer good costing considerably more than it did four years ago, you’re not going to win them over with an Econ 101 class. The Democrats need to understand this, and fast.

[quote]Inflation is rising price levels. A recession is declining economic activity which is usually associated with declining price levels or reduced levels of price increases. They are two totally different phenomena. What you are saying makes no more sense than to say, “I’m sure I have cancer because my blood sugar is so high.” You’ve confirmed OP’s dim estimate of American intelligence

Gurlina, people might confuse terms, because they don't have expertise in macroeconomics, but that doesn't make them dumb. On micro level, they know that they have "recession" in their household budget.

[quote]The Democrats need to understand this, and fast.

What should they do R41?

R43 maybe they should stop being corporate whores?

Agreed, but what are your actual suggestions R44? Policies, actions - that kind of stuff.

They don't R42.

R38. Thank you for creating a fantasy of Biden’s intentions and then criticising him for it.

R34, since you seem to blame Biden personally for anti-Semitism, how do you explain the Tree of Life shooting in 2018? How about Charlottesville? And were you cool when the Trump administration did not mention Jews in their 2017 statement on Holocaust Remembrance Day? Yes, he all lives mattered the Holocaust.

Translation majority of Americans watch Fox News

[quote]Translation majority of Americans watch Fox News

The highest rated show on Fox (The Five) gets about 3 million viewers a night. There are 333 million people living in America. Fox is a huge problem, but it's not the only one.

[quote] Americans with deep pockets have played a growing role in powering the US economy with their spending.

Democrats embrace Trickle Down Economics. Marvelous :)

[quote] Majority of Dumb Ass Americans Believe the Economy is in a Recession

If it's not a recession it's indistinguishable in the lives of many millions

This is what happens when people, whether they are on the left or right, refuse to take economics courses.

[quote] This is what happens when people, whether they are on the left or right, refuse to take economics courses.

It doesn’t help when you have frauds like Paul Krugman who will state anything and everything based on political ideology instead of established economic principles.

If you ever wanted to see how low the I.Q. is of most of the posters here, you found the right thread. They’ll support and spin anything the Biden administration sends their way.

Sure R52, because knowing that price gouging and wage theft is not recession, would be of extreme solace to them.

They would say: I can't afford to pay the bills, but hooray, billionaires have doubled their income last few years.

Refuse to take economics courses? You mean those who even pursue higher education? Jr HS and HS should be teaching personal finance and real finance, too. These courses should be as obligatory as typing, driving, and nutritions and fitness (in my opinion). Every economic class of Americans, except those who will inherit wealth, must learn how to create economic security for themselves and their families. There isn't much of a safety net in the USA and there are fewer job protections than in other rich countries. This would be an act of socialism, of course, to educate the working classes to look out for their own interests and fight for them. How to budget, who to save and multiply net worth, and how to get ahead in a job.

The lack of spending money has simply led millennials to train themselves to do without material goods. Instead, they prioritize experiences. They spend money on traveling, so a lot of that spending money goes overseas.

Most people would prefer socialism if only it were called something else.

[quote] Most people would prefer socialism if only it were called something else.

That would be the biggest evidence of all of the ignorance of economics.

r4, my wages have gone up

[QUOTE] The highest rated show on Fox (The Five) gets about 3 million viewers a night. There are 333 million people living in America. Fox is a huge problem, but it's not the only one.

Fox’s reach goes beyond the ratings of one specific show. They use rightwing social media to help broadcast the noise around the country for people who don’t watch TV. Then when a Republican gets back in the White House and things are no better if not worse, the Fox bullhorn of negativity will suddenly go quiet.

[quote] Biden won partially because idiot Trump was telling people to drink bleach

He never told people to drink bleach.

[quote] Most people would prefer socialism if only it were called something else.

No, Boris.

[QUOTE] Because prices are still fucking high.

[QUOTE]Look, I KNOW the stock market is up, but what good does it do me if I can’t afford bread, milk or gas?

Who cares what you know? The poll results say otherwise. A near-majority of Americans believe the stock market is down when it’s not—that is a fact. A majority think America is in recession when it’s far from it—that is a fact. And they stupidly believe that Joe Biden’s policies have put us into a recession when he miraculously kept us out of it!

There is nothing wrong with wishing things were better, but you are not entitled to create your own alternative reality.

