2012 saw the beginning of economic recovery from the 2008 recession. What is this year, 2013, like? Let's see what this year is like and what we should do.
I liken this year as a person climbing a hill with the wind in their face. It seems that with every step forward there is some force pushing you back. More taxes, shorter hours, and inflation counter any income gains you have. Then on top of it there are the occasional repairs that are needed this year in your home and vehicle.
So what should our outlook be for this year? I feel that its important to keep moving forward regardless of the pressures to go backwards. I wouldn't expect great gains, though count yourself lucky if you even make your goals. I would try to take steps to mitigate any risk. Secure your gains, and try not to fall back.
Yep, the year is and will continue to be a fight. Perhaps toward the end of the year some of us will see some relief from the forces holding us back. 2014 will be a different year. We will have to see what that brings. I see growth there and an increased gap between rich and poor. But even the poor will make some gains. Cheers!
Showing posts with label economy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label economy. Show all posts
Friday, April 5, 2013
Monday, December 26, 2011
Why Look Forward to 2012
While some people are predicting doom and gloom for the new year, I rather look to the rarer traits, the good ones. 2011 is ending and will soon be a distant memory. I hear sighs of relief from some. What in the world could we look forward to in the upcoming year?
In my post "2011 and other years....." I predicted 'moderate' growth in the economy in the US. Well I may have been over optimistic using that word. I seemed to have been barely any growth. 2011 prove to be a year of contraries. There was growth for some sectors and there was some downturns for others. This resulted in barely any growth at all. There was activity. And it was the activity in the markets I sensed. Activity will grow in this coming year. Hopefully the activity will translate in some significant growth in the markets. The potential is there. New companies have emerged. Older corporations have emerged from bankruptcy reorganizations. So I'm looking forward to increased activity in the financial sector.
Fledgling democracies in North Africa and other parts have an uphill climb in 2012. Factions will conflict. Societies mettle will be tested. I hope these countries will stand up to the challenge. The challenge is to put down all weapons and pick up the pen and computers and start the democratic process. They should stay in the democratic frey for years to come. Strong emotions are at work here. Unifying the different factions under issues will be the key to success. I wish them good luck.
Geo-economics seem to have their work cut out for them. Individual countries in Europe need to continue to stabilize themselves. Africa has great potential to create new business in 2012. Some African countries have been profitable in the last year. Peace and the fight against violence should help increase the economy. Russia seems murky. They need to deal with their problems before they can have an increased influence on the world, economically speaking. China on the other hand has said it will use its money to invest and create a positive force in the world. I don't doubt the Chinese's sincerity. Business people in China really want to succeed in a peaceful world.
On the geo-political side of things, I've been disturbed by reports of activity between China and the West. I fear war mongering is in the air. It would be a hard time to have another large war like World War II. China is setup now with lots of money. This can only mean that their military will be trying to get to that money and make new things, have a bigger army, and have a warlike attitude to the rest of the world. This is of a great concern. I hope we do not have a war. I would argue that a war with China would hinder the economic advances China has made and will also jeopardize the economic future of the world. Russia is still murky on the geo-politics. They now have internal protesting to the election. I predict hard times for Russia, and a hard struggle. North Korea is something people are concerned with. I have to say I don't see much concern. I do see some reform from the new leader. I also see pretty much that North Korea will go in the same direction as it has before, isolation. The North Korean people are suffering, and I don't see a change in that. Iran is also a concern. I don't see anything new for them in 2012 though. International dialogues with Iran will continue as they have been. I think Iran will stall for time.
In space, India has been progressing by launching its own satellites increasingly. NASA is in an internal battle over two factions, the cost-plus model and the new commercial services model to launch from Earth. Congress also has a hard time to wrap their brains around the new model. I do see the the commercial companies will make new strides in 2012 even with government stalls. Other space programs will continue but with revenue fights. Money seems to be sparse for space these days.
I will say that in 2012, the world will....continue as it always has. I don't see the end of the world in 2012. I choose to look at it as a renewed era of potential and advances. We just came out of an era of stalls, and declines. Rebuilding the world is the name of the game now.
Well, that's it. I do look forward to the positive things in 2012. Be careful out there, its still a jungle. Have a good year.
In my post "2011 and other years....." I predicted 'moderate' growth in the economy in the US. Well I may have been over optimistic using that word. I seemed to have been barely any growth. 2011 prove to be a year of contraries. There was growth for some sectors and there was some downturns for others. This resulted in barely any growth at all. There was activity. And it was the activity in the markets I sensed. Activity will grow in this coming year. Hopefully the activity will translate in some significant growth in the markets. The potential is there. New companies have emerged. Older corporations have emerged from bankruptcy reorganizations. So I'm looking forward to increased activity in the financial sector.
