I was accused of being a crazy pessimist years ago too when I wrote about the Savannah housing market, but I called the bust pretty well — although I should have been more aggressive much sooner in my City Talk columns. But that pessimism wasn’t bias — it was just a realistic assessment based on objective data.
Category: Economics
Housing starts in December at highest level since 2008
A few thoughts on the debt ceiling — and why it will have to be raised
Four takeaways from Washington Post’s fresh coverage of the Panama Canal expansion
Key takeaways:
1. Despite various economic projections, no one can be certain what the trade impacts of the Panama Canal expansion will be.
2. The massive expenditures of tax dollars in the U.S. are happening without any clear national plan to maximize spending. States with major ports see themselves in competition with other states, not as working cooperatively for the betterment of the country.
Higher matching fees kicking in for counties that rejected TSPLOST
The higher match forces local governments to be more deliberative and accountable. It enforces a basic conservative principle of local responsibility in the generally more conservative regions that rejected TSPLOST. And it continues a discounted rate in areas where citizens have shouldered higher sales tax rates.
BusinessInSavannah.com: Seven officials of failed bank indicted in fraud case
Stabilizing the U.S. debt means $1.2 trillion in spending cuts or revenue increases over next decade
Over the long term, we’ll need to raise even more revenue and/or cut spending further, but the $1.2 trillion seems a good target for sustainability over the next decade and beyond.
That’s a lot of money, but consider the fact that the 400 wealthiest Americans have a net worth of $1.7 trillion.
What do our federal taxes get spent on?
Of the major expenditures in the budget, defense seems the most logical to cut. After all, in 2011, we spent more on the military than the next 13 nations combined.
SMN: The local economy in 2013
The key paragraph: “The economy is expected to continue its moderate — but still subpar — pace of growth, as consumers, businesses and governments adjust to the new normal of fiscal constraint.”
More on the rebound in construction jobs
Private sector vs. public sector job growth
U.S. economy added 155,000 jobs in December, unemployment rate unchanged at 7.8%
About that “deal” on the “fiscal cliff” and a 4th place finish for 2012 in Calculated Risk’s economic predictions contest
The House Republicans who were so angered by the lack of spending cuts in the deal tonight were the same ones who killed the much bigger deal that Boehner and Obama were negotiating in recent weeks. Obama’s offer that was on the table had $1.2 trillion in revenue increases and $925 billion in spending cuts over 10 years.
From Calculated Risk: “Fiscal Cliff” Deal
The big question here is with the sequester — the mandated spending cuts across the board that are expected to have a particularly harsh impact on defense spending.