It’s apparently okay to buy unnecessary and expensive electronics at a discount – even if you’ve lost your job and money is “tight.”
After all, the Super Bowl is Sunday.
CNN’s January 30 “American Morning” mentioned retailers were cutting prices to get customers to purchase more, but no one during the broadcast had a problem with one unemployed woman buying one of those fancy televisions.
“Veronica McNeil has two kids,” said "American Morning" anchor Alina Cho. “She recently lost her job. Her husband’s an ironworker and the family is feeling the pinch.”
McNeil revealed that a good discount would be her weakness.
“If I’m here to buy baby stuff and I see a TV at a good sale price, I’ll grab it,” McNeil said.
Cho pointed toward “rising gas and home heating oil prices and Americans losing their homes” for money being “tight.” Personal responsibility and wise financial decisions were lost on Cho.
“So everybody agrees that we’re all feeling the pinch, but the Super Bowl gets a pass,” said Cho. “Please excuse the pun.”
Editor at Large
Comments Policy
more hypocracy
January 30, 2008 - 16:50 ET by pwozSpending within your means is an unknown practice for some people.
American Idiot
January 30, 2008 - 17:52 ET by RiharShe's living "like everyone else". When she stops living like "everyone else" she'll start living like "no one else". I won't hold my breath.
-Ri"out of debt"har
Now where's my check Dave?
When a liberal speaks, the truth is busy elsewhere.
There really are "two
January 30, 2008 - 17:58 ET by ziplinedownThere really are "two americas"
One buys flat screen tvs while worrying about putting food on the table, and the other pays all their taxes
"give me a break!" - John Stossel
She is going to get Bush's money welfare rebate
January 30, 2008 - 16:50 ET by Lame CherryWell she is going to have George Bush and Congress buy that television for her as she is going to get 1,200 bucks back in the "rebate".
I'll never see a dime of this money and I sure won't be invited over to WATCH THE TV I BOUGHT..........but hey I don't get to ride on Rush Limbaugh's charted jet either for the few seconds my taxes pay for that either in his tax welfare.
Lovely world.
Would be nice if they actually fixed the economy so it produced so everyone could afford things!
*HIC IACET ARTORIVS REX QVONDAM REXQVE FVTVRVS
Tax Welfare??!?!?
January 30, 2008 - 17:06 ET by GreagoirYou don't pay anything for Rush's airplane. he pays more in taxes in a month than most people earn in a year...how do you figure?
This is to Lame Cherry,
January 30, 2008 - 18:40 ET by JAByou might want to exercise your sarc (/s) switch on occasion, you have confused several members on this one (see above) :-)
"Too bad Ignorance isn't painful..."
Us tax payers subsidize the
January 30, 2008 - 20:17 ET byUs tax payers subsidize the FAA, control towers and airports.
Because Pizza boy - our taxes are paying for her big screen
January 31, 2008 - 00:28 ET by Dee BunkLiberals constantly try to give sob stories of people who lose their jobs and this story is not at all untypical. We pay for lots of poor people to have big screen T.V.'s, Xbox 360's, I-phones and nice cars.
People are free to do what they want with there money but don't cry about not being able to afford health care and expect the government to do it.
Dee....TV's
January 31, 2008 - 00:37 ET by BlondeAfter the first "hurricane" in 2004...the poor folks in Miami hosed down their living rooms....and FEMA paid them off, with thousands of bucks.
Of course, the hurricane hit about 200 miles up the coast....but you know....it was a government give away.
The poor folks gotta have TV's. If you don't believe it....just ask the Silky Pony Boy (you know....he who was elated that B-OH and HRC are going to push his poverty agenda....that one!).
Seriously...no job, no food, but must have big screen, cell phones, and Air Jordans. What is poverty without those accoutrements?
