April 3, 2009

The Today Show and other Psuedo-News

So, I am really sick and tired of the media talking about the economy. I am especially sick of hearing people who are not having a hard time right now, giving advice about how to deal with the economy! Jean Chatsky was on the Today show this morning talking about how UNbelievable it is that SO many people are unprepared for a job loss. She had NO idea why everyone isn't throwing money into savings accounts since pretty much EVERYONE in today's job market should assume they could lose their job at any time.

Really? You don't believe that 51% of people don't have savings, Jean Chatsky? You don't understand that in today's world, just because you HAVE a job, that doesn't mean you are well off? You don't understand that many two-income families are having to live paycheck to paycheck because their property taxes have doubled in two years, insurance premiums have sky-rocketed, grocery prices have sky-rocketed, employers are cutting hours? If you don't understand these things, maybe you shouldn't be going on national television talking about how idiotic people who aren't saving for an impending job loss are.

I find it UNbelievable that Chatsky and others like her are still talking about the average family saving money as if it is as simple as giving up Starbucks or the nail salon to make ends meet. Are they fucking kidding us with this horse shit? They talk about saving money as if it is just a matter of giving up tofu take-out or other useless shit that no one needs. NEWSFLASH: For many people, to save enough to be considered *prepared* for a job loss means NOT paying the mortgage, or eating ramen noodles every day. Get off your fucking high horse and quit talking to the American people as if we are all bad children who don't listen. We aren't all squandering money on lavish lifestyles instead of saving money for a rainy day. Some of us live in the real world and even though we know there is a very good chance we will be unemployed in the near future, there isn't a damn thing we can reasonably do to prepare for it.