Signs of a declining economy

[macuu222]

I know things are bad with regard to the economy. People are out of work, homes are being foreclosed....money is extremely tight. But it really hit home today when I went to Safeway and saw a woman in front of the store begging for money so she could feed her family.

[808blogger]

it will not be improving, we are now moving into the "new society".

[james weatherford]

Begging to feed a family says something bad -- very bad -- about any economy.
To understand the problem better, understand that it was in front of a chain supermarket that imports virtually all of its inventory.

James Weatherford, Ph.D.
15-1888 Hialoa
Hawaiian Paradise Park

[Jay Bondesen]

I really don't want to offend anyone here, and I have no idea who this woman was outside of Safeway, so please take this as a just a comment and not a blanket opinion about everyone that is out of work. I am personaly semi-retired and a bit out of the loop on trying to raise a family in this economy. I am trying to live on a fixed income so if a surprise happens I may struggle.
I do know it's bad. I also know a few small business owners who keep telling me that it's really hard to find good workers. A friend works at Home Depot and they have a pretty high turnover because some people just don't want to do the job. Could it be that some of the unemployed just aren't prepared for the jobs that are out there? It's even possible that people think that the jobs available just don't pay enough.
It's a tough situation and I do not have the answer. I know people that work two or three part time jobs to get by and others that don't because they can do better on unemployment. I know people getting food stamps that still have cell phones and dish on the roof for TV. I don't know. Sometime I just think that people have their priorities messed up. But maybe I am just turning into an old guy that's out of touch with reality.

Jay

[LeeE]

quote:

---

Originally posted by james weatherford

Begging to feed a family says something bad -- very bad -- about any economy.
To understand the problem better, understand that it was in front of a chain supermarket that imports virtually all of its inventory.

James Weatherford, Ph.D.
15-1888 Hialoa
Hawaiian Paradise Park

---

Yes, indeed. As the conditions created by deliberate national/international policies unfold, local food production will be more important than ever.

[KeaauRich]

...and I hesitate to mention that I saw a guy on crutches begging outside Safeway a few weeks back. After I did my prolonged shopping/story talking, I noticed someone else on crutches begging in the same spot, and I saw my guy, miraculously cured, shopping at WalMart.

Whether he was legitimately needy or not, I can't say. But either way, he was a con man.

[PaulW]

If you see someone begging for food, then please try giving them some food. I used to do that.

[Guest]

If you live long enough, you can recognize patterns in the economy. Every time I've seen recession, I've heard the same thing about how it won't be getting better, never been this bad, the world is falling apart, blah blah blah. It always gets better and always will. Our economy is cyclical. What I don't understand is how people can forget what got us into this mess and start crying for more of the same.

[rusty h]

I was wondering if Hilo or the East side has a Food Bank? Without one our community would suffer greatly. How about offering food at a discount the last hour of the Farmers Market or at least have a place where families can p/u food that is perishabe?
Just food for thought.
peace

[Robin C]

The Hawaii Island Food Basket supports both sides of the island.
http://www.foodbaskethi.org/