R56, it's not just those in high school/middle school though. A LOT of humanities/social science types comment all the time on economics issues. Yet the stuff they spout is complete BS. And many of these people have never taken an economics course in their life. And they refuse to do so because it would be studying "capitalist propaganda". Many of these people falsely believe that most Economics professors/majors are republicans, which shows just how out of touch they are.

[quote] because knowing that price gouging and wage theft is not recession, would be of extreme solace to them.

That's irrelevant to the fact that THERE IS NO RECESSION. Which is what the OP's point was.

R64, that poster is using "vibes and stuff" to measure the economy. Which works very, very well. Not.

If they're listening to right wing misinformation as their sources, misinformation wins, and all the collateral damage it does. RW sources pound on the "disasterous" economy, and you end up with people believing this is the worst economy in 50 years.

On the bright side, I began eating less in December due to the high cost of groceries and as of this morning have lost 39 pounds.

R69 The New Broke Diet

[quote] On the bright side, I began eating less in December due to the high cost of groceries and as of this morning have lost 39 pounds.

I hope Lizzo reads this.

[quote] Fox’s reach goes beyond the ratings of one specific show.

That’s their highest rated show. Their reach is even lower for all their other shows.

The distribution of wealth has nothing to do with the health of the economy, but neither matters in this election. Germany's economy in the 1930s was completely stuffed, but Hindenberg was still a better bet than Hitler.

Ironically, people voting for Trump because they want to stop the flow of refugees across the border, may eventually end up fleeing across the border themselves.

This seems to be a "Tale of Two Cities" situation: it is the best of times for the minority, it is the worst of times for the majority.

The income/wealth gap has been widening, and what we have now is simply an extension of that trend.

Trump and the Republicans, ever the con artists, know this and are seeking to exploit it to their advantage. But as we have seen with Trump and the Republicans with the 2017 tax cuts, they're only in it to expand and exacerbate the widening gap and keep it widening even more.

Anybody who votes for Trump and the Republicans and thinks they're going to help out the average man is really an idiot.

R73 lol that’s a no win because Biden’s policies are going to turn this country into a hybrid of Djibouti and Nicaragua. We’re all just choosing the lesser of two evils in November.

R73 also, most of these “refugees” are not fleeing some evil regime, they’re just poor and want to come here for free benefits and to cosplay as a Kardashian. Or more sinister things like espionage and terrorism. You really drank that Kool-Aid.

R45 I am neither politician nor economist, but I would suggest Dems to put just the tiny effort trying to work in public interest instead shilling for big corporations, Wall street and military industrial complex.

[quote] because knowing that price gouging and wage theft is not recession, would be of extreme solace to them.

[quote] That's irrelevant to the fact that THERE IS NO RECESSION. Which is what the OP's point was.

You SCREAMING AT PEOPLE that "there is no recession!" is exactly what the Biden Administration is doing, R66.

"Everything is great! Everything is fine! Life has never been better, and we are more profitable than ever!!"

However, it does nothing to change the fact that prices are at an all time high, while income has not risen or has actually gone down for many people.

Screaming "THERE IS NO RECESSION" just makes people angrier, and it's completely tone deaf.

You may be technically right, but it does nothing to alleviate their suffering.

Everything from home prices, to rent, to food, to gas, to insurance, to a motherfucking extra fee for every last goddamn thing, to even fast food has gone up. You can't even watch television shows any more, without paying $200 a month.

And it hasn't just gone up a little. It has gone up A LOT since the end of the pandemic.

This is NOT Biden's fault, but when people are hurting, he will get the blame.

It's the perfect situation for corporate cunts, because they raise the prices and reap the profits from price gouging, while Biden shoulders the blame.

Worst part? There's nothing he can do about it.

We have become such a consumer culture, and consumers have become so addicted to their phones, and their internet, and everything else the corporations sell us, that we will keep buying no matter how much it costs.

That's why they keep charging us more, and more, and more.

R78 I was sarcastic when I wrote that price gouging and wage theft is not called recession in macroeconomic theory and if people knew it they would be relieved.

I agree with you and more than that, I think it is Biden's and his party's fault, because they have been in the office last four years and they are shameless corporate quislings.

What do Jeebus teach on this?

Yeah, the Trump administration, who cut corporate taxes permanently from 35 to 21 percent, is the voice of the proletariat. The person who is shameless is r79.

[quote] I think it is Biden's and his party's fault, because they have been in the office last four years and they are shameless corporate quislings.

