Not So Sweet
OK, maybe I was a bit unfair. In yesterday's post, "Alleged Experts vs. Those With Skin in the Game," I suggested that policymakers were deluding themselves -- and the public -- about the state of the economy. But as is...
Alleged Experts vs. Those With Skin in the Game
Here's what the alleged experts are saying: "Forecasters Lower Double-Dip Odds" (Real Time Economics) Forecasters downgraded the odds the economy could slip back into recession, according to a closely watched survey released by the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia Friday,...
Can’t Get Their Stories Straight
Five days ago: "Geithner Sees Europe Managing Crisis Without Fallout for U.S. Economy" (Bloomberg) Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner expressed confidence that Europe will resolve the debt crisis buffeting the region and said the U.S. economy is strong enough to...
Amen, Brother Charles
I wade through hundreds of commentaries and news reports on a daily basis. Occasionally, I come across an article that really makes me stop and say: "Amen, brother." When that happens, I feel compelled to share it with Financial Armageddon...
They Smell Blood in the Water
(Image: Source.) Lke it or not, there are lots of savvy operators in the legal and financial industries who, like hungry sharks, are quick to pick up on the scent of blood in the water that can lead them to...
The Wrong Kind of Thinking
One misconception that helped bring about the worst financial crisis this century (and which persists to this day) stems from a failure to acknowledge the natural limits that apply in every aspect of our lives. It's one thing, for example,...
Rappin’ The Economic Truth
I reckon there's more truth in this YouTube video than in anything the so-called economic experts keep telling us... Recession Theme Song -- I Don't Really Have It
It Makes You Wonder
When Washington announced plans to spend billions of dollars in the fall of 2008 to bail out the beleaguered financial sector, one goal, according to the New York Times, was to "encourage the banks to resume lending to one another...
‘One-Time Items Making Things a Little Better Than They Otherwise Would Be’
It's long been said that if you want to know how the economy is doing, you need to see how the transportation sector is doing. Based on the following excerpt from a Wall Street Transcript interview with one analyst who...
Not Hard to Believe at All
Maybe I'm a bit of a simpleton, but in light of these reports -- "In a Job Market Realignment, Some Left Behind" (New York Times) JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Many of the jobs lost during the recession are not coming back....
Mindless and Clueless
Admittedly, I've been somewhat perplexed. I keep wondering what planet -- or illicit substances -- equity traders are on. You know, the ones who seem to think that every market pullback, no matter what the reason, is a buying opportunity,...
No Customers Equal No Hiring and Spending
Some experts claim that a slowing rate of decline in certain indicators is a clear sign that the economy is on the mend. Others say that aggressive fiscal and monetary stimulus can't help but turn things around. Many argue that...
