hostile takeover of 8th grade u.$. history

well, not exactly hostile...i've been hurting for readership and needed a "sexy" headline...

i've had to take more than a brief haitus from posting due to my responsibilities as a teacher candidate, but once in a while i like to dip a toe back in for a minute or two. this one struck me as funny seeing as i'm spending a lot of time in junior high these days:

Last Thursday, Wall Street celebrated the narrowing of America's gargantuan $68.1 billion October trade deficit to a somewhat less horrific $64.2 billion in November. The dip was a whopping $2 billion more than consensus expectations. Ignored was the fact that November's deficit was still the third largest monthly deficit ever, and regardless of expectations, an unmitigated economic disaster. Such a "celebration" is akin to a student celebrating an "F" on his report card, as it represents an improvement on the "F-" earned the prior semester.

There was also no shortage of pundits applying the now routine spin that America's large trade deficit results from its superior economic growth. Since deficits are now regarded as a sign of economic strength, surpluses must evidence the opposite. This is akin to our student instead attempting to convince his parents that the "F" on his report card actually stands for fabulous.

via latoc. more good reading available at deconsumption, clusterf*ck nation, & ran prieur