Yes, corporations loooooove Biden's pro-union stance, overtime pay rule, non-compete ban, junk fee ban, environmental standards, etc. etc. etc.

This is completely anecdotal, but just from reading the news both locally and nationally, it seems like suicides have been at an all-time high in the past few years.

People don't behave that way when things are good.

Granted, the pandemic caused many people a lot of misery (and still is), which is also not Biden's fault.

But things have just not been right since we emerged from Covid in 2021.

It seems like the world has taken a turn for the worse, in terms of greed and prices and corporate wealth.

They blamed it on "Covid" and the "Supply Chain," when in actuality, it was simply price gouging.

Unfortunately, this coincided with the start of Joe Biden's Presidency, and our misery index has gone up hand-in-hand, during the time President Biden has been in office.

And despite all the good he has done in turning our country around since DUMP left office, he is getting the blame for what CORPORATIONS have done to us.

He needs to figure out a way to rein them in. Fast.

Otherwise, not only will Biden not win re-election, but prices will skyrocket even more, if DUMP gets a second chance at being President.

R82 lol yeah keep eating those crumbs they throw you

[quote] However, it does nothing to change the fact that prices are at an all time high, while income has not risen or has actually gone down for many

THERE IS NO RECESSION. Also, what you are saying about incomes not rising isn't true. Incomes are rising faster right now for the bottom 50% than for the top. But go on.

R81 the fact that Trump is supporting libertarian, pro capital sociopath policy, doesn't make Biden any less of Wall street, military industrial complex shill.

It is like saying that Stalin was ok because Pol Pot was worse.

[quote] Everything from home prices, to rent, to food, to gas, to insurance, to a motherfucking extra fee for every last goddamn thing, to even fast food has gone up. You can't even watch television shows any more, without paying $200 a month.

Much of this--especially housing--has more to do with restrictions on supply. The problem is that America decided in the 70s that it wanted to become a NIMBY country. And the rest of the Anglosphere did the exact same thing. That's why the Anglosphere has seen the largest home price increases in the west. That's why we cannot build anything. And on top of that, we no longer have a lot of government workers with decades long expertise. What we have, instead, are contractors we "outsource" a lot of government functions to. Many of the people complaining about the government's inability to do anything are the same ones who wanted to starve the beast. And we see how well that turned out.

While right-wing media is pumping out non-stop fake stories about how terrible Biden is and how he is supposedly wrecking the economy (even though he actually saved it from disaster), liberal and mainstream media aren't pumping out stories about the great things Biden and has done and his success stories. Instead, they're fixated on the minutiae of the Trump hush money case, even though polls show that most people don't care. You have conservative media saying that Biden is the worst president ever and the economy is in the toilet while the liberal media reads court documents and interviews law professors. Nobody is praising Biden and touting his successes.

R88 list his successes… we’ll wait… go ahead

[quote]list his successes… we’ll wait… go ahead

From March of this yea, per Bloomberg:

Millions signed up for health care, taking the number of uninsured Americans to an all-time low.

Salary increases are outpacing inflation.

The cost of living is going down – the rapid disinflation under Biden is unmatched in modern history.

Families are richer than ever, as net worth has climbed under Biden.

Inequality is narrowing - a rise in real wages for lower-income workers is bridging the gap.

The equity market is roaring.

Violent crimes, especially homicides, have fallen.

R90 🤣😂😆🤣😂😆🤣😆

You’re not real. Go consume your brainwashing material somewhere else.

[quote]list his successes… we’ll wait… go ahead

ENORMOUS gains in infrastructure and environmental protection, something for the future before just your next paycheck. student loan forgiveness, something the right detests

Good grief the trolls are out.

cunts are just gonna cunt

Is this the St. Petersburg focus now? Aim the trolls at a gay website? It's going to be Biden or Trump. Only. Now all of the trolls are told to keep the focus on Biden, and not discuss Trump. They know any discussion of Trump is a complete loss. Keep bringing up Biden, and try to tie him to any and all maladies. They'll refuse to talk about Trump.

[QUOTE] Violent crimes, especially homicides, have fallen.

But if you watch Fox or visit NYPost.com, murder and rape is waiting for you around every corner. And it’s all Joe Biden’s fault!

Then when a Republican gets back in the White House, suddenly they’ll decide crime reporting doesn’t matter as much, making everyone believe that crime has miraculously improved.

The truth R96. Fox is FEARTV. Every story is intended to instill fear, hate and paranoia in old folks and/or the uneducated. Scary brown people and Marxists are behind every hedge and around every corner waiting with ill intent!

