MSNBCNBCNNACRONYMHELL has a blaring headline about the GDP being revised down to 1.6% growth, or something, because IANANPWE and have almost no clue what it means, other than it’s in red font, which from my Color Coded Terror Guide, says that it must suckage.
3.
Face
The economy is about to be fixed, cuz Tiger Woods is playing much better golf now.
4.
Rob
The Galveston Police Department does tend to be controversial.
5.
stuckinred
@Punchy: Uh, if you click on it you get the details:
WASHINGTON — The U.S. economy grew at a lackluster 1.6 percent in the spring, a sign that the economic recovery is losing steam.
The Commerce Department said Friday that its latest estimate of U.S. economic growth from April through June, as measured by the gross domestic product, or GDP, showed a very modest annual rate of 1.4 percent, down from an initial estimate of 2.4 percent reported one month ago.
6.
stuckinred
@Face: Easy with “fixed” and Tiger in the same sentence. It’ll mess up his putting.
The sharply downward GDP revision from the 2.4% growth initially pegged was largely expected after the release of June inventories and imports reports, which were not available for the first estimate released on July 30. Economists polled by MarketWatch expected an even worse figure showing 1.3% growth in the second quarter — Wall Street appears to have been caught off-guard by an upward revision to electricity and natural gas usage figures, which led to an increase in real personal consumption to 2% from the 1.6% initially projected.
Copied from marketwatch.com without permission. lol
9.
Punchy
@stuckinred: I dont even pretend to understand economics. That said, how the hell does one lose a full percentage point (est. 2.4–>1.4) in just one month? Is this shit that volatile?
10.
Dork
And yet the stock market is about to explode upwards. So apparently, a downward revision/estimate of the GDP causes a huge upward spike in the Dow.
On the other hand, David Brooks says Germans and Americans had a debate, America said ‘spend into debt to help get out of a bad economy’ and Germany said ‘be wise and be disciplined and thrifty’ and now America sucks & Germany is awesome. And it’s because Germany and now Britain have the sweet, sweet discipline to impose delicious pain through harsh reforms whereas our institutions are more nanny state coddling.
Somehow I’m guessing though that Brooks wouldn’t like it so much if we were to copy Germany’s program of subsidizing the limiting of labor hours per employee so that more workers could be hired. Doesn’t have quite the same odor of leather and the sound of cracking whips as Brooks prefers.
Amazing how the GPD numbers are ALWAYS “revised” DOWNwards in this administration…
buy bonds. Or, better yet, make another deposit in the First Mattress of America.
15.
jwb
@El Cid: Yes, and Krugman had this chart up a couple of days ago showing that the US is still ahead of Germany with respect to the recovery.
16.
El Cid
@jwb: You are interrupting a noted thinker’s fantasies. David Brooks doesn’t show up and publish in the New York Times in order to debate with miscreants, he does it to give that thrill to himself and others of imagining that time when little American workers in their schoolboy uniforms must march past, and Brooks must sternly spank each one upon their bare bottoms, and tell each how it hurts himself more than it ever could the naughty naughty student.
[A] growing cadre of Democrats are advocating a plan that would permanently extend tax cuts benefiting the middle class while renewing breaks for the wealthy through 2011, senior Democratic aides said.
That idea has long appealed to some conservative Democrats in both chambers, who argue that Congress should not raise anyone’s taxes until the economy is more stable. But Democrats said it has gained momentum since economist Mark Zandi, a key adviser to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), adopted that view during a presentation at a Democratic issues conference in California in mid-August.
This plan could not be more transparent. As if, once this is adopted this year, ending the tax cuts for the top tier will somehow be smooth sailing in 12 months. Ha.
The plutocracy will not be satisfied until the American middle class is a dried-out husk. At which point they can jump ship entirely, and move off to Barbados.
Shocking that the chief economist for Moody’s wants to continue multi-million $$ tax cuts for the top 1% of earners.
20.
jwb
@Hugin & Munin: I think it’s the imaginary bond vigilantes—so much scarier because they are so completely imaginary. And now we’re being told that the only way to avoid deflation is for the Fed to raise interest rates… What I’m finding curious is the constant call to raise interest rates, with all sorts of ludicrous theories being floated to justify it.
I did like El Cid’s scenario of the David Brooks’ spanking session.
