I Still Believe...

liz i am a 62 year old male current on mortgage(this month)though it is a little high and my son has this year left at ut and one more. My work has decreased greatly but i am not a couch potato. have found way to start new business and need to secure a grant or loan that will allow me to to back-end the start up fee. heard you and eric when he mentioned this but can find nothing on it. dont want to bankrupt.please help me. i want to work my way out of this and at least give my son something to start on thank you very much

Dont talk about other news organzations loving pessimism as long as you have Cody Williard reveling in the real estate losses. Prices have moderated, interest rates are down but people will continue to stay on the sidelines with downers like Cody around.. Yes, I am a real estate broker.

I have been complaining to XM/Sirius about dropping FoxBiz for what seems like months. FozBiz was the only channel that I tuned in. I have kindly asked them to add it back, and even suggested that I would cancel their service to which they responded by letting me to cancel it - it is no wonder that they are having so many problems. Go Buckeyes!

Dear Liz: I hope Fox is paying you well, I know you work hard, and do a great job. Trust me when I tell you this, but if you werent on Fox, myself and a VAST number of people...would not tune in. People go to the competetion because they have earned the trust, Larry C. provides the right wing prospective, the rest of the crew are fairly balanced. You yourself are a big part on that earned creditability and I so wish you were back there. I'm sure this will never be posted, but I hope you get a chance to read what I have written and truly beleive.

Liz: I agree with you with unbridled enthusiasm, there will be a wonderful and rewarding bounce after the majority of the toxic assets are fully disclosed and written off, and yes, America and its people are gutsy, tough and intelligent. I share your realistic optimism.

I wonder if this downturn is going to the power of the prosumer? I learned that term in Revolutionary Wealth by Alvin and Heidi Toffler. The word is combo of Production and consumer. Hence prosumer. The Tofflers,who are fururists looked on how the global economy is going change and shift in the future. Not to mention the death of beaurocracies as we know it. I read this book last year and it couldn't help think of new economic revenue streams that could develop in various sectors from green to techonology. U should read this book.

Liz, Continuing from my previous comment, IBM is a bad example. Please note that IBM did not lay anyone off during the Great Depression. During this "situation" (not crisis), IBM can't lay people off fast enough and/or move jobs to the BRIC countries quickly enough. Who believes Sam Palmisano's "Global Realignment" sleight of hand? Richard Stasko President, Stasko Group, Inc.

Liz, I agree with you that we (Americans) will get through this. The American Dream may; however, be somewhat scaled back in the process. We may have to look elsewhere for new leadership. The Obama administration simply isn't up to the task. This populist rhetoric should have stopped Jan 20. The Mayors who were on MFB this morning were likewise almost caricatures. The next time one of them is on any program, the question that must be asked is "Did you go to your staffs with a 10% or a 30% (pick a number) challenge on staff reduction?" All they do is talk about laying off cops, firemen or teachers to scare everyone. Remember places like Philadelphia let people retire and come back the next day get re-hired to the same job and double dip on both salary and retirement. Ask Ed Rendell why we should help those people at all??????? I'm a fan. I like to think of myself as a realistic optimist as well but there are obstacles looming ahead. Richard Stasko President, Stasko Group, Inc.

Right on Liz!!

I am a believer that Americans are generally a resilient group. We've proved it any number of times. Right now, we are going through a rough patch. We'll get through it. It's going to hurt, but we'll get through it. I am encouraged to see people like Meredith Whitney starting a new company right in the middle of this downturn. There are great opportunities for bold, entreneurial folks to grab. More than any government intervention, that will lead us out of this mess.

I agree with you Liz but at the same time, Americans are not going to put up with rewarding bad behavior forever. I completely agree with the fellas over at CNBC and the folks at the Chicago Exchange. I think this is just the beginning of a wake up around the country that the goverment is giving incentives to all kind of bad judment.

Liz, I applaud your optimism. Unfortunately, it is difficult to believe that if our government continues on this same path we will all be better off. We are fortunate that the rest of the world is in a similar situation. If it were only America, we'd be thrown to the wolves by the International community. What troubles me most is the simple fact that Obama claims "America Voted for Change". Well, just ever so slightly did 51% of the population vote for change. The rest of America is being Ignored by the Dems. This adminstration will do more to solidify the "true" republican party than any since Mr. Reagan. I cannot stand the direction our country is headed and I personally am ready for a Revolt against the Government. I have a hard time standing by and watching the "Leaders" of this great Country flush it down the toilet. Thanks for the Soap Box.

"Just look at a handful of the many great business names that actually came into existence during recessions or the Great Depression" There's a difference there. The people. Many in today's workforce, not just the yung 'un's coming into the workforce, believe that they are owed work, owed their house, owed their car, etc. People still believed in individual responsibility and that there was honor in a job well done. Sacrifice is key to starting a business in a down economy, and we don't have a lot of people today interested in sacrifice. Though I'm sure there are some out there...

The phrase "everyone should just stop paying their taxes’ and refuse to go to work" wasn't speaking to pessimism, but sarcasm and disgust. It wasn't suggesting that we give up on the economy, but that under Obama and his "plan," we will be rewarded for becoming societal deadweights, and penalized for making more money. But if we were to all just quit working and paying taxes, where would "relief" come from for those who aren't interested in work or paying taxes?

I too thank my lucky stars every day for having been born in the US. We are truly blessed.

LIz I see what you mean. I read Alvin Toffler's book Revulionary Wealth. He and his wife pointed out where the prosumer has changed the marketplace. What I'm looking for now: rise of new companies,new entenpauners with bold new ideas. Bold ideas that could change soceity like the internet has done. Look at how the old is struggling for example: like the Oscars telecast could be viewed as history past. What surprises me about tinseltown everyonce in a while is how they haven't grasp new technologies like Silican Valley has. And there is no telling what new coporations are coming with these tough times. Director Steven Sodenburg predicts that when a film is released to the cinema; it's dvd will be released the same opening day.

"Realistic Optimist?" BS. You are clueless if you don't open your eyes to what is being done to this country. I am thankfully employed, but if I become unemployed, the absolute first bill I will stop paying is my mortgage. Obama showed us yesterday that you do not need to take responsibility, that you will be rewarded for taking on obligations that you could never have repaid in the first place. You really should change the title of your post from "I still believe..." to "I still have my head firmly planted in the sand..."

But that was back when Capitalism was Legal.