The Economy: basic research

A few weeks ago I was intending to write a post on how the economy was improving, at least from my myopic viewpoint here in the land of Wilkes. Mora struck hard for the first time this summer and I did something else. Wish I'd written it because I would have looked prescient. Which I sometimes am on the principle that even a stopped clock is right twice every 24 hours.

Things are indeed looking up this quarter. The economy doesn't seem to be in free fall anymore, and lord knows the $billions$ for clunkers program seems to have won the hearts and minds of every car dealer in the country (will they now vote Democratic?).

So why did I see this coming? Well, it could have been the $18 million that the Stimulus Program just added to the county schools budget virtually of of which will be spent locally, much of it in salaries. Or it could have been that my TIAA/CREF and 403(b) accounts both show a big increase in the latest quarterly report instead of the BIG decrease I've been seeing the last few quarters.

No - it was research, pure research of the most difficult and exacting kind. And thoughtful analysis of said rexearch.

I went on a field trip to Dudley's Pub and Grill and had a few beers with the owner. He told me that Dudley's had faced the bad economic news BEFORE the rest of the country was aware of it. By the time the bottom fell out of both the economy and the Republican presidential campaign his monthly receipts were cut in half. It stayed that way until a few months ago. Now his business is about back to normal.

One thing you can say for the good folks of Wilkes is that they are economically modest. Their finely tuned economic sensors are out there sniffing the wind for the slightest change. Apparently one of the first things to go is the weekly trip to the bar.

I'll go do some more research and alert you the next time this starts to happen. It's my civic duty you know.

and this was before the president convinced cable news that men setting around a small table sharing a beer was the single most important news event of the week. I was there first.