Depressed As A Nation? 80 Percent Of Americans Believe That We Are In A Recession Right Now

[UnLearn]

The Economic Collapse
Thursday, September 22, 2011

According to a brand new Gallup poll, 80 percent of Americans believe that we are in a recession right now.  Of course the government insists that the recession ended quite some time ago, but apparently the message is not sinking in.

 

Not only that, most Americans also do not believe that things are going to get better any time soon.  According to the Gallup poll, 61 percentof Americans believe that the economy will be the same as it is right now or will be even worse one year from now.  Two years ago, only 35 percent of Americans felt that way.  Talk about pessimism!  So are we depressed as a nation?  Have too many people been reading the Economic Collapse Blog?  How do we account for such strange numbers?

Certainly there are some areas of the country that are still doing quite well.  If you live in an area that is closely tied to the federal government (Washington D.C.), the big Wall Street banks (New York) or corporate America (Silicon Valley, etc.), then you can go out on the weekends and find packed restaurants and mall parking lots that are overflowing.

But most of the rest of the country is really hurting.

Tonight, there are millions upon millions of Americans that won’t sleep well at all because they are trying to figure out how to get back on their feet.  It can be really tough to keep going when you have been searching for work for years and still nobody will hire you.  If you have a family, it is easy to feel like a failure when you have to look your spouse and your children in the eyes day after day knowing that they are depending on you.

If you have never been through it, then you should not mock those that are depressed because they cannot find work.  Losing a good job and not being able to find another one can be an absolutely soul-crushing experience.

So why do 80 percent of Americans believe that we are in a recession right now?

Well, it is because that is what it feels like for most people.

For example, a reader identified as Carol recently shared the following with us….

My unemployment ends the end of December, yes, I will be one of the 99′ers, one that did not sit at home and eat potato chips, drink soda and watch TV. I have no health insurance, I support myself and cannot afford it. I was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis last fall. Not to mention, degenerative disc disease, and osteoporosis. But I have continued to pursue work and regain employment, despite my health. I have no other choice but to fight and PRAY!

It amazes me at the stupidity of the general population, who still have their heads in the sand. The majority have no idea what is actually going on in our country on the political or economic side.

What would you do if you found out you were sick, you had no job, no health insurance and you were rapidly running out of money?

Please pray for those that are out of work.  You never know when it will be you that needs some assistance.

For those that still believe that the economy is doing “great”, let’s review some of the cold, hard facts….

*46.2 million Americans were living in poverty in 2010.

*The number of Americans living in poverty increased by 2.6 million last year.  That was the largest increase since the U.S. government began keeping statistics on this back in 1959.

*14 million Americans are officially unemployed.

*6 million Americans have been unemployed for at least half a year.

*8.8 million Americans are working part-time because they cannot find full-time jobs.

*Only 63.5 percent of all men in the United States had a job during the month of July.

*Zero jobs were created in the United States during the month of August.

*Median household income has fallen for three years in a row.

*49.9 million Americans do not have any health insurance at all.

*The percentage of Americans covered by employer-based health plans has fallen for 11 years in a row.

*More than 45 million Americans (a new all-time record) are on food stamps.

 

Read More Here...