[throwback]

Good points, but I suspect everything is status quo. I do see people spending money. I'm spending a little. Still of the people I know that were deep in debt two years ago, they're still there. They're still treading water trying to act like all is well. The fundamental mind set of spend, spend, spend is still driving this truck. I suspect that most of the prudent still have their heads back in the shell.

[LS]

Exactly. What I see is an unexplained (by all the smart economists I know) two-tiered system of haves and have-nots. But the haves ARE spending, and it ain't just tax refund money, and they aren't just continuing to borrow. I don't know exactly where it's coming from. I suspect that people who have jobs aren't much worse off than two years ago, and that a lot of people don't have jobs.

So in Dayton and Cincy, parts of the towns are ghost towns, but parts (high-end shopping malls) are going strong.