Stagflation? More Hopey Changey?

[Kathianne]

Everything is 'unexpected' to this administration, could that possibly be a mixture of hubris and inexperience? They are clueless, thus always caught with the 'unexpected.'

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Jobless-price-data-fan-rb-1321801194.html?x=0


Jobless, price data fan concerns on economy

Reuters - Men look over jobs listings while searching for employment at a jobs center in San Francisco, February 4, ...

On Thursday February 18, 2010, 5:05 pm EST
By Lucia Mutikani

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The number of U.S. workers filing new applications for unemployment insurance unexpectedly surged last week, while producer prices increased sharply in January, raising potential hurdles for the economy's recovery.

Initial claims for state jobless benefits increased 31,000 to 473,000, the Labor Department said on Thursday. Financial markets had expected them to fall slightly to 430,000.

Another report from the department showed prices paid at the farm and factory gate rose a faster-than-expected Ed., read 'unexpectedly'1.4 percent from December as higher gasoline prices and unusually cold temperatures helped boost energy costs.

...

"Initial claims have been flat over the last three months. That means the improvement in the labor market is much slower than suggested by the headline GDP figure," said Harm Bandholz an economist at Unicredit Research in New York.

"That shows GDP growth is artificially inflated by government stimulus and the inventory cycle rather than driven by final demand, which usually goes hand in hand with an improvement in the labor market."

...

[KarlMarx]

It seems that the simplest truths evade this administration. The government does not produce anything. Unless your aim is to create more government jobs, then job creation comes mainly from the private sector, not the public sector. Even if the stimulus worked, and it hasn't, the ensuing recovery would falter because of the mountainous debt that will have to be repaid.

What they should have done...

1. Realize that the current situation we are in was brought about by the collapse of the credit markets. Except for those obligations that were backed by the US government (which should not have existed in the first place), the government should have stayed out of the way and let the private sector do its job.

2. In addition, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac should have been privatized and the CRA (Community Reinvestment Act) repealed. These played a central role in inflating housing prices and enticing banks to give taxpayer backed mortgages to less than creditworthy individuals. If not dealt with these will cause another financial collapse.

2. Instead of a 700 billion dollar stimulus, they should have passed a 700 billion dollar tax rate cut. In the end, it would have been less costly. The resulting economic activity resulting from the tax cut would have offset the cost and improved the economy to boot.

[red states rule]

Rush talks about this everytime economic news is released. During the Bush years, when the news was postive, the liberal media "reported" how it was unexpected

Now, when the news is bad, it is also unexpected and surprising

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2726/4369659031_8987350d98_m.jpg





snip

Remember, just yesterday Joe Biden told us how well the stimulus worked and that Obama had saved us from a depression. "The number of newly laid-off workers filing applications for unemployment benefits unexpectedly surged last week after having fallen sharply in the previous week. The gain dampened hopes about how quickly the labor..." this is a joke. The people in the media have become a recurring joke. Unexpectedly surged? Jobless claims unexpectedly surged? Who are these experts? I think they're doing this just to irritate me. They've gotta macro, they hit command-M and it just types this garbage. "The increase followed a drop of 41,000 in the previous week which had raised hopes..." Whose? "... that the labor market could be improving." The temporary boost appears to have worn off, from the Associated Press. I guess we should all be confused here 'cause Obama says that all this is a success. Maybe, folks, we are just too dumb to understand all this. Maybe Obama needs to be clearer. He says, "let me be clear" a lot. Maybe he's not being clear enough because: "Economy's Growth Rate May Be Ebbing -- Leading indicators rise for 10th straight month, but at slower pace."

There isn't a recovery and anybody who is marginally engaged in their life every day has full awareness there isn't any recovery. Nevertheless here's State-Controlled AP: "A forecast of future economic activity rose for a 10th straight month in January, but," but, but, but, but, but, but, but, "... the pace of growth is slowing. The index of leading economic indicators rose 0.3 percent last month, according to Thursday's report from the Conference Board, a private research group. That's weaker than a 1.2 percent rise in December and a 1.1 percent rise in November. Its also was short of the 0.5 percent gain that economists polled by Thomson Reuters expected. Some economists have been worrying that growth in the economy will stagnate this year, however, as government support programs wind down and unemployment remains high."

The next one, and this is from Associated Press: "Wholesale prices --" this is inflation, folks. This is what we've all been worried about. I mean it was inevitable, it was going to happen. "Wholesale prices shot up at double the expected pace in January, propelled higher by big increases in energy costs. The surprisingly large jump was viewed as a temporary blip and not the start of inflation problems, however." Really? The annual projection for inflation this year is now 16.8%. We haven't seen anything like that in I don't know how long. By land. "The Labor Department said Thursday that wholesale prices rose 1.4 percent last month, reflecting higher costs for gasoline and other energy products. Private economists had expected a 0.7 percent increase," half that. Do these people not realize -- look, folks, I'm doing my best here today to maintain an even keel. I could have started this show literally screaming and laughing. Do these people not realize how absurdly stupid they appear?

