I awoke a little later this Sunday than I usually do, having a restless night and not falling asleep until close to 2am. By 7am though I was up and preparing my usual Sunday breakfast of two eggs, hash browns, one strip of bacon, two breakfast patties, an English muffin, a cup of coffee and a glass of juice. The patties however were a veggie product, though I did let the bacon grease drift over to them in the pan they shared.
After the morning’s feast was laid out on the table for consumption I opened my local Sunday newspaper and previewed the headlines before heading to the editorial page. The editorial column caught my eye but before I could get engrossed with what it had to say I began to hear dreadful noises that sounded much like watermelons splattering against brick walls. The sounds were faint but they seemed multitudinous and spread out all around me.
I went to the windows to see what I could but there was no visible signs that would clue me in to what was transpiring, so I went back to my breakfast and newspaper to finish what I had started. Then it dawned on me as the impact of what the editorial comments were conveying about the local Denton economy as to what that god-awful noise was. It surely was the heads of right-wing extremists exploding when they discovered that their fantasy world was coming unraveled. How? I’ll let the editorial comments draw that picture for you.
“Recent reports reflect a promising picture for Denton County’s economy.”
The comments go on to point out how there has been “significant gains from the first quarter of 2012 to the second quarter in sales [of real estate] as well as median and average prices.
In addition, the number of pre-owned homes on the market in Denton County has dropped 38 percent in the past 12 months.
Automotive sales are also up year over year, according to Freeman Auto Report.
[The City of] Denton’s unemployment rate dropped to 5 percent for September, down seven-tenths of a percentage point from August. In September 2011, the city’s unemployment rate was 6.3 percent.
In Denton County, the unemployment rate dropped to 5.6 percent, also down seven-tenths of a percentage point from the prior month. In September 2011, the county’s unemployment rate stood at 6.9 percent. SOURCE
Though not the economic news that would elicit such euphoria, the recent revelations of recovery are indeed something to celebrate rather than scorn
This indeed is good news for my local community but it appears that Denton is something of a microcosm of what’s going on around the nation.
For the first time in six years, the residential market is expected to add to U.S. economic growth in 2012. New home sales are up 28% from a year ago and new construction is running 35% higher.
The long-awaited recovery in the devastated real-estate market was a long time coming, but it finally looks like it’s here to stay. Barring another recession, most economists expect sales and construction to continue to rise steadily over the next few years SOURCE
Retail Sales beating forecasts support U.S. Growth. The 1.1 percent advance followed a revised 1.2 percent increase in August, the best back-to-back showing since late 2010, Commerce Department figures showed today in Washington. The median forecast of 77 economists surveyed by Bloomberg called for a 0.8 percent rise.
“This keeps the economic expansion moving forward,” said Dean Maki, New York-based chief U.S. economist at Barclays Plc. “Consumer spending is continuing to grow solidly.” SOURCE
The Franchise Business Index increased by 2.2 percent from September 2011 to September 2012, marking the industry’s best year-over-year gain since the Great Recession began in December 2007.
A drop in the unemployment rate, coupled with a slow but steady improvement in small-business credit conditions, contributed to the gains. SOURCE
Now this good news still doesn’t ignore the reality that unemployment is still at a traditional high and that wages and benefits for most American workers hasn’t realized significant growth over the last few decades but it is indicative that things are turning around from the nightmarish times of late 2008 and early 2009. As we all know the economy was tanking and government bailouts with the financial sector and the auto industry had to be implemented to prevent a death spiral that would have taken us to the depths of the Great Depression that we saw in the early 1930’s.
But based on the ominous uttering from many right-wing contributors whose letters on this editorial page asserted that we were headed for even worse conditions and that another four years of an Obama administration would take us over the edge completely makes these positive economic revelations a true cause to celebrate rather than to fret our lives away.
To be clear, those doom and gloom types assured us that unless we removed Obama from office and inserted the glossed over promises of trickle down economics that is being touted by the Romney/Ryan camp, we would, in the words of one letter writer, miss our “last chance to remain free, to save our country and ourselves.” Today’s economic positive news flies in the face of another assertion by a writer who shares the views of many who oppose Obama, saying that “A vote for Obama is a vote to continue down the road to ruin.” If this “road to ruin” continues, by the end of a second Obama presidency we may well be out of the Great Recession that we found ourselves in at the end of George Bush’s terms as president.
