Thursday, August 18, 2011

Data Points for August 18, 2011 -- With No Comment

Dow plunges 450 points.

New unemployment claims exceed forecasts: 409,000 vs 400,000.

Two months ago, big story: with stimulus money coming to an end, expect second round of layoffs.

Good news for consumer: Ms Bachmann says she will get gasoline back to $2.00.

Better news for consumer: Mr Obama may out-do Ms Bachman -- price of oil drops $4.05 overnight.

The New York Times: nowhere near a depression. During the depression, 25% unemployment; current "real" unemployment no worse than 17%.

Inflation rising fast: Drudge Report headline with link.

Missile that hit Israel overnight fired from Egypt; occurs months after Egyptian leader "thrown under the bus" by US "ally" of 30 years.

Drudge Report: huge photo of President and First Lady riding bikes at leisurely pace; bicycle helmets in place; no daughters in the photo.

Yesterday, story that the president will present new jobs program sometime after his vacation is over.

It is leaked that the jobs program will be to hire 500,000 to repair dilapidated schools around the country; similar to "100,000 new cops on the street" program.

2 comments:

  1. "In her home state of Minnesota and in the Midwest in general Michelle Bachmann might get gas down to $3 per gallon but I don't see $2. The greatest increase in production would be in th North Dakota, the east side of the Rockies and Canada if the KeystoneXL pipeline is built. These have pipelines going to Midwest refineries.

    They say that oil is "fungible" but already they are rail unit trains of tanker cars transporting oil out of the "Bakken". There is a $20 spread between benchmark Texas light sweet crude and Brent North Sea light sweet crude."

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  2. Her point is, of course, that Obama's policies exacerbate the price of oil, and just by doing some easy, common sense things, the price of oil/gasoline can be brought down.

    I appreciate what she's trying to say. She needs a catch headline so the average American can understand what their government is costing them.

    Successful politicians have learned the art of being vague; she would be better off to say gasoline costs twice as much as it needs to, or the price of gasoline could be cut in half if we had sensible energy policies. That "half" would be a moving target. Half of "what?" Half of what it will be if oil drilling is completely stopped in this country, half of what predictions say gasoline might cost in 2015?

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