With a bewildering magnitude of enthusiasm, an EducatorsForObama forum member writes:
[quote][Princeton "Economist," Paul] Krugman says Obama is correct on [the] Economy. [a] Government must SPEND now to save the Economy. The Deficit is not important right now. This must be the knockout blow to the McCain campaign!
This may be the most important article of this election. Paul Krugman just won the Nobel Prize in Economics a couple days ago and he was the sole winner — very unusual. First US Economist to win in a long time. It sounds a little counter-intuitive, I know. But Obama is right, despite the rantings of McCain, Joe Scarborough, Pat Buchanan and the rest of the GOP. [b] To stimulate the economy and create jobs the Federal Government needs to spend money funding new public works projects like much needed bridges, roads, hospitals, schools, etc. This will create tons of jobs and it is helps the country in the long run because we are investing in our infrastructure. The dumb thing to do is to encourage people to go out and buy more junk.
[c] Remember McCain said he wants a spending freeze. This will DOOM the Economy and McCain just doesn’t understand! We can’t elect him. He will drive us further into the ditch! Please go NYT and email it to others so it gets more attention and make comments and send this to every media outlet and demand they discuss it. [sic][/quote]
Discuss it we will.
The evident basis for this panicked appeal is Paul Krugman’s trivial October 16, 2008 New York Times article, "Let’s Get Fiscal," which she sends in its entirety. Only critical faults/issues (still involving most of the article) are enumerated below. As you will see, her reiterated assertions actually represent Krugman well:
[quote][b]Let’s Get Fiscal by Paul Krugman — October 16, 2008[/b]
The Dow is surging! No, it’s plunging! No, it’s surging! No, it’s …
Nevermind [sic]. While the manic-depressive stock market is dominating the headlines, the more important story is the grim news coming in about the real economy. It’s now clear that rescuing the banks is just the beginning: the nonfinancial economy is also in desperate need of help.
And to provide that help, we’re going to have to put some prejudices aside. [1] It’s politically fashionable to rant against government spending and demand fiscal responsibility. [2] But right now, increased government spending is just what the doctor ordered, and concerns about the budget deficit should be put on hold.
Before I get there, let’s talk about the economic situation.
[3] Just this week, we learned that retail sales have fallen off a cliff, and so has industrial production. Unemployment claims are at steep-recession levels, and the Philadelphia Fed’s manufacturing index is falling at the fastest pace in almost 20 years. All signs point to an economic slump that will be nasty, brutish — and long.
How nasty? The unemployment rate is already above 6 percent (and broader measures of underemployment are in double digits). It’s now virtually certain that the unemployment rate will go above 7 percent, and quite possibly above 8 percent, making this the worst recession in a quarter-century.
[4] And how long? It could be very long indeed.
[5] [excluded trivia…]
[6] In other words, there’s not much Ben Bernanke can do for the economy. [7] He can and should cut interest rates even more — but nobody expects this to do more than provide a slight economic boost.
[quote][Princeton "Economist," Paul] Krugman says Obama is correct on [the] Economy. [a] Government must SPEND now to save the Economy. The Deficit is not important right now. This must be the knockout blow to the McCain campaign!
This may be the most important article of this election. Paul Krugman just won the Nobel Prize in Economics a couple days ago and he was the sole winner — very unusual. First US Economist to win in a long time. It sounds a little counter-intuitive, I know. But Obama is right, despite the rantings of McCain, Joe Scarborough, Pat Buchanan and the rest of the GOP. [b] To stimulate the economy and create jobs the Federal Government needs to spend money funding new public works projects like much needed bridges, roads, hospitals, schools, etc. This will create tons of jobs and it is helps the country in the long run because we are investing in our infrastructure. The dumb thing to do is to encourage people to go out and buy more junk.
[c] Remember McCain said he wants a spending freeze. This will DOOM the Economy and McCain just doesn’t understand! We can’t elect him. He will drive us further into the ditch! Please go NYT and email it to others so it gets more attention and make comments and send this to every media outlet and demand they discuss it. [sic][/quote]
Discuss it we will.
The evident basis for this panicked appeal is Paul Krugman’s trivial October 16, 2008 New York Times article, "Let’s Get Fiscal," which she sends in its entirety. Only critical faults/issues (still involving most of the article) are enumerated below. As you will see, her reiterated assertions actually represent Krugman well:
[quote][b]Let’s Get Fiscal by Paul Krugman — October 16, 2008[/b]
The Dow is surging! No, it’s plunging! No, it’s surging! No, it’s …
Nevermind [sic]. While the manic-depressive stock market is dominating the headlines, the more important story is the grim news coming in about the real economy. It’s now clear that rescuing the banks is just the beginning: the nonfinancial economy is also in desperate need of help.
And to provide that help, we’re going to have to put some prejudices aside. [1] It’s politically fashionable to rant against government spending and demand fiscal responsibility. [2] But right now, increased government spending is just what the doctor ordered, and concerns about the budget deficit should be put on hold.
Before I get there, let’s talk about the economic situation.
[3] Just this week, we learned that retail sales have fallen off a cliff, and so has industrial production. Unemployment claims are at steep-recession levels, and the Philadelphia Fed’s manufacturing index is falling at the fastest pace in almost 20 years. All signs point to an economic slump that will be nasty, brutish — and long.
How nasty? The unemployment rate is already above 6 percent (and broader measures of underemployment are in double digits). It’s now virtually certain that the unemployment rate will go above 7 percent, and quite possibly above 8 percent, making this the worst recession in a quarter-century.
[4] And how long? It could be very long indeed.
[5] [excluded trivia…]
[6] In other words, there’s not much Ben Bernanke can do for the economy. [7] He can and should cut interest rates even more — but nobody expects this to do more than provide a slight economic boost.
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