If you watch it you can see the quite obvious step by step brainwashing tactics.

When Trump was president, Fox and other RW media focused on crime in DEMOCRAT run cities.

IDK whose pay has gone up, but it sure the fuck isn’t mine.

Our “cost of living” “incerease” went up a whole 2%

I haven’t gone to the movies in probably 5 years. I have NO streaming services - at all - because I can’t afford it. I don’t go to restaurants. I rarely get fast food.

I don’t travel, go shopping or buy stuff on line unless I need it and I can’t find it locally. I desperately need new tires for my 20 year old vehicle as the current set is 15 years old. Yeah.

My 401k might be going gangbusters, but what good is that to me NOW when I can’t touch it?

All of you assholes screeching about how dumb I am because what I see everyday with my own fucking eyes doesn’t align with your wonderful Harvard economic theories are part of the problem.

R99 either your housing is insane or you really are poor. My job doesn't pay great though I enjoy my work and even I can afford streaming channels and eating out. I just bought 4 new tires. Where dou you live, seriously?

Understand your plight, r99, but bitching about Biden when Trump is looming will only make your situation worse.

those numbers don't reflect the financial security or wellbeing of average people. hence the violent rage directed at people like you.

I find it funny how the media justifies increased costs and inflation, that we're not in a recession because of the GDP. I am pretty sure these books are cooked, the tables turned, the game rigged. We're not headed for a recession, we're headed for a financial debt collapse.

COVID bought a lot of the financial world more time, delaying debt maturity in many major corporations and companies. The retail apocalypse and its mismanagement is indicative of that. The BS "Target is lowering their prices" and "McDonalds is making a $5 meal" news train shows that these companies are not in good shape and are using any kind of mousetrap (with cheese) tactic to get people in the door and spending whatever their useless $15/hr wage increase can buy.

Rattle Biden and Trump all you want, they're not responsible for these numbers. They're both plain ineffective. Blame the corporate greed that's reaching the end of its cycle.

[QUOTE] We're not headed for a recession, we're headed for a financial debt collapse.

Could you predict an estimated time when this collapse might occur, R103? You doom and gloomers love telling us about these impending collapses and depressions but never get specific so when the time hits and there’s no collapse we won’t be able to call you out on your shit.

Trump is the one who's told corporations they can do whatever they want with his blessing, regulation free, if they'll contribute to his campaign. Just line Trump's wallet and you're scott free.

[quote] I find it funny how the media justifies increased costs and inflation, that we're not in a recession because of the GDP.

Which is true. Most American bitch about inflation but the best way to lower prices here would be to have a recession. Which most Americans also don't want. They want to have their cake and eat it too.

R100, I live in Ohio. My house payment went up $200 a month and this is a low tax area.

I work for the Federal government, and we get paid shit, plus I have an hour commute to work.

I know Biden can’t do anything about it. I don’t blame him. And I would never EVER vote for that goddamn TRAITOR TRASH.

I’m sick of being called “stupid”, “dumb” or “brainwashed” because I personally know how much gas costs, what I can no longer afford to buy at the store, and all the things I’ve had to stop doing because keeping a roof over my head is my priority.

Sure, my 401k may have nearly a million in it, but what good is that if you can’t pay the fucking bills or buy gas?

R107, there is a lot that’s very strange about your post. My partner is a Federal employee and I work in contracting. The increase this year, in addition to any step increases for service or any promotions, was 5.2% (thank Biden for that). 2023 inflation was 4.1%. You also will get a pension. And, Federal employees don’t have 401ks. They have TSPs..

Why would your mortgage go up? Was it Ohio (Republican) property taxes? Was a variable loan? You can also thank Trump for limiting deductions for individual taxpayers.

Talk about a straw man. You’re not dumb if you know how much gas costs, and “all the things you’ve had to stop doing because keeping a roof over your head is your priority.”

However if you think the American economy is in a recession and it’s Joe Biden’s fault, then yes, you’re a dumb ass. Hard times don’t make you entitled to believe whatever you want because that’s how you “feel.” Because that’s the “vibe” you get. Facts are still facts.

People should wake up to the fact that things being expensive is better than being dead. He killed a lot of Americans with his COVID coverup and I'm sure there would be something else this time that would achieve the same result. He shouldn't even be allowed to run since he's an insurrectionist which bans him in the constitution.

