Don’t you love the way the NYT reports all bad economic news under Obama? Somehow everything is oddly turned into good news.
The “most painful downturn since the Great Depression has yet to release its hold”–what did you expect buddy?–and yet it is not so bad since “the figures for June did show signs that the pace of job losses is continuing to slow.” Further, “Some economists contend that a recovery is indeed in its early stages, cautioning that the job market tends to lag behind progress in other areas.”
Don’t you know that it is a point of hard-core, irrefutable doctrine that the stimulus works, so it is just a matter of finding and then counting the ways, since it is also doctrine that there is no way the stimulus could be exacerbating problems? If you don’t see it, you just haven’t looked hard enough.
{ 11 comments }
Medieval bloodletting: …in Europe from the 17th century, the key to curing disease remained elusive, and the underlying belief was that it was better to give any treatment than nothing at all. The psychological benefit of bloodletting to the patient (a placebo effect) may sometimes have outweighed the physiological problems it caused. (via wikipedia)
Ye of little faith — all will be well once the sanguineous animal spirits are expelled…
Obviously, the problem is that there isn’t enough stimulus. If we created a central world bank with one central world fiat currency, and printing took place all day and all night, the world would obviously be a better place. Indeed, if only government took away all of our paycheck and just bought everything for us!
What the New York Times knows about economics would fit in a thimble, assuming that the thimble belonged to a mouse, who lived in a universe, in some weird dimension, where their sun was one of our protons.
Proof positive is that they let Krugman “contribute”.
Oh, by the way, what downturn are they talking about? I am still employed in an R&D job. In past recessions I worked in gas stations, odd jobs, etc. but that has not happened yet.
No flippin’ way this bubble has burst! I’ll believe the recession is over when my carpal tunnel comes back, but not before.
The downturn is slowing. But, about the rate of slowing, is that rate speeding up or slowing?
(smile)
Note also how the “downturn” is treated as an autonomous animate entity that is gripping our economy, as if it is some monster that is actively trying to hold us at bay. It is as if the state was peacefully minding its own business and then the evil recession sprang on us from out of nowhere.
Battle of the Titans! Can the downturn be beaten?
Interestingly, I seem to detect similar hollow cheerleading in the way theWall Street Journal presents much of the same news.
The “consensus” one might infer here convinces me no more of the bottom of the downturn than any claimed “consensus” convinces me of global warming.
“If you don’t see it, you just haven’t looked hard enough.” That’s exactly what my grandpa keeps telling me. Funny, he also thinks that the state is a flawless, productive solution to all of mankind’s woes.
“Note also how the “downturn” is treated as an autonomous animate entity that is gripping our economy, as if it is some monster that is actively trying to hold us at bay. It is as if the state was peacefully minding its own business and then the evil recession sprang on us from out of nowhere.”
Yep.
We are merely asymptotically approaching hell. We will get closer and closer without ever actually entering the gates…
David Spellman
We long ago entered hell. We passed the virtuous pagans and the walls of Dis a few thousand years past and are now tumbling down into the abyss of fraud. But fear not, for Geryon will catch us and land us in the pit softly. That way, the demons can pierce us with hooks to their hearts’ content. (Lots of Dante, and the allegory actually fits-other subject)
Comments on this entry are closed.