Stock market surges to its highest levels in 2009

I hope it continues to work out!

Hi Mel.

It will continue to work out. Stocks reaching their highest levels means that investor confidence is on the rise. That means more capital for new ventures and more capital for expanding existing businesses which means that we will soon see more Americans going back to work.

The sales of existing homes has a trickle down effect that will affect all aspects of our economy. Just think of the many goods and services one needs when buying a new home. Once again, we will see more Americans going back to work.

Finally, Cash for Clunkers was a brilliant program. I've got 4 auto dealerships within 2 miles of my home. You should see the mountains of Clunkers that were traded in. This has jump started our auto industry and once again, more Americans are going back to work and making a decent living.

President Obama deserves a lot of credit for being pro-active in dealing with this world-wide recession.

Unlike those who oppose his policies, he has put us on the right track within 7 months of being on the job.

Doing nothing was not an option. Facing the problems head-on proved to be the right thing to do.

It's a bit too early to declare victory yet. Jobs aren't returning, wages aren't going up, the people still suffer. Only the wealthy have more confidence.

Right, Franklin, because they are smart enough to keep up with what is happening. What about all the used car dealers, guess they don't matter...

Indeed, they are welcome & positive signs.

Very good news and I hope the President has a great vacation!

I agree wholeheartedly! We CAN do it.

"Sales of existing homes climbed 7.2% to their highest levels in 10 years" YAHOO.

The economy is poised to grow, said Fed Chief. Read the latest here.

Hallelejah! Onward with Obama!

And for his next trick, he's going to backhand the entire Congress, lock them in a room, and not let them out until they can come up with a functional Health Care plan.

At least, that is what he SHOULD do. lol

I second that

Great idea Julie! They could all use a good old-fashioned spanking.

I endorse the "backhand" part, at least. The "locking up' part is probably OK, too.

I'll 5th your fine idea, Julie Ann!

Socialism at it's finest. Guess you didn't read about Bernanke putting $1Trillion into the market through the banks who benefited from the illegal bailout. It's called money laundering.

Financial planners understand this false flag because the unemployment rate continues to increase - at a lesser rate, but increase none the less.

Cash for klunkers just got many people into debt who could not afford the new vehicles, plus put used car dealers under the bus. Also hurt the poor because these were the vehicles which they utilized.
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And the housing market? Not this is fun because, after stealing from the poor who lost their homes, those who were smart enough to not fall for the housing bubble schemes are the ones buying them!!!!!

Why is this not obvious to others?

"Why is this not obvious to others?"

Because nothing you wrote is true. It's time to give credit where credit is due regardless of your opposition to our duly elected 44th President.

There are many Americans feeling much better about themselves than they were just 9 months ago.

What would you have done to jump start the housing market, the automobile industry and the stock market? And just to remind you, doing nothing is not an option. Just saying "No" is not an option. And hoping that our President "fails" is not an option.

Just what would you and the opposition have done to fix the MESS President Obama inherited?

Obama DIDN'T inherit this "MESS". He was involved in creating it, just like ALL our other legislators. That dog don't hunt here any more.

When you FALSELY prop up one industry, you hurt many others.

They CAUSED the housing bubble, Made money on it's way up, and are making a killing on it's burst. The poor are ALWAYS the ones who pay the price as they don't understand the tyranny of today's govt.

Bernanke laundering money in the stock market, is yet ANOTHER way to fool people into getting back into to it before it goes back down. This is thievery and they don't use a gun, but use deception.

What would I do???? Get the government OUT of our business; housing, auto, stock market, health, [insert dozens of others here]. They create the problem, TRY to fix the problem (which is impossible because they don't understand WHAT the problem is that they want to fix) only to CREATE dozens of WORSE problems!!!

My son was one who purchased a foreclosure, he got it for $40,000 under the price it sold 6 years ago, plus he got the $8,000. "tax credit" that turned out to be CASH. I kept saying it was a "tax credit" but he swore his buddy got cash. I was wrong, it was not a tax credit it was cash. He's 24.

Guess if I didnt' own a home already, I'd have bought one too!

