items of interest

with contributions from Susan Strother Clarke, Dahlia Hammouda, Angela Swanson

"Americans Are Fed Up. They've had it with SUVs, fad diets and trendy restaurants. They're turning up their noses at $75-a-jar anti-aging creams, $4 cups of gourmet coffee and pet foods that are pricier than people food. In short, the public is retrenching—shunning some spending and turning more toward family and spirituality.

"Who could blame them?

"Elizabeth Thompson, an associate director of Yankelovich Inc., one of the nation's leading survey companies, said the past year has dealt a series of 'body blows' to public confidence. The economic recession, the terrorist attacks and the scandals on Wall Street and in the Roman Catholic Church have left many confused about what the future holds. 'It is one thing to grapple with one blow of uncertainty. But to have one after another after another ... that makes it really hard to keep that steady, forward-looking gaze,' she said.

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