Posts Tagged ‘ recession ’

What’s Bad for Bernanke Is Worse for You

Sep 1st, 2010 | By | Category: Featured, Macro Economics
Bad day for stocks, Monday. A bad day. Not a terrible day. Not a crash day. Just a bad day. The Dow fell 140 points. This was baaaad...because it shows that the stock market does not really buy Bernanke’s storyline. You’ll recall that when we left off last week, Ben Bernanke assured ...read more

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Posted in Featured, Macro Economics | 3 comments


The Top Ten Things to Worry About Surviving in a Bad Economic Climate

Nov 16th, 2009 | By | Category: Featured, Morning Whiskey
I staked out my position on the Doom & Gloom side back in 1992 when I was shocked by the problem I discuss first. What should you be concerned about? Start with the basics: what do you think you might have to survive? No point in making plans if you ...read more

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Posted in Featured, Morning Whiskey | 25 comments


The Real Causes of Depression

Feb 6th, 2009 | By | Category: Energy, Featured, Macro Economics
Let's dispense with the usual recap of bad news today and go straight to more important matters, like the weather. "Is that rain?" asked a co-worker the other day. "No. It's the sound of leaves blowing down the street," we speculated. And it was. Huge drifts of leaves have accumulated on the footpaths in ...read more

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Posted in Energy, Featured, Macro Economics | 2 comments


The Coming Oil Backdraft

Jan 22nd, 2009 | By | Category: Featured, Oil, Politics
Sound the alarm bells! A collision with reality is dead ahead! The elephant in the room blasted out a mighty honk this weekend in a report by Access Economics, as reported in today's Australian. "Batten the hatches," Access says. "This is not just a recession. This is the sharpest deceleration Australia's ...read more

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Posted in Featured, Oil, Politics | 5 comments


Government Tries to Outrun Recession… Again

Dec 10th, 2008 | By | Category: Economics, Featured, Politics
I have a good friend named Bill who lives on the convergence of two tidal streams in an area aptly named: Twin Rivers.  Last year his bulkhead was destroyed in a severe storm.  The problem with repairing a bulkhead is that it is underwater, and that presents peculiar challenges.  The ...read more

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Posted in Economics, Featured, Politics | 2 comments


Inflation in a Slowdown

Apr 30th, 2008 | By | Category: Macro Economics
The economy doesn’t know what to do with itself. The Fed has made it all but certain that inflation will be a problem. Prices are rising and everything has become more expensive. So what ever happened to this recession we’ve been hearing about? Shouldn’t a slowing economy be depressing prices? ...read more

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Posted in Macro Economics | No Comments »


Lessons of the Great Depression

Mar 31st, 2008 | By | Category: Macro Economics
Irving Fisher was probably the greatest American economist, both in terms of the development of economic theory and as a teacher. In 1933, having himself misread the early stages of the Great Depression — and virtually bankrupted himself by ill-judged speculation — Fisher published one of his most important works. ...read more

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Posted in Macro Economics | No Comments »


The Struggle Between Inflation and Lending

Mar 4th, 2008 | By | Category: Macro Economics
I BELIEVE WE ARE IN A WAR BETWEEN TWO MAJOR ADVERSARIES. On the one side, we have the Fed (and other central banks) pumping liquidity into the system in a desperate attempt to support the asset markets and the economy. On the other side, we have the private sector, which ...read more

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Posted in Macro Economics | No Comments »


From Recession to Depression

Feb 4th, 2008 | By | Category: Macro Economics
If you credit Austrian School Economic Theory, which I certainly do, you’re forced to believe that the business cycle exists. The business cycle is driven largely by government intervention in the economy, in the form of taxes, regulation and, most importantly, currency inflation. These things give false signals to businesses ...read more

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Posted in Macro Economics | No Comments »