David Gregory, do you know which damn network you lie for? ~ Uncle Jimbo, @Blackfive
Blonde & BD - there are 2 Americas - The Givers and the Takers
January 31, 2008 - 00:47 ET by Dee Bunkthere are so many people sucking up entitlements that don't need them and the libs just want to keep expanding it.
what's even more fun
January 31, 2008 - 19:22 ET by UndercoverConservativeis living in a less than prosperous neighborhood, full of welfare families and Secion 8 clients (I work for the agencies that deal with this stuff, so I can see many clients are in my area) and watching the Big Electronics Retailer delivery vans show up on tax return/Superbowl weekend. Flat screen TV's in a neighboring apartment for a family whose supposed income is from his "construction job". His "company" van never leaves for more than a couple of hours (tho sometimes it goes out late at night for a few hours too) and often sits for days.
Maybe that's got more to do with the reek of ganja sneaking out whenever they open the window or the kids (yeah, one under 6 years old) open the door. That's expensive stuff too.
Then ya got the guy up the street with the H2 "Extreme Edition" Hummer. Or the guy with the 'Vette. Course he has a job, but his "girlfriend" and the "her" son (not his, even though the kid looks a lot like him, she got pregnant while he was living there, but the birth certificate and paperwork says "father unknown") get rental assistance, food stamp and cash aid, utilities assistance, and government health insurance.
This weekend will have at least three deliveries that I'll see (if you e-filed your IRS stuff your taxes could be back already-got mine today) of high end TV's and stuff. Plus more kids on $300-and-up scooters and "pocket bikes". When the weather's nicer there'll be the kids hanging around with more iPods and PSP's.
BTW, did you know you get tax returns from welfare? Neither did I until a couple of years ago. They "take out" taxes like a normal paycheck, and if you get more taken out you get more back...as if you actually put in anything in the first place....
"Poor" families do real well around these parts. Which is why there's so many of them, and why there's so many more each year. My girlfriend wonders why anyone even bothers to work in this state, and other than my stock answer of "pride, self reliance, freedom and chances to advance to better conditions", I can't come up with a realistic answer.
My other neighbor, who just had the cutest little baby, and her fiance, does taxes for a side job. He works full time, she's part time because of the baby. And I bet you there's not gonna be a brand new big screen entertainment system and a new car in their immediate future...just some bills paid ahead from what little Uncle Sam decides to let them have back-which is mostly because of the baby's timely arrival.
My "big" expense is gonna be a three day road trip vacation with my girl, and extending the warranty on my bike. No big screens here during lean times. I did want to buy another gun-but "fortunately" both the revolver and 22 pistol I wanted are "illegal" in CA so there's no temptation there.:(
"to call an illegal immigrant an "undocumented alien" is the same as calling a streetcorner drug dealer an "unlicensed pharmacist".
Liberal Manifesto
January 31, 2008 - 11:44 ET by ThisnThatIt's better to to give excess tax-dollar funded handouts to millions of undeserving persons than to let one poor soul go hungry, be cold, or suffer in any one of thousands of ways.
Libs always say "It's too expensive (and unfair because privacy rights could be violated) to review individual cases; it's much better to cover all our bases and besides -- most people are, at heart, fundamentally trustworthy anyway". Ah, to live in fairyland with someone else's money and the moral standards of worms. The Democratic way of life.
___________________________________
If you can read this, thank a teacher. If it is in English, thank a Soldier. - My barber
Please explain comment of
January 30, 2008 - 17:13 ET by BDPlease explain comment of "Tax Welfare?"
"Would be nice if they
January 30, 2008 - 17:15 ET by Rackie"Would be nice if they actually fixed the economy so it produced so everyone could afford things! "
Yeah! "They" gotta have a freaking magic wand around somewhere handy. "Look in the drawer ya stupids!" Just wave it around and fix things so everybody has whatever the hell it is they they want.
Lame Cherry, that has to be
January 30, 2008 - 18:26 ET by Ryan Mc.Lame Cherry, that has to be one of the most ignorant (or Lame) posts I've read on News Busters.
1. Rush Limbaugh owes you nothing.
2. The economy is not a person or a switch. It is a collection of individuals who act on self interest. Its called capitalism and those who make others the happiest get the most back in return from it. You want more, get off your lazy duff and produce more.
