Honda announced today they are cutting production.

http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/News/articleId=136406

This affects me, but I'm thinking more of the bigger picture here. How long do you all forecast this recession to linger before we hit rock bottom and begin the climb up?

What kind of changes have affected you personally?

What can we as individual citizens do to assist in rebuilding the economy?

This is what Im going to be doing

Nice! I think that was either too broad a subject or too deep for people to think about right now. Or maybe just too boring...haha. You are always good for a laugh my friend.

I think I'm going to have to start preparing for things that could come. Meaning, scale down my luxury things (which ain't much I tell ya), possibly get rid of my direct tv and maybe try a bundle deal with cable on the smallest possible package, etc. I already starting grocery shopping solely at Aldi's trying to save money in that way. I'm not getting rid of my cell phone because I already gave up the house phone.

I've heard we should start living as if we are already laid off or had lost our job. Does anyone agree with that statement?

Also.....a friend told me she heard we were in for 7-8 years of the downhill trend. Does this seem likely to anyone?

get rid of the politicians in office out

they tell the auto worker they have to make concessions

where are the concessions the bankers had to make

aig throws an extravagant party then gets more money

that should paint the picture very clear

I agree with you there sir.

It's been the talk of the day around Honda, the fact that the unions are turning down deals simply because it would mean pay cuts. Honda workers make much less than The Big Three (although still a good wage) and most of them say they would gladly take a couple dollar pay cut in order to keep their job. I realize it's not all the simplistic, but maybe that's what we need to get back to....living simple lives.

Honestly, all automakers are being affected by the credit markets closing down.

Credit tightens, people get scared, lay-offs occur, people sit on their wallets...it all becomes a sort of self-fulfilling I knew things were going to hell sort of disaster.

Money is worth what we think it is worth and based on peoples fears or confidence in large part our emotions steer the economy.

Ironic that abuse of credit and financial manipulations by wall street types got us into this and in some ways what will get us out is more spending??

As I said in another post it is more expensive to buy a honda in Japan than it is in the US.

If anyone believes for a second the foreign car makers will play nice once US competition has been eliminated I have a bridge to sell you.

Once the competition goes away I promise you their governments will quit subsidizing car sales here, prices will go up and perhaps quality will go down.

Keep in mind as well companies like honda are also getting sweetheart deals with free land for their plants and state tax exemptions.

We are already supporting foreign car companies here in the US. Amazing eh? You will think it's something other than amazing once they have us over a barrel.

The bundled stuff really doesn't save much. Because the up you to higher packages than you had and then tell you how much you are saving on those! GRRRR

But I already got rid of cable, and a few other things. I don't have any more corners that I can cut!