If it hasn't become clear to you now that the economy is worsening, tell me where you live, because I'm coming to join you. As major industries and global corporations suffer immeasurable financial catastrophes, the individuals of America, and consequently those of the world, have been forced to tighten their belts. Some saw it coming, but most did not and are looking at the possible of end of the Great American Empire as a controlling force throughout the world. Once a country's economy goes... What can we do to fix this problem as consumers and citizens? Has President Obama lived up to his promises, especially after his pledge to keep General Motors in business turned out to be false? How widespread will the effects of this recession be throughout the world? Will it mean the end of America as a Superpower? And is that good or bad?
As for fixing the problem, I am sorry to say, but I don't think there's much that we really can do. This country's economy is so controlled by the larger corporations, that the individual doesn't have much say. It's pretty much up to these corporations and the Obama administration as to where we go from here. That said, I believe Obama is doing the best he can. The thing with GM, he can only do so much to keep them afloat, and after so long, they kind of have to learn to walk a little bit on their own. If they can't manage even that, how is that Obama's fault? In fact, a lot of the criticism he is taking is quite ridiculous. Most Americans seem to expect him to fix the economy overnight, and that simply isn't possible, even if he is doing everything absolutely correctly. Under the most ideal circumstances, he may not even be able to do all that much in his first term. It takes time to jump start the economy. Look at the great depression for example. FDR diddnt make it disappear overnight. As for the end of America as a superpower, I don't see that happening any time in the near future.
I think an appropriate sub-topic to discuss in this would be the government's plan to jumpstart the economy. But more specifically, bailouts. Many say it was right to bail corporations out and some say it was wrong and propose instead we give it to other areas. Both have merits. Though it wasn't the soundest economic strategy the government has used, what people don't realize is that the government is trying to keep the foundation of our financial system from crumbling. By bailing out these financial institutions (and later other industries), the government may have prevented (or just delayed) another great depression from happening. We won't know for sure if it was a good idea to implement the bail out strategy until after we regain our steps and fix the economy.
I just don't understand why Obama raises taxes to ensure that General Motors and other crucial international corporations do not go bankrupt, only that it was indeed inevitable later on. So now here we all are worse for wear not only because the corporations are bankrupt, but because we have a little less cash. thoughts
I think you answered your own question. You said why should we keep the crucial international corporations afloat? Because they're crucial international corporations. If we let them go into bankruptcy, then we will have very little domestic car companies and we would have to rely on foreign car companies which would increase our debt further.