So, I guess how bad the economy is depends on who you ask...

If you ask my friends that have finally been able to afford homes in the new, lower market, I'd say its pretty good for them. A lot of real estate people will also admit that the market has been grossly inflated for a long time in many places.

Quote Originally Posted by littleindiangirl
The downfall of our major employers (GM, Dodge, etc) has done considerable damage on our economy. It's a major issue for us in Michigan as it is getting harder and harder to find good jobs.
What has happened in the northern states is really sad...all of the big production jobs moved overseas or companies are being out-competed by foreign entities. A lot of economists blame labor unions for this - american manufacturing couldn't keep up with the wages they had to pay their workers. Pretty simple solution - move operations to places where they could make a profit. These companies aren't evil, they are just doing what they need to do to survive. I think that labor unions were necessary back in the old days but I think they out-lived their usefulness and basically were the downfall of the american manufacturing worker in the end.