Printing money, creating a false buyer's market ... this is not going to be pretty.

From reading the last three posts, it appears that all of you are still hoping that the President fails. Stop making excuses for our recovering economy and hope for the best. What is so wrong with seeing our country being prosperous once again.

Reading between the lines, it really sounds as if you are afraid that the President's plans just may work.

"What would I do???? Get the government OUT of our business; housing, auto, stock market, health, [insert dozens of others here."

Linda if you are going to offer an alternative, please offer a realistic one. Stop being naive. Think about what you just wrote and unrealistic that is. Sounds as if you still believe that doing nothing is the an option. It isn't!!

All you are doing is repeating are old and stale GOP campaign slogan. Come up with something better. Your philosophy has been rejected by the American people. That is why the Republicans have lost the House, Senate, Majority of Governorships and the White House over the last 9 years.

Think about that and try and offer up some 21st common-sense solutions dealing with the many issues facing the American people.

Lloyd, AGAIN, it's not about the Rep/Dems! It's about freedom and the right to the pursuitof happiness. Why would ANYONE want others to make all their choices? make all the decisions with what do do with THEIR money? to know what is best for everyone?

This president will NOT make any of that happen, therefore, it's NOT about him succeeding or not, it's about what he stands for - what he is doing to the middle class and the poor.

Doing nothing IS the best option for now. Then, go back and un-do the harm that has been done. How can we expect any generation to live at the mercy of the govt.? Is that what you want for your family or are handouts and entitlements all people want? That makes us ALL slaves, surely you can see that.

Whenever they tax us, it's the same as pointing a gun to our heads - NO difference. If it were optional, would you pay? Take the gun away and see. If people were free to use their own money to purchase health insurance (or any product) only the BEST would survive and the others would naturally go under.

The concept is so easy yet so hard.

Linda A (in case Linda B shows up): Capitalism makes a LOUSY excuse for a religion. People who violate its precepts are NOT going to hell. But any President who had allowed what was happening at the end of 2008 and the beginning of 2009 to turn into the world-wide Depression it was trying to should've been impeached and jailed.

What Obama (and, yes, *shudder* Bush, much as I hate to credit him for ANYthing) did was essential. Your constant prating about "money laundering" (which you obviously don't understand AT ALL, "illegal loans" (which I do't get - how illegal?), unconstitutional business rescues (different post), and whatever else doesn't make any of it true, or sensible.

"Why would ANYONE want others to make all their choices? make all the decisions with what do do with THEIR money?"

There you go again, over-exaggerating everything, trying to create hysteria among the ranks.

How do you conclude that the government is trying to make all my choices? Have you forgotten that you are free to choose where to work or live? Have you conveniently forgotten that you are free to drive the vehicle of your choice, attend the school of your choice and practice the religion of your choice?

How is the government making all of my decisions? These are the types of blanket statements that makes one wonder about your motives.

Comparing our government to a totalitarian one is just plain wrong. No country has more freedom than ours.

I have two coworkers who bought cars under the clunker program, they are responsible individuals who paid cash. Consumers and anyone who works in the car industry are very pleased with the program.

Do you have any idea what a socialist is, lady? Obama is a neutralist, as purple as Professor Plum. A real socialist would be radically different, and a considerable corrective to much of what is still wrong in this country.

"Consumers and anyone who works in the car industry are very pleased with the program."

Hi Jane.

I can't see how anyone can find fault with this wildly popular program designed to jump start the automobile industry. It's a win-win situation. We get gas guzzling clunkers off the road and replace them with more efficient, environmentally designed vehicles. We are all better off for this.

"Do you have any idea what a socialist is, lady? Obama is a neutralist, as purple as Professor Plum. A real socialist would be radically different, and a considerable corrective to much of what is still wrong in this country."

Thank you Franklin. Thank you very much.

You're welcome.

Haven't seen enough yet? Just hang on...

Franklin doesn't know what socialism is or he would not have asked the question. All he has to do is look around...

I wish the market going up meant something in particular. Please don't trust it.

