Economy Adds 211,000 Jobs in March; Unemployment Rate at 4 1/2 Year Low: Foxnews.com

[nelms]

People ignore statistics, they observe what happens to them and their friends directly. They see the mass layoffs, and the stripping of pensions, which effects them. Maybe the politicians would learn that the REAL crux of the issue isn't if you add more jobs, but if the people are actually gaining ground or losing ground against inflation. . .but I bet they will ignore the issue as they always have.

In the last couple of years, I have left inflation in the dust. So have my coworkers, my family, my friends. I wouldn't consider myself wealthy either. The mid-to-late 1990's gave us over inflated salaries. From 2000-2004, the market adjusted itself and weeded out the fat. We, especially in the IT industry, are seeing a gradual, measured, sane rate of growth in salaries. The market always corrects these problems.

You have an agenda, to stick it to Bush any chance you get. So, I'm not surprised by your response. I'm sure you think every one of those 211,000 new jobs are low paying minimum wage jobs. Your head is stuck in that Northeastern, liberal, commie, environment. Quit hating.

[DjTj]

How can unemployment be so low with illegal immigrants stealing all of the jobs from Americans?

:applause: As long as the job market is good for Americans, there will be a large demand for immigrant labor.

...and if unemployment stays this low, even a wall won't be able to keep those immigrants out.

[altair4]

Uh...it is "FauxNews".

[@DCGoldPants]

In the last couple of years, I have left inflation in the dust. So have my coworkers, my family, my friends. I wouldn't consider myself wealthy either. The mid-to-late 1990's gave us over inflated salaries. From 2000-2004, the market adjusted itself and weeded out the fat. We, especially in the IT industry, are seeing a gradual, measured, sane rate of growth in salaries. The market always corrects these problems.

You have an agenda, to stick it to Bush any chance you get. So, I'm not surprised by your response. I'm sure you think every one of those 211,000 new jobs are low paying minimum wage jobs. Your head is stuck in that Northeastern, liberal, commie, environment. Quit hating.

You've been crying the same agenda nonsense for awhile now.

Tell me this.

Why doesn't the average American agree with you on the economy then? Why isn't the message reaching them at their dinner tables, while they eat lobster, and not ramun noodles?

[nelms]

Uh...it is "FauxNews".

Uh.... the numbers they reported are directly from the Labor Department. I see we have another liberal "Einstein" on this board.

[Kilmer17]

You've been crying the same agenda nonsense for awhile now.

Tell me this.

Why doesn't the average American agree with you on the economy then? Why isn't the message reaching them at their dinner tables, while they eat lobster, and not ramun noodles?

hmmm. librul media not reporting positive news about Bush.

Nah, that's too simple.

[@DCGoldPants]

hmmm. librul media not reporting positive news about Bush.

Nah, that's too simple.

Good Point.

A real answer is too much to expect.

[SkinsHokieFan]

You've been crying the same agenda nonsense for awhile now.

Tell me this.

Why doesn't the average American agree with you on the economy then? Why isn't the message reaching them at their dinner tables, while they eat lobster, and not ramun noodles?

This is where I come in and say that the news in this presidencey, much like Reagan's, doesn't focus on good news. It is the Yeah, but, coverage

(Another anedcdote, oh no) My dad, who is far from a Republican, and voted for Kerry in 2004, says this reminds him of the 80s, economy was growing but the news never let you know

You hear GM layoffs, and you think the economy is going down. Ask the average person if the Dow is above or below 10,000. In 1999 you damn well knew the Dow was at 10k because you heard it every night on the news, over and over again

[nelms]

You've been crying the same agenda nonsense for awhile now.

Tell me this.

Why doesn't the average American agree with you on the economy then? Why isn't the message reaching them at their dinner tables, while they eat lobster, and not ramun noodles?

I live in Middle Income America. I work in Middle Income America. I shop in Middle Income America. So does my family. So do my friends. Not a single one of them ****es about the economy. NOT ONE. We all work hard. We strive to better our careers. We don't whine and piss and moan. We take action to better our lives and our jobs. My father is retired miltary and busted his ass in the private sector working "blue collar" jobs, putting 4 kids through college. My mother is an immigrant. She studied the dictionary (yes, studied the dictionary) to learn the English language. Neither one of my parents ever went to college. But both of them busted their butts to make a decent living. Not once have I ever heard them complain about the economy, when they had every reason to during many bad economic times in their lives. The mentality of too many Americans is "let's blame the government". If you're waiting on the government to better your life, you have a long wait.

