Comments on: Trash-talking the economy http://pjmedia.com/rogerkimball/2008/08/12/trash-talking-the-economy/ Wed, 15 Feb 2012 13:59:50 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: Dan Smith http://pjmedia.com/rogerkimball/2008/08/12/trash-talking-the-economy/#comment-3871 Dan Smith Thu, 28 Aug 2008 18:02:50 +0000 http://pajamasmedia.com/rogerkimball/2008/08/12/trash-talking-the-economy/#comment-3871 I'm reminded of the old vaudeville joke, immortalized by Woody Allen in "Annie Hall." Two old maids die and go to heaven. After a week, they bump into each other and the first one remarks, "You know, Sadie, the food is here is terrible." To which Sadie replies, "Yes, and the portions are so small!" I’m reminded of the old vaudeville joke, immortalized by Woody Allen in “Annie Hall.” Two old maids die and go to heaven. After a week, they bump into each other and the first one remarks, “You know, Sadie, the food is here is terrible.” To which Sadie replies, “Yes, and the portions are so small!”

]]> By: ReCon USMC http://pjmedia.com/rogerkimball/2008/08/12/trash-talking-the-economy/#comment-3623 ReCon USMC Wed, 20 Aug 2008 18:27:25 +0000 http://pajamasmedia.com/rogerkimball/2008/08/12/trash-talking-the-economy/#comment-3623 Great write Roger !!! Here are my 2 Cents . With my own past ReCon Marine to Wealth all by myself . My Teacher was Common sense , reason and PhD in as a ReCon Marine .Life was easy after those years as was the Animalism , take no Prisoners top of the furniture Industry . Since the very Foundation of America was Founded on paying the price for Success though hard work , real caring , A positive attitude , Dealing with difficulty , Job skills and education in your chosen fields that supports your own Self and Family . Individually , Ethically, Financially and morally and Yes I know a bad word now a days and laughed at by Hollywood and the Media elite . Real 'success' is no more of a accident than is a sure guarantee staying Drunk or on Drugs and driving will end in killing your self or worse others . A higher education feeds you Ideals and Theories and is wonderful but a great Job skill feeds your family and pays your house payments and rising taxes and cost of living yearly . Given the Present needs I pick eating and paying my house payments over the theory of why Marxism is better than Capitalism . Debated in American Colleges since his death 81 years ago even though 160 Million were murdered and starved to death with those same theories . Somehow today Marxist theories makes sense and are Progressive and doable ? 'Success' wears the simple old well used Hat of I tried and tried and will never stop trying . Continued Failure wears the same old Hat of You do it for me because you told me rich others should do it for me while I lived the same unhappy self year after year . I listened to you so I continued to be angry and of course continue to fail because of Rich successful white men ? Neither you or I ever wondered why somehow since I kept voting for you to change me and others just like me . You never did nor did I believing in your idealism that never gave me realism other than my continued Failure . That was real just as much today as my needs were the first day I ever met you many years ago telling me you could help me If I just voted for you .I did for many years as did my neighbors and you didn't . Great write Roger !!!
Here are my 2 Cents . With my own past ReCon Marine to Wealth all by myself .
My Teacher was Common sense , reason and PhD in as a ReCon Marine .Life was easy after those years as was the Animalism , take no Prisoners top of the furniture Industry .

Since the very Foundation of America was Founded on paying the price for Success though hard work , real caring , A positive attitude , Dealing with difficulty , Job skills and education in your chosen fields that supports your own Self and Family .
Individually , Ethically, Financially and morally and Yes I know a bad word now a days and laughed at by Hollywood and the Media elite . Real ‘success’ is no more of a accident than is a sure guarantee staying Drunk or on Drugs and driving will end in killing your self or worse others .
A higher education feeds you Ideals and Theories and is wonderful but a great Job skill feeds your family and pays your house payments and rising taxes and cost of living yearly . Given the Present needs I pick eating and paying my house payments over the theory of why Marxism is better than Capitalism . Debated in American Colleges since his death 81 years ago even though 160 Million were murdered and starved to death with those same theories . Somehow today Marxist theories makes sense and are Progressive and doable ?
‘Success’ wears the simple old well used Hat of I tried and tried and will never stop trying . Continued Failure wears the same old Hat of You do it for me because you told me rich others should do it for me while I lived the same unhappy self year after year .
I listened to you so I continued to be angry and of course continue to fail because of Rich successful white men ?
Neither you or I ever wondered why somehow since I kept voting for you to change me and others just like me .
You never did nor did I believing in your idealism that never gave me realism other than my continued Failure .
That was real just as much today as my needs were the first day I ever met you many years ago telling me you could help me If I just voted for you .I did for many years as did my neighbors and you didn’t .