Where did I say it’s Biden’s fault, r109? Where did I say the economy is in a recession? I fucking didn’t.

Well, r108, that pittance of an increase is the only reason I didn’t quit last year. And I haven’t spent my entire career with the government. God, no! I have a 401k and stock from the other jobs I’ve worked over the last 40 years.

I’ve also quit putting money in my TSP because I need money NOW, not 20 years in the future.

The point is, I am not the only person who is struggling, despite low unemployment, high stock market and other indicators you all think are great. I’m not.

Calling people “stupid” because we know how much more everything costs is gaslighting. Don’t tell me shit is great and the stock market is great when I can’t fucking afford a Netflix subscription, ok?

I’m sure everything is fine for most of you, but it’s not for everyone. Corporations are price gouging because they can. I don’t blame anyone but THEM for my plight.

I'm the same as r99. 2% cost of living increase which was nothing. Then the rent went up and my pay went DOWN after the adjustment for having to pay more in health insurance. Then my apartment decided they no longer were going to pay for water so they started charging us for that. They nickel and dime us TO DEATH.

And sure, the stock market might be up but the MAJORITY of Americans can't afford to invest in the stock market so who the fuck cares?

If you're single, this economy is shit. And I likely won't vote this year because I hate both candidates and am starting to believe all of politics is a joke. People are dropping like flies all around me. Friend lost her dad, another her mother. Both of my parents and my 84 year old aunt are about to croak and all of them have no $.

I grew up poor, continue to be poor despite going to college (and paying 9% interest on my UNFORGIVEN student loans for 18 years). Life has been one struggle after another and I don't see it getting better, only worse.

R111 r112

Nobody is saying that people like you R112 and R99 and R107 and R111 should be comforted by the stock market rising. I’m not telling you to jump for joy because the fucking Nasdaq is higher. I’m saying that if you believe the stock market is DOWN just because you’re paying more for ground beef at the market, then you’re a DUMB ASS. These poll respondents are saying that the stock market is down when it’s not! You are entitled to be upset about your economic situation but you are not entitled to embrace fiction over facts. Feeling economically distressed doesn’t mean you get to say the sky isn’t blue. You can say “I don’t care that the sky is blue,” but don’t friggin tell me it’s not blue anymore!

There’s myriad legit reasons to criticize President Biden, but saying that his economic policies have thrown us into a recession is NOT one of them!

A thread full of liars and trolls.

r16 sure knows a lot of things

r38 = rocket scientist

the economy's fine. it sends its love.

[quote]That's not to say that Trump isn't in serious cognitive decline as well and that he runs a cult of fascists and thieves despite which with inflation of housing and food makes him look better to a lot of people.

Thank you for your Federalist Society inflation talking points, and the attempts to "both sides" Joe Biden and Donald Insurrection Diaperload Trump.

I suspect we'll be getting a boatload more of your "concern" leading up to November, how useless both parties are and why bother to vote at all? And maybe give Jill Stein or RFK Jr a chance?

Hope the beet rations are worth it, you sad, pathetic shill.

R48…I don’t like Trump, but Charlottesville was mostly the city’s fault. It was a screwup from start to finish.

uhoh

Rich people ALWAYS complain about prices no matter how rich they are. I work in Beverly hills and that's all the ladies like to talk about while they are getting their $400 blow dry hair done. No mention about how their stock portfolio is the highest returns they have ever seen.

[quote]I’ve also quit putting money in my TSP because I need money NOW, not 20 years in the future.

How about a change in career?

[quote]Dow plunges over 600 points as Wall Street worries rates will stay high

Translation = 1.5%

Oh, the sky is falling, 1.5% of my millions, I am all washed up, might as well jump out the window!

The Dow is fine! It sends its love!

I don't give a shit, I will never shop at walmart! I have never have and never will!

my father was a engineer and life long penny pincher who boycotted walmart on priciple.

principle.

I’d consider it, r123, if it weren’t in Floriduh.

Ohio is red enough. Floriduh is a cesspool

Floriduh is where America takes a crap, no matter how many time a hurricane tries to flush it out, those floaters just don't go away.

[quote] Floriduh is where America takes a crap,

That wooed explain Gillum's hotel room

Swimming in Floriduh is literally like swimming in a toilet.

Sam Walton was indeed a major prick. He offered my partner a job and when my partner turned him down (imagine open gay man Russellville Ark in 1983) Walston refused to stock anything from my partner's company anymore and he lost his job.

