The American Economy Is Starting To Crack Along Its Rotten Foundations

The modern American economic system really has no parallels in historical narrative – at a single stroke it combines the worst practices of almost every single design into one giant steaming mess that only widens the gap between rich and poor.

And while I do not subscribe to the idea that it will all come crashing down into a Mad Max ruin scenario, it’s about to get a nice juicy open-palmed slap across the face if computer algorithms are to be believed.

CNBC:

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s assertion this week that the U.S. economy remains strong is facing a stern test from the bond market, which showed a classic recession sign Friday morning.

Short-term government fixed income yields are now ahead of the longer part of the curve, delivering a strong recession indication that hasn’t happened since 2007.

The spread, or yield curve, between the 3-month and 10-year Treasury notes just broke the longest streak ever of being above 10 basis points, or 0.1 percentage point. The two maturities were last below that level in September 2007, a run of 3,009 trading days, according to Bespoke Investment Group.

The two maturities inverted Friday morning, a near-perfect sign that a recession is coming. An inverted yield curve does not mean a recession is imminent but that one is likely over the next year or so.

The three-month note yielded 2.468 percent around 10 am, while the benchmark 10-year was around 2.44 percent.

Economists see the yield move as a dark signal for an economy coming off its best year since the recovery began in mid-2009.

“Yield curves are responding to what they see, to what I believe is a global economic slowdown,” said Peter Boockvar, chief investment officer at Bleakley Advisory Group. “You don’t see this kind of move in curves, not just here but everywhere, unless you get one.”

Just for the record, economics is a pseudoscience, and most of what you hear on the news, and in schools, and read in textbooks is gibberish that changes with each generation.

What is beyond dispute, however, is the fact that we live in a system of entirely-unregulated and unbridled Capitalism.

Sure, there are laws on the books to curb certain practices like improper terminations, MSRP violations by retailers, and monopolization, but our system is a paper tiger totally corrupted and beholden to big business.

Don’t believe? Then, go ahead and attempt as, say, a humble Amazon seller to sue the company itself for predatory pricing.

You’ll be banned for life, Amazon will seize your money, and any merchandise sitting in a fulfillment center will be “destroyed” by the corporate powers that be.

Or try, as a local mom-and-pop store, to sue Walmart for entering your community with the intent of squashing all competition.

You’ll be taken to court, outfought in the shekels war, and end up homeless or forced to work at said Walmart as a door greeter to feed your family.

There is no winning with what we have today, so let’s just go ahead, attempt something new, and force the exorbitantly-wealthy to at last open their wallets and pair their fair share into the community.

Paying for the Freedom Dividend is much easier than many think. It would not cause much inflation, would be good for business, and help millions of Americans towards better opportunities in life. Good companies invest in their people. It is time we do the same. pic.twitter.com/rMHge838l5

— Andrew Yang (@AndrewYang) March 22, 2019