I have heard that Lordstown is not doing well,and some of my machine shop contacts are laying off employees also.
Anyone here loosing their job or need help? Maybe there is something we can do to help you.
Bill

 

Dayton and Wilmington are hurting bad with huge job losses namely GM & DHL...It is going to be a long , slow and painful recovery ....

 

Hey don't forget all the cuts Fidelity is making too. Northern Ky and Cincinnati is taking a 4000 person hit here also. something will come around

 

Hey Ryan what up? I did my part to help the economy , I bought a new lappy today with money I really did not have but heck with it, I went ahead and pulled the trigger, should be here in a few days.

 

I have been with a concrete company 35 years, I started working summers there when I was 15, in 84 I took over the garage, I maintain 40 Ford trucks, 4 Bobcats,1 dozer, 2 trackhoes Trailers, all the small engines generators,saws,trowel machines,etc...Now at age 50 looks like I start all over, My only goal now is to put my son (18) through collage. Today there are 6 of us left, out of 40 and 4 of those are office people, so it's not looking real hopeful. the weather is also a factor, but construction is in the dumper here. Just had to vent a little, I will get by, I always have. I'm just bummed out a little after todays lay off.

 

Well, I start my 23rd year and it's getting THIN. We used to have 3 shifts and 50+ people in the shop. Now it's barely 1 shift and 12 people. I haven't work on the floor in alot of years now, but the thought of closing and having to "start over" bums me bad. Not much to pick from around here, and GOOD paying to boot. I've kept the strings pulled tight so shouldn't have to loose anything if I have to start at the bottom again.

 

The bad days are behind us. Things will look up soon. Just bought a new laptop for the wife and a new car for her too.....in the spring. I hope the economy can survive all this unemployment and get guys back to work. My buddy is closing his shop. It really is a shame. People that are buying new cars need to buy from GM/FORD/DODGE and help ourselves get out of the dumper....Bill

 

Thankfully I am retired but my retirement relies partially on an IRA that has taken a real beating in the market. I have decided that the only way to keep from depleating the IRA is to start thinking more seroiusly about doing work in my shop and doing more vehicle transporting if there is any out there to do. I have been hearing that some repair businesses are up now because people and companies are thinking of fixing stuff as opposed to buying new stuff. I don't know if that is true but I probably should look into it.

I have been down this road before. I spent my last thirty years working as an IBEW electrician doing major electrical construction work building and upgrading power plants, factories, steel mills and the like. The last major hard hit we had in this field was back in '82 & '83. I would have lost everything then if it wasn't for the fact we lived on a paid for place out in the country and had very few expenses. It was a hard place to live but it saved our butt. Even then when I could find work I had to travel and stay away from home. I learned a lot of survival skills but that was a different place and time and now I'll need to come up with some new ideas.

Knowing what I do, and having seen all this before, I have a real idea of what some people are going through right now. It's hard to stimulate the economy when you can barely feed and shelter yourself and family. With no income I can't imagine how people can be expected to contend with 1K mortgage, 1K health insurance and another 2K or more in other costs every month on maybe 2K of unemployment benefits. Let's face it, something has to give.

What really PO's me is the misguided notion that going out and spending in places like Wal Mart, that sells Chinese crap and drags in Mexicans from other places to build their stores and avoid paying the taxes everyone else pays locally, is a good way to stimulate the economy. If there ever was a time to buy American and help out the local Mom and Pop places, this is it.

OK, that's my little rant for the day...

 

Pray that this economy gets up and running soon. I have a feeling alot of my buddies in business will not be in a year from now. Hope that is not true. Bill

 

I talked to a Woman that her husband lost a good job and she said America has been going down sents Camry outsold Tauras.Made me think about it the and I believe its true.It really po my to see American flags on forien cars.The cake was a P.O.W. M.I.A. sticker on a Toyota!

 

Kinda off topic, but then again it is tied to job losses.
any truth to this ?

 

Interesting Ray. It makes sense though, so if you end up there I would definitely look into it. Might at least give you another month or so.

 

I don't know of the validity of your source but the advice is good I think. There was, and it could still be the case of a man in Florida that lost big time in investing and the market. he had a multi-million dollar home that was in forclosure and the last I heard he was still in it because of this very same situation. He challenged those claiming to hold the mortgage to show proof and they could not do so. So far as I know this is still the case.

There are other sound reasons for staying in the home. Even if eventually proof is shown in these cases, it takes a long time to do so. Staying in the home rent, mortgage payment and tax free is better than paying rent that a family can't afford or would have to get from wellfare sources. I seriously doubt a bank is going to care if someone stays there and keeps the place heated and protected from vandals.

I'm not totally absolving people in general because I do think some people went in way over their heads to start with but I still put most of the blame on the banks for handing out loans that anyone with good sense would know would not work out. However, now it has gotten to the point where common people are loosing their common down to earth homes because thay have lost their income due to shut downs and layoffs. This is not a case of bad loans or bad decisions on the part of home buyers.

Your post hits close to home with me. I have a good friend and neighbor who lost his house which is just across the street from me. He is now renting just up the street. The house he lost has been empty for over six months now. It's just sitting there enduring the onslaught of Winter with no one to know if pipes are busting or other damage is occuring. The market is flat and there are no chances of anyone here buying it. If anything people are or will be leaving the area due to massive layoffs with the area's larger employers. If it sits there for a year or two it won't be worth a lot.

You would think that the banks would have learned a lesson from the great depression but I guess they forgot. Most of the property they seized then went to ruin while they held it. they would have been far better off to make any kind of deal they could to keep the people in the houses. I guess you just can't fix stupid.

The bottom line here is this. The banks and mortgage people are the main reason we are in this mess. The crap they pulled was the straw that broke the camels back when we were already strapped with an expensive and pointless war in Iraq, astromomical fuel costs, and crooked investment firms. From there on it was a simple function of the domino theory. The problem is, it takes far longer to set up the dominos than it does to knock them down.

Later Folks...

 

I had a neighbor that was given a home loan and did not even have a job--but was in the reserves,and when the bank came aknockin'--they could not evict because of the sailor-army act and left him alone.
A 6 month period later they were back---the kid refused to go back to his enlistment and go back to Afghanistan--and so the reserves sent the military cops over and they took him to the enlistment.
These people left then.......the house sat empty for 3 yrs. I tried to buy it.....at sheriff sale--what a joke---the bank was no way going to sell for 1/2 of the value,when freddie mac/fannie mae was promising the bank full payment.
1 YR LATER-IT SOLD--NOT TO ME ,but for a fraction more than I offered at the sheriff sale.......Banks are not dumb-----the public is!!
We need to buy American and think of America first--and foremost---quit helping others that do not help anyone but themselves for a change. WE NEED THE HELP!!
Sorry for the long letter---starting to look like Boleys letters--haha!! just kiddin'

 

Walford - good thread. Hope everyone is ok out there and can ride it out for the next year or two when hopefully things start to turn around. I know I'm crossing my fingers.