POLL: Will Americans change their spending habits after the recession ends?

[Toe Jam]

Gas prices go up and people stop buying huge SUV's. They go back down and they resume with purchasing the gas guzzlers.

When the recession is over, will Americans save more and spend less or will they still run up their credit cards past what they can afford and splurge when they know they can't?

Poll coming.

[TheGoodBits]

Wait I think I might have misunderstood the question. I said yes, based on them changing from what they are now (more fiscally responsible).

Naturally when people have more $ and are feeling better about the economy, they are going to be stupid about indulgences and splurging.

[THE OUTSIDER]

Do you need to ask? No. Did you see the prices for H2 Hummers when gas prices were around $4.00 a gallon? Now look at the prices.

[TorresA]

No. Spending money is American way. If you have $20 to spend on lunch you buy steak, if you have $5 you buy a Lean Cuisine When you get back to $20 you throw the Lean Cuisine to side and go back to steak.

The big issue is the ones that can only afford $5 and don't change their habits and still buy the steaks.

[GibbsFactor]

Not if this is all it was.

We need a system shock. Getting bailouts and assistance for negligence allows negligence to live on.

There hasn't been a lot of real pain so far. Some people have lost some jobs, some companies have gone bankrupt, every one's retirement has taken a hit, but nothing has happened yet that leads me to believe we've been enlightened.

[PleaseBlitz]

Some people who have been hit particularly hard will change. Many people will not.

[NavyDave]

No but the liberals will continue to create artificial shortages in Oil by restricting domestic drilling, exploration and building of refineries.

[Mark The Homer]

I think it depends on how long it is and how much suffering we endure.

[Thiebear]

There's a recession?

If we stop spending, won't it cause another of these things?

[Midnight Judges]

I never changed my spending habits, and I probably never will. Of course that's because I never spent that much money or lived outside my means in the first place.

[Chachie]

Nope. No friggin' way.

[The Brave Little Toaster Oven]

Do you need to ask? No. Did you see the prices for H2 Hummers when gas prices were around $4.00 a gallon? Now look at the prices.

How much were they? I remember them being in the 50k range before the high gas prices.

[Prosperity]

I can speak for myself... no more credit cards

[mjah]

A few years after 9/11, we are no closer as a nation than we were beforehand. Today the left-right politics are arguably farther apart than they were in August 2001. I see NavyDave is in this thread, doing his part to make sure that trend continues. Bravo, sir. Just lovely.

This recession, assuming it doesn't deepen into a serious depression, will be forgotten.

The housing slump of the 90s... various and sundry depressions... 9/11... People tend to forget. Only something like the Great Depression, which had so many people literally living day-to-day without safety nets, leaves a transformative impact. And that was back in the days before consumerist cluture had really blossomed in the US.

[haithman]

Not a chance

[Elessar78]

I think people do change their spending habits with sufficient hardship. I know people in their 80s and 60s who are very frugal to this day because of the hardships they experienced through the great depression and WW2, respectively. But I don't think people are even close to experiencing those same things now. It is bad, but it's nothing like standing in line for a dinner or having a coupon for your month's allotment of butter.

[cooleycollector47]

I have already changed my ways. I am in college and i hated seeing the constant -7.00 -8.00 -5.00 on stuff that I didn't need. I now make my own food and set aside a set amount of money for the week for food, beer, etc. Having a debit card and using it you spend money and not even think about it, but when you are actually giving away your money you feel different.

I hope that we don't reach a depression, but hope that it makes people realize that they have to live within their means.

Today I was getting my hair cut and overheard a woman talking about not being able to pay for her mortgage every month, but then asked how much her hair was going to cost and they said 82.00 and she was going on about getting her dog groomed, taking care of her horses, getting the vet to come out. Hmmmm