Despite Talk, Many Remain Unconvinced About Economy

Weather Report: The Economy–The Unconvinced

The Unconvinced: Gerald Celente, the noted prognosticator for business and government and CEO of Trends Research Institute, raises the question “Green Shoots or Greatest Depression?” at LewRockwell.com this week. We thought you might find his take, in light of a market rebound and visions of blue sky’s ahead on the business channels, interesting.  Here are some highlights:

• “The financial fields replete with sprouting ’green shoots” should be viewed with suspicion, if not alarm. They are not a mirage, but they are ephemeral.”
• ” … heavy doses of dollars spread so thickly over the financial and governmental territories, will force “green shoots “ to grow. But the fundamentals of the economy remain unsound. They will not be corrected by forced fertilizing barren acreage”
• ” … it is inconceivable that the “green shoots” are signs of sustained economic recovery.”
• ” … no one, could have predicted the mega-merger of Wall Street and Washington that is now fait accompli.”
• “‘The Greatest Depression’ – That we forecast would begin to set in by the end of the year – May have been postponed, but it has not been averted. When it does set in, it will do so with enhanced intensity and at a pace accelerated by complex financial finagling … .”
• “The “green shoots” will wither and conditions will deteriorate. Those who are prepared for the worst will not have been taken by surprise.”

The Unconvinced: Jim Kunstler, noted author of “The Long Emergency” and “World made By Hand”, has yet to “drink the kool-aid (sp?)” and expresses some of his views in his Monday, 5/11/09, post at jameshowardkunstler.typepad.com entitled “Decoupling from Reality”:

• “… The job of the current president and the people who work with him, is to manage an epic contraction — let’s say to land a very large, loaded defect-ridden airplane that has both run out of fuel and suffered grievous breakdown.”
• “We’re far from done with the crisis of banking and money and the related fiasco in mortgages … . It remains to be seen what may happen in the food production scene, but the current severe shortage of capital and the intense droughts shaping up around the world will resolve into a much clearer picture by mid- summer. The price of oil has resumed marching up …” and “Enough carnage has already occurred on the jobs scene …”
• “It’s not just the stock markets that have decoupled from reality …it’s the entire conscious consensus of everybody holding the levers of power and opinion. To put it as simply as possible, we’re still sleepwalking into the future.”

The above views are both contrarian and sourced from a couple of gentlemen who have proved their analytical abilities over the years. They deserve our attention and consideration in these uncertain times.

We hope to have a guest post for the middle of the week and hope you’ll look for it. Until then, keep your eyes on the horizon as the weathers changing fast.