For a variety of reasons, I haven’t written much after the last post.
I never really wanted to focus on economic issues, here. I am as much an expert on economic issues as the Uber drivers from Auburn are on foreign policy.
Honestly, though, my attention has largely been focused on personal matters. Though I was ardently opposed to doing it, it seems that I am going to have to apply for Social Security disability. Though I haven’t done that, and will delay it until I’m forced to do it, it appears that I’m going to have to do it.
There’s also a lot of disruption with the government “shutdown” here in the Beltway Swamp. The what appeared to be a somewhat sparsely-attended “No Kings” rallies yesterday showed that to the paid protestors, the only thing that’s acceptable to cut from the Federal Government is Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
But, on the economics issues, there have been a couple of other reports coming out that explain why the Bureau of Labor Statistics is having to significantly-restate more numbers. The money folks say that the lack of numbers really won’t affect market performance. I think the biggest story that’s come out is the massive restatement of job numbers for the period preceding Trump’s inauguration. Things were not as rosy as the Biden Administration was trying to say they were.
I was trying to get to the bigger point here — if you’re not good at your job, there’s nothing wrong with you getting fired. It’s not the end of the world, and things will continue without you continuing to put out your low-quality work.
The fundamental reasons for the economy’s performance are unchanged — interest rates that don’t even approach inflation combined with incredible government overspending. Senator Paul continues to be the Republican against reopening the government, though he wants to pay the govvies and troops.
Again, though, the government shutdown is being used as a rationale for all sorts of omissions on data. I can understand with the big news about the Gaza cease-fire. I’m not sure there’s a way you could really overstate the importance of that. No, I don’t think that it automatically meant that President Trump should have won the Nobel Peace Prize, though the kvetching doubt him not winning overshadowed the announcement a couple of days later about the Nobel Prize in Economics.
Here is the announcement.
My biggest take on it? Things, including innovation, happen in spite of government and regulation. Listening to Palmer Luckey on Rogan served to reinforced that.
You can’t plan everything. I’m okay with that.