Another Great Depression?

Barack Obama stated in a speech on May 14th concerning the housing crisis that, "There are some similarities, though, to what happened back in the late 20s and early 30s and what's been happening now, and the biggest similarity is how we've been dealing with Wall Street and what's happening in the financial markets." Today he stated that after the Lehman Brothers crisis and the buyout of Merrill Lynch by Bank of America that we are in "the most serious financial crisis since the Great Depression." On the other hand, John McCain is much more cautious stating today that "There's been tremendous turmoil in our financial markets and Wall Street and ... people are frightened by these events. [However] the fundamentals of our economy are strong. But these are very, very difficult times."
How did the Great Depression start? It began with the stock market crash of 1929 followed by the failure of over 3,000 banks in the 1930s. Americans stopped purchasing across the board. Further, America's policy with Europe and the drought conditions that existed in middle America just added to the events of the day. Understanding this, the answer to whether we are entering another Great Depression lies in part with how Americans react to the latest news. If individuals fear for the future, they might not purchase as much. Obviously with less being purchased, there will be less to manufacture. This will result in a loss of jobs. If consumer confidence stays high then we might experience a serious recession but hopefully we will be able to avoid the worst of the Great Depression.

Do you believe that we are headed for another Great Depression? Why or why not?

McCain and Obama: Viewing the Issues

Below are 3 ways in which Obama and McCain believe they can solve Americas problems. Pick which person's ideas that you believe would set America on the right track. A or B, and then tell me why you picked that letter.


Climate change

A. Says climate change is real and devastating. Says US should consider joining with every other nation in the world to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, if China and India join in.

B. Wants an 80% cut in US greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. Wants US to lead global effort to combat climate change. Would invest $150bn over 10 years in clean energy.

Healthcare

A. Has highlighted his record on supporting health care for military veterans. Favours tax incentives to encourage people to get personal health insurance.

B. Backs universal coverage but would not make insurance compulsory, except for children. Subsidies would be provided to make cover more affordable and insurers would be unable to refuse coverage because of pre-existing conditions.

Illegal immigration

A. Co-sponsor of bill which offered an amnesty to illegal immigrants as well as tougher border controls. Says undocumented workers already in the US should be put on path to citizenship.

B. Wants US-Mexico border better policed and backs stricter penalties for employers who hire undocumented workers. Argues that giving illegal immigrants a path to citizenship is not an amnesty if they pay a fine

Palin's teenage daughter pregnant

Palin's teenage daughter pregnantAlaska Governor Sarah Palin, newly picked as Republican John McCain's running mate, has revealed that her 17-year-old daughter is pregnant.Mrs Palin, a social conservative who is opposed to abortion, said in a statement her daughter Bristol would keep the child and was to get married.The Alaska governor, a mother-of-five, was presented three days ago as her party's vice-presidential candidate.The news comes as the Republicans' national convention gets under way.The McCain campaign and Palin family asked for respect for the young couple's privacy.Mrs Palin and her husband Todd said in a statement: "Bristol and the young man she will marry are going to realise very quickly the difficulties of raising a child, which is why they will have the love and support of our entire family."Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.Barack Obama: This story has no relevanceBristol is reportedly five months pregnant and would be due to give birth in late December.Advisers to the McCain campaign said they had known about the pregnancy before offering Mrs Palin the vice-presidential nomination."Senator McCain's view is this is a private family matter," said McCain spokesman Steve Schmidt."As parents, [the Palins] love their daughter unconditionally and are going to support their daughter. Life happens."Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama, asked for his response to the news while campaigning in Michigan, said people should "back off" from such stories."I think people's families are off-limits, and people's children are especially off-limits," he told reporters."This shouldn't be part of our politics. It has no relevance to Governor Palin's performance as a governor, or her potential performance as a vice-president."The announcement of Bristol's pregnancy followed rumours on internet blog sites over the weekend suggesting that Mrs Palin's youngest child, Trig, born in April, had actually been born to Bristol. The boy has Down's Syndrome.The National Journal reported that a spokesman for Mrs Palin had also confirmed that her husband had been arrested for driving under the influence in 1986.Talking pointThe news of Sarah Palin's daughter's pregnancy is gut-wrenching for Republicans BBC North America editor Justin WebbThe BBC's Justin Webb in St Paul, Minnesota, where the Republicans' national convention is taking place, says the news will certainly be a talking point but may not damage Mrs Palin's standing.She was brought on board to appeal to social conservatives, our correspondent says, and they may respect the decision by her daughter to keep the baby and to marry the father.However, some people in the party who already had concerns about the lack of knowledge about Mrs Palin's record may fear what other revelations lie in wait, our correspondent adds.Janis Thurston, attending the convention, told the BBC News website: "This won't affect my view of Sarah Palin."This sort of thing happens all the time these days. As long as [Bristol] goes through with the pregnancy..."The party's four-day convention opened on Monday but its schedule has been curtailed because of the threat of Hurricane Gustav to states on the southern US coast.Mrs Palin is due to be formally nominated by delegates as the party's vice-presidential choice later this week.She was elected governor of Alaska in 2006 and before that was mayor of the small town of Wasilla, Alaska.

Do you believe Palin's teenage pregnant daughter will hurt the Mccain campaign to become President?