Recession - On The Way Out?

Lately I have been hearing a lot about the fact that we are coming out of the recession. What exactly does that mean, let's investigate:

• Jobless claims rose by only 30,000 to 554,000 - the top analysts were expecting 557,000 so I guess that is good news, right? Jobs Report
  
  
• The FDIC have only closed 7 banks in the last week. Most of them located in GA. FDIC Failed Bank List
  
  
• GDP plunged 6% in the fourth quarter of 2008 and 5.5% in this year's first quarter. GDP
  
  
• New home sales rocketed up 11% in June (from the previous month) to a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 384,000 units - What to Make of It
  
  
• The looming Commercial Real Estate bubble is about to pop - Banking's Next Headache
  
  
• President Obama is proposing a heal plan that will cost 1 Trillion dollars (we don't have) over the next 10 years. For the 85 percent of Americans who already have health insurance, the Obama health plan is bad news
  
  
• U.S. Home Vacancies Hit 18.7 Million on Bank Seizures - From Bloomberg

So, what does this all mean? It means that even if we are really on the way out of this 'recession' then we still have a long hard uphill battle on our hands. I for one can not figure out how we can 'spend our way out'. This was tried in the early 1930's and it actually CAUSED a depression within the depression. Without some drastic cost cutting and some major revamping of how the entire government (Local, State and Federal) operates, I don't see how this isn't more than the calm before the storm.

On the positive side, I do think that there are lot of opportunities for those that are willing to seek after them. I am a firm believer that Americans are some of the most ingenious, creative and resourceful people on this planet. I do think that we have become very comfortable as of late and it is high time that we all take a long hard look at our own households and local areas. I think the best way for us all to get through this and prosper is to join together and help each other not by handouts but by proving each other a hand-up.