But...but...Biden raised prices on food and gas after he locked us all down with COVID-19 and forced us to get vaccines that make us gay.

Basically, a large swath of the bottom 80% of the socio-economic ladder wants to live with all the endless array of cheap and ultra-convenient consumer goods of late-stage advanced global capitalism but have their own household economic realities resemble those of upwardly mobile mid-20th century (white) america - and they want government to ensure both things (without raising taxes or increasing regulations, or at least taxes or regulations that apply to them) despite the fact that they are fundamentally oppositional.

The people who believe we are in a recession and it's Biden's fault are the ones who benefit most from Biden's economy and polices. Like the people who were so against Obama Care but benefited most from its polices.

I maintain that in the history books Biden will go down as one of the worst American presidents who accelerated the country's decline and failed to address its fundamental problems.

The VCs over at the "All-In" Podcast talked about this subject the other day (the popular view that we're in a recession vs. the economic numbers; it starts at the 40:05 mark) and I was surprised by their take and their unanimity in agreeing with what seems to be the consensus of commenters in this thread.

[quote]I maintain that in the history books Biden will go down as one of the worst American presidents who accelerated the country's decline and failed to address its fundamental problems.

How is the weather these days on Bizarro World?

R137, I’m genuinely puzzled by your take. Can you give the high-level cause/effect analysis of what you consider to be Biden’s failures?

I’ll warn you that you have a high bar convincing me if any of these failures are inflation, woke culture, Afghanistan withdrawal, or Israeli conflict because all of these have very clear causes that are not the result of Biden’s actions except for being president at the wrong time.

But I’m genuinely curious. What did he do wrong, and how did it negatively affect the country?

R139 if president is not responsible for economics, foreign policy, ideological and cultural climate then why the hell does it matter if it will be Biden or Trump?

Because of the stuff that is his responsibility. The CHIPS Act, infrastructure reform, reducing child poverty, codifying gay marriage.

But Afghanistan? Trump committed to a withdrawal and also negotiated to releasing 5000 Taliban prisoners in exchange for a promise that they wouldn’t hurt Americans. And then left this to Biden. If there is a plausible explanation of how Biden made the withdrawal worse than it would have been under Trump, let’s hear it.

Inflation has been lower in the US than elsewhere and is inextricably linked to the pandemic. If there is a plausible explanation to how Biden uniquely caused this or made it worse, let’s hear it.

I’m asking for cause and effect. Otherwise, it’s like saying that it rained today and Biden is to blame.

R140. Does the absence of a definite article before president indicate you speak a certain Slavic language?

I can’t imagine anything that is relevant besides the economy. If the economy is bad, we might as well live in North Korea, right?

And, by the way, the President doesn’t have a lot to do with the economy, no matter how much your emotions dictate that he should.

Every time on DL that someone makes a Putin/Russia insinuation against a poster making a point they object to, I conclude they're stupid

When you look at these numbers, it’s bewildering how Biden’s polls aren’t worse and why he keeps campaigning. If I instituted policies that kept the country out of recession and, rather than adulation, I’m then blamed for an IMAGINARY recession, I’d be pulling my hair out. In fact I’d probably say fuck it and end my campaign because you people clearly don’t deserve me.

[quote] In fact I’d probably say fuck it and end my campaign because you people clearly don’t deserve me.

The majority of voters also agree they didn't deserve Joe

biden has a big cock. he has my vote!

R145, Separated at birth:

Joe Biden and King Tut

R14&: Separated at birth"

Donald Trump and a piece of gorilla shit. No one could tell the difference between the lump of shit and Trump.

R143. You have to admit the English is odd. I didn’t just disagree with him, I made a point why he was wrong. You are the moron here.

If a Democrat runs our country, it’s automatic recession. We need a leader who makes things difficult for as many people as possible, since that’s what God intended. Absolutely I believe in censorship, kids are exposed to horrible things. I go to the store and I see these unfamiliar people and you know what, THEY ARE STEALING OUR JOBS. You should not need an education to find a good job, it should be given to you if you look like me.

R149 he accidentally omitted an article, either an "a " or a "the."

My god he must be a Russian spy.

Nice job super sleuth

R149 is a xenophobic racist.

R151. Obviously, I don’t really believe he is definitely Russian, but he is someone who is writing something anti-Biden and who, like you, deeply stupid and offers no rational arguments.

