Americans saw their net worth drop by 18 percent in 2008, the Wall Street Journal reported this morning. But while the paper reports the news as rather dire, it’s not nearly as bad as I would have expected. First of all, the stock market dropped even more last year—34 percent, in fact. So Americans’ real [...]
Entries Tagged as ‘economy’
March 10, 2009
Cultural effects of “The Great Recession”
In general, I have never believed in categorizing a group of people as “Generation X” or “Generation Y.” The whole concept of summing up 50 million people in one word and a letter seems fundamentally flawed. And the more you dig into the details, the more absurd it seems. Generation Y, also known as the [...]
February 15, 2009
Saturday night at Recession Central
This weekend, we’re up in northern Massachusetts with Jon’s dad, visiting friends and family. Yesterday, we decided to head up to Nashua, New Hampshire, to go to Circuit City and check out the liquidation sale. (Nashua is about 15 minutes away from where we’re staying.) The whole strip mall was deserted. Circuit City was offering [...]
November 26, 2008
Five things to do if you get laid off
These tips are courtesy of my friend who was laid off by Oracle in September.
1. Take two days off before you start the job hunt. Gather your thoughts, cool off, and give your resume a thorough cleaning. If you rush, you could end up sending out a resume that’s not quite ready.
2. Think strategically about [...]
November 24, 2008
A $3,000 stimulus check? Yes we can!
Several months ago, I wrote that a $3,000 stimulus check might have been more effective than a $1,200 check, which is what we received. Remember the good old days, back in April and May? Taxpayers all got a check in the mail, which, theoretically, they were supposed to spend, in order to stimulate the economy. But many [...]