One can only hope that maybe these prophets of woe and misery will now see that their fears were unfounded after all. I mean, how can you refute this logic in light of this economic good news for Denton, a model that likely serves as a microcosm for most other cities in the U.S., even Paul Ryan’s hometown of Janesville, Wisconsin that has seen a drop in unemployment from 13.9% in Aug 2009 to only 8.6% in Aug this year.
Oh wait. I forget these people live in another world detached from reality. These positive numbers will likely be turned on their heads and will be declared, as were the recent job numbers and polls showing Obama ahead in the presidential race, as something being twisted by the “liberal media” and the gubermint of that Islamic socialist, Barack Hussein Obama
RELATED ARTICLE:
Obama to Romney: “Those 12 million Jobs you’re claiming will happen without you.”
Donna Cavanagh
The GOP tried really, really hard to make NO good news come out before the election as they knew that would help them win. What people forget is that GOP has stalled any type of recovery in this country so they could be re-elected. Maybe all their sneakiness will now be shown the door. I hope so and good for Denton! I hope it spreads!
lbwoodgate
“Maybe all their sneakiness will now be shown the door.”
From your lips to the voter’s ear Donna.
Snoring Dog Studio
I wonder sometimes, Larry, about the cruelty of people who scorn the positive signs. They don’t consider the effect of their statements on the psyches of millions of Americans who’ve been affected by the recession. Who can fully function in a world where the opposing party claims doom and gloom even in the face of steady progress? It takes a very cynical and mean person to denigrate the real gains Obama has made. It seems to me to be a very unpatriotic thing to do. And a despicable thing as well. I would imagine that every single person who’s been unemployed for a while would appreciate some good news – but they’re robbed of that by the constant dialogue of doom from the Republicans. How very sad.
lbwoodgate
You make an excellent point Jean and I would go even further and say that those people in positions of leadership and the media who make such claims are more than despicable or unpatriotic, they come pretty close to being evil when you realize the harm that such deviousness can have on some, as you have pointed out.
Hansi
I think a lot of people sense that things are indeed getting better. My contractor’s business is booming now, compared to a few years ago. But still, it’s not fast enough for some. What we need is consistent growth, not this boom/bust vicious cycle we’ve become addicted to.
lbwoodgate
Geez, I hope we’re not addicted to this yet Hans but I agree that we need to move beyond it and the plutocracy mentality that’s obstructing this advance.
Sherry
you would think that the outcome would now be obvious but hatred has nothing to do with logic or facts. We are clearly coming along and yet half the electorate is prepared to return to the policies that got us in this mess to begin with. And though I hate the thought, I suspect the Dems will keep Obamacare from being ended and would prevent Romney from doing a good deal of the crap he claims he wants to, but still the economy will sink because he will not do anything for the middle class, just give the top 1% even more. He was a lousy governor and will be a lousy president.
lbwoodgate
“I suspect the Dems will keep Obamacare from being ended and would prevent Romney from doing a good deal of the crap he claims he wants to”
Your right Sherry. Our world won’t collapse if Romney becomes president. In fact his foibles will start to become evident once he can no longer blame Obama and has to show the public what he has refused to do up to this point – what exactly will he do to reduce the deficit while keeping his promise to create 12 million “good paying” jobs.
Those on the right then have to start playing defense to protect their sorry votes for this guy even when it becomes obvious to them that Romney is Bush on steroids rather than the guy who has the silver bullet to our economic woes.
Don in Massachusetts
Larry, in the local newspaper where I live, I would venture to say that, 3 out of every four letters to the editor, say the same old tune, that if Obama gets re-elected, then Socialism will take over, taxes will go up, the jobs won’t be there, blah, blah, blah. I sometimes want to laugh, and/or shake my head at the stupidity of these people. On a side note, this same newspaper endorsed Romney at the beginning of September. Enough said.
lbwoodgate
I suspect 99% of it is all simply fear and ignorance Don
Don in Massachusetts
I agree with you.
Scott Erb
In the debate last night I noticed how Romney’s “approval” (on the CNN meter) went down whenever he talked gloom and doom about the economy. I think the pessimism is hurting him.