Mish offers a graph that tells us everything we need to know about our economy

and it's a doozy...


(click on graph for a larger, more readable version)

without further ado, here's mish...

With that stunning graphic out of the way, please consider some interesting factoids from Why a Recovery May Still Feel Like a Recession.

• Durable goods shipments fell by more than 20 percent during this recession, and would have declined further were it not for increased production of weapons.
• In no previous downturn since 1958, when the figures began being recorded, had the decline been as much as 14 percent.
• The drop is all the more remarkable because such shipments rose at a relatively restrained rate in the preceding period of economic growth, particularly when military sales were excluded.
• In June, seasonally adjusted shipments for civilian purposes were 19 percent below the average monthly figure for 2000. Shipments of military items were running 123 percent above the 2000 average.
• Those figures are in nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation. That fact may exaggerate the trend, since prices of some durable goods, like computers, have fallen over the years.

Given the amount of durable goods that go into homes (washers, dryers, microwaves, stoves, refrigerators, etc), and given the enormous boom in housing from 2003-2007 that chart is a stunning description of the state of our economy.

and just in case you might have forgotten what REALLY drives the u.s. economy...

REPORT TO CONGRESS
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE SALES OF SIGNIFICANT MILITARY
EQUIPMENT TO FOREIGN ENTITIES
FISCAL YEAR 2008

[...]

Fifty-seven countries procured significant military equipment (SME) that exceeded $2,000,000 through the FMS system in FY 2008. The total value of these purchases was $10,178,102,944. These purchases were made through the Air Force, Army, and Navy and Marine Corps.

the average annual sales of u.s. military equipment to foreign countries averages between $10B and $15B, although you can see from the chart below that it spiked at around $25B in 2006...



now, tell me what a peace-loving country the u.s. is and ponder who's getting richer and richer no matter what happens to the rest of us...

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