Your lack of as sense of humour may be another symptom of your stupidity.

Excuse me, I've met soooo many people who have been in our country for decades and they still have very heavy accents and broken English.

Are you referring to me, R154?

Cuchi, Cuchi, R154

Also r151:

*Hillary Clinton Has Some Tough Words for Democrats and women*

[quote]Why won't she just go away

[quote]She's such a hateful old narcissist. I'll never understand the fawning adulation she gets here

DL Gestapo on track again

I hate to break it to people. It is two options at this point. Biden or Trump. Both are similar in age (within four years of each other). Look at what Trump did vs look at what Biden did. Trump stacked the courts with radical conservative judges, got Roe v Wade overturned and took credit for it, then did a 180 when Trump-backed candidates were being torpedoed left and right. Oh yeah, and he tried to overthrow the US Government. Let's not forget that, among his other crimes. Biden may be older but he has run rings around republicans. A president is not just a single leader, it is the people he chooses to support him. Juxtapose that with the current Maga filled congress. They can't get a thing done. Not one thing. They are too busy dreaming up crimes they thing Biden has committed. There is only one choice. Biden.

Trump not only negotiated and set the withdrawal date for our troops leaving Afghanistan, he negotiated the release of the Taliban, right at the same time his dear pal Putin put a bounty on the heads of American soldiers. Trump was fine with that.

It was Bush who started using fraudulently cooked books, and it got him re-elected in 2004 when the country was clearly in recession. And the result in 2008 was disaster.

When you can't afford anything it's easy to believe the economy sucks.

It's not just the USA, it's global right now.

Luxury brands are hurting right now and they're raising prices to make up for it. Duh!

LOL luxury brands. Why didn't you just type let them eat cake?

R153 you make as many simple grammatical errors in your comments as the person you mocked as being Russian.

Are YOU Russian?

[quote]The VCs over at the "All-In" Podcast talked about

You lost me at VC's because nothing says honesty and looking out for the little guy than a bunch of Venture Capitalist.

[quote] Your lack of as sense of humour

No good baseball playing apple pie eating patriotic American would ever spell "humor" with that foreign U of the devil

The people I see out to dinner seven nights a week say they just can't keep up with the rising prices!

[quote]There is only one choice. Biden.

[quote]biden has a big cock. he has my vote!

R146 =

I bet all the men in that family are horse hung. Hallie missed beau's big cock so much that she fucked his brother Hunter...

I bet Biden was hot in the sack back in the day! Lucky Jill!

[quote]Democrats embrace Trickle Down Economics. Marvelous :)

New flash, Federalist Society shill.

Extra money in the hands of the working class GOES BACK into the economy via increased spending.

Extra money in the hands of people who don't need it does NOT.

Trickle UP has different effects on the US economy than trickle DOWN.

I'm sick of being trickled on. It has never worked out for me.

The economy is strong, R174. There’s no getting around it.

R166. No. But you are deeply stupid and humourless.

[quote] Brace yourselves for 4 more years of Trump hell.

If Trump gets back in office, we'll never have an election again.

Trump’s not winning this election, R177.

is it too late to buy AI stocks or invest in this sector?

Dont bank on that R178. He's only one point behind Biden. I swear, I really cant believe so many people in America really are stupid and petty as shit to fallow that orange turd. Before he came along, I would have said about 25% of Americans are nutjobs, but now the truth has revealed itself. It's about 50%. Sigh.

Simmer, Marys.

Polls don't predict. Polls measure.

Trump will lose in November, just like he did in 2020, fair and square, to Joseph Biden.

[Quote] About 50% of Americans also believe that Trump won the 2020 election and that Biden is not the legitimate President.

Wrong. Polls consistently show around 30% do.

R10, It isn't a matter of "spine" so much as of unfettered avarice. Salaries, schmalaries; people, Republicans mostly but not totally, go into federal government for the bribes, the Benjamins, the moolah, the cashola, to BECOME WEALTHY or at the very least be treated to the perks of extreme wealth (See: Thomas, Clarence).

The rich benefactors must in turn get what they're paying for: tax breaks; removal of industrial regulations; privatization. The Treasury, if they could. And the peasants must be lied to, distracted, entertained, and frightened while being robbed blind, divided, even sent to die in rich men's wars.

The Ruling Class will always give us something, though: bread and circuses.

Maintain Americans' Gullibility Always.

Jesus Christ, he is surging among young black voters. PLEASE will someone release the tape where he calls Qwame the N word? "We can't have a N$$ger win this can we?"