[@DCGoldPants]

Ever think that those folks who were laid off are the part of the people polled, and that they don't have a lot invested in the stock market. What type of jobs do you think fall between the coasts? Jobs like the ones around the bigger cities?

[SkinsHokieFan]

Ever think that those folks who were laid off are the part of the people polled, and that they don't have a lot invested in the stock market. What type of jobs do you think fall between the coasts? Jobs like the ones around the bigger cities?

My point is, no matter who were in 1999, you knew where the market was. You knew it was 10k

Today, if you were to walk down the street, just ask where the Dow is at. And see the responses

[@DCGoldPants]

I live in Middle Income America. I work in Middle Income America. I shop in Middle Income America. So does my family. So do my friends. Not a single one of them ****es about the economy. NOT ONE. We all work hard. We strive to better our careers. We don't whine and piss and moan. We take action to better our lives and our jobs. My father is retired miltary and busted his ass in the private sector working "blue collar" jobs, putting 4 kids through college. My mother is an immigrant. She studied the dictionary (yes, studied the dictionary) to learn the English language. Neither one of my parents ever went to college. But both of them busted their butts to make a decent living. Not once have I ever heard them complain about the economy, when they had every reason to during many bad economic times in their lives. The mentality of too many Americans is "let's blame the government". If you're waiting on the government to better your life, you have a long wait.

Sure sounds like your whining right now.

I think the mentality of too many Americans is "Why are the costs of things like housing, health insurance, schooling, fuel (for home and car) going up, and incomes and benefits aren't matching that?"

[@DCGoldPants]

My point is, no matter who were in 1999, you knew where the market was. You knew it was 10k

Today, if you were to walk down the street, just ask where the Dow is at. And see the responses

You knew where it was in 1999.

I think people who aren't into trading, couldn't tell you what the market is at 10 min after its on TV.

[nelms]

Sure sounds like your whining right now.

I think the mentality of too many Americans is "Why are the costs of things like housing, health insurance, schooling, fuel (for home and car) going up, and incomes and benefits aren't matching that?"

I'm very happy with my economic situation. Why shouldn't I be? I worked hard for it. No one gave me anything.

The cost of things always goes up. So do salaries. If your salary isn't keeping up with inflation, get another job. Or retrain yourself and then get another job. Stop ****ing and do something to help yourself. People ***** about Americans not being able to save money, yet they sure can afford that 50 inch Plasma TV or that brand new sports car.

[DjTj]

My point is, no matter who were in 1999, you knew where the market was. You knew it was 10k

Today, if you were to walk down the street, just ask where the Dow is at. And see the responses

You can't compare right now to the 90's though. Even though the economy is growing, it isn't producing overnight millionaires like the dot-com boom. People who never bought stocks before started jumping on the bandwagon like never before.

Nobody talked about the economy growing in 1993 either, but that's really when the boom started. You have to give it a few years.

I can definitely corroborate your stories about job offers though - there is a HUGE difference between now and 3 years ago. One major indicator of this is that the number of applications to law schools around the country dropped this year ... people are getting real jobs instead of going into debt.

[SkinsHokieFan]

You can't compare right now to the 90's though. Even though the economy is growing, it isn't producing overnight millionaires like the dot-com boom. People who never bought stocks before started jumping on the bandwagon like never before.

Nobody talked about the economy growing in 1993 either, but that's really when the boom started. You have to give it a few years.

I can definitely corroborate your stories about job offers though - there is a HUGE difference between now and 3 years ago. One major indicator of this is that the number of applications to law schools around the country dropped this year ... people are getting real jobs instead of going into debt.

No doubt you cannot compare it to overnight millionaires making billions from googlefart.com

However you can talk about record home ownership, without the yeah but of interest only loans.

Or that the unemployment rate has fallen, and that for graduating seniors, this is a very good market to enter. I am sure you remember TJ back in 2001 or 2002 all the dire news about how much trouble we would have getting a job.

I had no trouble getting into grad school at GW, probably for the reason you cited. Applications down, more people are getting jobs coming out of college. And that is a very good thing, because companies do not hire fresh out of school grads with no expierence unless they are in a hiring mood. Which evidently is going on

[Predicto]

The economy is neither very good nor very bad right now. It is a mixed message. It's a great time to be a stockholder, or a real property owner. Not such a good time to be an hourly wage worker.