Of course there will be ups and downs, but it is certainly a good sign that investors have confidence, as are statements from economists who see the light at the end of the tunnel. Jobs creation will take another painful year to catch up, but it will happen.

Let's wait and see how the foreclosures play out. That's still a lot of depressing news to come.

Exactly Larry. It's a deliberate attempt to give people a false sense of security to begin investing in it again. Don't be fooled - it's ALL controlled.

How many have turned their "downs" into "ups"? Oh, for a SHORT period - but NEVER BACK to where they were. It's GAMBLING, plain and simple. Control YOUR OWN money! Get it out of the market and buy one of those cheap foreclosed homes!

Larry, I agree with you. I think we are in a difficult transition between the old society/economy and a new one coming. We will see a few more bubbles and bursts in the process. I just hope they are at least smaller and more contained. People don't understand that old societal and economic structures do die. Look at the riots and protests around the rights of African Americans to vote in the 60's. There were angry town hall meetings then. I know you've done a lot of writing on the topic of the economy and I'm going to check it out

Linda I am not sure that the movements of the market are controlled by any group (or the government) but you are quite correct that investing in the stock market is gambling, pure and simple. Of course you do have a good chance to make modest winnings (I have done so myself) but it is gambling. Only purchases of initial stock offerings are investments.

Jane, it pleases me greatly that you are going to check out my posts. They are both here on Gather and also at www.nopom.info without the Gather ads.

It looks like things are on the upswing, I hope things continue to improve.

Good thing President Obama backs health care reform that includes mental health care. Because judging from some of the discussion, there are a lot of people who need it.

Hello Prima Donna.

I'd like to thank your for posting this article at our group, Barack Obama's Presidential Appointments, Bills and Policies.

It is now our latest FEATURED article.

Lloyd

http://obamasupporters.gather.com

I'd read in a business article that the "increased prices" are due to the devalued dollar. Hope that fellow was wrong.

It's ALL related and relevant. Nothing happening today happens in a vacuum.

IF we could just get people interested in doing their OWN research! The old media just doesn't cut it - for real news. It's all propaganda and I find it arrogant.

Why is it only propaganda if the facts don't prove your point, Linda? I do my own research, thank you very much, and look at a number of sources. It appears you, on the other hand, have a personal ax to grind. Please do try and keep your posts civil, okay?

Time will tell.

Hey Prima - better re-read your own posts before chastising mine - gheeze, some people...

Prima Donna's "civil post". *grin* "Good thing President Obama backs health care reform that includes mental health care. Because judging from some of the discussion, there are a lot of people who need it."

Now, Linda, we must "be kind to the less advantaged",

There is a difference in "reading words" and "reading comprehension." Some folks learn to read the words, but never get the meaning. : )

I'm cautiously optimistic about the market. Yes, it's a good thing the stock market is going up. Unfortunately the stock market is hopelessly skiddish. Someone glances at their computer monitor the wrong way and down it goes.

Cash for clunkers? Awesome idea. I would have taken advantage of it myself, but I can't afford a car payment right now. I'll have to wait.

I'm afraid it's going to be a long road for the housing market to recover. I purchased a foreclosed home last year. At first, I felt really bad about the idea of benefitting from another's misfortune. However, after researching the address I learned the person being foreclosed upon owned more than one home. Oh yeah, and between my signing the contract and closing, they flooded the place, too.

The housing bubble is a perfect example of free-market capitalism gone mad. People weren't buying homes just to live in them, but to make money off of them. When home prices were obviously overinflated, what should have happened was people could no longer afford them. This would have forced prices back down to affordable ranges. Instead, banks saw their opportunity and started making loans to people who couldn't afford them, and worse, in many cases didn't understand the loan the signed up for.

For the free market to work properly, we have to play fair. Fairness flies out the window when greed takes over. Regulation is required to make everyone play nice. And one step further, education is required so people understand the consequences of the documents they sign. The US is a capitalist society where few know about money.

