If you want to learn real economics instead of neoliberal junk economics, read Michael Hudson’s books. What you will learn is that neoliberal economics is an apology for the rentier class and the large banks that have succeeded in financializing the economy, shifting consumer spending power from the purchase of goods and services that drive […]
Consumer Confidence Soars Highest in 16 Years…
Consumer confidence in March soared to the highest level in more than 16 years, according to data released Tuesday. The Conference Board said its consumer confidence index leapt to 125.6 in March from 116.1 in February, coming in well ahead of the MarketWatch-compiled consensus of 114.1. The reading gave a pop to U.S. stocks DJIA, […]
Yellen’s Effed up Attack on Working People, Sad by Mike Whitney…
Why did the Fed raise its benchmark interest rate when inflation is still running below the Fed’s target, workers wages have hardly budged and the economy is not even growing at 1 percent? Yellen was asked that question at a press conference on Wednesday following the release of the FOMC’s statement. Her answer helps to […]
U.S. Economy Slowed to a Drip in Fourth Quarter…
The U.S. economy expanded at a slower pace in the fourth quarter, as previously reported, and appeared to remain on a moderate growth path as President Donald Trump took office with a promise to reinvigorate manufacturing and protect jobs. Trump has pledged to boost annual economic growth to 4 percent through a mix of infrastructure […]
Pres. Trump, Saudi Arabia and the Petrodollar…
Obama pulled out his veto pen 12 times during his presidency. Congress only overrode him once. In late 2016, Obama vetoed the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act (JASTA). The bill would allow 9/11 victims to sue Saudi Arabia in US courts. With only months left in office, Obama wasn’t worried about the political price […]
Greenspan Endorses the Gold Standard…
In his remarkable essay, “Gold and Economic Freedom,” written in 1966, Alan Greenspan stated: Under a gold standard, the amount of credit that an economy can support is determined by the economy’s tangible assets, since every credit instrument is ultimately a claim on some tangible asset. But government bonds are not backed by tangible wealth, […]
Stocks and Precious Metals Charts – Don’t Lie To Yourself…
How We the People Were Screwed by Obama’s Bogus “Recovery” by Mike Whitney…
It’s amazing how Obama was able to dupe the American people into believing that the weakest expansion in the postwar era, was an “economic recovery.” Frankly, it boggles the mind. Think about it for a minute: Productivity, business investment, personal consumption, inflation and growth have all been either sputtering-along at half speed or at historic […]
Fed Debate Over $4.5 Trillion Balance Sheet Looms in 2017…
It’s time to talk about the balance sheet. Eight years after the Federal Reserve launched the first of three controversial bond-buying campaigns to help save the U.S. economy, its holdings are stuck at $4.5 trillion, and the question of when to let them shrink is beginning to simmer…
The Reason the Fed is Raising Rates, and Why It Won’t Work by Mike Whitney…
Why is the Fed creating incentives for US corporations to destroy themselves? Why is the Fed pushing insurance companies and retirement funds into bankruptcy? Why is the Fed raising interest rates when inflation is still well below its 2 percent target? Things are not always what they seem. In theory…