Fledgling democracies in North Africa and other parts have an uphill climb in 2012. Factions will conflict. Societies mettle will be tested. I hope these countries will stand up to the challenge. The challenge is to put down all weapons and pick up the pen and computers and start the democratic process. They should stay in the democratic frey for years to come. Strong emotions are at work here. Unifying the different factions under issues will be the key to success. I wish them good luck.
Geo-economics seem to have their work cut out for them. Individual countries in Europe need to continue to stabilize themselves. Africa has great potential to create new business in 2012. Some African countries have been profitable in the last year. Peace and the fight against violence should help increase the economy. Russia seems murky. They need to deal with their problems before they can have an increased influence on the world, economically speaking. China on the other hand has said it will use its money to invest and create a positive force in the world. I don't doubt the Chinese's sincerity. Business people in China really want to succeed in a peaceful world.
On the geo-political side of things, I've been disturbed by reports of activity between China and the West. I fear war mongering is in the air. It would be a hard time to have another large war like World War II. China is setup now with lots of money. This can only mean that their military will be trying to get to that money and make new things, have a bigger army, and have a warlike attitude to the rest of the world. This is of a great concern. I hope we do not have a war. I would argue that a war with China would hinder the economic advances China has made and will also jeopardize the economic future of the world. Russia is still murky on the geo-politics. They now have internal protesting to the election. I predict hard times for Russia, and a hard struggle. North Korea is something people are concerned with. I have to say I don't see much concern. I do see some reform from the new leader. I also see pretty much that North Korea will go in the same direction as it has before, isolation. The North Korean people are suffering, and I don't see a change in that. Iran is also a concern. I don't see anything new for them in 2012 though. International dialogues with Iran will continue as they have been. I think Iran will stall for time.
In space, India has been progressing by launching its own satellites increasingly. NASA is in an internal battle over two factions, the cost-plus model and the new commercial services model to launch from Earth. Congress also has a hard time to wrap their brains around the new model. I do see the the commercial companies will make new strides in 2012 even with government stalls. Other space programs will continue but with revenue fights. Money seems to be sparse for space these days.
I will say that in 2012, the world will....continue as it always has. I don't see the end of the world in 2012. I choose to look at it as a renewed era of potential and advances. We just came out of an era of stalls, and declines. Rebuilding the world is the name of the game now.
Well, that's it. I do look forward to the positive things in 2012. Be careful out there, its still a jungle. Have a good year.
Monday, December 19, 2011
Self Worth
The other day, I heard that there is a different type of success that is not monetary. Apparently the internet has spawned many people's ambition in making videos, writing, commenting, networking, etc. So the younger generations are growing up with this stuff and it may cause them to measure their self worth by what they contribute rather than how much money they make. I would like to explore this self worth a bit.
Long ago in the 1800's there was a man who had no money but claimed to be Emperor. Emperor of what you may ask? Why Emperor of the country where he lived, the United States. His name was Joshua Abraham Norton. Ok, you may be grinning at this absurd information, but hear me out. Norton was a business man who lost it all and became mentally unbalanced, and called himself Emperor of the United States. Now this man may have well be a bar fly or a colorful character in San Francisco if it wasn't for his decrees and his money. He issued both. Who knows why, but his monetary notes were honored in San Francisco. One of his decrees was that there should be a bridge and a tunnel that would enable travelers to travel across the San Francisco bay. Both exist today. Norton found self worth. He had to give up money to be his self worth, and instead made himself important to himself and to his community. This is the type of self worth we are seeing growing in the internet today. Hopefully nobody will declare themselves Emperor of anything.
What do we have in the internet to make people contribute? There's youtube, twitter, facebook, google+, and many other sites that are social in nature. I write, so I use Scribd.com to let people read my work. I don't expect to make money off of it. I just like people reading my work. I also write this blog. It's fun, and it helps me hone a skill that helps me professionally. I also get a thrill that people read my blog. Its the stats that I look at. I find self worth in writing and contributing to people's lives.
If this alternate self worth perpetuates and continues to grow, what could the future look like? Perhaps we will have a utopian society like that in Star Trek as envisioned by Gene Roddenberry. I can see a society where your contribution to society is not compensated in money but in food, shelter, and transportation. Where the average person does not need money to survive. If everyone contributes to their employment, and that effort is coordinated, why would anyone need to rely on money to live? It's hard to imagine. It's hard to conceive of it, but John Lennon sang of it in Imagine. Some say that this is communism, but I beg the differ. Russian, Chinese, and Cuban communism were not like this. Marx wrote of a utopia society, but he also wrote how that would come about in his mind. That was the communist manifesto. I think the utopian society is not inherently Marxist, even though Marx wort about it. No, I think it's an innate idea in all of us. I believe it to be also written of in the book of Revelation. If what were seeing now as a change in self worth and were headed to a utopian society, then Marx was wrong in how we got there. Today we see things that are small ecosystems of a utopian society. These things include, insurance, food stamps, Social Security, Veterans Administration, Charity organizations, employee benefits, etc. You may not like the idea of a utopian society, but I think if employees were given their food, housing, and travel, then we wouldn't have a housing market collapse.
