March 6, 2008

StreetTalk

by Carol Rosen

At a news conference last week, President Bush said we are not in a recession. Do you agree?
(Asked at the Almaden Community Center and Library)

“[Laughs] No, I don’t agree. All you have to do is look around and see what’s happening. Even in our community people are suffering from huge medical bills and the education system is terrible. People need two or three jobs just to survive.”

Howard LeBas, 75
Almaden
Retired from IBM


“I’ll tell you that it doesn’t hit me directly because I’m retired so I can’t agree or disagree. But clearly things are not good. Prices are high and a lot of people can’t afford things they thought they could when they signed up for them.”

DeForrest Home, 68
Almaden
Retired


“No, because as a business owner I know there is a recession.”

Nasrin Faeaker, 65
Almaden
Owner, Nasrin European Skin Care Clinic


“No because everything is going down, down, down and my 401K isn’t doing very well.”

Gene Marshack, 58
Almaden
Retired/volunteer


“I think we’re in a recession. The economy is down and people are struggling."

Tammy Emerson, 36
Almaden
Homemaker


“I don’t think so. People are losing jobs. We’re still happy here and it’s great compared to where I come from [Ukraine]. But the economy is up and down. I’m hopeful that it will go back up and stay there.”

Lesia Houk, 40
Almaden
Part time piano teacher


“By the strict definition, which is two consecutive quarters of negative GDP growth, were are not in a recession, but we are very close to realizing that technical definition. Anyway, it sure feels like a recession.”

Richard Blume, 51
Almaden
Financial advisor


“You know the definition of a recession is two straight quarters with zero growth and I don’t know if we’ve hit that yet. But indications are that we are going into a serious economic downturn and it would be foolish not to undertake measures to offset the pending economic train wreck.”

John Hughmanick, 51
Almaden
Retired


“What’s happening now doesn’t meet the technical definition of a recession, but it’s about to!”

Leslie Cross, 44
Almaden
Planning executive