Recession? well, duh…
The National Bureau of Economic Research announced on Monday that we are in a recession and that this recession started back in December 2007. As we discuss in class, the common rule of thumb about recessions is that they represent at least two quarters of declining real GDP. Officially, however, NBER and their Business Cycle Dating Committee use a number of measures to identify recessions – when they start and when they end. When the economy goes up and down in some form of a cycle, the recession is said to start at the peak of economic activity, and continues on the downward slope until the bottom of the trough. Here is the NBER statement.
This story and accompanying audio clip from National Public Radio features an interview with a member of the NBER committee, and is a clear, minimum-jargon description of the issues. As Jeff Frankel, a Harvard professor, notes – there are no formal forecasts for how long this recession will last, but at 11 months it is already longer than the recessions of 1990-91 and 2001.
I teach principles of economics courses and a course in the economics of healthcare at Southern Oregon University.
Yes this recession is different. First you see people shouting in glee that yes we are in a recession. Then consider the political infighting that we see daily. This infighting causes all parties to give money to whomever in hopes of getting votes during the next election cycle.
Our leaders are not putting our nation’s best interest first. They are selfish imbeciles that need to grow up a play with each other’s toys.
Yes it is true that we see a recession about every three years, and when we do they usually last about 8.5 months. This time politics will bring to the table spending and their denial of the situation won’t get us out of this mess.
http://nomedals.blogspot.com