[quote] Wrong. Polls consistently show around 30% do.

That's still insane. Not 50% but absolutely horrifying.

[QUOTE] Trump will lose in November, just like he did in 2020, fair and square, to Joseph Biden.

R181, I’m curious to know what you were on here predicting in June 2016.

[Quote] That's still insane. Not 50% but absolutely horrifying.

So how about not grossly inflating it if it’s “still insane?” 30% is a minority, not half.

R62 It wasn't bleach it was injecting disinfectant in people's veins. I don't know why people say bleach. Not that disinfectant is any better. It's just as lunatic.

I assume young blacks do not appreciate Biden's extremist liberal tendencies. If only he had had the sense to move closer towards the center. But he is very very old. The presidency has aged him 10 years Just as it has done to all presidents.

R188

R189, extremist? He’s a moderate in every sense

It seems a lot of Americans don't pay attention to the news. Say what you will about Boomers but we knew what was going on.

[quote]. If only he had had the sense to move closer towards the center. But he is very very old. The presidency has aged him 10 years Just as it has done to all presidents.

If Biden moved anymore to the center he would be a white supremacist MAGAT Republcan.

Economics is personal. If someone is doing shitty, they tend to believe things are shitty or at least trending shitty. Though, they should be able to comprehend that they can be doing poorly but the economy overall is fine.

[quote]Say what you will about Boomers but we knew what was going on.

Which is worse because you knowingly put Trump into the White House.

[QUOTE] Economics is personal. If someone is doing shitty, they tend to believe things are shitty or at least trending shitty. Though, they should be able to comprehend that they can be doing poorly but the economy overall is fine.

Most people are doing shitty because of their own personal shortcomings and failures. The economy is fine for people who are willing to work hard and make wise financial decisions.

What is "the economy"?

Prices are much higher than they were 4 years ago. Inflation going down doesn't mean prices are going down.

Combine that with the absurd cost of renting, the price of homes rising, mortgage rates higher than ever.

Put it all together and yeah, people are going to feel that the economy is doing poorly no mater what Wall Street says.

^matter

Grocery prices are much higher and there is also shrinkflation.

[quote]I assume young blacks do not appreciate Biden's extremist liberal tendencies. If only he had had the sense to move closer towards the center. But he is very very old. The presidency has aged him 10 years Just as it has done to all presidents.

A lot of bullshit to unpack in R189. First, Joe Biden has always been a moderate/centrist democrat. The only people who believe he's an "extremist liberal" are cultist MAGA "extremist conservatives" living in their own world of delusion. A majority of young Blacks will be voting for Biden. He will easily win that demographic group again as he did in 2020, even if Trump manages to peel off a small number of idiots. Donald Trump is very, very old as well. We are going to have a very, very old president, regardless. We all know presidents age in office. This is a presidential election, not a beauty contest, so who gives a damn about appearance rather than policy and their records of governance.

Spin little wingnut trolls, spin!

We are not in a recession. I think some people conflate not being able to afford things with recession. Posters are mentioning rents. Rents are in the category of services, and inflation in this category has SURGED. This is why the Federal Reserve is not cutting interest rates, because inflation in services is still so bad.

Rich people WANT a recession so they keep badgering the Feds to lower interest rates, insisting the downturn is coming or even here. Even the Fed, who wants to cut rates can't lie that much. Low interest rates means wealthy investors get almost free money to play with. Paycheck to paycheck people get laid off and jobs disappear. Prices drop in a recessions, which is good, but the job losses are devastating..

The Fed knows it needs to raise rates AGAIN so house prices come down, but they are scared of Wall Street crybabies.

Biden was not solely responsible for this mess and there's not much he can do about it in the next few months. It's systemic. We need more government regulation. Anyone think Trump's going to give us that?

Biden may be frail but he's not a demagogue with a vow to pardon the violent criminals who stormed the Capitol. Trump says it's the first thing he'll do. Vote for Biden on that issue alone.

"Grocery prices are much higher and there is also shrinkflation."

Shrinkflation is so infuriating and stupid. It bothers me much more than inflation. Just keep the same damn sizes and/or number of units and charge more.

If you think Biden is in the center you are insane. Why do think he has a very low approval rating? Why are minorities giving him less support? Stay in whatever echo chamber you are in. It must be deafening. And R201 stick with your repetitive cliches. You must bore even yourself.