Sign "O" the Times

Megan McArdle on healthcare spending and that Q1 shrinkage:

The most worrisome potential explanation is that health expenditures fell because, well, health expenditures fall when the economy is contracting. I’m not exactly ready to call recession yet — consumption was still basically healthy, and the weather was awfully bad. But I’ll be crossing my fingers until the next report comes out.

If it were possible for us to spend and borrow and print our way out of this mess, I’d be happy to eat crow for five-plus years of bashing Obamanomics. That’s because the idea of starting a recession from where we stand now frankly scares the bejeebus out of me.