Are you prepared for the worst?

The dire state of the economy has all of us desperately asking questions about our future; the financial situation of America and our very own pockets. Are we financially safe and sound to retire peacefully? Will our savings nest, the one 'fall back' we have, disappear before our eyes? Where will this leave our future generations? Can this disastrous mess be resolved?



As the stock market has plummeted to shockingly low prices and much higher stakes, the housing markets; Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, are on the verge of being taken over by the Government as well as the money market that is currently under extreme scrutiny being the number one talk at Capitol Hill. The Congress will decide, either today or tomorrow to pass the bill for the 700 billion dollar bailout the Bush administration has set forth. Wow.



This long and painful recession is an obvious high price that we as
ordinary people (taxpayers) will have to pay. The bailout money of 700 billion dollars,
may seem like a humongous amount to make things right, but in reality, little fractions of this deal-- say, 40 million dollar each, and I am being modest!-- will end up in the hands of failed CEO's who in the first place were selfish enough to make decisions, wrongly executed by putting the wrong people in charge. This very notion of corporate America has shackled itself to utter desperation and is surprisingly still clinging onto the self given title of SUPERPOWER. Keep dreaming guys.



If the American dream of becoming a homeowner, buying a car and having a stable job means to foreclose on a loan that was never meant to be affordable, or rely on a job that is on any given day "laid off" by unstable economic means, then no...the American dream is a far cry from fulfilling the real wishes of the common man. It's a facade of keeping up with the Jones'. America is built on credit, but the banks aren't crediting their customers in full as they have nothing to credit for, therefore the conversion to a cash economy will take its place in households -- making us brutally aware of what money in actuality is.



If you are prepared for the worst, you would have a minimum "affordable" amount of debt on your credit card that YOU know is doable of paying off overtime and not, lets say, in a century with skyrocketing interest rates. You would also be aware of your financial future, meaning that solid investments, here and there...such as mutual funds or 401K may hold your back in times of need. And most importantly, the preparation of your very own expertise. What I mean by this is the "side project" you may be working on accomplishing apart from working for Corporate America or would you rather rely on a boss who might fire you on a sunny day?

Expertise people. Hone it. Perfect it. Market it.