Yep - Only in America do poor people have big screen T.V.'s
January 30, 2008 - 16:51 ET by Dee Bunkand cars and air conditioning and are not starving. We really don't respect our poor like liberal societies where they can't get that stuff. It's really outrageous that people are free to waste there own money isn't it?
No wonder John Edwards
January 30, 2008 - 16:53 ET by BDNo wonder John Edwards dropped out of the race......
Two America's....Hahahahahahahah!
Her husband is an ironworker
January 30, 2008 - 20:32 ET byHer husband is an ironworker who makes between 30 and $100 an hour, depending on the job.
Unemployment insurance is insurance she paid for, it's not welfare. She can spend it any way she pleases.
I don't know why this item is out here to be picked on.
Hot Pocket Boy
January 31, 2008 - 01:15 ET by mastersofdeceitHuh? How do you know she's getting unemployment? And let's say she is, how do you know "she can spend it any way she pleases?". With a husband and 2 kids, one a baby, you think it could be put to better use?
And, I guarantee her old man the "ironworker" has something to say about how the money is spent.
She paid for?
January 31, 2008 - 07:40 ET by voodoodaddy"Unemployment insurance is insurance she paid for"
I don't know what Country you are living in but it ain't the USof A. As a business owner, I can tell you the employee does not pay for "unemployment insurance"...the employer pays for it by way of an "unemployment tax" on wages and then has to pay a higher "Tax Rate" when a former employee collects it. The employee does not pay one single cent for the benefit.
This gives new meaning to
January 30, 2008 - 17:00 ET by tracheostomyThis gives new meaning to the phrase, "fixed income."
-PJ
"Trake: Your lofty convictions are another blemish on the rump of congregational sectarianism." -Tumbler 5/15/07
This is exactly what's
January 30, 2008 - 17:03 ET by goldboughThis is exactly what's wrong with today's society. People go buy stuff they can't afford. They know the government will just give them a check if they don't have a job; it doesn't matter how much frivolous stuff they buy. If they would save their money when they have a job, then they wouldn't need to depend on the government to bail them out.
I suspect this person in the story bought the TV on a credit card and they're not making the full payment each month. I don't see how anyone can buy something they can't afford that month (unless it's an emergency).
If they are so desperate to watch the Super Bowl on a big TV, go to the local sports bar.
For years and years we've lost manufacturing
January 30, 2008 - 17:13 ET by c5thenand replaced it with consumer spending for one of the major engines that drives the economy. Then, the MSM talks down the economy for years trying to create a recession, and they finally might actually get one. Then the MSM has the audacity to bemone the consumers who are not buying as much as they used to.
Things are "tight" for some people because the MSM has continually bashed the consumer's confidence, thus causing the conditions that they were "pre-reporting" for years.
But hey, not to worry, all the consumers who make less then $75,000 a year will be getting a couple hundred dollars back from the IRS to help tweak that consumer spending. Not in time for the Super Bowl, but maybe in time for the summer vacation season.
The day that "politician" became a career choice is the day we started losing the Republic. Let's get it back! Alan Keyes '08.
Bring out your deadbeats!
January 30, 2008 - 17:20 ET by CrashYup, us industrious overtaxed American's who earn "too much", according to liberals, have been duped by those who would rather watch their favorite team PLAY A GAME on a BRAND NEW SUPER-SIZED TV than learn a new skill, further their education, or work a part time job.
My wife and I ...
January 30, 2008 - 18:04 ET by NavyBuckeyeare feeling the crunch. My care blew a header gasket in the summer time and had some other things happen because of it, being a Durango this wasn't a cheap fix. It was about 6 grand but we used our savings instead of getting a loan or a line of credit. Now her job is making her less money...she is an entertainment manager for a bar. She makes more if the bar is bringing in more people. Right now the crowds are a little smaller so hence smaller paychecks. But we have pride and are adjusting our lifestyle rather than hoping the government gives us a lump sum. Its tight right now but since we are working hard ourselves we will be better. Unlike this woman who obviously needs the tv.
