Better Off? Let's Count the Ways We're Not

[Geee]

Investors Business Daily:

Economic Conditions: All weekend, Democratic party leaders kept fumbling their answer to a simple question: Are we better off than we were four years ago? There's a good reason for that: We're not.

It wasn't until Monday that the campaign was able to figure out how to answer the question, with Obama's deputy campaign manager, Stephanie Cutter, saying, "Absolutely."

Obama's argument is simple: The economy was headed for a second Great Depression when he took office — hemorrhaging GDP and jobs. His stimulus, the auto bailouts and so on, prevented that, and the economy has since been slowly digging out of the massive ditch into which President Bush drove it. Thus, Obama says, he deserves an "incomplete" grade.

It's quite a stretch that Obama stopped another depression. The recession ended just five months into his first term, before most of his policies had a chance to take effect. It's an even bigger stretch to say that people's lives have been improving during the 3-year-old Obama "recovery," which started in June 2009.

By most measures the country isn't making slow progress; it's falling further behind. Some examples:

 

 

• Median incomes: These have fallen 7.3% since Obama took office, which translates into an average of $4,000. Since the so-called recovery started, median incomes continued to fall, dropping $2,544, or 4.8%.

 

• Long-term unemployed: More than three years into Obama's recovery, 811,000 more still fall into this category than when the recession ended.

[Valin]

@Geee

 

Well I'm better off. In 2008 I had to spend 40+ hours a week making air filters, Today OTOH I now have lots and lots of time to contemplate how much better my life is now that I don't have to work. And as a plus I'm not burning all that gasoline going back and forth to work, so I'm doing my small part to Save The Planet.

Life really is good now. Just think how much better life will be after 4 more years of Barack & Joe!

Some slight sarcasm may be present

[Geee]

@Geee

 

Well I'm better off. In 2008 I had to spend 40+ hours a week making air filters, Today OTOH I now have lots and lots of time to contemplate how much better my life is now that I don't have to work. And as a plus I'm not burning all that gasoline going back and forth to work, so I'm doing my small part to Save The Planet.

Life really is good now. Just think how much better life will be after 4 more years of Barack & Joe!

Some slight sarcasm may be present

 

[Valin]

@Geee

 

Its all part of the adventure. I can hardly wait to see what happens next...sure to be interesting.

[raygun]