]]> By: Jon S. http://pjmedia.com/rogerkimball/2008/08/12/trash-talking-the-economy/#comment-3447 Jon S. Thu, 14 Aug 2008 12:19:35 +0000 http://pajamasmedia.com/rogerkimball/2008/08/12/trash-talking-the-economy/#comment-3447 Roger, today's article in AP on this very subject confirms your point in the post and in response to Tom C. Note the reporter's words "healthy growth" in describing a 1.3% rise in the first quarter. German economy shrinks in 2nd quarter By GEIR MOULSON, AP BERLIN -The German economy shrank for the first time in nearly four years in the second quarter as consumer spending and capital investment declined, according to government figures released Thursday. Europe's biggest economy contracted by 0.5 percent in the April-June period compared with the previous quarter, the Federal Statistical Office said. It was the first decline since the third quarter of 2004. However, it was less sharp than the 0.8 percent decline economists had predicted. The government said it was sticking to its forecast for full-year economic growth of 1.7 percent. The contraction in gross domestic product contrasts with healthy growth of 1.3 percent in the first quarter _ revised downward Thursday from the 1.5 percent initially reported... Roger, today’s article in AP on this very subject confirms your point in the post and in response to Tom C. Note the reporter’s words “healthy growth” in describing a 1.3% rise in the first quarter.

German economy shrinks in 2nd quarter
By GEIR MOULSON, AP

BERLIN -The German economy shrank for the first time in nearly four years in the second quarter as consumer spending and capital investment declined, according to government figures released Thursday.

Europe’s biggest economy contracted by 0.5 percent in the April-June period compared with the previous quarter, the Federal Statistical Office said. It was the first decline since the third quarter of 2004.

However, it was less sharp than the 0.8 percent decline economists had predicted. The government said it was sticking to its forecast for full-year economic growth of 1.7 percent.

The contraction in gross domestic product contrasts with healthy growth of 1.3 percent in the first quarter _ revised downward Thursday from the 1.5 percent initially reported…

]]> By: Roger Kimball http://pjmedia.com/rogerkimball/2008/08/12/trash-talking-the-economy/#comment-3298 Roger Kimball Wed, 13 Aug 2008 12:24:44 +0000 http://pajamasmedia.com/rogerkimball/2008/08/12/trash-talking-the-economy/#comment-3298 With reference to Tom Cuddihy's comment: here's what I found at the site referenced: http://powerandcontrol.blogspot.com/2008/08/blazing-economies.html "vantastic5 in the comments advises me that the German economy really did grow a blazing 1.5% in the first quarter. What happened? They got a years worth of growth (for Germany) in the first quarter. After that the economy was and will be essentially flat. The Financial Times reports: Germany’s economy has performed robustly compared with other industrialised countries, with 2.5 per cent growth last year and 1.5 per cent quarter-on-quarter growth in the first three months of 2008. However, second-quarter growth is expected to be significantly lower, the German finance ministry conceded this week, owing to high energy prices and inflation, the strong euro and the weak international economy. Industrial production fell in May by 2.4 per cent – its largest monthly drop in a decade – and a second-quarter contraction in gross domestic product of 0.4 per cent was likely, according to an economists’ poll published on Wednesday by Reuters. The German government has forecast that growth will fall to 1.7 per cent this year and 1.2 per cent in 2009." With reference to Tom Cuddihy’s comment: here’s what I found at the site referenced:

http://powerandcontrol.blogspot.com/2008/08/blazing-economies.html

“vantastic5 in the comments advises me that the German economy really did grow a blazing 1.5% in the first quarter. What happened? They got a years worth of growth (for Germany) in the first quarter. After that the economy was and will be essentially flat. The Financial Times reports:

Germany’s economy has performed robustly compared with other industrialised countries, with 2.5 per cent growth last year and 1.5 per cent quarter-on-quarter growth in the first three months of 2008.

