The Bowtie Economist's Daily Dose of 70-Word Wisdom


Udder Nonsense

12/07/2011

Eager to take advantage of fat margins dairy farmers around the world ramped up production in response to high prices. But, those same record prices weakened consumer demand for milk (down 4%), cheese (1.5%) and butter (2.5%). Now, the increased…

Read More

GDP for Higher

12/06/2011

During Q3 ‘11 U.S. GDP finally exceeded the real pre-recession peak of total economic output recorded in Q4 ‘07. It took 15 quarters to offset the 5.1% decline in output during the Great Recession, 3 times the average number of…

Read More

Tunnels Going to Pot

12/05/2011

Authorities recently found 32 tons of pot after stumbling on a well built cross-border tunnel linking San Diego and Tijuana. The agents who made the discovery were surprised. I wonder why; they have found over 70 such tunnels since 10/08,…

Read More

Unemployed and Well Slept

12/02/2011

The Friday File: What do the involuntary unemployed do with their free time? Researchers find that about 40% of their “free” time is spent working in the home which includes cooking, doing laundry, shopping, home improvement projects, caring for elder…

Read More

“Doc-Fix” is Broken

12/01/2011

Unless Congress acts by 1/27/12, doctors treating Medicare patients will suffer a 27% fee cut. Last year, and every year since ’03, Congress passes a temporary “Doc Fix.” Problem is, every year, the size of the “Fix” gets bigger. The…

Read More

The Five Little PIIGS

11/30/2011

In October ’08 European banks looked pretty healthy; they held few toxic US mortgage backed securities. But, this strength was a fiction. European banks met their Waterloo in large holdings of euro-denominated sovereign debt of the PIIGS (Portugal, Ireland, Italy,…

Read More

This Old House

11/29/2011

When parties lose majority status in Congress and when a return to majority status looks tough, retirement announcements become common. When the Ds lost their majority in the House in ’94 29 announced they would not run in ’96. When…

Read More

Government Closure as a Tactic

11/28/2011

The 20 day State of MN government shutdown this July cost MN $60 million in lost revenue but saved about $65 million n salaries not paid, according the MN Management and Budget Department. Of course, the report failed to look…

Read More

Happy Thanksgiving

11/23/2011

The annual US turkey crop of 248 million birds (7.1 billion pounds, or 23 pounds/person) is worth $4.4 billion. MN produces the most birds followed by NC, AR, and MI. The US produces about 750 million pounds (2.5 pounds/person) of…

Read More

Bad Economy, Fewer Babies

11/22/2011

US birth rates fell for the 3rd straight year in ‘10 according to the CDC. Teen births saw the biggest decline, 9%, to 43.3 births/1,000 females, the lowest rate ever. And, for the 1st time in a decade cesarean section…

Read More

Recent Posts

Categories

Archives