21.
jwb
@Donald: It would be funny if it wasn’t so sad. The Dems are better in pretty much every way than the goopers, and yet when it comes down to it the Dems are horrible too. And I hate to say this, because it seems to advocate violence, but I do believe that things are not going to change in any fundamental way until people are so fed up that they are in the street breaking things. Because it’s only then that the ruling class will begin to fear. At this point our ruling class seems to have decided they prefer to be rich in a broken society than well-off in functioning one.
22.
Napoleon
renewing breaks for the wealthy through 2011
And of course in 2011 they will be renewed again. This is BS and really has to be stopped as a plan.
At this point our ruling class seems to have decided they prefer to be rich in a broken society than well-off in functioning one.
it’s not broken for the rich. things are going just fine for the rich.
25.
jwb
@cleek: Not exactly. The rich will also have to deal with broken roads, tainted food supplies, monopolistic behaviors of corporations, and so forth. If we do turn into a banana republic, they’ll also start having to deal with systemic corruption in government and a much more ruthless organized crime syndicate. But at this point all signs point toward this being what our ruling class in fact wants.
26.
El Cid
@Hugin & Munin: I am sick and tired of paying all these higher taxes because of all this inflation. If the government would just stop the spending we’d get all our jobs back.
27.
Donald
@jwb Yes, precisely. They’d rather pay for private security, privately-owned infrastructure, and private transportation. The positive externalities associated with public goods are intolerable to them. The only externality that the free market can tolerate is a negative one.
If this sounds like a conspiracy theory, then I want to know what else explains it. Something about “collective action”? Bleh.
28.
chopper
yet the dow is higher because some people expected the revision to be a little worse than it came out.
love it.
29.
Bender
[A] growing cadre of Democrats are advocating a plan that would permanently extend tax cuts benefiting the middle class while renewing breaks for the wealthy through 2011, senior Democratic aides said.
Let me guess, the “cadre of Democrats” was the city council of Bell, California?
30.
MNPundit
@El Cid: He also forgets to note that Germany is doing better because it has signed death warrants for Spain and Portugal and Greece. It would be like California or New York refusing to send any money to red states and instead keeping it in house to balance their budgets or expand services or whatever.
The German’s irrational fear that inflation over 2% will turn all their citizens magically into Nazis is killing the southern countries.
31.
D-Chance.
GDP numbers plummet; but, Uncle Ben tells the boys, “Don’t worry, we got your back”, and the market goes all weak-kneed and eye-fluttery today… nice to know the O’ster and his cabal care enough to soothe the fears of Wall Street while continuing to ignore the 20% of the “working” class that aren’t.
32.
chopper
lol, cause if he did the opposite and wall street took a shit you’d be hanging ‘DOW 6000’ around obama like an albatross for the rest of his life.
the only way to win is not to play.
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Brutus et tu
GPD?
Punchy
MSNBCNBCNNACRONYMHELL has a blaring headline about the GDP being revised down to 1.6% growth, or something, because IANANPWE and have almost no clue what it means, other than it’s in red font, which from my Color Coded Terror Guide, says that it must suckage.
Face
The economy is about to be fixed, cuz Tiger Woods is playing much better golf now.
Rob
The Galveston Police Department does tend to be controversial.
stuckinred
@Punchy: Uh, if you click on it you get the details:
stuckinred
@Face: Easy with “fixed” and Tiger in the same sentence. It’ll mess up his putting.
cleek
@Brutus et tu:
Grosse Producte Domestique
demo woman
Copied from marketwatch.com without permission. lol
Punchy
@stuckinred: I dont even pretend to understand economics. That said, how the hell does one lose a full percentage point (est. 2.4–>1.4) in just one month? Is this shit that volatile?
Dork
And yet the stock market is about to explode upwards. So apparently, a downward revision/estimate of the GDP causes a huge upward spike in the Dow.
I dont understand this.
El Cid
In his column today, Paul Krugman notes that outside of a creakingly weak GPD, we’re really not in a recovery, and that economists and Fed chairs are still publicly believing crazy things.
On the other hand, David Brooks says Germans and Americans had a debate, America said ‘spend into debt to help get out of a bad economy’ and Germany said ‘be wise and be disciplined and thrifty’ and now America sucks & Germany is awesome. And it’s because Germany and now Britain have the sweet, sweet discipline to impose delicious pain through harsh reforms whereas our institutions are more nanny state coddling.
Somehow I’m guessing though that Brooks wouldn’t like it so much if we were to copy Germany’s program of subsidizing the limiting of labor hours per employee so that more workers could be hired. Doesn’t have quite the same odor of leather and the sound of cracking whips as Brooks prefers.
shilohsmama
@demo woman: Thanks for this.