However, second-quarter growth is expected to be significantly lower, the German finance ministry conceded this week, owing to high energy prices and inflation, the strong euro and the weak international economy.

Industrial production fell in May by 2.4 per cent – its largest monthly drop in a decade – and a second-quarter contraction in gross domestic product of 0.4 per cent was likely, according to an economists’ poll published on Wednesday by Reuters.

The German government has forecast that growth will fall to 1.7 per cent this year and 1.2 per cent in 2009.”

]]> By: tom cuddihy http://pjmedia.com/rogerkimball/2008/08/12/trash-talking-the-economy/#comment-3297 tom cuddihy Wed, 13 Aug 2008 12:17:30 +0000 http://pajamasmedia.com/rogerkimball/2008/08/12/trash-talking-the-economy/#comment-3297 Roger, You probably missed in the comments of that Classical Values post by Simon, that he improperly compared the US first quarter growth rate of 1.9% per annum to the German first quarter growth rate of 1.4% per quarter. Apples to apples, US growth rate of 1.9% per annum in the first quarter compares to a German growth rate of 5.6% per annum in the first quarter, which is actually "blazing" for a first world economy. Roger,
You probably missed in the comments of that Classical Values post by Simon, that he improperly compared the US first quarter growth rate of 1.9% per annum to the German first quarter growth rate of 1.4% per quarter. Apples to apples, US growth rate of 1.9% per annum in the first quarter compares to a German growth rate of 5.6% per annum in the first quarter, which is actually “blazing” for a first world economy.

]]> By: srlucado http://pjmedia.com/rogerkimball/2008/08/12/trash-talking-the-economy/#comment-3288 srlucado Tue, 12 Aug 2008 13:17:20 +0000 http://pajamasmedia.com/rogerkimball/2008/08/12/trash-talking-the-economy/#comment-3288 While I have my own serious concerns about the state of the economy, I do believe that the negativity is vastly (and melodramatically) overstated. I saw some network news report the other night that made passing reference to "...with the economy now in recession..." Well, it's technically not, of course. But why let facts get in the way of a good story, especially one that will help the Democratic party? As for the housing crisis...well, plenty of blame to go around there. A couple of years ago, I had the hobby of reading an online forum for mortgage brokers, and I simply could not believe how that business was being run; people I wouldn't have lent a dollar were getting jumbo mortgages based on no documentation at all. There's no way that was going to have a happy ending, and it's a long way from over even now. More work, less whining will get the economy moving better than any new tax-and-spend-and-spend government initiatives. As for "windfall profit tax", there's another word for it--stealing. But that's one of government's specialties, isn't it? Scott While I have my own serious concerns about the state of the economy, I do believe that the negativity is vastly (and melodramatically) overstated. I saw some network news report the other night that made passing reference to “…with the economy now in recession…”

Well, it’s technically not, of course. But why let facts get in the way of a good story, especially one that will help the Democratic party?

As for the housing crisis…well, plenty of blame to go around there. A couple of years ago, I had the hobby of reading an online forum for mortgage brokers, and I simply could not believe how that business was being run; people I wouldn’t have lent a dollar were getting jumbo mortgages based on no documentation at all. There’s no way that was going to have a happy ending, and it’s a long way from over even now.

More work, less whining will get the economy moving better than any new tax-and-spend-and-spend government initiatives.

As for “windfall profit tax”, there’s another word for it–stealing. But that’s one of government’s specialties, isn’t it?

Scott

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