Communications and Media

Orange County speaks out on the Economy crisis
Orange County- It was things fall apart for the many business people of Orange County like Miley Walker who watched as her 10 year old business come down in the south coast metro area.

The mother of two was forced to close down her business due to financial shortage, sell her house, part of her property and now works for the Lindsey holdings a few kilometers from what she called home.

My business was running on a dept and there was no money to service those depts. My lawyer advised me to take a short term loan from the bank, but the banks were also hard hit, says the disgruntled single mother.

Orange County is one of the towns that were affected by the economic crisis. Most of the residents believe that the problem was caused by a liquidity shortage in the banking system. This saw the collapse of major businesses in the town and the tourism industry in the region.

The small town grew economically for the past five years, nurturing some of the most promising businesses and tourism attraction sites in the region. The town has now bounced back to where it was in 1994 when the whole town went bankrupt.

The economic experts could neither explain clearly what was going to happen nor provide the solutions to arrest the situation. Everyone sat down to watch the historic downfall of an economic giant. What was really happening to Americas Economy

The whole situation was difficult to explain, said Shay Hernandez, an Economic analyst in San Juan Capistrano city. The last time such a thing happened was in 1929, but this time round I dont think we will go back to where we were.

The 48 year analyst was a major share holder at the Marriott Newport Beach Hotel that was temporarily closed during the crisis. He accuses the government of failing to arrest the situation early enough and to warn people to take the appropriate measures.

The interest rates at the banks had been low and there were enormous foreign funds inflows which lightened the credit obtaining conditions for a long period before the economic set back. This accelerated the housing construction and influenced a dept-financed consumption.

The cause of the crisis can be attributed to the business cycle theory. Where the credit created by central banking system caused artificial booms that were followed by disastrous busts, says Monica Shawn, a third year economics student in a local university.

The rate of unemployment rose rapidly as most people were laid off from work or forced to take early retirements. This worsened the situation and the rate of unemployment was at 7.3 a figure not witnessed in the recent County history.

I had really expected to be in the workforce until am 65 I consider this to be an early death for me since all my retirement benefits will probably be over in five years, said Simon Trip, an employee with the Marshal advertising agency.

The country was running on a budget deficit, a risky move in such a period. All the major revenue generating institutions were under the threat of closure and the country suffered a cash shortage. Attempts to increase tax would ruin all recovery efforts.

The countries gross domestic product decreased annually at an alarming rate of 6 towards the end of 2008 and the beginning of 2009 compared to the previous years, a clear indication that the government had no source of cash to sustain the countrys budget.

When the gross domestic product decreases at such a rate, and the country is running on a deficit budget, there are no chance of bailing the situation out unless through external borrowing, explained Louis Randall, a Federal Reserve and state official.

An angry Bill Morgan was at the receiving end of it all when he could not refinance his mortgage, I thought that life in Orange County would be better than in South America. He was Hotelier in California, and had only worked for three years.

The closure of his home due to massive debt shows the harsh state of the economy. Although he maintains that his small hotel is no more, he still finds it reasonable to live in the area and believes that the economy will soon recover.

Mr. Bill Morgan also says that several people in the county have had their homes foreclosed due to mortgage related issues, Am not the only victim in this case. There are very many home owners in this county who are now homeless.

However, the situation could be even worse due to the mixed reactions from the residents of the county concerning the recovery of the economy. Majority believe that the economic crisis will end soon whereas others think otherwise.

Dr. Nora Karen, a doctor at the local county hospital insists that the Economic crisis is a temporary experience and will come to an end. I have never witnessed such a crunch in my 50 years of work but am sure it will come to pass.

Others feel that it is the end of it all and the situation is beyond correction. I dont think that the situation can be corrected at this stage. Its unimaginable that we are back to square one, said a smiling Evelyn Lewis, a primary school teacher.

The financial experts and advisors from Orange County think its the most appropriate time to come up with an effective long term recovery plan. The recovery plan wills elevate the county from bankruptcy and be part of the economys success.

The situation is not getting any better and I think its the most appropriate time to come up with an effective recovery plan. The government should cut all the unnecessary expenditures, advises John Shelton.

The 40 year old economic consultant works with the Federal bureau of labor and believes that a quick move to address the crisis can put everything under control. He insists that the government is the only institution that can change everything.

However, majority of the residents appreciate president Obamas recovery plan. The plan involves injecting cash to the major banking institutions to prevent further collapse. It will finance the banks operations.

Elizabeth carver hails the presidents action, the presidents recovery plan is very well intended. It will save our banks at least for now. The young lady has been a banker for three years and is confident that that is the only way out.

Injecting cash into the banking system is a major economic boost. The treasury has set aside over 600 billion to revive the most affected financial institutions like. This was the reassurance statement from Robert Muller, the FBI director at the county hall.

That was not the end of the world for the crisis victims. Most of the have started some activities that will help them get back on their feet. They believe that the situation is just a passing cyclone which turns every upside down, but ends

It was a hard hit but we have to move on. Even after the crisis am still alive, and I have to take care of my family. I have started something small to keep me moving, says Milley Walker.