Have you had “enough” yet? Recently, after discussing the economy, reading a few newspaper articles and catching a little news, “Enough” hit me. I’ve had enough of the naysayers, the people and organizations claiming that the end is near, that this is The Next Great Depression.
All we need to do is to observe our reality and not the media’s reality. Have you been out to eat lately? How about a movie? Have you visited a mall lately? I have, and guess what? People are still spending money. The world hasn’t stopped. It’s slowed down, but it hasn’t stopped. I get up in the morning and turn on my cable TV, drink my coffee, log on to the Internet, read my USA Today newspaper and drive my car to the office. I still fill it up with gas, change the oil, wash it and put new tires on it. I go to the store and buy coffee, toothpaste, bread, milk, cereal and everything else, and who makes these things? Do you think that where I shop and what I buy has anything to do with the stocks I own in my portfolio? Certainly it does. Our economy is not dead.
My daughter received a movie this past Christmas titled Kit Kittredge: An American Girl. It is a wonderful movie that teaches values and importance of family. It’s set in the mid-1930s in Baltimore, Md., and Kit’s father, a car salesman, loses his job and moves to Chicago to look for work. Their home becomes a boarding house, and they start to raise chickens. Folks, I don’t see that happening around here. I do however see companies downsizing and do empathize with those employees who have been squeezed out of their jobs. Over the past few weeks we have met with many of these people, and it’s interesting to hear their take on things, such as, “This is meant to be, and I’m looking forward to a new chapter in my book.”
Now, I’m not saying everything is sailing smoothly. There are several ships that need to be righted along the way, such as Medicare, the enormous deficits and debt of our country and underfunded pensions, to name a few. However, I don’t believe for a minute this is the next Great Depression.
Let’s look at a little history. In 1972 we had the oil crisis, when oil quadrupled from 1972 to 1974. Then we had the worst recession since the Great Depression in the early ’80s, with 10.8 percent unemployment and 13.5 percent inflation nationwide. (Right now
unemployment is at 8.5 percent.) Next was the savings and loan crisis in the late ’80s. Do you remember that 534 banks closed their doors during that time period? It’s not exactly the same, but does it sound a little familiar?
This is what would have happened to an investment during these times of crisis:
So, in closing, “enough” stands for “Let’s take one day at a time.” We realize that we have family members and friends who are hurting during this time period, but let’s also recognize the fact that this too shall pass! We do live in the greatest country in the world, and we will most likely see our way out of this. Let’s spend a little more time with those family members and friends and less time sifting through the TV and newspapers. In the end does the media really know or care about you?
As always, at iWealth, we are here to serve you, your family and friends. If you have any questions, or if someone that you’ve recently talked with could use this, please pass it on. We are here to help.
