Another record broken
Gasoline prices hit an all-time high yesterday. And they're still climbing.
The Bush administration continues to rewrite the record books for dismal economic statistics. They're like Herbert Hoover on andro.
For those keeping score at home:
1. Highest all-time gasoline prices.
2. Highest all-time federal deficit (in dollars).
3. Highest all-time national debt.
4. Highest all-time trade deficit.
5. Highest all-time level of consumer debt.
6. Highest all-time number of personal bankruptcies.
7. Highest all-time number of defaults on mortgages.
8. Highest all-time number of jobs lost during a single term.
I'm sure I'm forgetting some. Please let me know if you can think of any I'm missing.
(Note: Highest all-time number of civilians killed on American soil is, of course, another record the Bush administration holds. But it's not an economic record.)
This isn't quite fair. Adjusted for inflation, US gas prices today are a bit more than half what they were in 1981, and have been flat for years save for up-and-down jitters due to things like wars.
See Inflationdata.com for a typical chart.
Posted by: ctate | Mar 24, 2004 at 07:03 PM
Most varied high-profile corporate accounting scandals in a three-year period.
WorldCom
Xerox
Enron
Health South
Adelphia
Tyco
Just Google It!
Posted by: Scorpio | Mar 24, 2004 at 08:51 PM
Karl from Paradox & Phillyfuture pointed me in your direction. I liked your "guerilla" post, Good stuff!
How about this one:
Set the record for the least amount of press conferences than any president since the advent of television
Wonder why?
More available in the Bush Resume at Buzzflash. If you haven't seen it I encourage you to take a look:
http://www.buzzflash.com/contributors/03/04/23_resume.html
Posted by: Brad | Mar 25, 2004 at 07:39 AM
Actually yes, 9/11 is an 'economic issue' - since besides being the largest single day liquidation of traders from a trading floor in the WTC - it was also the largest single day opening of a really great new market in office space in NYC. You really do need to learn to be more 'up beat' about the positive marketting model. I mean when the WTC was attacked in February of 1993, that did not offer any of the economic stimulus that the more Religious and Holiest of Holy days, second only to 'super bowl sunday' of course. So look on the bright side!
Posted by: drieux just drieux | Mar 25, 2004 at 10:59 AM
It isn't the government's job to guarantee the availability of cheap gasoline.
Such intervention is one reason (the other is subsidies to transportation) the corporate economy consumes so much energy. The government guarantees cheap fuel prices through such actions as the depletion allowance, its foreign policy in the Middle East, and preferential treatment of oil companies operating on government land. When the government keeps a factor of production artificially cheap, the economy shifts toward production models that use that factor inefficiently. Business uses a lot more energy than it otherwise would.
The government needs to stop guaranteeing big business its cheap energy fix. When that happens, there will be market incentives for energy efficiency, decentralization, and human scale production. Until that happens, the government will be fighting eternal wars over oil.
Posted by: Kevin Carson | Mar 25, 2004 at 12:50 PM
KC--
True. And taking Drieux's advice to look on the bright side, at least now we can say the Bush administratin is encouraging conservation ...
Posted by: Fred | Mar 25, 2004 at 02:08 PM
Your statistics, even if accurate, are absolutely meaningless unless one accounts for 1) inflation, and 2) population growth.
Posted by: Stuart Buck | Mar 26, 2004 at 10:50 AM