Poll aggregators & such; housing-cost inflation numbers out of date; the plague-driven permanent wheel towards goods; reproducing ChatGPT2; Eichengreen on the likely Fed easing pace; "New York...
The NY Times has posted a "SALE" ad in my email almost everyday for the last 2 years, at least. Even when they "ended teh sale" it restarted. The price? ~ $10/yr for teh online version, well below what I pay for another newspaper online. The Gray Lady has not distinguished itself well since Iraq.
IIRC, there were stories after the plague about people wanting "experiences" like travel and other services instead of buying stuff. Were these just planted stories to try to boost services?
Concerning post-Plague spending trends, I see what the chart says, but why the enormous pickup in durable as opposed to non-durable goods spending? People are home more, so they feel like they really need a better washer, or TV, or refrigerator/freezer? Or does it have something to do with fears of scarcity and/or future accelerating inflation? Better buy it now, because you may not be able to afford it later.
Concerning Loomis on steel mill jobs vs fast-food jobs, is it not possible that unions help create job satisfaction and team spirit, thus at least in part explaining why steel workers feel better about their jobs?
Also, there are other things going on here: how workers feel about their jobs and how the rest of us feel about other people’s jobs. Going back at least to WWI, there is a long tradition of valorizing workers in heavy industry because they are Forging The Tools Of Victory. Some of that is still left, I think. The only cultural tradition respecting fast-food workers is to mock and belittle them. Knowing how society values your job, or not, could feed back into how you feel about your job yourself.
The NY Times has posted a "SALE" ad in my email almost everyday for the last 2 years, at least. Even when they "ended teh sale" it restarted. The price? ~ $10/yr for teh online version, well below what I pay for another newspaper online. The Gray Lady has not distinguished itself well since Iraq.
Re: Spending trends.
IIRC, there were stories after the plague about people wanting "experiences" like travel and other services instead of buying stuff. Were these just planted stories to try to boost services?
Concerning post-Plague spending trends, I see what the chart says, but why the enormous pickup in durable as opposed to non-durable goods spending? People are home more, so they feel like they really need a better washer, or TV, or refrigerator/freezer? Or does it have something to do with fears of scarcity and/or future accelerating inflation? Better buy it now, because you may not be able to afford it later.
Concerning Loomis on steel mill jobs vs fast-food jobs, is it not possible that unions help create job satisfaction and team spirit, thus at least in part explaining why steel workers feel better about their jobs?
Also, there are other things going on here: how workers feel about their jobs and how the rest of us feel about other people’s jobs. Going back at least to WWI, there is a long tradition of valorizing workers in heavy industry because they are Forging The Tools Of Victory. Some of that is still left, I think. The only cultural tradition respecting fast-food workers is to mock and belittle them. Knowing how society values your job, or not, could feed back into how you feel about your job yourself.
TFG hated EVs,...until Musk give generously to finance his campaign. Very transactional. Do you think it is any different with crypto?
Also worrying is his suggestion he "adds his input" to the FOMC on interest rates. Wannabee dictators want to try to control everything.