Friday, October 22. 2010What Makes Life Worthwhile
Wisdom is there if we only choose to see it. Please read the following quote from Bobby Kennedy on what the Gross National Product means and more importantly what it does not mean. Too bad more people don't understand these concepts...
"Too much and too long, we seem to have surrendered community excellence and community values in the mere accumulation of material things. Our gross national product ... if we should judge America by that - counts air pollution and cigarette advertising, and ambulances to clear our highways of carnage. It counts special locks for our doors and the jails for those who break them. It counts the destruction of our redwoods and the loss of our natural wonder in chaotic sprawl. It counts napalm and the cost of a nuclear warhead, and armored cars for police who fight riots in our streets. It counts Whitman's rifle and Speck's knife, and the television programs which glorify violence in order to sell toys to our children. Robert F. Kennedy Address, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, March 18, 1968 Tuesday, October 19. 2010Employment Rate Compared to Appliances Furniture CarpetingEmployment Rate - The Market Ticker, Karl Denninger
Tuesday, October 19. 2010Appliances, Furniture and Carpeting Industrial Production DecreasesAppliances Carpeting Furniture - Seasonally Adjusted Industrial Production (c) 2010 Jim Lindell
Monday, October 18. 2010September 2010 Industrial Production and Capacity Utilization
INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION AND CAPACITY UTILIZATION (source: http://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/g17/Current/)
Industrial Production and Capacity Utilization September 2010 - Federal Reserve Industrial production decreased 0.2 percent in September after having increased 0.2 percent in August. The indexes both for manufacturing and for manufacturing excluding motor vehicles and parts also moved down 0.2 percent in September. Production at mines moved up 0.7 percent, while the output of utilities fell 1.9 percent. For the third quarter as a whole, total industrial production rose at an annual rate of 4.8 percent after having advanced about 7 percent in both the first and second quarters of this year. The index for manufacturing decelerated sharply in the third quarter: After having jumped at an annual rate of 9.1 percent in the second quarter, factory output gained 3.6 percent in the third quarter. At 93.2 percent of its 2007 average, total industrial production in September was 5.4 percent above its year-earlier level. The capacity utilization rate for total industry edged down to 74.7 percent, a rate 4.2 percentage points above the rate from a year earlier but 5.9 percentage points below its average from 1972 to 2009. Saturday, October 16. 2010The Toilet Tax and the Sh*t TaxToilet Tax - alicesrestaurantblog.com
JL Commentary I believe we could solve many of our current economic problems by introducing a “sh*t tax.” Consider all of the advantages: Ah Sh*t. Our new currency, our new tax and our new way of life. Sunday, October 10. 2010Unemployment U-6 Increases in septemberSeptember 2010 Unemployment Table
Sunday, October 10. 2010Employment - When will it Improve?
How long until our country returns to pre-recession employment levels? I have included two graphs to illustrate that the timeframe to return to past employment levels is a long way off. The first graph comes from calculatedriskblog.com.
calculatedriskblog.com joblossesrecessionssep2010 The graph shows the number of months that it took for employment levels to return to pre-recession levels. The chart shows the last 11 recessions our country has had. What is notable about the graph is that each of the recessions has a similar pattern. The graph has a declining slope followed by a trough and then a positive slope as the employment level returns to pre-recession levels. It is interesting that each of the lines appear similar to an inverted bell curve. Therefore, we could take each of the lines and look at the number of months to the trough and make a similar estimate of how long it will take us to return to full employment (as determined by the starting level.) In that case it suggests that it will be at least 24 months until we return to pre-recession employment levels. The second chart comes from Investors Business Daily and suggests that we will not return to the same employment level until the year 2020. IBD - caphilljobs1011 Either of the scenarios involves too much time. Keep in mind that our economy is supposedly fueled 70% by consumer activity. If we do not have the jobs, people will not have the income to meet their financial obligations nor spend on other purchases. This will further create a downward spiral and inhibit the growth of our economy. This also suggests that the consumer will not generate excess funds to pay for the future taxes resulting from the various stimulus packages. Saturday, October 9. 2010Global CFO Survey: CFO Optimism Tumbles, Employment Outlook Bleak
Global CFO Survey: CFO Optimism Tumbles, Employment Outlook Bleak
------------------------------------------- DUKE UNIVERSITY NEWS Duke University Office of News & Communications http://www.dukenews.duke.edu ------------------------------------------- FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Wednesday, Sept. 15, 2010 CONTACTS: Julia Homer (CFO Publishing) (617) 345-9700 ext. 3204 [email protected] and Chris Privett (Duke) (919) 660-8090 [email protected]
-- CFO optimism about the U.S. economy has fallen to 49 on a zero-to-100 scale, well below the rating of 58 from the last quarter. Pessimists outnumber optimists four-to-one. Optimism is rated 58 by European CFOs and 70 by Asian CFOs. OPTIMISM PLUNGES Optimism about the overall economy fell at 53 percent of U.S. firms and increased at only 14 percent. The optimism rate of 49 is a level not seen since the first quarter of 2009, when CFOs rated the economy at 40. “The CFO optimism index has proven to be an accurate predictor of future economic performance,” said Julia Homer, executive vice president for content at CFO Publishing LLC. “Therefore, this dramatic drop in optimism bodes poorly for the economic outlook. Half of CFOs say there is only a six-month window -- and another one-fourth believe it’s a 12-month window -- during which they can maintain current levels of business activity without improvement in the overall economy.”
Thursday, October 7. 2010Education & Health Insurance Are Too ExpensiveAmerican's Spending Patterns
Thursday, October 7. 2010Fed Officials raise spectre of inflation
From - Fed Officials Mull Inflation as a Fix (By SUDEEP REDDY) (Source: WSJ http://bit.ly/bwqGAc)
The Federal Reserve spent the past three decades getting inflation low and keeping it there. But as the U.S. economy struggles and flirts with the prospect of deflation, some central bank officials are publicly broaching a controversial idea: lifting inflation above the Fed's informal target. Commentary: Unfortunately, one of the main ways to deal with our country's growing deficits is to promote inflation. If the deficit gets completely out of hand, watch for the "money printing press" to run 24/7. The fact that they are considering utilizing inflation as a tactic should be of concern to all. © 2010 Jim Lindell Wednesday, October 6. 2010ADP - Private Sector Payrolls Decrease
Introduction from ADP Report - (source: http://www.adpemploymentreport.com/pdf/FINAL_Report_September_10.pdf)
“Private-sector employment decreased by 39,000 from August to September on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to the latest ADP National Employment Report® released today. The estimated change of employment from July to August was revised up from the previously reported decline of 10,000 to an increase of 10,000.” Tuesday, October 5. 2010Changed opinion - the economy is improving
I guess that I have been too pessimistic and now I am willing to admit it. It definitely appears that the economy is picking up and that all is well.
Economy Improves (c) 2010 Thorsten Consulting Group, inc.
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Jim LindellJim Lindell is a National Speaker, Author, and Vistage Chair. He is motivated by helping others improve their lives and businesses.
He is President of Thorsten Consulting Group, Inc. Order Jim's book - "Controller as Business Manager". controller as business manager - jim lindell - thorsten consulting group QuicksearchArchivesCategoriesSyndicate This BlogBlog AdministrationNetworked Blogs |