How's that economy? Author: TriSecDate:07/06/2024 15:34:03
Good Morning.
Just a random observation from the fine city of Boston, MA. We might have had a thing or two to do with the festivities the other day. (You're welcome, BTW)
But that is what I want to think about. It's July Fourth week. With the holiday midweek this year, it should have been a huge and busy week in the tourism and transportation industries here in this city.
Guess how many people were here this year?
None. Zero. Zip. Zilch.
I had the Fourth off. I went into Boston and staked out a good spot on the Fan Pier to watch the USS Constitution go past on her annual holiday cruise and 21-gun salute to the nation off Fort Independence in the harbor.
I had the place to myself. Less than 100 people were out there at one of the best viewing locations alongside the harbor.
I walked downtown, intending to hang out with my trolley friends for a while. There was a line at stop 1, but that wasn't even 50 people. Trolleys were running every ten minutes or so, so nothing happening there.
One of my friends that I didn't see had texted me during the day that he came in "special" to drive some holiday tours. He never did. They actually CUT him and sent him home.
On July 4.
Later in the afternoon, I was actually HORRIFIED to see two trolleys back-to-back at a stop in the Back Bay, both of them with less than a dozen people on board.
Where is everybody?
Yankee Bus, too - this was characterized as a "quiet week", so I don't actually have any hours scheduled right now. Yankee used to have all kinds of work lined up, but as the primary contractor for MBTA shuttle service....if the "T" is working and shuttles aren't needed, we don't have any work anymore. Being the holiday, all MBTA lines are open, so we've got nothing.
I actually re-activated my Uber account, and I'm back out on the road again. At least I can make a few dollars to keep us afloat, but I never intended that as my primary gig.
But why do I think this is indicative of a poor economy, or at least trepidation and uncertainty among Americans?
When times are tough, what's the first thing most people cut?
Vacations.
You can re-post all the things on Facebook about a roaring stock market and 401ks, but the fact remains that to the average American, that's utterly meaningless.
What's a record Dow Jones mean when you're a month behind on rent?
What does a 20% return on a 401k mean if you don't even have one?
I work in an industry that is perhaps the most sensitive to this sort of thing. And there's even a bigger picture concern to consider. We're probably looking at Trump 2.0 in the fall, and back during the initial phase, would you care to guess what disappeared entirely?
International Travel.
I'm sure we'll see that again. Under a Trump Presidency, we will instantly become a pariah state, and I prophesy that people just won't come here anymore. What that means to the multitude of places in the United States that are reliant on the Tourism and Service industry is yet to be determined.