Anyone with more than 1/40th black blood was considered black and was subject to the discrimination that was directed toward blacks or Negroes. All of us in the nation watched the news and TV coverage of black people being beaten and dragged and water hosed, just because they wanted to have the same rights as white Americans.
Barack Obama is now the 44th President of the United States of America. We have overcome. Not just the Negro, the black, the African American. But the entire United States nation has overcome. Yes, there are the bigots and racists. There will always be narrow minded people. But bigotry and racism does not define us as a nation anymore. No longer does bigotry, racism and prejudice drive our policies and actions and laws.
The hot issue now is the recession and our economic woes. And the ripple effects are felt globally. Putting politics aside, I’m hoping the country can focus on the business of healing our economy. Barack Obama is our new president and leader, but he cannot solve problems alone. We all must help with the restoration to economic health.
President Barack Hussein Obama: We love you, we bless you, we support you. I know the nation joins me in wishing you well.
Cash and cash flow problems are big topics in the news these days. Large, global investment and financial institutions are in trouble. Banks are failing and being taken over. If you listen to some, without financial bailouts, the United States economy is in danger of financial ruin. Many who insisted that the country was not in a recession a couple of weeks ago, are now mentioning the dreaded “d” word: Depression.
It’s big news when the big guys are in trouble. Small, women owned and minority businesses have always had difficulty with finances. Lack of cash flow and working capital is a leading cause of business failure. Noble Finances has some solutions that can help cure financial woes for companies turned down by traditional banking institutions.
The Atlanta Tribune’s “Moving Your Business Forward” (MYBF) event will be held October 9, 2008 in Columbus, GA. The theme for this 3rd annual MYBF conference in Columbus, GA is “Strategies for Business Growth: Finding Money & Understanding of the Benefits of Certification”.
Sandra Noble, that’s me, is featured on the financial panel at the Columbus MYBF event. I get to share about Noble Finances and the alternatives to traditional bank financing that we provide.
Baby Boomers Go Into Un-Retirement is an interesting blog post about how baby boomers are handling retirement or not. Don’t know if Atlanta is different, but I know a lot of over 55 people who are going the NOT route.
Why?
Telecommunications used to be big in Atlanta. Telecommunications has taken a deep dive. And lots of other major employers in metropolitan Atlanta are faltering. And of course, the problem is not unique to Atlanta.
The three main effects of the recession or the financial downturns:
1) people are prematurely forced into requirement,
2) people are laid off and
3) pension funds and retirement accounts have lost value.
We’re not even going to talk about real estate, which in years past have been a source of funds for the senior citizen group. Our homes were the investments that were supposed to allow us to sustain ourselves after our working days were over. The equity that has been lost in our housing has forced the AARP aged folks to continue working to get the extra or essential spending money.
In an ideal world, many more would choose to retire. But the economic climate, both national and personal, removes some of the options. So I, as a late stage entrepreneur, am not alone in working long days and in pursuit of the dollar. Sandra Noble NOBLE FINANCES NOBLE &ASSOCIATESCONSULTING, INC
Despite the debate about whether there is officially a recession, in 2008 many Americans are suffering. Those in the top income brackets are unaffected. But the fuel prices / crisis is impacting all but the super rich in this country.
It doesn’t help to hear that Europeans and citizens of many other countries have long been faced with high gas prices. Or that, people in many countries are accustomed to spending much higher percentages of their incomes on necessities like food and clothing. Any decrease in standard of living is traumatic. The post World War II American dream was that the standard of living would be higher for our children. But that expectation is changing. All change requires adjustments. And the fear and stress associated with financial downturns can have profound effects on health and emotional well being.
As in software or technology implementations, satisfaction and success comes when the impacted people / users / employees embrace the changes. This is not automatic, especially in large scale implementations and projects. The consultants at Noble & Associates Consulting, Inc have found that change is rarely embraced unless change management programs have been put in place.
Americans who manage to still have adequate disposal incomes, are still vacationing. US travelers to Europe are shocked and disheartened by the lack of buying power of the US dollar. Other Americans are just bemoaning the fact that they either have less spending money or that the money they do have does not go as far.
So how can Europe be of benefit to the United States and it’s de facto recession economy? I saw a Managing Automation blog post about increased interest in procuring good, services and workers from the US. Due to close quarters and limited land mass, small cars have been in vogue in Europe. Our automakers are fighting for survival. As US automakers finally get on the fuel efficient bandwagon, perhaps they can sell more cars domestically and internationally. And, as suggested by the “Manufacturers Set to Take Advantage of the Downturn” article, perhaps the laid off engineer or executive should be floating their resumes overseas.
Recession is defined as two consecutive quarterly declines in GDP (Gross Domestic Product).
US Fourth Quarter 2007
Financial industry profits fell $104.6 billion annualized. Nonfinancial industries’ profits fell $30.7 billion annualized. Corporate after-tax profits fell $37.9 billion at a quarterly rate of 3.3%. But despite the quarterly decline, corporate profits after taxes are up 3.3% compared with a year ago. And the U.S. economy, as measured by GDP, grew at a 0.6% annual rate, the slowest pace since late 2002.
But the operative word is “grew”. Believe it or not, we have yet to have one quarterly decline in GDP. Companies and institutions are losing money but the overall US economy is healthy and growing.
State Economics
So, let’s move down to the state level. I lived in Cleveland, OH for many years. Ohio has been hit hard by the non-recession. Ohio and other similar high take, high labor union states are losing jobs and population. These states tended to not have had the housing bubble that other states have enjoyed. The high unemployment rates have caused the increase in mortgage defaults and foreclosures. So the mortgage crisis in the country has a greater negative impact in states like Ohio. Housing prices have gone from steady-state to a decline. Hence my friends in the Ohio would find it more difficult to be bullish on the economy.
Personal Finances
Then on a personal level, many are convinced that there is a recession. There has been a significant reduction in the amount of disposable money. Consumer spending is down, at least for me and most people I know. Tears came to my eyes the first time I saw $3.25 per gallon at the gas pump. I have since seen even higher prices. So those of us struggling to make ends meet are at the lower levels of Maslow’s “Hierarchy of Needs”. Our focus is on putting food on the table, keeping a roof over our heads, and having gas in the car so we can get to work and earn a living.
Relativity
According to quantum physics, nothing is real unless it is observed and outcomes are influenced by the observer. This conforms to conventional thinking about what relativity is. It all depends on how you look at it. Two people can look at the same situation and draw different conclusions.
One of the tenets of Albert Einstein’s Theory of Relativity is that outcomes are the same for all observers. However, the theory also indicates that two simultaneous realities exist at the same time.
Reality
So yes, the US economy is still growing, however slowly it may seem. But the other reality is that many people are seeing and feeling a recession in their personal financial situations. And the forecast for many business industry sectors is bleak.