WHERES MY DUES, WHERE ARE MY ENTITLEMENTS? I WANT WHAT IS OWED TO ME TOO CNN!!!<sarcasm overemphasized>
If everyone that claimed to be victim on a daily baisis donated a dollar to the ending of the deficit, it would be irradicated rather quickly.
A lesson in life.
January 30, 2008 - 18:45 ET by ScrapironNever envy the rich nor pity the poor. Most of the rich folks got that way by dedicating their life to money. Most poor folks are poor by choice, not chance. The rest of us have just enough get up and go about us to earn enough to get what we want, or need anyway. If you aren't willing to do anything you will have nothing but the crumbs someone gives you, don't expect more. When your pride died you bacame a ward of the state.
money is tight
January 30, 2008 - 19:36 ET by LorraineThis reminds me of my coworker who told me that money was tight so he's going to cash out his 401K - again. And then he's taking his family to Disney World.
He also complained that his wife was complaining about money being tight but that she won't quit shopping. And this is a woman fortunate enough to be able to stay home with their children.
Are these people crazy?
Money has been tight for us since an extended period of unemployment a few years ago. We haven't gone on a vacation since 2002, we now have no credit cards or car payments, we don't go out to dinner, show, or the movies very often, and we eat a lot of potatoes, pasta, and rice.
We still don't have much in savings, but we don't have any debt except for the house either. Our priorities are special educational opportunities for our teens. Not vacations and expensive TVs.
Man, am I feeling so much better now,
January 30, 2008 - 21:04 ET by FastEdhere I thought I was being "over my means" buying lunch on my way home from a job interview! Looking for the past 2 months, going nuts with not returned calls and unresponded emails, NOT getting those little things that keep the economy purring, like a coffee or bagel, I feel her pain, and I'm so glad that these msm(Lsm) "reporters" know that THEY are contributing to the economy with their blather.
Hey buddy, can you spare a dime? or maybe a Hummer, I'll even settle for a Prius. How 'bout a 30" plasma? Smaller?
There is no sense in being stupid, if you can't prove it! - my dad V
Fast, I feel your pain.
January 30, 2008 - 21:23 ET by R D HelmI feel your pain. I haven't made a dime since Dec. 31.
'bout to have to tap the old IRA.
None are so hopelessly enslaved as those who falsely believe they are free. -J.W. von Goethe
Hey - it ain't pain
January 30, 2008 - 21:48 ET by FastEdit's lack of cash - the day I was told my check would be re-engineered to zero, I stopped at my local big orange box (where I had worked before) and let them know I was "in the job search market". They, unfortuneatly, were cutting OT and other expenses, but, would keep me in mind. I've since tried the other big boxes, but the govenment watched economy, isn't helping even on this end - but of course, living in a blue state, where taxes keep the govenment workers happy, things could be better. On the other side of the coin, I've gotten more interviews or calls in teh last week, then in the past 2 months.
So my word to the rest of you, who are in the same boat, ask around, contact your network, take what you can (jsut for the cash) and keep your head UP - looking down might find the lost penney, but looking up lets you see where you WANT to be.
There is no sense in being stupid, if you can't prove it! - my dad V
So, I guess Veronica McStupid will be calling Dave Ramsey.
January 30, 2008 - 21:14 ET by R D HelmProbably within a month or two.
I wonder of CNN will be around to cover that?
People this STUPID should not be allowed to procreate.
None are so hopelessly enslaved as those who falsely believe they are free. -J.W. von Goethe
Usually when I'm feeling "the pinch"
January 31, 2008 - 01:00 ET by mastersofdeceitI don't buy a TV. I will probably be purchasing 2 flat screens this year, but guess what? It's something we've been putting off for the last 2-3 years. Just watching the technology get better & prices come down I think it's been worth it.
What kind of dope has to buy a new TV just to watch "the game"?
Lamo Cherry pick
January 31, 2008 - 09:08 ET by trthskrDon't bother asking Lamo a question...He is off in his own world and will not answer.
He thinks he pays for Rush's Gulfstream fuel consumption. Rush probably averages 30 million a year and pays more in taxes in one year than Lamo will make his entire life.
Ignore that professional troll.