Post from at CHUM.LY

What is up, and up dramatically, since the recession began 33 months ago are government transfers to households (in the form of unemployment benefits, food stamps, welfare, social security) — they have ballooned 31% since the end of 2007. A record 30 cents of every dollar in personal income is now derived from some form of government support — now tell me that is not a depression-era statistic. The modern day soup line is a cheque in the mail. Maybe now we can get a better appreciation of why it is that the NBER has yet to sound the all-clear siren that the recession actually ever officially ended despite four quarters of positive GDP growth — perhaps not only because this may have merely been an unsustainable policy-induced spasm, but also because, in per capita terms, real final sales continued to contract through this alleged statistical recovery. - David Rosenberg, Chief Economist & Strategist, Gluskin Sheff & Associates [Toronto]


Thirty cents of every dollar! How will we get out of this debt and spending trap? http://chum.ly/n/2fb1fc