I’m not one to head into a weekend with a downer of a post, but this article from CNNMoney.com is fascinating. The author is explaining how the US economy is not in a recession. The twists begin early with this stat:
After all, most of the CFOs questioned in a recent poll agree that the U.S. is in a recession; among the general public, 76% said the U.S. was in a recession six months ago, and other polling suggests most people believe things have grown worse since then.
I have seen this belief firsthand which always catches me off-guard. I have even heard people talking of another depression. I suppose it could be possible, but this strikes me as hyperbole.
But there is an answer:
A more profound reason that people believe we are in a recession can’t be found in the GDP tables at all. It’s in their minds, what psychologist and author Judith M. Bardwick calls the psychological recession – “an emotional state in which people feel extremely vulnerable and afraid for their futures.”
Read the entire thing – it may cheer you up.