The NEBR Business Cycle Dating Committee determined that December 2007 was the peak of the last expansion, and a recession began following that. So now what?

That seems to be a question I keep hearing, for example on the WSJ morning radio show, they keep asking people how they are changing their behavior as a result of the recession. Why? The recession is an average of the economy as a whole. Asking how individuals how they are going to change in response would be like asking students how they are going to react to average test scores going down. Oooo average test scores are down in my school, should I study more or less? That would be stupid to even talk about.

Likewise how will I change my behavior? Not at all! I have been very frugal for the last 3 years, and I will continue to save money just the same. Will that pull down the average spending? Perhaps, perhaps not. Do I care? Nope. It's just an average.