Buzzkill...

[Baldy]

Here comes the ants and the rain to ruin the Osama killing picnic.

US jobless claims surge

"WASHINGTON (AFP) – New claims for US unemployment insurance benefits surged last week, official data showed Thursday in a fresh sign that a recovery of the ailing labor market is losing steam.

Initial jobless claims rose to a seasonally adjusted 474,000 in the week ending April 30, a 10 percent increase from the prior week, the Labor Department reported.

The weekly indicator has increased in three of the four weeks in April, and the latest rise surprised most analysts who had forecast a decline, to 400,000 claims.

The four-week moving average, which helps to smooth volatility, also rose: to 431,250 claims, an increase of 22,250.

In the prior week, the average topped the 400,000 threshold for the first time in eight consecutive weeks."

[Bronco]

Overheard two gals in the office talking about the big rise in food prices they noticed since they last shopped.

yet we still have folks that support the failed economic policies of this administration.

[Grizalltheway]

Overheard two gals in the office talking about the big rise in food prices they noticed since they last shopped.

yet we still have folks that support the failed economic policies of this administration.

Where was this bitching during the food price crisis of Bush's admin?

[kalm]

Overheard two gals in the office talking about the big rise in food prices they noticed since they last shopped.

yet we still have folks that support the failed economic policies of this administration.

Where was this bitching during the food price crisis of Bush's admin?

It was Clinton's fault, duh.

[Wedgebuster]

Drill baby drill.

[bulldog10jw]

Where was this bitching during the food price crisis of Bush's admin?

What food price crisis?

[Grizalltheway]

Where was this bitching during the food price crisis of Bush's admin?

What food price crisis?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007%E2%80 ... ted_States" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[bulldog10jw]

What food price crisis?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007%E2%80 ... ted_States" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

So Bush was responsible for a WORLD food crisis. OK

[Grizalltheway]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007%E2%80 ... ted_States" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

So Bush was responsible for a WORLD food crisis. OK

When did I say that? Bongo's the one blaming current food prices on Obama.

[Bronco]

Overheard two gals in the office talking about the big rise in food prices they noticed since they last shopped.

yet we still have folks that support the failed economic policies of this administration.

Where was this bitching during the food price crisis of Bush's admin?

I'll ask them what they remember about food prices when they were 10 to 13 years old.

[Baldy]

So Bush was responsible for a WORLD food crisis. OK

When did I say that? Bongo's the one blaming current food prices on Obama.

Obama's failures in policies regarding QE2 and wasting massive amounts of acreage and crops for inefficient and expensive 'alternative' energy is just 2 reasons of many that has made the price of food skyrocket. Sorry...

[Wedgebuster]

He killed Michael Jackson as well.

[Grizalltheway]

When did I say that? Bongo's the one blaming current food prices on Obama.

Obama's failures in policies regarding QE2 and wasting massive amounts of acreage and crops for inefficient and expensive 'alternative' energy is just 2 reasons of many that has made the price of food skyrocket. Sorry...

Can you remind me when the push for using corn based alternative fuels started? And QE is a Fed policy, IIRC.

[Wedgebuster]

Pretty sure he killed the Radio Star as well.

[Baldy]

Obama's failures in policies regarding QE2 and wasting massive amounts of acreage and crops for inefficient and expensive 'alternative' energy is just 2 reasons of many that has made the price of food skyrocket. Sorry...

Can you remind me when the push for using corn based alternative fuels started? And QE is a Fed policy, IIRC.

No, QE2 is definitely an Obama fiscal policy, and he is quite proud of it.

Obama Fires Back After China Slates Fed's QE2

"President Barack Obama defended the Federal Reserve's policy of printing dollars on Monday during a trip to India, after Chinese officials stepped up criticism ahead of this week's Group of 20 meeting.

The G20 summit has been pitched as a chance for leaders of the countries that account for 85 percent of world output to prevent "currency wars" from spreading to become a rush to protectionism that could imperil the global recovery.

It has been overshadowed by disagreements over the U.S. Federal Reserve's quantitative easing (QE) policy under which it will print money to buy $600 billion of government bonds, a move that could depress the dollar and cause a potentially destabilizing flow of money into emerging economies.

"I will say that the Fed's mandate, my mandate, is to grow our economy. And that's not just good for the United States, that's good for the world as a whole," Obama said"

It doesn't matter when the push for ethanol was started. it was a bad idea then, and an even worse idea now. Under Obama ethanol production has increased by about 50%. That is what matters.

[ASUG8]

Overheard two gals in the office talking about the big rise in food prices they noticed since they last shopped.

yet we still have folks that support the failed economic policies of this administration.

Where was this bitching during the food price crisis of Bush's admin?