Many of the fundamental indicators are improving, but with one obvious exception. As long as real wages continue to slide, it is not a good economy for the average worker, and you can't expect them to be that happy about it.

[SkinsHokieFan]

The economy is neither very good nor very bad right now. It is a mixed message. It's a great time to be a stockholder, or a real property owner. Not such a good time to be an hourly wage worker.

Many of the fundamental indicators are improving, but with one obvious exception. As long as real wages continue to slide, it is not a good economy for the average worker, and you can't expect them to be that happy about it.

Name me one time in our history it has been a GOOD thing to be an hourly wage worker

Or a time when an hourly wage worker was not in such shape where gas prices climbing did not effect them

It was the same as in the 90s, 80s, 70s, 60s, if you do not have the skills to get a well paying job, you are at the mercy of the market, and the fluctuations that go on with things such as commodity prices and market risks

If you do have the skills to have a well paying job, you can absorb these fluctuations much better

[@DCGoldPants]

Name me one time in our history it has been a GOOD thing to be an hourly wage worker

Or a time when an hourly wage worker was not in such shape where gas prices climbing did not effect them

It was the same as in the 90s, 80s, 70s, 60s, if you do not have the skills to get a well paying job, you are at the mercy of the market, and the fluctuations that go on with things such as commodity prices and market risks

If you do have the skills to have a well paying job, you can absorb these fluctuations much better

Then why are those hourly workers more down on it than before? What changed?

[rictus58]

I'm very happy with my economic situation. Why shouldn't I be? I worked hard for it. No one gave me anything.

The cost of things always goes up. So do salaries. If your salary isn't keeping up with inflation, get another job. Or retrain yourself and then get another job. Stop ****ing and do something to help yourself. People ***** about Americans not being able to save money, yet they sure can afford that 50 inch Plasma TV or that brand new sports car.

Good for you for working hard. But you are only seeing things in Your world and ignoring the situation that surrounds most americans. It's real easy to say "get another job" or "retrain" yourself. The reality of the situation is quite different. Many people simply CANNOT afford to get an education in something different than the field they are working in. Aside from the financial costs associated with it, often time it takes years to get said education. Once you acquire said education, you have loans you have to payback that often times negate the money you acquired by switching careers. My wife and I save what we can. We have disposable income, however, since I began working, merit increases and bonus' have NOT met the rate of inflation.

[SkinsHokieFan]

Then why are those hourly workers more down on it than before? What changed?

Are they REALLY down then before? I mean think about it Bufford

If you were making 18,000 a year in 1999 or 2000 that was still peanuts back then. From 2000- to early 2003 we had sticky inflation. Odds are you did not have health insurance then, you don't have it now. Odds are if gas prices went up, it hurt.

I don't see what difference it makes. If you are an hourly wage worker you will struggle. If you are a property owner or stock holder you are in better shape

[@DCGoldPants]

Yes, they are down...or they were lying the last hundred times they were asked about it.

[SkinsHokieFan]

Yes, they are down...or they were lying the last hundred times they were asked about it.

I know you are not this dense

Name me a time in history when wage workers were not "down"

Were wage workers going on nice vacations in 1999? Were they not struggling then?

Thats my point, no matter what point in the history of the world, the less you make, the more you are at the mercy of factors you do not control

[nelms]

Good for you for working hard. But you are only seeing things in Your world and ignoring the situation that surrounds most americans. It's real easy to say "get another job" or "retrain" yourself. The reality of the situation is quite different. Many people simply CANNOT afford to get an education in something different than the field they are working in. Aside from the financial costs associated with it, often time it takes years to get said education. Once you acquire said education, you have loans you have to payback that often times negate the money you acquired by switching careers. My wife and I save what we can. We have disposable income, however, since I began working, merit increases and bonus' have NOT met the rate of inflation.

I am from the same world you are from. I've worked 80-90 hours a week on some of my jobs, jobs that I have hated. But I did it because I needed the money. I did it to further my career. I made sacrifices. Stop ****ing and work harder. If you have a healthy body and a healthy mind, there is absolutely nothing that is stopping you from being successful in this country. Nothing.

[@DCGoldPants]

I know you are not this dense

Name me a time in history when wage workers were not "down"

Were wage workers going on nice vacations in 1999? Were they not struggling then?

Thats my point, no matter what point in the history of the world, the less you make, the more you are at the mercy of factors you do not control

I'm talking about workers opinions of their current economic situations, and their potential futures.