"Oh, wake up, wake up
You sleepy head, get up, get up
Get out of bed, cheer up, cheer up
The sun is red, live, love, laugh and be happy."
Harry Woods, 1927. Made popular by Al Jolson, 1947
Seven quick bits of good news about the economy.
One bit of good news about the consequences of lying.
Inflation is back down to about 2%.
The Fed notices the inflation rate, is satisfied, and signals rate cuts ahead.
Treasury bond rates are back down, making borrowing less expensive.
Mortgage rates are down. The 30-year is below 7% and the current talk is that it will fall to about 4% over the course of 2024.
Unemployment is back to historic lows, notwithstanding the Fed's having tightened interest rates.
Gasoline prices are still falling. The U.S. is a net exporter of energy.
A jury punished Giuliani for false claims against two Georgia election workers.
Don't let the short hours of daylight get you down. Some good things are happening in America. It isn't the winter solstice yet, but sunset is already a few seconds later every day.
Our lights went out last night and I couldn't figure out the circuit breaker, so it was cold, dark night for the Murphys. Couldn't get an electrician on the weekend, so I tried my son-in-law, who tends to be great on things technical. Over the phone this morning, he talked me through the breaker problem, and now we are lit up like a Christmas tree. And to top it off, Peter Sage brings us tidings of good cheer on economy this morning. Thanks, Peter!
Peter, thanks for these good reminders. I wish the MAGA base would pay attention but I doubt that they will.