subject: _:node64a8f4fc289e9dc282c035eb2e281
obj: " You may think the economy is sucking wind, but how can that be with record Black Friday sales of $11.4 billion, a healthy 6.6% increase over last year?\u00A0 What\u2019s more impressive, the four-day weekend sales totaled $52.4 billion, up 16% from a year ago according to the National Retail Federation.\u00A0 If unemployment and income are as bad as the media says, then people wouldn\u2019t be spending money at record levels.\nAs a patriotic American, I did my part in contributing $600 of the $11.4 billion.\u00A0 I bought a pair of work shoes, socks, ties, and underwear for an average 35% off.\u00A0 A 13\u2033 MacBook Pro and a round-trip ticket to Hawaii were on my list, but I didn\u2019t make enough money online during the weekend to allow me to buy guilt-free.\u00A0 I made it a pledge that the only money I would spend would be based on the money I earned during the same time period.\nIt\u2019s safe to say that many people are aware that not everything is hunky dory.\u00A0 We\u2019ve got the Euro Debt Crisis, a US States Budget Crisis, political gridlock in Congress, and a stubbornly high 9% unemployment rate that makes even the most optimistic of people doubt.\u00A0 How do we reconcile such uncertainty with such consumption strength?\nTHEORIES AS TO WHY AMERICANS ARE SPENDING AT A RECORD PACE\n* Savings fatigue.\u00A0 After the 2008 downturn when plenty of Americans lost more than 30% of their retirement savings in one year, spending plummeted and savings rates surged to over 5% (still pathetic, but it was negative before).\u00A0 It\u2019s been three years since the financial crisis, and 401k provider Fidelity has said that most retirement accounts are now above their 2007 highs.\u00A0 People\u2019s balance sheets are stronger now and many are simply sick of living so frugally.\n* Pent up demand.\u00A0 A lot of purchases were delayed over the past 3 years \u2013 from cars to homes to big screen TVs you don\u2019t need.\u00A0 When you\u2019re in a financial crunch, the last thing you\u2019re going to do is to replace perfectly fine, albeit old things.\u00A0 Instead, you keep things a little longer and do without the latest bells and whistles.\u00A0 But technology has changed drastically since three years ago.\u00A0 Just look at the latest Android phones and iPhone 4S.\n* It\u2019s harder to afford property.\u00A0 Banks have become more stringent in terms of qualifying home buyers.\u00A0 20-25% down is now standard vs. 0% down in the go-go days.\u00A0 A lot of people have given up trying to own a home in San Francisco, where median prices are $650,000 and have resorted to renting.\u00A0 If you no longer have $150,000 down for a $650,000 home, that doesn\u2019t mean you don\u2019t have 10% down, or $65,000 in cash lying around doing nothing.\u00A0 It\u2019s a nice chunk of change, but it is not enough down to buy a median priced home.\u00A0 Therefore, the temptation to spend that cash on frivolous things increases tremendously, especially if it\u2019s been growing for the past several years in anticipation for the down payment.\n* People have much more money than you think.\u00A0 I\u2019ve subscribed to this theory for a long, long time.\u00A0 A person walking down the street may look poor, but in reality, they might be worth several million dollars.\u00A0 It\u2019s always better to watch what people do with their money than listen to what they say.\u00A0 Why else would shopping malls and restaurants be so packed?\u00A0 The median starting income for a 29 year old from UC Berkeley\u2019s Haas School of Business or Stanford\u2019s Graduate School of Business is around $130,000.\u00A0 If they stick with their job for 5 more years, they\u2019ll likely earn more than $200,000 each if not much more, depending on their field.\u00A0 If they decide to marry each other, well then they really have a lot of extra income!\u00A0 It\u2019s not just MBA grads from good schools who make good money.\u00A0 You also have dockworkers and firemen who work 35-40 hours a week making over six figures.\u00A0 Dentists, lawyers, doctors, and big professional bloggers are also doing well.\u00A0 You can then add on the kids who have Bank of Mom & Dad\u2019s helping them buy cars and properties for them.\u00A0 The list is endless!\nSTAY POSITIVE MY FRIENDS\nWhether you are rich or poor, things are looking up.\u00A0 Did you see the videos of chaos at Wal-Mart with people going crazy over $1.99 waffle makers?\u00A0 You might scoff at people who stand in line for hours to save a couple hundred bucks.\u00A0 That\u2019s the wrong way to look at things.\u00A0 Instead, realize these folks have money to spend and are patriots.\u00A0 Shoppers are confidently spending their disposable income and saving our economy.\nReaders, how much have you spent so far this holiday season?\u00A0 Are you bullish about the economy given the record high Black Friday retail sales?\u00A0 Why do you think the Black Friday retail sales numbers are so strong?\nAre you bullish?\nPhoto: Union Square Apple Store on Black Friday, 11/25/11, Sam.\nUpdate: Since this post, we\u2019ve had record Cyber Monday sales, Chicago November PMI jump to 61, and US pending home sales for October up 10% MoM vs. expectations of only +2%.\u00A0 Finally, the World Banks have brought out the BAZOOKA on Wed, 11/30/11 to prop the markets up!\u00A0 Who wins?\u00A0 Asset owners.\u00A0 Who loses?\u00A0 Savers.\u00A0 Let\u2019s rock!\nRegards,\nSam\n\u00A0\n\u00A0\nThe following two tabs change content below.BioLatest Posts\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tFinancial Samurai\n\t\t\tSam is the founder of Financial Samurai, America's fastest growing personal finance site.  We believe in reaching financial independence sooner, rather than later.  Slice through money's mysteries!\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tLatest posts by Financial Samurai (see all)\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\tWhen To Boot Your Adult Kids Out Of The House - September 28, 2015 \n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\tBlackRock\u2019s Acquisition Of FutureAdvisor Is Just The Beginning For Fintech - August 26, 2015 \n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\tAdvice For College Graduates: Prepare For Hell! - June 15, 2015 \n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\tShare this:FacebookTwitterPinterestLinkedInMoreRedditGoogleTumblrPocketEmailPrint\n\n\tRelated\n\n"@en-us