"Well, I'll tell you a definition. A recession is when your neighbor loses his job" - Ronald Reagan

The text book definition of recession is two consecutive quarters of shrinking GDP output. The reality is "when your neighbor loses his job." The fear is that you are next. I remember the recession of the Bush-Quayle years, The war in Iraq (called the Gulf War) and the dismal economy of 1992. I was fresh out of college, brand new wife and child (2 yrs old) my name sake. Things were bad for others; but we (my wife and I) both had good jobs although we feared lay-offs, the overall mood of the country was in the doldrums and it was common to see signs posted in business windows with the pre-text "Going out of...".

I'm no longer married, the kid's in college, we're still in Iraq, a Bush is in the White House and the "Going out of Business " signs are back in fashion. Reality check: We're in a recession. There are multiple contributing factors to why we are in an 'economic downturn' (technical pre-recession jargon). The subprime loan debacle, high energy prices, the impending war on terror, the Oakland Raiders consecutive losing season (oh, maybe that's a depression); the list of reasons is far and wide. The problem it's not acknowledged because of speculation and what it causes the markets (NYSE, AMEX, NASDAQ, etc) to do. They use this speculative talk (economists and on-air-personality blabbering) to take advantage of large portfolio's. Money is made by the news and views of the economy

Ben Bernanke, Federal Reserve Chairman can't tell the truth, only because the investment community gets squimmish, the President gets upset and your boss will tell you that " your expendable."  So they asked me to do it. I hate to be the bearer of bad news but it could be worse a "...depression is when you lose your job. Recovery is when Bush loses his job."

My Version of the Truth,

Bycha Buxton
buxtonbycha@aol.com