Wednesday, January 16, 2008

GETTING READY FOR THE CONSEQUENCES OF 8 YEARS OF REPUBLICAN ECONOMIC POLICIES?

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Bush arrived for dinner "wearing a black full-length robe with bluish-silver trim" and fur lining. Lovely.

The Bush Recession is just one more reason the whole world-- or at least those not living in palaces-- has for detesting George Bush. While the Bush Regime and their congressional puppets launched a preemptive strike against Democratic efforts to head off a crash, I decided I better start taking economic matters into my own hands.

I've always been wary of optometrists. When I was like 7 or 8 an optometrist told me parents I needed glasses. My father didn't trust the guy and took me for a second opinion and the second opinion guy said my eye sight was perfect and the first guy was trying to rip me off. In my 40's I finally did start to need reading glasses. Prescription glasses were never cheap but I have good insurance and it never seemed to make much of a dent. A couple years ago I was visiting my friend Danny in NYC and he turned me on to non-prescription reading glasses that you get in a drug store. It shocked me that perfectly good reading glasses could cost between 10 and 15 dollars. I could have a pair in every room where I read-- and one in my car.

Eventually they break. So you buy a new pair. They cost $10. I thought they did. Yesterday I needed to buy 3 pairs and some 9 volt batteries for my fire alarms. I went to what I had always thought of as a discount drug story. Their price for the glasses was $28. I grumbled at the idea of spending $90 bucks for the 3 pairs. The batteries cost $9.50 a piece. I was getting pissed off. Irwing to the rescue. "They have the exact same glasses and batteries in the 99 cent stores," he swore. I didn't believe him. I mean how could one store sell the same exact glasses for 99 cents that another store was selling for $28? It just isn't possible.

It was. I found the identical glasses for 99 cents. I bought 3 pairs. I spent $3 instead of $90. As for the batteries, even Irwing was surprised. Instead of $9.50 for a battery, they were selling 2 for 99 cents-- name brands, not expired, no damaged, not made in China.

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2 Comments:

At 11:24 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Random question though...if you're so willing to call it "Bush's recession" does that mean that Bush get credit for when the economy was doing fine in 2002-2007? Or, is it customary to sing the praises of the economy when a Democrat is in office, such as with Bill Clinton in the 1990s and to trash it when the occupant of the White House is a Republican? Seems to be an honest question. As such, One need only look at the state of the economy under Coolidge, Eisenhower, and Reagan, when things were fine, and under Carter when things were terrible to know that political affiliations have nothing to do with the state of the economy. But that is simply my observation.

 
At 7:38 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

First, I would like to respond to the commenter about the economy doing fine from 02-07. It was doing fine for whom? Everyone, I mean, everyone I know has spent the past 4 years getting by. Not prosperity, but simply getting by. Have you been in the job market at anytime in the past 4 years? It has not been good at all.

Second, on the subject, I have been an avid bargain shopper for the past decade. We have discount grocery stores here in Ohio (Marcs) that sell name brand stuff for well below regular grocery store prices. I buy clothes and anything entertainment wise (Cds, dvds) second hand. It's much more satisfying to pay what things are actually worth than what some corporation decides they are.

 

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