recovery? "well... maybe" - FT

[DrLeftover]

In a waning presidential first term nothing compares to the importance of securing another one. In Barack Obama’s case, there is an added spur to his drive for re-election. The president believes the American economy will spring back to life over the next four years and cannot abide the thought of Mitt Romney reaping the credit.

...



...the hollowing out of America’s middle class – still politely described as median income stagnation rather than “decline” – is accelerating rather than slowing. According to the US Census last week, the US median household is 4.8 per cent poorer now than at the start of the recovery in 2009. Median incomes have now fallen to the pre-internet level of 1993. All of the gains of the Clinton years have been lost. The decline in the past three years follows a 3.2 per cent drop during the recession, which itself followed a shrinkage during the 2000-2007 cycle. Far from a new dawn of broad-based growth, America’s middle class decline is getting worse.

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/48da980c-03dd-11e2-9322-00144feabdc0.html#axzz27NzahcAQ





Topic question... Recovery? do you see any sign of an actual 'Economic Recovery'?

 

[Evil Eye]

Topic question... Recovery? do you see any sign of an actual 'Economic Recovery'?

Maybe not, but in economics a recovery of spirit can be very important. People only have to believe they're recovering.

 

[Temerit]

It's a very slow, but steady recovery.



It needs to be a lot better, but people aren't going to vote for Romney just because the economy isn't doing well. They know that Romney would make it worse.

 

[Fatal Dawn]

Personally, no. I have not seen such signs of economic recovery to any significant extent. If you can show me the 'recovery of spirit', you would be more optimistic than me.

 

[Evil Eye]

If you can show me the 'recovery of spirit', you would be more optimistic than me.

If everyone keeps saying the economy is recovering, people will start believing it sooner or later, right?

 

[Fatal Dawn]

If everyone keeps saying the economy is recovering, people will start believing it sooner or later, right?

A consensus theory of truth?

You might be right. Even lies can manifest themselves as the truth if they are told often enough..

 

[DrLeftover]

If Our Beautiful President says it, then it has to be true.

 

[Evil Eye]

A consensus theory of truth?

More like a self-fulfilling prophesy. I find a consensus on truth to be too dangerous, but economics is all about trust, there is no objective reality.

 

[Fatal Dawn]

More like a self-fulfilling prophesy. I find a consensus on truth to be too dangerous, but economics is all about trust, there is no objective reality.

You're absolutely right. A consensus on truth might be too strong of a description and is dangerously close to an axiom. I think self-fulfilling prophecy is a more befitting term.



I would also agree with your analysis of the subjective co-creation of reality. Perception, even false perception or belief, can easily reconstruct a reality where these said false notions are validated.

 

[DrLeftover]

Yeah, raising taxes might be a bad thing.



Oh, sorry, I forgot that that's OK.



http://www.atr.org/five-worst-obamacare-taxes-coming-a7217

 

[DrLeftover]

And then there is this:

The Dollar Index fell by the most since the first quarter of 2011 after the European Central Bank pledged to protect the euro from unraveling and the Federal Reserve committed to reduce unemployment via open-ended debt buying, which may debase the U.S. currency.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-...e-2011-as-central-banks-bump-up-stimulus.html

 

[Temerit]

Of course raising taxes is okay.