As the Labor Day holiday ended, so did the stock market's holiday from underlying economic trends. Last week, the stock market was all about “better than expected.� On the first day this new week, however, the market was all about “worse than hoped.�
Last week, for example, the stock market celebrated a loss of 54,000 jobs in August because the private sector added 67,000 jobs. Interpretation: the private sector is recovering. Earlier in the week, some “better than expected� reports on manufacturing and consumer sentiment inspired investors to add a few hundred points to the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
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Tracing the Path of Social Upheaval Across the Middle East and North Africa
Are you watching all this, Fellow Reckoner? Now it’s Syria’s turn on the hotplate. Has the world gone mad? More to the point, was it ever sane to begin with? In any case, it is a breathtaking show put on for all the world to watch. Who would want to miss it? What a time to be alive!
But before we get too carried away, before we get into the juicy details, let’s just take a step back for a moment. This period of history is so brimming with events to inspire laughter and sorrow and everything in between. We want to be sure we give each case their just deserts.
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