East Meadow residents react to U.S. economic perils

Last Friday, the federal government’s long-term debt rating was reduced from AAA to AA+ by Standard and Poor’s, an unprecedented move with unforeseeable consequences. With a shaky stock market that saw a fall of more than 600 points on Monday, East Meadow residents and business owners are sharing in the national anxiety.

“I’m really scared, and I don’t have any financial confidence in the United States,” said Millie Jones, vice president of the East Meadow Chamber of Commerce and the assistant manager at First National Bank of Long Island in East Meadow. “I know so many people who are out of work; people are losing their homes. What do you say to them? I just hope this turns around.”

Oberle Florist and Greenhouses owner Lisa Oberle said she has similar concerns. As floral fees, permits, gasoline and the price of plastic continue to rise, the cost of her colorful arrangements and greenery increases as well.

Calling Washington politicians “scoundrels” and “disgusting people,” Oberle explained how she has been forced to lay employees off over the past two years and how the cost of her health insurance has doubled since “Obamacare” passed.

“I have absolutely no confidence in Washington,” Oberle said. “Some days are good. Some days are bad. I just go on about my day.”

The Standard and Poor’s rating is a grade reflecting a country’s ability to pay off its loans. Two other credit-rating agencies, Moody’s and Fitch, grade the economies of the world’s nation’s, but Standard and Poor’s was the only agency that had lowered the U.S. rating as the Herald went to press.

Stating something most people on Main Street have known for a while, former U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke said two weeks before the downgrade that “The economy isn’t growing as fast as it needs to … Experts have repeatedly warned that if this uncertainty continues, our economy with pay the price.”

While Richard Bivone, the Nassau County chairman of the Long Island Business Council, acknowledged the economic challenges the U.S. is facing, he said, “I have no choice but to have confidence.”

“We can’t panic …,” Bivone said. “Everyone needs to do their part to fix this [and] serious, serious cuts need to be made.”

The current economic downturn is “killing” East Meadow resident Michael P.’s individual retirement account, he said, but his business continues to grow. Michael P., who declined to be identified further due to the nature of his business, retired as a New York City police sergeant in 2001. The following year, he and two other retirees opened a security company, which protects high-end jewelry for companies like Tiffany and Cartier.

While his business was negatively affected by the 2008 economic downturn, and 2009 was “terrible,” he said, “2011 has been a great year so far.”

“[W]e didn’t need a rating agency to tell us that we need a balanced, long-term approach to deficit reduction …,” President Obama said on Monday. “And we didn’t need a rating agency to tell us that the gridlock in Washington over the last several months has not been constructive, to say the least.”