Self worth in the form of contribution is on the rise. It may not be a bad thing and it may lead to a better future for all. That is for all except the money grubbers.
Long ago in the 1800's there was a man who had no money but claimed to be Emperor. Emperor of what you may ask? Why Emperor of the country where he lived, the United States. His name was Joshua Abraham Norton. Ok, you may be grinning at this absurd information, but hear me out. Norton was a business man who lost it all and became mentally unbalanced, and called himself Emperor of the United States. Now this man may have well be a bar fly or a colorful character in San Francisco if it wasn't for his decrees and his money. He issued both. Who knows why, but his monetary notes were honored in San Francisco. One of his decrees was that there should be a bridge and a tunnel that would enable travelers to travel across the San Francisco bay. Both exist today. Norton found self worth. He had to give up money to be his self worth, and instead made himself important to himself and to his community. This is the type of self worth we are seeing growing in the internet today. Hopefully nobody will declare themselves Emperor of anything.
What do we have in the internet to make people contribute? There's youtube, twitter, facebook, google+, and many other sites that are social in nature. I write, so I use Scribd.com to let people read my work. I don't expect to make money off of it. I just like people reading my work. I also write this blog. It's fun, and it helps me hone a skill that helps me professionally. I also get a thrill that people read my blog. Its the stats that I look at. I find self worth in writing and contributing to people's lives.
If this alternate self worth perpetuates and continues to grow, what could the future look like? Perhaps we will have a utopian society like that in Star Trek as envisioned by Gene Roddenberry. I can see a society where your contribution to society is not compensated in money but in food, shelter, and transportation. Where the average person does not need money to survive. If everyone contributes to their employment, and that effort is coordinated, why would anyone need to rely on money to live? It's hard to imagine. It's hard to conceive of it, but John Lennon sang of it in Imagine. Some say that this is communism, but I beg the differ. Russian, Chinese, and Cuban communism were not like this. Marx wrote of a utopia society, but he also wrote how that would come about in his mind. That was the communist manifesto. I think the utopian society is not inherently Marxist, even though Marx wort about it. No, I think it's an innate idea in all of us. I believe it to be also written of in the book of Revelation. If what were seeing now as a change in self worth and were headed to a utopian society, then Marx was wrong in how we got there. Today we see things that are small ecosystems of a utopian society. These things include, insurance, food stamps, Social Security, Veterans Administration, Charity organizations, employee benefits, etc. You may not like the idea of a utopian society, but I think if employees were given their food, housing, and travel, then we wouldn't have a housing market collapse.
Self worth in the form of contribution is on the rise. It may not be a bad thing and it may lead to a better future for all. That is for all except the money grubbers.
Monday, July 11, 2011
2011 to 2012
Its come to my attention that this summer, 2011, has financial analysts worried. The recent reports of the low job growth has made everyone uneasy. Some has gone as far as to fear a double dip recession. As an emapth feeling the future I don't see a double dip recession. I see slow growth.
In a previous post entitled 2011 and other years, I described what this year and the next few years look like. I picked up on a vibe of activity that starts in 2011 as a murmur and exponentially grows to a frenzy by 2015. This is a vibe of business activity. As far as I understand economy, recessions grind things to a halt, but booming business is full of activity. That's why I'm saying that the economy will grow, and grow exponentially.
This should be good news to investors. New business is needed to bring us out of this "slump". New ideas must flow and grow. With new business new jobs need to be created.
Unfortunately for the time being we have this very slow growth. It's summer after all. Summer is not a time of economic growth. Many people take vacation during this time. What if we didn't. What if we didn't take vacation and made summer a working summer? The economy would grow faster.
This is time not a time to look at report numbers for inspiration. This is a time to go with your gut feeling. Take your dream and work it. Don't go out on a limb though. Protect yourself as you go.
Good luck.
In a previous post entitled 2011 and other years, I described what this year and the next few years look like. I picked up on a vibe of activity that starts in 2011 as a murmur and exponentially grows to a frenzy by 2015. This is a vibe of business activity. As far as I understand economy, recessions grind things to a halt, but booming business is full of activity. That's why I'm saying that the economy will grow, and grow exponentially.
This should be good news to investors. New business is needed to bring us out of this "slump". New ideas must flow and grow. With new business new jobs need to be created.
Unfortunately for the time being we have this very slow growth. It's summer after all. Summer is not a time of economic growth. Many people take vacation during this time. What if we didn't. What if we didn't take vacation and made summer a working summer? The economy would grow faster.
This is time not a time to look at report numbers for inspiration. This is a time to go with your gut feeling. Take your dream and work it. Don't go out on a limb though. Protect yourself as you go.
Good luck.
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