Bush didn't do that - he was busy steering gulf hurricanes into large urban areas. Duh.....

[CitadelGrad]

Obama's failures in policies regarding QE2 and wasting massive amounts of acreage and crops for inefficient and expensive 'alternative' energy is just 2 reasons of many that has made the price of food skyrocket. Sorry...

Can you remind me when the push for using corn based alternative fuels started? And QE is a Fed policy, IIRC.

Yes, QE2 is a Fed policy, but neither the Fed nor Treasury does anything without collusion with the other. When I worked at the Fed for a mercifully short time in 99-2000, I was in the Treasury Relations department. Our job was to coordinate and implement policy with the Treasury Dept. They are sort of like conjoined twins or a two-headed monster.

[Grizalltheway]

Can you remind me when the push for using corn based alternative fuels started? And QE is a Fed policy, IIRC.

No, QE2 is definitely an Obama fiscal policy, and he is quite proud of it.

Obama Fires Back After China Slates Fed's QE2

"President Barack Obama defended the Federal Reserve's policy of printing dollars on Monday during a trip to India, after Chinese officials stepped up criticism ahead of this week's Group of 20 meeting.

The G20 summit has been pitched as a chance for leaders of the countries that account for 85 percent of world output to prevent "currency wars" from spreading to become a rush to protectionism that could imperil the global recovery.

It has been overshadowed by disagreements over the U.S. Federal Reserve's quantitative easing (QE) policy under which it will print money to buy $600 billion of government bonds, a move that could depress the dollar and cause a potentially destabilizing flow of money into emerging economies.

"I will say that the Fed's mandate, my mandate, is to grow our economy. And that's not just good for the United States, that's good for the world as a whole," Obama said"

It doesn't matter when the push for ethanol was started. it was a bad idea then, and an even worse idea now. Under Obama ethanol production has increased by about 50%. That is what matters.

1. I realize you're a Nobel-worthy economist, but, not everyone thinks QE is the worst thing ever:

According to the IMF, the quantitative easing policies undertaken by the central banks of the major developed countries since the beginning of the late-2000s financial crisis, have contributed to the reduction in systemic risks following the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers. It has also contributed to the recent improvements in market confidence, and the bottoming out of the recession in the G-7 economies.[39]

Economist Martin Feldstein argues that QE2 led to a rise in the stock-market in the second half of 2010, which in turn contributed to increasing consumption and the strong performance of the US economy in late-2010

2. I think there are better options than corn-based ethanol, like sugar cane-based. But, the farm lobby (largely conks) insisits on keeping sky-high tariffs on the stuff imported from Brazil.

[native]

Overheard two gals in the office talking about the big rise in food prices they noticed since they last shopped.

yet we still have folks that support the failed economic policies of this administration.

Where was this bitching during the food price crisis of Bush's admin?

There was no food prices crisis during the Bush years. Prices spiked during Katrina. That's it.

[Grizalltheway]

Where was this bitching during the food price crisis of Bush's admin?

There was no food prices crisis during the Bush years. Prices spiked during Katrina. That's it.

Nate, I realize wikipedia isn't perfect, but if you're right, somebody went through a LOT of trouble to make all of this up.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007%E2%80 ... ted_States" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[AZGrizFan]

Things are going swimmingly. Nothing to see here...move along people....

This graph shows jobless claims trend over the past year....



This one shows the devaluation of the dollar in the last 120 days:



This one shows the weekly running average of the cost of a barrel of light sweet crude:



This one shows the spending future of our bankrupt country:

[Ivytalk]

Things are going swimmingly. Nothing to see here...move along people....

This graph shows jobless claims trend over the past year....



This one shows the devaluation of the dollar in the last 120 days:



This one shows the weekly running average of the cost of a barrel of light sweet crude:



This one shows the spending future of our bankrupt country:

Now THAT'S buzzkill!

[Skjellyfetti]

Oil down 8.6% today

[AZGrizFan]

Oil down 8.6% today

Big fucking deal. It's one DAY, analjelly. ONE DAY.

[Skjellyfetti]

And the article at the beginning of the thread is about one week. ONE WEEK.

We'll know a lot better about the job numbers when the April report comes out tomorrow.


wait. sorry bout that. i'll try to play along.

THE US ECONOMY IS HEADED FOR COLLAPSE. I FORSEE A HEAD AND SHOULDERS PATTERN DEVELOPING. THE DOW WILL LOSE 4,000 POINTS OVER THE NEXT TWO WEEKS. GET OUT NOW. WESTERN CIVILIZATION AS WE KNOW IT IS CRUMBLING. BUY LAND. PLANT FOOD. SHOOT NEIGHBORS.