A few days ago there was a spike in the

[doc03]

unemployment and the Stimulus Plan was declared a total failure and it was then declared "Obama's Economy". This week we get a couple good earnings reports and the Dow increases 7% and the CNBC financial (experts?) like Crammer declare we are in an economic recovery. I can't wait to hear Larry Kudlow and the others declare this the Bush recovery.

[Coyote_Bandit]

1. Apples and Oranges

That stimulus plan didn't do much of anything to reduce unemployment.

Stock market performance and quantative measures of recovery have little to do with employment. They have a lot more to do with earnings which means that lower labor costs are a good thing.

This will not be the first jobless recovery.

And if you happen to be unemployed then you are SOL - and invisible to most.

[MercutioATC]

2. Almost too much wrong with your OP to even bother...but I'll give it a try.

1) There was no "spike" in unemployment a few days ago. The June 27 report showed over 500k new jobless claims, which was a decrease from the last report...but those were "adjusted" numbers. In reality, unemployment INCREASED...but that's not a "spike", it's been happening for months...and it was actually reported as a decrease, not a spike.

2) The stimulus plan wasn't just declared a failure a few days ago...a lot of economists have been criticizing it for months.

3) Republicans have been calling this "Obama's economy" since before he even took office.

4) Nobody that I've seen has declared that we are in a recovery. Some are predicting a recovery to begin within 6 months (end of 2009-middle of 2010)...which is the same position they've held for a while.


My best advice to you (if you really have an interest in the economy) is to stop getting your financial news solely from talking heads and MSN Finance headlines and start learning about what really makes the economy tick. Then, form YOUR OWN INFORMED CONCLUSIONS.


It may not be as easy as having your views on the economy spoon-fed to you, but you'll at least have an informed opinion.

[doc03]

4. Where on earth have you been the last several weeks

The June jobless figures did spike, increase or whatever you want to call it from the last several months. Last week that was the talking points on CNBC, CNN, HLN, Fox and all the networks, the Stimulus was a failure and it was now after 5 months the Obama Economy. About 3 weeks ago before
the June figures came out Larry Kudlow had declared the economy was showing definite signs of recovery and he also gave the credit to the swift action of GWB last fall. They can go from economic recovery one week to total gloom and doom the next then with a couple good reports go back on the coming recovery and the Bull market. The unemployment had slowly declined month to month since January and the June report jumped significantly from the last several months. Didn't you hear all the talking heads going nuts over a 9.5% unemployment rate and them predicting it would go over 10%.
Didn't you hear all the fuss the media made about Joe Biden saying we misread the economy. Don't you remember them saying Obama claimed without the stimulus package the unemployment would maybe top 8% and how ineffective it was since it was obvious it would now go over 10%. I pay little attention to the so called financial experts their opinion can change on a dime from week to week, this was just a comment on how full of crap they are.
I know the recession started way back in the fall of 2007 and it is going to take a long time to get out of this mess. I have my 401k statements from the last year and a half to prove it. Myself I do think the Stimulus package had way too much political giveaways and pork and far too little real infrastructure jobs. The talking heads somehow have to fill a 24 hour news cycle with something, mostly mindless babel.

[MercutioATC]

6. An honest question: Do you monitor the MSM financial news on a daily basis?

...even on a 3-4 times a week basis?

My guess is that you don't, because the spin "in the last few days" has been that initial jobless claims were DOWN...even though that claim was based on manipulated numbers that don't represent current conditions.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Jobless-claims-drop-but-apf-3440402076.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=6&asset=&ccode=


My point is (and has been) that the spin changes on a weekly basis and you'd be a whole lot better off looking at the real numbers and forming your own conclusions than allowing the talking heads to jerk you around.

[doc03]

7. Apparently I monitor the financial news much more

than you do. Yes the spin in the last few days has been more positive hence the market went up 7%.
I am talking about from week to week over the last several weeks. The two weeks prior to this past week the market dropped several hundred points based on the unemployment figures. I think the unemployment was around 350,000 the previous reporting period and it jumped to over 500,000, The spin was gloom and doom, we had a double dip recession, the Stimulus didn't work, Biden said we all misread the economy, the stimulus package was supposed to keep the unemployment from topping 8% and we may need a third stimulus package. Apparently you were watching MJ coverage or out of the country. I will say this again I was making a comment on how fickle and full of crap news media is.
I take the BS by the financial talking heads with a grain of salt. Haven't you ever noticed no matter what the market does they always give some idiotic reason. One day the unemployment may go up and they will give that as a reason for the market going down. Then the next report the unemployment may go up and they may say that made the market go up. They just run their mouths to fill the 24/7 news cycle. Same can be said about the talking heads on the CNN, Fox and the other so called news channels.

[doc03]

5. Self deleted duplicate post n/t

[Greyhound]

3. Since the factoids you've posted have been exposed elsewhere in this thread,

I won't repeat it.

You should also consider that the DJIA is a tool that has been converted into a propaganda device and that the stock market is not the economy.

Begun under Raygun and continued through the following three administrations, the stock market has been changed from an investment vehicle to a casino. A situation that could be greatly relieved with a transaction tax/fee.