Shop The Economy Back to Health? Not When You're Unemployed! [View All]

[Donnachaidh]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/claudia-ricci/shop-the-economy-back-to_b_690399.html?utm_source=web&utm_medium=twitter

I'm no economist and my stint as a reporter at The Wall Street Journal was years back now. But you don't have to be a business expert or a rocket scientist to know when a newspaper byline is total bullshit.

The Washington Post's "NEWS ALERT" came late on Friday afternoon, http://link.email.washingtonpost.com/r/HXJVEI/3OOX2Z/RN0L64/PCNOB9/GPG54/AZ/t
as if something really exciting and unexpected had happened, say, Lady Gaga was contemplating a run for President.

No, this was the News Alert in my gmail:

"CEOs tell The Washington Post why they're not hiring: Democrats say we need more stimulus, and Republicans say we need less regulation and lower taxes. But CEOs say the real problem is that they simply don't trust American consumers will open their wallets in the coming years."

Duh.

So the real problem is that Americans aren't spending? Well, folks, Americans aren't spending for good reason. Nearly ten percent of the population has no paycheck, and hasn't for a long time. Another chunk of people are scared shitless that they are going to get pink slips.

How many workers these days think they are immune from the ax? How many households feel secure enough about the economy and their personal future to part freely with cash? Most of us are nursing our aging washing machines along, even when they sound like trucks running uphill. And maybe the dishwasher isn't doing a perfect job getting the glasses to sparkle, but hey, the stuff comes out more or less clean.

Like most economic issues, this one is complicated but simple. Businesses aren't willing to hire until they are convinced that consumer demand for their products is going to grow at a reliable pace. But consumers won't spend for fear they are going to be fired.


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