The Labor Department said today wholesale prices rose 1.4%. Private economists had expected a 0.7% -- do you think it's maybe time for these schlubs at AP and Reuters to go out and find some new economists, like maybe call me? Core inflation at the wholesale level, which excludes energy and food, rose 0.3% in January, faster than the 0.1% increase economists had predicted. I've been doing this show, ladies and gentlemen, well, for 20 and a half years, and I don't think in the last ten we've had an economic story on labor, jobs, energy, overall economic growth or not, that has not featured the word "unexpected" or "surprised" or "shocking." For ten years the increase is unexpectedly twice and even three times what the expert economists had predicted. The hell, you say! "The 12-month rise in core prices at the wholesale level was a more moderate 1 percent. Economists believe that inflation is not a problem at the moment and is not likely..." oh, God, folks, that means we're in deep trouble. Ten years and their economists have been wrong about everything and now they're telling us that economists believe inflation is not a problem? Book it. "... because of all the downward pressures on wages and prices as a result of the recession." No, no, no. We're in a recovery, I thought. I thought there was going to be upward pressure on wages and prices because we're in a recovery! We've been hearing that for the past year. If that's what the economists are saying, we are reassured there's nothing to worry about.

http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/daily/site_021810/content/01125106.guest.html

[KarlMarx]

Since I was a kid, I alway heard that overpopulation caused poverty and starvation... but that's not true! Bad economics kills people more than overpopulation! If overpopulation killed people then why are India, China, and Japan, the three most overcrowded countries in the world, enjoying an increasing standard of living as time goes on while Russia, with one of the lowest population densities on the planet has a decreasing standard of living? Can someone in the Obama Administration answer that?

anyone?

anyone?

Perhaps Ferris Buehler can answer that.....

Buehler?

Ferris... Buehler?

[bullypulpit]

I'll take Obama's "hopey, changey" over Caribou Barbie's "Twitty, quitty" any day. :laugh2:

[Kathianne]

I'll take Obama's "hopey, changey" over Caribou Barbie's "Twitty, quitty" any day. :laugh2:

Bully, you've become obsessed with Palin. What office does she hold? http://smileys.on-my-web.com/repository/Drinks/drinking.gif

[KarlMarx]

I'll take Obama's "hopey, changey" over Caribou Barbie's "Twitty, quitty" any day. :laugh2:

You don't have to like her, but Sarah Palin isn't spending us into oblivian, Bully. She isn't helping put people out of work, either. The Dope and Strange that Obama is talking about equates to nothing less than nationalizing a large part of the economy. It doesn't matter whether you and I agree on whether this is a good idea. The fact is, by the Administration's own admission, that just nationalizing health care alone will cost over 1.2 Trillion dollars. That is a far too costly proposition by anyone's reckoning, especially the Chinese. We can't afford it, we shouldn't do it.

[Kathianne]

You don't have to like her, but Sarah Palin isn't spending us into oblivian, Bully. She isn't helping put people out of work, either. The Dope and Strange that Obama is talking about equates to nothing less than nationalizing a large part of the economy. It doesn't matter whether you and I agree on whether this is a good idea. The fact is, by the Administration's own admission, that just nationalizing health care alone will cost over 1.2 Trillion dollars. That is a far too costly proposition by anyone's reckoning, especially the Chinese. We can't afford it, we shouldn't do it.

You must spread some Reputation around before giving it to KarlMarx again.

[red states rule]

I'll take Obama's "hopey, changey" over Caribou Barbie's "Twitty, quitty" any day. :laugh2:

You are in a shrinking minority BP.

One would think with Democrats running the things in D.C., you would be in hog heaven. Your average liberal would have thought by now Barack Obama, Harry Reid, and Nancy Pelosi would be busy ending poverty, spreading the wealth around, ending wars, rehabilitating terrorists, refreezing the polar ice caps, and saving the polar bears.

But in reality, BP Democrats can't get things done, and their liberal policies are causing more problems then they solve. Polls are showing Democrats are in serious trouble, and many have decided to quit rather the be defeated in November.

The Obama White House can't work with its own party to pass its agenda, and it blames the Tea Party for scaring people. It attacks people for turning out at town halls to express their opposition to Obamacare.

Liberals dismiss this by saying Obama did not explain the bill properly to the ignorant masses.

Hey BP, your lack of posts, lack of gloating over Dem accomplishments, and total obsession with Ms Palin shows how little you have to say about your own party and how scared you are of Ms Palin

OK BP, now you may get bored and leave yet another thread

[BoogyMan]

Everything is 'unexpected' to this administration, could that possibly be a mixture of hubris and inexperience? They are clueless, thus always caught with the 'unexpected.'

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Jobless-price-data-fan-rb-1321801194.html?x=0

Shouldn't that be hopery-changery? It is kind of like jiggery-pokery, but it is done by an incompetent moron like the president. :)