This'n'That; November 14th [Economy; Politics]

Is There Any Direction BUT DOWN? Recent reports indicate that first-time unemployment filings rose to 516,000. This number has pushed the unemployment rate to 6.5%. Unemployment is not expected to decline until the estimated peak rate of 9.0% is reached sometime in 2010. Maybe It's Time To Return To The "Misery Index" The "Misery Index" is an economic indicator created in the late 1960s by Arthur Okun, an economic advisor to President Johnson. The index is determined by adding the unemployment rate and the inflation rate. It assumed that both a higher rate of unemployment or a worsening of inflation both create economic and social costs of the [or any] country. So, to determine the current "Misery Index" we must add: The unemployment rate: 6.5% The inflation rate: 4.94% ---------- " Misery Index" 11.44 An unintended indicator: Some economists contend that the components of the "Misery Index" drive the crime rate to a dregree. They've found that the "Misery Index" and the crime rate correlate strongly and that the "Misery Index" seems to lead the crime rate by a year or so. I found a chart that ranks all the Presidents since World War II, with the lowest rank indicating the lowest average "Misery Ranking:" ** #1 Dwight Eisenhower [1953-1960] 6.26 #2 Lyndon Johnson [1963-1968] 6.78 #3 John Kennedy [1961-1962] 7.27 #4 William Clinton [1993-2000] 7.80 #5 Harry Truman [1948-1952] 7.87 #6 George Bush [2001-2005] 7.98 #7 Richard Nixon [1969-1973] 9.98 #8 George H.W. Bush [1989-1992] 10.68 #9 Ronald Reagan [1981-1988] 12.19 #10 Gerald Ford [1974-1976] 15.93 #11 James Carter [1977-1980] 16.27 Obamanyms [One can't understand the game without a playbook] OBAMAPHORIA: A worldwide euphoria that spread over his supporters. OBAMANATION: Expressed by evangelicals and other conservatives who opposed many of his stances. OBAMARAMA: The Inauguration Day celebrations. OBAMANOS: "Let's go" among his fans in Mexico. OBAMATOPIA: The political paradise supporters expect him to usher in late on the afternoon of January 20th. OBAMALUJAH: Exultation shouted by his fans. OBAMATRONS: The "policy wonks" in his White House. OBAMASCOPE: Media scrutiny of the new leader. OBAMANATOR: Hollywood nickname for the new leader. OBAMALICIOUS: Term used by supporters who like his looks. OBAMALOHA: Goodbye from his birthplace, Hawaii. Oh-BAMA: Joyful exclamation. OBAMERIKA: Headline from the Croatian paper; Slobodna Dalmacija. BARACKSTAR: He's the "Mick Jagger" of politics. What PEBO Is Up Against PEBO is inheriting the ongoing economic crisis and a two-front war. Lest we forget biden's forecast of PEBO test by crisis!! He started rolling back his "pie-in-the-sky" promises during his election night acceptance speech. "Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or even in one term." Research by Harold Holzer, author of Lincoln, President-Elect, indicates that 'the most successful transformative presidencies were patient between the election and the inauguration.' Here We Go..... Next week the congress returns. They will meet to finish remaining business before the 110th Congress. In September, the House passed a $57 billion stimulus package which was to focus primarily on infrastructure projects. The previous stimulus was $150 billion; the one that sent checks to American Taxpayers. The infrastructure stimulus package should have a net positive effect on the economy. A major problem with this action is that it requires MORE DEFICIT SPENDING. ***As of November 11, 2008, then National Debt is $10.6 TRILLION!! What most taxpayers don't know is that the THIRD LARGEST EXPENSE in the federal budget is the interest paid on the National Debt [2008=$412 billion]!! The LARGEST SINGLE ITEM in the budget is social spending; welfare, food stamps, etc. "For society as a whole, nothing comes as a 'right' to which we are 'entitled.' Even bare subsistence has to be produced.... The only way anyone can have a right to something that has to be produced is to force someone else to produce it.... The more things are provided as 'rights,' the less the recipients have to work and the more the providers have to carry the load." ............................Dr Thomas Sewell, economist, columnist for Forbes Magazine. EVERY YEAR SINCE 1969, Congress has spent more money than it's income!! Even when governmentofficials say they have a surplus, they still SPEND MORE THAN THEY TAKE IN!! We pay interest on a very large debt. "A politician cannot spend one dime on any spending project without first taking that dime from the person who earned it. So, when a politician votes for a spending bill he is saying that he believes the government should spend that particular dollar rather than the individual who worked for it." ...............................................Neal Boortz, national talkshow host, WSB-Atlanta. "There is no such thing as government money-ONLY TAXPAYER MONEY." .............................William Weld, Former Governor of Massachusetts. Til Nex'time....................