The Economic Collapse

[Exterous]

I wonder what states they could be? Oh look, southern hick states where republican leaders (at the request of their hick supporters) don't want to pay the trivial costs of birth control for the poor nor do they want public schools to teach proper sex education. I wouldn't have guessed that if I had a hundred years to try.

Eh? It looks like WV and Kentucky are democratic states not to mention the district of Columbia.

Then of course we have cities like Detroit, Cleveland, Philadelphia that are doing so well under the democrats

 

[dmcowen674]

Then of course we have cities like Detroit that are doing so well under the democrats

What?

Detroit just turned off half the street lights.

They are so broke they are going dark.

 

[rchiu]

Kinda like what happened with Rome.

The government kept the people distracted from the issues. Rome slowly crept into a state of ruin and decay.

With the U.S., or jobs, our financial base has been shipped to china. 20 - 30 years ago working middle class could support their family with no college degree. Timmy could leave high school, go to work in a shipyard and earn a good living.

30 years later, those shipyards are in some foreign country exploiting cheap labor.

What is Timmy supposed to do now? Go into college debt and "hope" he can find a job?

The factory jobs that mostly supported the middle class are gone.

Well, Detroit could've been the center of the universe if America bombed both Germany and Japan to hell and never let them recover. American would have total control over the car market and any American in Detroit could've gotten an assembly line work, full pension, nice salary, everyone's life would have been happy and peachy.

But sorry, that's not the reality. World around the US changed and become more competitive, US has to deal with it. People around the world are getting more educated, more efficient. US can't expect to be competitive with only high school grads, and US can't expect to get the top GDP with uneducated workforce and unskilled labor industries.

You people need to stop holding on to the past glory and deal with challenges today and future. Or the entire US will truly goes to hell.

 

[Exterous]

What?

Detroit just turned off half the street lights.

I think you need a new sarcasm meter

They are so broke they are going dark.

Racist!

 

[dmcowen674]

I think you need a new sarcasm meter

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-...-streetlights-may-go-out-as-city-shrinks.html

Half of Detroit’s Streetlights Go Out as City Shrinks

Detroit, whose 139 square miles contain 60 percent fewer residents than in 1950, will try to nudge them into a smaller living space by eliminating almost half its streetlights.

Other U.S. cities have gone partially dark to save money, among them Colorado Springs; Santa Rosa, California; and Rockford, Illinois. Detroit’s plan goes further: It would leave sparsely populated swaths unlit in a community of 713,000 that covers more area than Boston, Buffalo and San Francisco combined. Vacant property and parks account for 37 square miles (96 square kilometers), according to city planners.


“You have to identify those neighborhoods where you want to concentrate your population,” said Chris Brown, Detroit’s chief operating officer. “We’re not going to light distressed areas like we light other areas.”

There’s already experience snuffing out streetlights within Detroit’s borders. Highland Park, a 3-square-mile city encircled by its larger neighbor, removed 1,100 of 1,600 streetlights last year, after piling up a $4 million debt to DTE Energy. The move saves $45,000 a month, said Alejandro Bodipo-Memba, a spokesman for the company.

As Detroit’s streets go dark, some of those neighborhoods may fade away with the dying light.

 

[Exterous]

snip

I'm not saying that you are wrong - I know full well about detroits lighting plan. I was being sarcastic about Detroit Cleveland and Philly doing well

 

[Budarow2]

A worldwide, economic collapse is a near certainty because there are only 3 basic choices for countries to make which includes the following:

1. World-wide debt forgiveness (i.e., the rich forgive the debts of the poor/middle class). This obviously won't happen in large.
2. Countries print $$$ to pay their bills, rampant inflation follows, and the world economy contracts and collapses.
3. Countries don’t print $$$, rampant deflation follows and the world economy contracts and collapses.

Most likely, it’ll be a combination of the above around the globe.

The only way to survive is to figure out how to make a lot of $$$ in a hurry or if you have a lot of $$$, figure out how to keep it.

 

[Infohawk]

People around the world are getting more educated, more efficient.

LOL. That doesn't have that much impact. The biggest impact is that technology now makes it feasible to hire cheap third-worlders for many more jobs. The key word there is cheap. Generally, the productivity and education is worse, but it's offset by the cheapness.

 

[Texashiker]

US can't expect to get the top GDP with uneducated workforce and unskilled labor industries.

Not only uneducated, but getting a wrong education, or an education that brings very little to society.

There have been news articles of people getting a liberal arts degree, and being $100k in college loan debt. How does having a bachelors in pottery benefit society? How many people do we need that are trained in ancient pottery?

$100k for a useless degree. That person would have been better off buying a home with that $100k.

We need engineers, we need scientist, and we need people that can build the stuff the engineers design. It does not do any good to have 99 engineers and 1 welder.

For the US to stay competitive, we have to have a balance of educated professionals, and skilled workers.

What good does it do to design a dam, if you do not have anyone to build the dam?

What good does it do to design a chemical refinery, if we do not have skilled workers to build it?

If someone holds a useless degree, they are no better off then an unskilled or uneducated worker.

Either learn a skill, or learn a profession, or even do both. But do something to contribute to society.

 

[Yreka]

Serious question.

Is the government going to be upset with me for using all of those devices to look at big tits?

L M F A O

Perfect response

 

[GT1999]

One out of every for kids on food stamps is pretty staggering.

But you also have to admit corruption has rapidly increased and there is obviously flaws in the system.

Mo gubment, mo probwems.

 

[werepossum]

Serious question.

Is the government going to be upset with me for using all of those devices to look at big tits?

Yes - it's discriminatory. To be a good person, we must use these devices to look at ALL tits.

 

[sportage]

Cut the damn food stamps then. They're probably just using them to buy pot anyway. And video games. Damn kids always on my lawn...
Skittles, food stamps and smokin pot.
(and they never share

 

[zanejohnson]

Cut the damn food stamps then. They're probably just using them to buy pot anyway. And video games. Damn kids always on my lawn...
Skittles, food stamps and smokin pot.
(and they never share

of course they are... wouldnt you?

 

[OCGuy]

Does this mention anything about milk hitting $10/gal?

 

[rchiu]

LOL. That doesn't have that much impact. The biggest impact is that technology now makes it feasible to hire cheap third-worlders for many more jobs. The key word there is cheap. Generally, the productivity and education is worse, but it's offset by the cheapness.

True, cheap labor in third world countries has much to do with it. But American are getting beat on many front, quality, innovation and not just price. Take Japan and Korea for example. Their car and electronic product started out cheap and nothing else. But they evolve, improved. How many people say they buy Honda and Samsung because it's cheap today? Actually American are not leading anymore in higher value manufacturing like cars, expensive electronics, semi-conductor...etc, it's not just cheap, but complete lack of capability to do it efficiently. And I tell you, manufacturing is not just putting some guy on the production line, it involves planning, optimization, supply chain, computerized inventory/warehousing. American has lost many of those skills and capability.

And business are not in it for the moral duties, you can't expect them to pay much more expensive American workers for the love of the country. Are US customers supporting their product? Is US government doing anything to help them become more competitive? I am not talking about protectionism, that will only make businesses fat and lazy, and American consumers forced to pay for inferior products. I am talking about funding research for better product, better manufacturing capability, targeted education to provide skilled and knowledgeable work force. Help companies to really compete, in high end industries. Does America really know what industries they want to be competitive in? Is there a plan?

Maybe instead of blaming everyone else, oh by the way, also have the rights to find a better life for themselves instead of serving mighty American, you need to think why you and your American politicians haven't done jack to make this country more competitive.