ISM Manufacturing Index surges to 48.9% beating expectations by 2.4%

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/08/03/latest-factory-construction-data-points-to-recovery/
Basically more evidence that Congress and President should extend Unemployment benefits to boost consumer spending and confidence. The unnecessary wave of people who will lose there benefits over the next 6 to 8 weeks can easily be prevented. My suggestion would be to extend them into next year.

those how have been unemployed that long need to go get whatever job they can find. 

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/08/03/latest-factory-construction-data-points-to-recovery/
Basically more evidence that Congress and President should extend Unemployment benefits to boost consumer spending and confidence. The unnecessary wave of people who will lose there benefits over the next 6 to 8 weeks can easily be prevented. My suggestion would be to extend them into next year.

those how have been unemployed that long need to go get whatever job they can find. 

Where would you like them to get these jobs from? There are none.

grocery store

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/08/03/latest-factory-construction-data-points-to-recovery/
Basically more evidence that Congress and President should extend Unemployment benefits to boost consumer spending and confidence. The unnecessary wave of people who will lose there benefits over the next 6 to 8 weeks can easily be prevented. My suggestion would be to extend them into next year.

those how have been unemployed that long need to go get whatever job they can find. 

Where would you like them to get these jobs from? There are none.

grocery store

lol. They aren't hiring either, stupid. IGA, Wal-Mart, K-Mart, Food Lion, Dollar General, Dollar Tree, Big Lots, McDonalds, Burger king, Taco Bell, Hardy's, Outback Stakehouse, Texas Stakehouse, CVS, Walgreens, Ride Aide, Duncan Donuts, several Gas Stations, Auto-zone, and several other stores, restaurants, and convenience shops are all within 5 miles of where I live and not a one has been hiring people. When a job does come open its naped by a friend of a someone who works there, or an illegal alien. My mom can't work and has been constantly screwed out of he Disability by the Gov't, If my dad can't get a job, how can my brother or even myself find a job when every place above ISN'T HIRING. Wal-mart is running only 5 registers even though the store is equipt with about 30 and the lines are backed up. Other stores are picking up on the habit. Dollar Tree only has one register open at a time even though they have 5 and the lines are always backed up. They aren't hiring. This recession hit retail hard. Goody's went bankrupt wiping out another store in town, Hudson Belk is running on a skeleton crew. Go out of town to Clayton, Garner, Raliegh, Goldsboro, or Wilson; its the same deal.

I am truly sorry for your family situation.  one possible solution is to move to another state

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/08/03/latest-factory-construction-data-points-to-recovery/
Basically more evidence that Congress and President should extend Unemployment benefits to boost consumer spending and confidence. The unnecessary wave of people who will lose there benefits over the next 6 to 8 weeks can easily be prevented. My suggestion would be to extend them into next year.

those how have been unemployed that long need to go get whatever job they can find. 

Where would you like them to get these jobs from? There are none.

grocery store

lol. They aren't hiring either, stupid. IGA, Wal-Mart, K-Mart, Food Lion, Dollar General, Dollar Tree, Big Lots, McDonalds, Burger king, Taco Bell, Hardy's, Outback Stakehouse, Texas Stakehouse, CVS, Walgreens, Ride Aide, Duncan Donuts, several Gas Stations, Auto-zone, and several other stores, restaurants, and convenience shops are all within 5 miles of where I live and not a one has been hiring people. When a job does come open its naped by a friend of a someone who works there, or an illegal alien. My mom can't work and has been constantly screwed out of he Disability by the Gov't, If my dad can't get a job, how can my brother or even myself find a job when every place above ISN'T HIRING. Wal-mart is running only 5 registers even though the store is equipt with about 30 and the lines are backed up. Other stores are picking up on the habit. Dollar Tree only has one register open at a time even though they have 5 and the lines are always backed up. They aren't hiring. This recession hit retail hard. Goody's went bankrupt wiping out another store in town, Hudson Belk is running on a skeleton crew. Go out of town to Clayton, Garner, Raliegh, Goldsboro, or Wilson; its the same deal.

