USA Today, Major Media Creating False Positive Impression of Economy

USA Today should ask the "50 top economists" the following questions about their "optimism' on the economy reported in USA Today ( "Optimism shows in survey on economy" April 23, 2012 front page).

How is it that they see optimism when:

* The national debt is fast approaching $16 trillion soon headed to well over $20 trillion, with $5 trillion in debt the last 3 years alone.

* We have been operating without a federal budget for the last 3 years. The presidential budgets submitted have called for continued massive spending. The American people are being played by the federal budget process since a ridiculous faux budget is put forth; it doesn't get approved; it is pushed to a crisis point; then a "continuing resolution" is passed in order to save the country...and the spending continues as desired.

* Real unemployment, not manipulated or adjusted, is 15% (CBO). If you add in those who have given up looking for work or have accepted part time jobs for survival the unemployment rate is over 20%.

* 53% of college graduates are either unemployed or underemployed.

* Following the same route as the federal government colleges have been engaged in massive spending only to pass on their expenditures to students through higher tuition and fees.

* Student loan debt has now surpassed $1 trillion! This is still another economic bubble crisis ready to burst. * Approximately 50 million people are on food stamps and that number is increasing.

* Gasoline prices have doubled over the last 3 years. Home and business energy costs have increased significantly. Although we have readily available energy sources in our country there is no plan to pursue them, on the contrary all attempts are blocked by the federal government themselves.

* Real inflation defined as what it costs the average person and household to live is running about 15%. This includes gasoline (above), home energy costs, food, tax increases, fees and hidden taxes, clothing, and all other necessities to live.

* Claims of a healthy stock market are from false signals. The underpinnings of both the economy and business are weak. The trading volumes are down significantly, 14% for the New York Stock Exchange, 27.5 % for Standard and Poor 500. Volume is a clear sign of the health of the stock market. Further, much of the volume is by professional traders who are driving volume, not individual investors. Many high frequency trading firms, some driven by computers seeking advantageous pricing points, are responsible for a significant portion of the volume. Those "economists" who are claiming a healthy market aren't looking at the facts behind the scenes.

* Interest rates are being artificially and significantly depressed creating still another dangerous bubble for the economy. This hurts seniors and others with conservative investments and hurts the economy since they do not spend as much, putting money back into the economy. This also hurts small banks since they are greatly squeezed on profit margins on loans. Suppressing interest rates thinking that this encourages investment and eases debt burden isn't working. Most importantly when you artificially and significantly squeeze an important factor of the economy such as interest rate it will create a bubble that will come up to bite you. Economics 101.

* In a Rasmussen Report issued January 12, 2012 66% of those polled were not confident, or not at all confident, in the U.S. banking industry.

* In 2002 USA Today reported that we have gone from 1 in 3 of employees involved in manufacturing to 1 in 10. ("U.S. manufacturing jobs fading away fast" ,USA Today Dec. 12, 2002). It is even worse today, 10 years later, with the loss of millions more of manufacturing jobs. Yet the great strength of America since the Industrial Revolution has been manufacturing. We have become a dependent nation and in the process are giving up research, technology, process technology, and manufacturing know-how. This greatly weakens America. A nation that makes things is a winner, a nation that only consumes things is a loser. National wealth comes from making things, from manufacturing.

* Reality Trac has reported that 70% of current mortgage defaults were not listed in MLS (Multiple Listing Service), but kept off the books in 2011 because it would have impacted the economy with a major negative impact on the stock market and our dollar. This manipulation means that a lot of the foreclosures that would have happened in 2011 have been pushed to 2012. There are some who are trying to paint the housing market positive, it is not. We did not learn much from the housing crisis since we are doing the same thing all over again. Fannie Mae has asked for another $7.8 billion in bail out for losses in the 3rd quarter of 2011, and Freddie Mac $6 billion.

* Social Security and Medicare are already bankrupt and are being called the twin disasters. The unfunded liability of the two programs is now about $84 trillion. These 2 programs, along with Medicaid, consume about 50 % of the U.S. budget. This has been covered by Professor Kent Smetters at the Wharton School of Finance at the University of Pennsylvania, and by a USA Today front page article as far back as November 15, 2005 detailing the crisis. Yet we do nothing.

* The Federal Reserve's answer to this is to print more money, yet today there is no anchor, no gold standard, therefore the dollar increasingly becomes less valuable "paper". We are headed toward a dollar that won't be worth much and it will no longer be considered the international standard for currency. When you do not face reality; when you dramatically suppress or force economic factors artificially, you are inviting disaster. This will become a huge, huge problem for the United States and could in itself destroy our economy.

This issue coupled with all the items listed above confronting us could lead to a situation worse than the Great Depression. We are headed in that direction.

And these are just some of the important indicators of the economy that USA Today is reporting as being "optimistic". It is very evident that USA Today is using its front page to paint a false positive picture of the economy, and is doing this in collusion with other major media sources, in order to prop up Obama for the upcoming election.

False positive reporting is a GREAT disservice to America.