I'll be the first to admit that I have little to no-pull in terms of making people think one thing or the other about the economy. I do, however, come to a point where I have collected some cool links that just need to be shared.
I'll cover the economy in seperate sectors of the agreed-upon needs of all people: Food, Water, Clothing, Shelter, and Love (and I'll throw in Government just for fun!).
Food
Food price inflation may not be as bad as we thought (check out inflation explained at Debt-Free Revolution). I also read a completely hilarious blog about media mass hysteria about food prices meanwhile the average barbeque meal only cost $1.65 more than last year… if you know who wrote this post let me know, because I lost the link! Even the Wall Street Journal has reported rice futures going down.
Water
My friend Sarah sent me this fabulous SIGG water bottle for my birthday. It is amazing. It keeps my water cold and crisp and does not leave a plastic aftertaste in my mouth…and, of course, it's refillable. I don't normally endorse products but here's the store if you want to buy one.
Clothing
Apparently, the New York Times is having a hard time believing that Sarah Jessica Parker's newish Bitten line of clothes is so wonderful. They seem to think that attraction towards inexpensive clothes is a phenomenon in these economic times. Those of us who love women's magazines though have seen a "Bitten" example in every issue for at least the past year. Ok slight exaggeration but SJP (and women wanting cute cheap clothes) is here to stay.
Feeling left out menfolk? Please don't: LL Cool J has got your back! (from USAToday.com)
Shelter
If you want to understand how this whole housing debaucle happened, listen to this hour-long program from This American Life. Great storytelling, which you can expect from TAL but makes this whole thing way more understandable.
And if you're a renter, feel free to get angry. Read this fabulous post by Baglady to see why this housing crisis will effect us all whether we rent or not.
Love
Ah, poor Anne Heche. She may love her kids but can't afford to pay child support. OK, if she can't afford it, I think that pretty much lets everyone else off the hook, too. (I have no sympathy for celebrities who make more money in one day then I have in five years then waste their money. Where I'm from we call that gaspilleuse!)(from People.com)
But in the good news bin about love, people apparently love and appreciate small businesses enough to actually pay in a pay-as-you-wish situation. (from Freakonomics blog)
And according to a recent Gallup poll,almost 50% of us are happy and thriving. How happy? People are working on an index for that! (from Freakonomics blog)
Government
Haven't spent your new government stimulus check on a new Wii or a crazy night in Vegas? Good for you! Here are some more productive things to do with it. (from Mighty Bargain Hunter)
And guess what? The government is doing something about credit card companies (from Debt-Free Revolution).
Need even more government fun? Now you can actually prove if you could do a better job then your Congress people. Balance the federal budget…it's a new game called Budget Hero. (Freakonomics blog)
To summarize: things may or may not be as awful as we thought, but we certianly can't control everything. Might as well smile and wave…
Image from www.shorpy.com.