The legacy propaganda media machines, all of them, are in full re-elect Obama overdrive.
All economic data is being strategically, and manipulatively reported to create a false narrative and prop up President Obama. It is getting so brutally obvious, it’s absurd. When you hear the term “consumer confidence“, you can guarantee that things are worsening. Why? Because the media “fall-back” position is always to focus on emotion.
Economic cognitive dissonance = Factual Economic Deniers
Without getting wonky and stuck in the weeds, let’s focus on the reality and practicality behind the wonk.
(First the WonkSpeak) New durable goods orders in August fell by the most since the recession and a separate reading on the broader U.S. economy came in much weaker than expected. But weekly jobless claims sank to a two-month low, in a hopeful sign for the labor market.
New orders for long-lasting U.S. manufactured goods in August fell by the most in 3 1/2 years, pointing to a sharp slowdown in factory activity even as a gauge of planned business spending rebounded.
The Commerce Department said on Thursday durable goods orders dived 13.2 percent, the largest drop since January 2009, when the economy was in the throes of a recession. Orders for July were revised down to show a 3.3 percent increase instead of the previously reported 4.1 percent gain.
Economists polled by Reuters had expected orders for durable goods — items from toasters to aircraft that are meant to last at least three years — to fall 5 percent. [the result was triple negative – meaning almost 3 times worse than expected… SD] (article)
BEYOND THE WONK – In addition the 2nd Quarter 2012 GDP RESULT was revised downward from 1.7% to 1.3% – Now that might sound like a small modification of .4% until you understand exactly what a GDP number is based on.
The GDP is the Gross Domestic Product – The quarterly GDP is the combined market value of all officially recognized final goods and services produced within the United States in a given period. The annualized US GDP is approximately $14 Trillion.
A -.4% quarterly revision equates to an approximate decrease of $140 billion from an initially reported result. Meaning *$140 billion less products and services were delivered than initially reported for April, May and June. That is a significant reduction.
*Remember this number is the Final Value of the goods and services, inflation is factored into the valuation of the product. If inflation (rising valuation in cost of goods)is 4% and your GDP (final value of those goods) is 2%, then the actual growth (production) is -2%. Meaning we are actually producing less. The drop in production is hidden within the GDP by the increased costs of those items produced.
This is why the media and the administration keep talking about consumer confidence. Unlike other economic key performance indicators, the “perception”, or emotional feeling of the consumer, can be manipulated to believe things are actually better than they are.
Your desire to purchase a new car (durable good) is irrelevent to your capacity to purchase a new car (durable good). The “desire” is what ‘consumer confidence’ measures. The actual automotive sales reality (durable good orders) reflects the truth that people are unable to purchase cars.
It’s all smoke, mirrors and curtains.
