Recovery or Snow Job?

Recent news reports have heralded a recent jump in the U.S. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) as signs that the economy is turning around. The question, however is, "Which economy?" While the GDP grew 7.2% last quarter, 146,000 jobs were lost. That's good news for corporate CEOs, but bad news for most of the rest of us. And economists warn that even the boost to the CEO economy is a temporary "sugar high" that won't last once markets respond to tolerate the fiscal recklessness and heavy debt the White House has embraced. As Jonathan Tahini observes, "GDP was never meant to be such a central factor in describing economic growth" and its current use for that purpose produces a grossly distorted picture.

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