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Hanne Lore

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How do you feel about the responsibility of the government towards the young people (18-25) regarding the economic and financial crisis?

Who is going to pay the longterm debts of the crisis? I strongly believe that many young people are/will be fed up with paying the price in the end. We are fed up with being called the 'lost generation'. If we are lost, why don't you save us?

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Topics: financial crisis global crisis government politics student young people aspirations youth
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  • Hilary Jirasek

    • +6
    Oct 26 2011: "If we are lost, why don't you save us?" Interesting closing - and its shows the disconnect between what America has always stood for and many Americans today. America represents a land of freedom where one can, by their own willpower and hard work, make their life better. Its not easy. For Americans to be shifting away from the concept of individual accomplishment being meaningful is a big change. It shouldn't be a question of what responsibilities the federal government has toward anyone - but instead of the American people's responsibility to say 'government get out of our way'. America's success has NEVER been in her government - but in her government's constitutional restrictions to stay out of its people's way and let them take care of themselves and in turn, one another. That is why she is a land of opportunity, and that is what we are very much at risk of loosing
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      steven Wadlington

      • 0
      Oct 26 2011: Well put. I could not agree more.

    • Addison Rennick 30+

      • 0
      Oct 26 2011: Alright, but when every bank in the country steals your savings to pay its executives I'll be standing here saying "I told you so".

      It's not laziness. It's justice.

      • Hilary Jirasek

        • 0
        Oct 27 2011: Hi Addison - can you please help me understand what you mean by 'Its justice."?
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        Damon Samuel

        • +1
        Oct 27 2011: Name one bank that has stolen anyone's savings?

        You can't. Even if your bank went underwater, your savings are still available to you. Any monies that were held on your behalf that the bank can't pay out of capital are insured up to the FDIC limit. Monies beyond the limit that may be lost to you were still not stolen.

        Money that has been invested, rather than placed in savings, has always been at risk. When you purchase a stock, bond, mutual fund, swaption, puts, futures, CDO's or any other financial instrument you are putting your capital at risk in exchange for the opportunity of appreciation or a future income stream.

        Your anger at the outsized paychecks of some lucky few people in finance is ill-informed and misplaced.

        This comming from someone who lost 90% of their investments by listening to a big banks advice just prior to the dot com collapse. They didn't steal my money, they encouraged me to make bad decisions which they earned fees on. The near total loss was due to the bad investment itself. I have since educated myself and have survived the great recession quite well.

        • danita harris

          • 0
          Oct 28 2011: 1997 an employee of wels fargo embezzled a few millions dollars. The action started by skimming .0001 cent from everyone's 401k through a company in Portland Oregon called CNF. When that individual was faced with being caught he hurriedly crashed through account after account taking 20 years worth of 401k deductions in some cases, others were a little luckier. Now i realize this is not just a standard checking account, but those founds were never recovered. Wels Fargo did however send out apology letters headed nicely with beautiful stationary ...

        • Addison Rennick 30+

          • 0
          Oct 28 2011: Oh come on, surely you've heard of the great depression? the FDIC doesn't have enough money to cover everyone.

          Think this is unlikely? It almost happened in 2008. They injected hundreds of billion in an attempt to stop the mass withdrawals and it was sucked up in a matter of hours. They had to shut the whole works down and reopen it the next day when everyone had calmed down. All caused, of course, by people who know better but are too damn greedy to care.

        • Tim Streetman

          • 0
          Nov 8 2011: The Fed reserve just gave 16 trillion to bail out banks, that money was OUR tax money, it was not theirs to give, thats stealing

    • James Harmon

      • 0
      Oct 28 2011: One of the issues with this conversation is the idea that there is no longer an equal playing field when it comes to the ability to find ones own way or work toward the "american dream".
      Certain injustices' need to be addressed about how we can achieve our dreams. How are corporations allowed to claim bankruptcy steal pensions from workers and reward top management with millions in golden parachutes? Why are Bank bailouts Paid for by the public used in this same way? We aided the Banks in this to save or serve the greater good.
      there are safeguards in place that aid us in time of need to serve the greater good as well. Medicaid medicare etc. and these institutions are under attack in this time of uncertainty undermining our trust in the "greater good contract we have as american citizens.
      100 years ago about 80% of the population was self employed and now about 20% are self employed. So corporation's have grown to a massive scale and control more of the government than we the people do. They have changed the rules and the landscape, and receive preferred treatment due to their economic power.

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