Tag: economic recovery

Federal Reserve, Economists, and The Wall Street Journal Blame Frigid Weather for Nonexistent Recovery


ColdcatYesterday was the deadline for reporting first quarter fiscal results: I filed financial statements and supplements with lenders and such; various US government agencies released their data to the public.  Everyone was on time.  The difference is that I take my job seriously and can substantiate every single digit I report, while the national economists have nothing better to do than look at the numbers in front of them in total bewilderment and spit out funny bullshit.

The Wall Street Journal's online edition titled its summary of quarterly results U.S. Economy Starts Year With a Whimper - a great title for a parody sketch, but no, it's a "serious" article with a grave first sentence:

"U.S. growth nearly stalled in the first three months of the year, fresh evidence that the economic expansion that began almost five years ago remains the weakest in modern history."

 I don't read WSJ anymore but the article was forwarded to me, and it makes me wonder whether the person who sent it did so specifically to elicit my indignant bitterness!  Well, she failed: I cannot get angry about this fucking shit anymore.  I react with questions: What growth?!  What expansion?!! Started when?!!!

I've said it before and I will probably need to say it many times again:  THERE IS NO RECOVERY!!!  This weak whatever we are witnessing is THE NEW REALITY!!!  How I wish for these people to wake up and throw their outdated economic concepts, models, and notions out of their high-floor windows!  And, to tell you the truth, I don't really trust the numbers anymore either.  My naked eye tells me they are falsified: They say GDP (I CANNOT BELIEVE THEY ARE STILL USING THAT METRIC!) grew 0.1% in the first quarter?  I say it probably contracted by 5% or more.

But that's not the funniest part.  According to economists quoted in the article, "harsh weather likely slowed first-quarter business investment."  Really?  Not the lack of the world-wide market demand for US products, but the weather?  Let me tell you, the coldest city in the world is Yakutsk, Russia.  Only Antarctica registers colder temperatures.  You know what it's famous for? Diamond mining – it's responsible for  1/5 of the world's production, freezing weather or not. 

Furthermore, cold weather "could have even blocked exports—which notched their sharpest decline since the recovery began—from reaching ports." Hmm, let me see.  First-hand info: My import/export client had  62 shipments coming to and going from US ports (Bayonne, Savannah, Houston) in the first quarter.  None (!) of them experienced any delays.  

And are you confused?  By definition, exports leave our cold American ports, not reach them.  Obviously these business commentators  don't know (who hired them?) that boats with exports go the other way – to foreign lands.  FYI, according to Global Analysis of National Climatic Data Center, the combined average temperature over global land and ocean surfaces in January was the WARMEST since 2007 and February tied with 2001 for the 21st highest record ever.  So, nothing could've blocked our export shipments from reaching their overseas destinations.           

But, of course, the thing that stupefies these people the most is the consumer spending.  Bitches cannot force themselves to believe that people have no money to buy shit.  So, they again blame the weather for the smallest gain in consumer spending on goods since 2011.  Yet, the poor frozen bastards had no choice but to spend more on services, including energy to heat homes and health care. Aha, the moment of truth:

"If not for the increased spending on health care and utilities, the economy would have contracted in the first quarter."

Dudes!  Make up your melons! Was the "frigid weather" bad or good for your numbers?  Or did it actually have very little impact on our new-world economy?    

Job Search: Ageism


Age discrimination is an undeniable fact of our lives.  Young people are never taken seriously as customers, clients, health patients, philosophers, business developers, etc.  On the other hand, media, entertainment, advertising and marketing adore youth.  And one thing is sure: their "young" status is going to change.   Discrimination of older people even more pervasive and they don't even have a benefit of hoping for improvements. 

The problem is particularly acute in human resources.  The age discrimination is at its worst when you are searching for a job, or expecting layoffs, or know you may be deemed too expensive.  

 According to a research quoted in The Gale Group's  Small Business Encyclopedia, over 52% of surveyed executives admitted that age is one of the key factors in job searches for people 47 years old and up.  What do I think about that number?  The other 48% lied.  Age is ALWAYS a factor. For one or another reason, when we hire people we take their age into consideration.  So, we should accept that, when the tables are turned, we will be treated the same way.

I have to own up to the fact that while wearing the CFO's hiring hat, I automatically estimate the age of applicants.   I don't care about their age per se.  I do it to quantify their accomplishments against the length of their careers.  It helps with assessing their work ethics and personal ambitions.  

Other hiring managers and recruiters don't even have a justification like that.  They just go, "Too old," and send the resume into Trash.  With the job security becoming a myth of long-forgotten times, more and more middle aged people will be forced to enter the circles of job search hell.  This possibility practically hangs over everyone's head in the world of vulnerable small-size businesses.

Having that in mind, I would like to share with you an extremely useful The Ladders' article on adapting your job search, your professional "brand" and your resume to your age: Job Search in Your 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s and 60s.

By the way, is it just me, or have you also noticed the funniest thing (I am not laughing) that's happening in our media?  The "official"economists, major newspaper analysts and politicians are trying to convince us that the recession has ended months ago and we are "recovering".  Yet, every article or post related to job search and HR issues contains a phrase "especially in this economy" and you can almost hear the author's sad sigh.  

I think the old terminology of recession, recovery, economic conditions have lost their meaning.  People just don't want to admit it to themselves, because, as I frequently say, they are afraid of changes, especially changes for the worse.    The phrase "this economy" gives a false hope of a better future.  The truth is – we live in a NEW REALITY.  This is the "recovered" state.  Things are only going to get more difficult.  Everyone should be prepared to face job search ordeals in their 50s, 60s, and beyond.