I am truly sorry for your family situation.  one possible solution is to move to another state

We did in 2002. We are now trapped you fool. We can't even aford the security depost on a new home. Where would we move too? You are full of bright ideas but you seem to not realise just how unrealistic and how impossible both your suggestions are. You are completely our of touch with reality. Lastly I Think NC is poised for a strong turnaround pretty soon. What we need is to bump up consumer confidence. The economy needs the Unemployment benefit extension. We extended it I think 3 times in the last recession, we have only done it twice this time and we are in a far worse condition. We need an extension now and one more at the beginning of next year to safely guarantee the 10 Million or more unemployed especially the 4.4 million who will lose benefits soon through this hiring glut. Charlie Rengel said on Fox News Sunday that he saw no reason not to and even highly conservative Jim DeMint said he two would support another extension. It would be the height of insanity and Obama the dumbest MF in history to not do it.

I understand your family is facing tough times.  I'll wait for the unemployment numbers to come out Friday.  If July's loss plus prior revisions is better than -325k and if the rate is <9.8%, then I don't think we should extend benefits.

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

Sorry Senator, but as unmerciful as it may seem, pain is a necessary part of recessions and recessions are a necessary part of the business cycle and the business cycle is a necessary part of capitalism.

I'm all for spending money to stave off an imminent collapse, but now that we have avoided one, I believe it is time to take away the punch bowl and start unwinding government spending.

I'll wait to see Friday's unemployment report.  If the losses are proving yet again to remain persistently high, then I'll agree with you.  But if the job losses are waning and under 325k, I'll think it will be time to shoot congress to keep it from spending another dime.

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

Sorry Senator, but as unmerciful as it may seem, pain is a necessary part of recessions and recessions are a necessary part of the business cycle and the business cycle is a necessary part of capitalism.

I'm all for spending money to stave off an imminent collapse, but now that we have avoided one, I believe it is time to take away the punch bowl and start unwinding government spending.

I'll wait to see Friday's unemployment report.  If the losses are proving yet again to remain persistently high, then I'll agree with you.  But if the job losses are waning and under 325k, I'll think it will be time to shoot congress to keep it from spending another dime.

Most people are not as sure about the economy as you are and even so, to start unwinding spending now would be the most stupid thing that could be done.

there is a difference between unwinding spending and adding to spending...extending the duration of benefits would add to spending.

though it will be painful, now is time to tell those on unemployment insurance to take whatever jobs are available (and move to another town and live in an apartment if necessary).  As things continue to improve, the job hunting these people have been doing will bear fruit and many, after having taken much inferior jobs for a while, will be contacted to fill the positions they were pursuing.

Otherwise, if we extend benefits while things are improving, we're simply providing funds to support life styles instead of providing emergency funds.  I do NOT believe in government intervention simply to support life styles.  Sometimes, though painful, downsizing is the best solution.

And, understand, I am saying this as a contractor who has not been covered by unemployment insurance since April 1998.  Yes, not having that "safety net" has risks, but those risks are far outweighed by the benefits.

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

Senator,

My mother raised 4 boys by herself, without government assistance, without health care benefits, and without a good paying job (she mostly cleaned houses), and we lived a quarter mile away from Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd in Houston (if you're ever in Houston, take a drive down my old street, but lock your doors and bring a gun...or maybe even use google maps to have a look around:  Forrestal Road, zip code 77033):

http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&ll=29.679429,-95.347442&spn=0,359.997594&z=19&layer=c&cbll=29.679479,-95.347368&panoid=affnUcG1Pszp4_Fs7so9-Q&cbp=12,128.43,,0,5

and I lived on that street from 7 years of age until I was 22.  So, I know a little bit about poverty and hard times.  And I give more to charity, in terms of percentage and amount, than most, if not all, of the members of this forum.

And as bleak as times may seem right now, things will get better, and you're still better off than most of the people in the world.

But, since Congress won't need to make a decision on this for another month, let's reevaluate at that time.  Deal?

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

I can't even guarrantee you I will be alive another month more or less be able to access the internet then. I still would like to know how you can say I am living a life of prosperity here on the gov't dime? I feal like sh**t, I got some kind of weird a** problem with my digestive system, no Health insurance, and I got about three months till I am living on the street. I still would like to know how $10 and $12 an hour is too much to ask? I still would like to know how you expect people to take jobs below that when even they don't exist? I still would like to know how you expect people to afford a move, and to where they would go? No sir, NO DEAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

obviously, your family has seen the bottom fall out.  How are your parents coping with it?