[copious.abundance]

DOT Freight Index Hits Three-Year High

Freight carried by for-hire transportation providers posted a month-to-month gain of 0.4 percent in August, reaching its highest level since July 2008, the Transportation Department reported.

The annoucement comes after the Cass Freight Index hit a THREE-YEAR HIGH last week, with U.S. shipments up 7.5 percent year-over-year in September.

The DOT’s Freight Transportation Services Index rose 2.9 in the last three months to 108.7. During the first eight months of 2008, freight shipments measured by the index were up 1.6 percent.

The index measures month-to-month changes in ton-miles carried by for-hire trucking, rail, inland waterways, pipelines and air freight. The index reached a pre-recession peak of 113.3 in January 2005 and bottomed out in April 2009 at 94.3, its lowest level since 1997.

[ralfy]

Related:

"Derivatives: The $600 Trillion Time Bomb That's Set to Explode"

http://moneymorning.com/2011/10/12/deri ... o-explode/

[ralfy]

"Alternative Universe"

http://www.financialarmageddon.com/2011 ... verse.html

[Cloud9]

This from Mish: "Weak shipping reports have now spread to rail traffic, truck traffic, and ocean shipping. We will look at each of those in turn, but first a brief recap on the Unprecedented Drop in Port Traffic: A Sobering Omen for Holiday Sales."

http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot. ... ilfax.html

[peripato]

"Alternative Universe"

http://www.financialarmageddon.com/2011 ... verse.html

Indeed! Those September retail sales figures are so much seasonally adjusted bullshit. Gotta keep the Bear away at all costs you see, so officially sanctioned bullshit on both sides of the Atlantic, of shock and awe proportions, are the remedy for cold hard reality.

[peripato]

This from Mish: "Weak shipping reports have now spread to rail traffic, truck traffic, and ocean shipping. We will look at each of those in turn, but first a brief recap on the Unprecedented Drop in Port Traffic: A Sobering Omen for Holiday Sales."

http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot. ... ilfax.html

Exactly, which flies in the face of official figures showing that rail shipments, for instance, are rising. When all you've got left is bullshit and most people continue to believe it smells like roses, lay it on thick baby!

[peripato]

More Americans than Chinese can’t put food on the table

The number of Americans who lack access to basic necessities like food and health care is now higher than it was at the peak of the Great Recession, a survey released Thursday found. And in a finding that could worsen fears of U.S. decline, the share of Americans struggling to put food on the table is now three times as large as the share of the Chinese population in the same position.

Change you can believe in!

[Keith_McClary]

Army of unemployed is now entrenched in U.S.
Commentary: Structural woes in economy creating ‘permanent underclass’

Listen to Charles Plosser, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, in a speech a couple of weeks ago.

“These numbers are troubling, especially when more than 40% of the unemployed, or some six million people, have been out of work for 27 weeks or longer,” he said.

“Millions of unemployed workers may take longer to find jobs because their skills have depreciated or they may need to seek employment in other sectors. These structural issues will take time to resolve. Jobs and workers will need to be reallocated across the economy, which is a long and slow process.”

A structural change

Did you catch the word structural? It was no accident. Here’s Atlanta Fed president Dennis Lockhart in a speech two days earlier.

“To me, it is not clear to what degree structural factors are impeding the filling of job vacancies,” he said.
“And… it is not clear to what extent the long-term unemployed are becoming a class of permanently unemployed, creating a problem resembling the so-called structural unemployment of some European countries.”

Again, notice the use of the word structural — twice. And note how Lockhart speculated about a “class of permanently unemployed” which he compared with “some European countries.”

When top officials start speaking like this within days of each other, something’s up.

[GoIllini]

More Americans than Chinese can’t put food on the table

The number of Americans who lack access to basic necessities like food and health care is now higher than it was at the peak of the Great Recession, a survey released Thursday found. And in a finding that could worsen fears of U.S. decline, the share of Americans struggling to put food on the table is now three times as large as the share of the Chinese population in the same position.

Change you can believe in!

Well yes. This would have been worse 35 years ago if we started cutting welfare back then. Now the problem has multiplied.

[vision-master]

What makes you think your 'saved' from ever going on welfare?

[GoIllini]

What makes you think your 'saved' from ever going on welfare?

The fact that we're getting rid of it. If I need welfare, it won't be there, so I won't be going on it.

In all seriousness, like most responsible people on this forum, I've been saving 30% of my income for the past several years. I could wind up in trouble in a true black swan event where equities, cash, gold, and land all become worthless, but in that situation, the government wouldn't be able to help me anyways.

The problem with welfare is that it allows people who couldn't otherwise afford children to have six, seven, or eight kids. 3/4 of those children wind up going on welfare and you start getting the exponential growth that Malthus and Ehrlich were so worried about.

