How's the economy in your neighborhood?

[beak]

We live about 40 miles from the Denver metro area. Colorado isn't as hard hit as a lot of places. I tend to gab a lotto people who's cars I inspect and there are a lot more husbands at home now. The area I inspect in is mostly upper middle class to lower upper class. These guys are out of work but have significant cushions that they are living off of. They're not too worried. They have money to help get them started doing something different if they need to. The number of people standing on corners with signs is about the same. McDonalds sales are up because of the dollar menu. You can actually eat a McDouble and fries for about the same price as a sandwich with lunchmeat from home. Plus it comes with all that grease to dribble down your chin.

I shouldn't have looked at this thread. It's depressing to see how bad it's getting in most parts of this country. I'm going to leave now and go back to happy land.

 

[beak]

Quote:

 

[I have WHAT in my yard?]

Around here things "look" pretty much the same. Most people still have jobs and if they don't they seem to be weathering it pretty well. We lost a chink of our retirement plan, but who didn't?

Grocery prices have dropped a big chunk, but I also know the piece about the dairy farmers. I am stocking up on certain items including beef. The prices right now are quite low and they will not stay that way. Farmers are dumping cows onto the meat market which is driving down the cost of meat for human consumption, for now.

We went ahead and bought a generator so that our food investment doesn't get lost in a power outage. I am not expecting the SHTF scenario of grid outages, but food is going to get pricier at some point.

People forget that things didn't start getting really bad until 1932 or so and then the second mini crash happened in was it 33?? We're not even a year into this. We've been in a recission for a year, but it has only been six months since all that money vanished.

 

[beak]

Quote:
Lincoln mania? I was born in Springfield. What is that big Phallic looking building that towers over their skyline? What's with Lincoln mania? Is it actually enough to bump their economy? Bizarre.

 

[EweSheep]

And the politicians that goes with it!

That is what they are saying, everything is good there!

 

[yotetrapper]

I live in Stronghurst IL Beak, halfway in between Monmouth IL and Burlington IA, about a hour south of the Quad cities.

So wait, why are farmers dumping milk? I dont believe there is NO market for it? They're dumping it because they dont want to sell for it for lower prices? If farmers are going bankrupt because they have to sell food for reasonable prices, then I tend to think that they, like the people who caused this recession by buying houses they could not afford, have spent beyond their means and bought too many head of cattle and too fancy of milking equipment. But I could be wrong. I haven't heard much about the dairy industry and there may be things going on here I dont know about?

I've really not noticed meat prices drop too much here? Most decent cuts of meat still sell for between $3-5 dollars a pound with good steaks selling for $6-something a pound, and hamburger fpr $2.50-$3.

 

[Scoop]

I didn't make it clear in my post. The farmers are dumping milk because they lost the export business that they had. They can't sell it all now. The feed prices are clobbering them. Some are actually going out of the dairy business all together.

On another note - has anyone noticed the prices of vegetable oil? I am seeing well over $8.00 a gallon for regular vegetable oil and I saw $12.00 a gallon for corn oil. (I am buying in bulk right now)

 

[sara]

Love the picture!

 

[yotetrapper]

Yes! Vegetable oil is thru the roof! I buy one bottle that gets used for only one thing. I have a love for store bought brownie mixes and I've not found anything that works right to replace the oil in the recipe. I hide my veggie oil in the bedroom so DH's son doesn't use it. If he wants veggie oil, he can buy it! My bottle has lasted me months now. For every thing else I used to use veggie oil for, I now use lard. MUCH more economical, especially when you render it yourself.

Ok, color me naive here, what happened to make farmers unable to export milk?

 

[BlackBart]

Everything has hit the roof here. It is expensive to live here.

Bread, ($2.50 a small loaf on sale) milk (about a gallon $4.50) and cheese (about $5.00 a pound)
The Dairy Farmers here are living a good life. They got a buy out and it was akin to winning the lottery.

cheese is so expensive, to make a cheese sandwich it is getting pricey