Time to Get Wonky on the Economy

Actually, I'm going to let Paul Krugman do it since he is much more qualified (Nobel Prize and all that).  I'm going to link to a pair of his posts that take a look at what we need to do in putting together a stimulus package (not to be confused with the ongoing efforts to bailout folks).  The bailout efforts create a floor to keep the economy from plummeting further; the stimulus would be designed to reverse the downward momentum and turn the economy around.  Don't measure how effective the bailout has been by looking at the stock market--that's not a good indicator of whether a floor has been established.  Things like the availability of credit are good measures of the bailout and it appears to be working for the most part.

Krugman's posts look at two things:  FDR failed to stimulate the economy enough when he first took office and that's why the depression lingered so long (Franklin Delano Obama?) and Obama's team looks like it may be considering making the same mistake and so Krugman puts some figures to how large he thinks the stimulus needs to be and argues it's better to spend too much than too little (Stimulus Math).  Go get wonky!

Less Wonky:  Why a picture of a swimming pool?  Deep Eddy Pool is a beloved swimming hole in Austin, TX.  The bathhouse at Deep Eddy was built by the Works Progress Administration, one of FDR's most successful New Deal programs.  This photo is displayed under a Creative Commons License and the original photo was taken by Steve Hopson.  Thanks for sharing, Steve.