I agree people do not know how to save now days and part of that is because our goverment promises SS & health care when we get older. The only thing me and my wife owe money on right now is our home. Both cars are paid for and we have an account which we put money so when one breaks down or we need to buy another we have the cash on hand. Thats not saying that I might not take out a small loan for a car but it will only be financed for a few years at best with a small payment. I've never owned a new car but could afford one very easy. We purchased a home when the market as going off and we had to look long and hard to find a home I thought we could turn a proffit when the market corrected. We got lucky and found a Dr. (thought he new everything which was good for me) who was selling his home for about 3/4 of its value and after 4 years we have about $100,000 equity in these times. I just see so many people spending way more than we do and they make about 1/2 as much and just wonder how they make ends meet. They have to be living from one paycheck to the next and gof forbid is one looses their job. I could walk from my job today and go about 1 to 2 years without a pay check. it would be tough but we could make it until a new job turned up. Sorry for my rant.

seems like everbody is getting a good rant out of this, made me feel better for a little while. Right now my biggest out of pocket expense is insurance, deductables and copays, our familly is spending more each month in those cost than our house payment. I've seen the bills, and I'm happy that the insurance is covering alot of our medical bills, we got our daughter qualified for disabilty, its picking up what our primary isn't. Just when I thought we might be turning the corner, my wife just got the results back form her biopsy, they came back positive. I raelly don't know just how much more of this crap i'm going to be able to take

Sorry about your news Spare, hope things come around for your wife, she is in my prayers.
The rest of you fellows make good points and there is truth in all of it. But you are also doing what good men do when they discuss tough times, they bring it back on themselves.
We should save more, we should use less credit, all true.
But WE are not the problem.
When you guys get the chance I would like for you to go to Mark Levin . com and pull up a transcript of his radio show this past friday.
He is FIERY type of guy, a conservative, and he tells it like it is. He did a show about what has happened and laid out in detail what is happenening to us and why and it was the most intelligent comprehensive explanation I have heard and explains in detail what we need to do as citizens of this country to fix it for good.
He is very mad at what is being done to the American people and so am I. When you hear
it laid out all at once it will make you mad too.
You will have no doubt about what happened and why.
It SHOULD BE BROADCASTED ON EVERY TV AND RADIO STATION IN THE COUNTRY MORNING NOON AND NIGHT ALL WEEK.

Willy I can't get to Mark Levin.com. I get a artist Mark S levin site. Help me? Billy Mac


Thanks Willy!

http://marklevinshow.com/wp-content/...in09192008.mp3

If you can listen to this and fast forward thru commercials and you will
learn what happend and why

i also think the working joe is gonna get hosed on this bailout deal. I'm very disappointed the both candidates are in favor of it, this tells me wall street greased both sides of the aisle in congress. as far as saving, i think credit cards are the reason the oil company's are getting away with the prices. i'm old enough to remember the early 70's when gas went from .30 to .75. everbody was freaking out & sales dropped way off. now people piss & moan and put it on the credit card and pay $25 dollars a month till they die.

Actually neither candidate is for the bailout (thank God). Hopefully the congress will stall out long enough (thanks to the republicans) so that the wall will fall. Of course the country will go into a recession, but that is the natural swing of things when these greedy wall streeters do these things for so long. You reep what you sow. You can rest assured that if this bailout goes through, the dollar won't be worth a penny. That will continue to drive up the price of oil (again) as we free fall into endless inflation. And just wait, if the bailout is passed, what's gonna happen when that doesn't help anything???? Who's gonna bailout our all knowing government?? China? Saudi Arabia? Dubai? I wonder who we'll have to pay our taxes to in the future????

unless your 401K, IRA, etc. had any type of REIT's, and stock in various other companies that will get the bail out help.

There's plenty of blame on both sides of the aisle...here's where we need to side-step politics and look at what's really wrong here...there's been no accountability (lack of which has been sanctioned by members of BOTH parties)

Some here warn of socialism being brought on Dems...here is a good example of it being sponsored by Reps as well as Dems...either one of them who says "we gotta act right now" needs to go sit down...they are trying to pull a fast one...

Either way, we are about to witness a HUGE shift in favor of the wealthy...once the dust settles here, people w/cash will be able to buy up all kinds of distressed properties...it's a no lose situation for them...and plenty of losses elsewhere...:cen:

I really believe someone should go back and pull up the record...those congressmen(both parties) who voted for deregulation should be sent home...easy...

I second the motion!