Misery Index: It’s NOTHING Like the 1930s or 1970s

Jul 24, 2008

—

Carpe Diem (Mark Perry): Misery Index: It's NOTHING Like the 1930s or 1970s

We hear a lot of comparisons of today's economic conditions to the inflationary 1970s (see shaded area above) and even the Great Depression and the 1930s (see shaded area). The chart above shows the annual Misery Index from 1930 to 2008, calculated as the sum of a) the CPI inflation rate and b) the unemployment rate. Notice that today's single-digit Misery Index of 9.7% isn't anywhere near to the double-digit levels througout both the 1930s and the 1970s, with peaks around 20% in both decades. The Misery Index is also lower today than during most of the 1980s.

Misery Index

Comments

5 responses to “Misery Index: It’s NOTHING Like the 1930s or 1970s”

David Brush

July 24, 2008

Since there are so many traditional indicators of recession/depression that just don’t paint the picture of our economy being in recession. What would you call what we ARE in? Do we even have a label for it?

Loading…

Reply
Michael W. Kruse

July 24, 2008

I don’t know of a specific term other than an economic slow down. This also doesn’t mean a recession won’t happen.
I see the negative economic impact concentrated in only certain sectors of the economy and more or less isolated to certain regions. Some areas of the country are in a boom others are probably in a recession mode.
What we are going through is worse than anything in recent memory but I graduated from college in Dec 1908 with unemployment near double digits and inflation above 15%. My personal experience tells me we are not in anything like that (yet).
What do you think?

Loading…

Reply
VanSkaamper

July 24, 2008

I don’t know about anyone else up here, but I say you’re an inspiration to us all.
How was Teddy Roosevelt treated by the media at that time?

Loading…

Reply
Sister florence Vales

July 28, 2008

We are a cloistered contemplative community of 14 nuns and we have a vow of poverty but we are having a meeting on consumerism on August 4th. We live simply already but I have to bring to the table about what we can do on a practical level. I did read the Series by Michael Kruse on “Living Simply in Abundance. Have an other pracical ideas? Fast?
Thank you and thank you for that fine series.
Sister florence Vales OSC

Loading…

Reply
Michael W. Kruse

July 29, 2008

Sister Florence, there is a wonderful little book by Robert Mulholland called “Invitation to a Journey” in which he looks at spiritual formation through the lens of temperament (using the Myers-Briggs inventory.) His point is that because of our various temperaments we will be drawn to some spiritual disciplines and shy away from others. It is important to nurture the “shadow side” of our temperament. An introvert my be drawn to personal Bible study and meditation but neglect corporate worship and service alongside others. Just the reverse for the extrovert. By failing to formed in all capacities we create problems for ourselves.
All that is to say that I don’t know that there is a one-size-fits-all answer to the question. I come back to the issue that simplicity is singleness of focus on God. Our spiritual formation in the work-a-day world needs to be about keeping that focus but what each of us needs to improve at will vary by our temperament and circumstances.
I also know that many entrepreneurs and business leaders are vision driven people. The church does a poor job of helping business people see how their daily live contribute to the larger things of God. Here I’m not just talking about the instrumental value of putting food on the table or seeing the workplace as venue for evangelism. Our creative abilities are reflections of the image of God and When we exercise those gifts we exhibiting the image of God to the world. When we do so in a God focused way, we give witness to the coming Kingdom.
I’m persuaded that redemption of humanity and creation will mean a new world in which humans fill the earth as God’s “eikons” and exercise co-creative dominion over the new creation. When we exercise dominion well now we are giving witness to the coming reign.
I haven’t given you much that is specific but I think it is about whatever keeps a persons singleness of focus and have a clear vision of the end of the story.

Loading…

Reply