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What I can't understand is how so many people still think the economy is rotten.

Depends on how the question is phrased -- or in what context. Notice how consumer confidence surveys -- which are done professionally, sans political bias -- show pretty bullish sentiment. Yet media 'horse race' polls shows the opposite. Both can't be right. Odds are the media polls are really push-polls whose questions are fashioned in such a way as to yield results that fit the media's 'Bad-economy' template. If people thought the economy was as rotten as the media polls say they do, the economy would screeched to a halt.

If people thought the economy was as rotten as the media polls say they do, the economy would screeched to a halt.

I am a investment-level collector.

From 2000-2003, many high-level items were up for auction and bidding was fierce. Prices realized were often extremely high when compared to book value.

Prices realized on eBay are very low right now. I checked w/someone who collects in a different area and they report the same: high quality appreciable items are going low or not selling on eBay.

I do some appraising in my general area of knowledge and I am advising collectors to hold on to their collections right now unless they really need to liquidate or have held so long they will profit even in a slow market.

The same thing happened when Reagan's policies finally took hold. When the markets are good and income is up, people unload their asset hedges and invest in the market.

What I can't understand is how so many people still think the economy is rotten.

Those would be the people who are too lazy to find out themsleves. They want to be TOLD how to feel & what to think by Dan Rather & others of his ilk, IMHO.