I’m taking away the understanding that it was a hotter-than-usual summer, and folks paid more to keep cool. Oversimplified, I know.
stuckinred
@Punchy: Here’s an explanation,
Father Guido Sarducci’s Five Minute University.
D-Chance.
Amazing how the GPD numbers are ALWAYS “revised” DOWNwards in this administration…
buy bonds. Or, better yet, make another deposit in the First Mattress of America.
jwb
@El Cid: Yes, and Krugman had this chart up a couple of days ago showing that the US is still ahead of Germany with respect to the recovery.
El Cid
@jwb: You are interrupting a noted thinker’s fantasies. David Brooks doesn’t show up and publish in the New York Times in order to debate with miscreants, he does it to give that thrill to himself and others of imagining that time when little American workers in their schoolboy uniforms must march past, and Brooks must sternly spank each one upon their bare bottoms, and tell each how it hurts himself more than it ever could the naughty naughty student.
stuckinred
Father Guido on the Carter economy.
Hugin & Munin
El Cid: What? Are you ignoring the serious threat of inflation?
Why do you hate our Freedom(TM)?
Donald
We will not “spend” into a deficit, we will adopt the reverse of soaking the rich: this morning’s WaPo announces that we are all supply-siders now:
This plan could not be more transparent. As if, once this is adopted this year, ending the tax cuts for the top tier will somehow be smooth sailing in 12 months. Ha.
The plutocracy will not be satisfied until the American middle class is a dried-out husk. At which point they can jump ship entirely, and move off to Barbados.
Shocking that the chief economist for Moody’s wants to continue multi-million $$ tax cuts for the top 1% of earners.
jwb
@Hugin & Munin: I think it’s the imaginary bond vigilantes—so much scarier because they are so completely imaginary. And now we’re being told that the only way to avoid deflation is for the Fed to raise interest rates… What I’m finding curious is the constant call to raise interest rates, with all sorts of ludicrous theories being floated to justify it.
I did like El Cid’s scenario of the David Brooks’ spanking session.
jwb
@Donald: It would be funny if it wasn’t so sad. The Dems are better in pretty much every way than the goopers, and yet when it comes down to it the Dems are horrible too. And I hate to say this, because it seems to advocate violence, but I do believe that things are not going to change in any fundamental way until people are so fed up that they are in the street breaking things. Because it’s only then that the ruling class will begin to fear. At this point our ruling class seems to have decided they prefer to be rich in a broken society than well-off in functioning one.
Napoleon
And of course in 2011 they will be renewed again. This is BS and really has to be stopped as a plan.
Napoleon
@jwb:
This.
cleek
@jwb:
it’s not broken for the rich. things are going just fine for the rich.
jwb
@cleek: Not exactly. The rich will also have to deal with broken roads, tainted food supplies, monopolistic behaviors of corporations, and so forth. If we do turn into a banana republic, they’ll also start having to deal with systemic corruption in government and a much more ruthless organized crime syndicate. But at this point all signs point toward this being what our ruling class in fact wants.
El Cid
@Hugin & Munin: I am sick and tired of paying all these higher taxes because of all this inflation. If the government would just stop the spending we’d get all our jobs back.
Donald
@jwb Yes, precisely. They’d rather pay for private security, privately-owned infrastructure, and private transportation. The positive externalities associated with public goods are intolerable to them. The only externality that the free market can tolerate is a negative one.
If this sounds like a conspiracy theory, then I want to know what else explains it. Something about “collective action”? Bleh.
chopper
yet the dow is higher because some people expected the revision to be a little worse than it came out.
love it.
Bender
Let me guess, the “cadre of Democrats” was the city council of Bell, California?
MNPundit
@El Cid: He also forgets to note that Germany is doing better because it has signed death warrants for Spain and Portugal and Greece. It would be like California or New York refusing to send any money to red states and instead keeping it in house to balance their budgets or expand services or whatever.
The German’s irrational fear that inflation over 2% will turn all their citizens magically into Nazis is killing the southern countries.
D-Chance.
GDP numbers plummet; but, Uncle Ben tells the boys, “Don’t worry, we got your back”, and the market goes all weak-kneed and eye-fluttery today… nice to know the O’ster and his cabal care enough to soothe the fears of Wall Street while continuing to ignore the 20% of the “working” class that aren’t.
chopper
lol, cause if he did the opposite and wall street took a shit you’d be hanging ‘DOW 6000’ around obama like an albatross for the rest of his life.
the only way to win is not to play.