If you take welfare and illegal immigration out of the equation, US population growth is about 0.

[vision-master]

or become disabled, unable to work and whatever savings you have, could be spent on medical treament. You could become a ward-of the-state?

[GoIllini]

or become disabled, unable to work and whatever savings you have

Covered by a guaranteed renewable non-cancellable to-65 disability policy from a AAA-rated mutual on 83% of my income with an inflation rider. I pay a premium for an organization known for treating policyholders fairly and running an extremely conservative book that mostly stays invested in precious metals, cash, and midwestern farmland.

It's the responsible thing to do; if you don't have disability insurance, I know a good agent who hooked me up for $10/year per $1000/year of coverage. If you do ARDII, coverage stays cheap to about age 40 when you should have enough to retire, anyways.

could be spent on medical treament. You could become a ward-of the-state?

Covered by a health insurance policy with extension privileges on it. I pay a premium for a PPO with no required referrals, but again, it's the responsible thing to do.

1.) Work like crazy.
2.) Save 30% of your tax-adjusted income.
3.) Don't have kids until you own your home outright.
4.) Cover your bases on the insurance front. Everyone under 40-45 needs non-cancellable guaranteed renewable disability to age 65; everyone with kids or a non-working spouse needs term life; everyone over 55 should have an inflation-adjusted lifetime/survivor annuity as part of their retirement portfolio. And going through a conservatively financed mutual is worth the premium.

Yes. Anything can happen. I can get run over by a crazed New York cabbie tomorrow. The government can go bankrupt and millions can lose their SSDI. Life carries risks that cannot be hedged, and that is what makes it so interesting.

What is clear is that the current entitlement system where the government takes responsibility for people from cradle to grave is unsustainable.

[vision-master]

It's the responsible thing to do; if you don't have disability insurance, I know a good agent who hooked me up for $10/year per $1000/year of coverage. If you do ARDII, coverage stays cheap to about age 40 when you should have enough to retire, anyways.

Check the fine print as it's tied into SSDI eligibility. Also, those 'private' plans like to send guy's out in vans and film all your movements. Also, they like to review cases every three Months on your dime.

[GoIllini]

Check the fine print as it's tied into SSDI eligibility. Also, those 'private' plans like to send guy's out in vans and film all your movements. Also, they like to review cases every three Months on your dime.

I thoroughly reviewed it before signing it. A federal default was a huge concern for me and the fine print makes no reference to the federal government or SSDI for eligibility. The claims process involves submitting a claim form for proof of loss and certified documents from two doctors. There is also a separate presumptive disability section providing full benefits for the loss of sight, any two limbs, a few other situations and partial benefits for the loss of one limb.

There IS reference to SSDI in that the base benefits are subrogated IF I am approved, implying to any reasonable arbitrator, bench trial, or jury that the policy is payable whether or not SSDI applies. The company has high hundreds of thousands insured and in my DD, I didn't find any court cases where they were fighting unreasonable claims, so I think they're going to play fair.

It's true disability insurance and a really strong policy from a mutual known for playing fair and being incredibly solid financially. They do charge a premium over the cheaper companies, but it's worth it. If you'd like, I can hook you up with my agent.

[TheAntiDoomer]

U.S. Unemployment Down Sharply in Early October

http://www.gallup.com/poll/150137/Unemp ... tober.aspx

PRINCETON, NJ -- Unemployment, as measured by Gallup without seasonal adjustment, is 8.3% in mid-October -- down sharply from 8.7% at the end of September and 9.2% at the end of August. A year ago, Gallup's U.S. unemployment rate stood at 10.0%. While seasonal hiring patterns may explain some of this improvement, the drop suggests the government could report an October unemployment rate of less than 9.0%.

[TheAntiDoomer]

The graphs:

[TheAntiDoomer]

CHART OF THE DAY: New Poll Says The Jobs Situation Has Improved Significantly In October

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/chart-of ... z1b3iJrdpe

Favorite quote:

According to polling firm Gallup, which does its own unemployment surveys, the jobs situation is improving massively.

[vision-master]

massively

Large in comparison with the usual amount - lol Ok, define usual.

[copious.abundance]

I've been noticing this too. It's been at 8.3% for 5 days in a row now. This time last year it was around 9.8-9.9%. Personally I'm waiting a few more weeks before I get excited, it could be a temporary blip.

U.S. Unemployment Down Sharply in Early October http://www.gallup.com/poll/150137/Unemp ... tober.aspx

PRINCETON, NJ -- Unemployment, as measured by Gallup without seasonal adjustment, is 8.3% in mid-October -- down sharply from 8.7% at the end of September and 9.2% at the end of August. A year ago, Gallup's U.S. unemployment rate stood at 10.0%. While seasonal hiring patterns may explain some of this improvement, the drop suggests the government could report an October unemployment rate of less than 9.0%.