Great Depression Stock Charts vs Our Current Period

I’m sure everyone has seen the various charts depicting the stock market during The Great Depression to that of our recent period. The comparisons that I have seen show a definite visual resemblance, and perhaps that is what is attracting such attention, as these charts have proven very popular. From my perspective, I think that any resemblance …

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New Jersey Analysis

I found this on David H. Smith’s “The Grayling” blog.  I found it to be very informative and interesting.  While it can be easy to dismiss this as one state’s woes, I think this type of analysis applied to all states would be an interesting exercise, as I’m sure the trends indicated have been happening …

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An Economic Brownfield Facet

I am posting a letter from Guy Haselmann, as I believe it is very well-written and illustrates how actions can promote an Economic Brownfield environment.   My comments will follow the letter: __ To the Editor, May 6, 2009 The Obama administration is creating the next future crisis. Their handling of the Chrysler situation is irresponsible, …

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In Ben We Trust?

I will comment frequently on Ben Bernanke, due to his position, but perhaps more importantly, because of his stated theories, beliefs, and ideologies.  It seems to me that the handling of The Financial Crisis certainly has the “fingerprints” of Ben Bernanke all over it.  In fact, I believe that perhaps no other person’s ideologies have ever played …

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“Jobless Recovery”

It seems as if more and more economic forecasters believe that the economy will progressively get better by year-end, but that employment will lag considerably.  Often the “jobless recovery” theme is either overtly mentioned or at least hinted. Can such a “jobless recovery” exist, given the current level of indebtedness at the personal, municipal, state and …

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The National Debt and Deficits

John Taylor wrote the following article “Exploding Debt Threatens America”: http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/71520770-4a2c-11de-8e7e-00144feabdc0.html?nclick_check=1 Although I don’t agree with some of his figures and reasoning, the central point is important:  This debt level is a serious problem. It also illustrates the difficulty of  ridding ourselves of this level of indebtedness.   These issues will likely get greater attention now that sovereign debt …

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misc note – ProsperityByPen.com directory

As previously stated, much of what is written on this blog will reference longer writings on my website, ProsperityByPen.com. I have created a page that lists all of the material on ProsperityByPen.com; it can be found listed on the right-hand side of this site’s home page, as well as here: https://www.economicgreenfield.com/prosperitybypencom-directory/

GM – What Could Have Been

Every so often I will mention the plight of GM as I think it has significance on many fronts. One question that came into my mind recently was “What could have been…”  In other words, if GM were to achieve results typical of (at least) a well-run, diversifying/acquisitive company since its peak (defined in an all-things considered, …

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Ireland’s Sovereign Credit Rating

I found this story to be of significance, regarding Ireland’s sovereign credit rating: http://www.cnbc.com/id/31164904 Also, as background info, this story was worth reading: http://money.cnn.com/2009/05/13/news/international/tully_ireland.fortune/index.htm In my opinion, the broader signficance is that sovereign credit ratings (and associated issues) appear to be getting more scrutiny; and this should only intensify if there is greater economic weakness. SPX …

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“Opportunity of a Lifetime”?

One phrase that I have heard mentioned a few times is that the economic and market declines of 2008-early2009 created a “Opportunity of a Lifetime” to buy stocks, businesses, and other assets. I am not sure what reasoning is used to justify the “Opportunity of a Lifetime” phrase (and no reasoning has been provided).  It would …

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