There is no reason to be optimistic about the stock market. This is not a sign of improvement. The return of jobs, and an increase in wages for the working class, is an improvement. The abolition of large corporate and bank profits and bonuses would signal improvement. Home sales won't help one bit, because the home sales are still over-vauled money swamps. What we need to see before we declare the worst is over is improvement on the ground, not a temporary upswing for the top that might, in thirty years, if the rich feel like it, trickle down to the rest of us.

Hello Franklin.

Considering that many on the right predicted that the stock market would decline to 7500, I believe that we have reason to be optimistic.

These investments are where the money comes from for start-up businesses and improving existing business ventures.

We need a sound foundation before the jobs return. These things happen in steps. Home sales will help. As these new home owners move into their homes, they will need many durable goods. Businesses such as Home Depot, Lowes, Sears, Best Buy, etc., etc. will see an increase in revenues thus needing additional employees to handle the increased work load.

It's easy to see the glass as half empty, but I see it as half full. We are on our way to recovery. And the President deserves a lot of credit for tackling these problems straight out of the box.

This recession was supposed to last much longer according to the experts. Within just 8 months, we now see light at the end of the tunnel. Someone did something right. And we will be better off for those efforts.

Well, nine states (including Michigan) have see TRUE REDUCTIONS in unemployment numbers (ADJUSTED FOR folks who've run out of benefits). Unemployment actually is (albeit ver-r-r-ry slowly) gettin' better.

A-a-a-a-a-ack! "...have seeN True..."

Isn't the "reduction" only in the number of newly umployed, and not the unemployed. HUGE difference. The fact less are applying does not mean a reduction - unless I've missed something. The news has been word-smithing this issue the same way.

By the way, the problem with capitalism is that they forget the letter r, which should be the second letter of the word. The notion that a parasite at the top can do nothing but, perhaps, own land and everyone he 'hires' does all the work but gets next to nothing out of it while he steals all the money . . . is precisely that . . . crap.

Franklin - you have NO idea what Capitalism is, same as dozens of others here who "pretend". *grin*

I'm a little confused. If the kash for klunkers worked so well, why didn't they just GIVE EVERYONE the $4500. Less paperwork, no new computer program required, no muss no fuss. Then we could have stimulated the heck out of the economy.

I see favoritism here...

But oh no, it had to be for the newly nationalized auto industry. Got that inventory reduced alright.

The stock market would go though the roof (yea - right).

Because by purchasing new cars, GM is calling people back to work, a steel factory has reopened in Pittsburgh, and a glass entrepreneur is prepared to add new jobs as a supplier. We are just beginning to see the trickle down.

Linda,

So you are or aren't for the redistribution of wealth? If you are for just giving each American $4500, that makes you a Socialist.

On a purely logical scale, the reason the first stimulus didn't work as well as intended was because people didn't spend it. Many used it to pay off existing bills or put in in a savings account. If I got a check for 4500 from the government, I would be EXCEEDINGLY HAPPY, but wouldn't go spend it. I'd pay off bills with it.

The cash for clunkers program was a tax credit designed to stimulate a specific type of behavior. The government rewards us for specific behavior all the time? Got married? Good, you get special tax breaks. Have kids? You get special tax breaks? Bought a house? You get special tax breaks. You don't complain about getting a tac write-off for your mortgage interest, charity donations, of health expenses, do you? Why are you complaining about Cash for Clunker?

Excellent points, Julie Ann.

Well, Julie, guess you MISSED my point...

First, let's remember the Federal Income Tax is illegal - it was never radified by the sufficient number of states.

Therefore your comments about government rewards have no merit. All it means is that they don't point the gun to our head for EVERYTHING. After all, they do want you the THINK they have thrown y ou a "bone".

How about if they let us KEEP our OWN $4500 - would that be socialism? Would that stimnulate the economy on a regular basis? With less bureauracy, entitlement programs, and fake "stimulus" plans, we could be free to spend our own money, to support local charities, and to pay for our OWN health insurance - no govt.control.

Hello everybody:
I really enjoyed reading this discussion thread. You don't seem to have converted Linda A. but you certainly worked her up both sides and down the middle. It was great to read the sound, reasoned responses to her blather.