[discostu]

Home loans and second mortgages -- WAY UP - not related to free trade
Credit Card Debt -- WAY UP - not related to free trade
Bankruptcies and loan defaults -- UP - not related to free trade
Inflation on basic costs of living -- UP - actually not true
Real wages -- DOWN - also not true
State and City Income Tax Receipts -- WAY DOWN - the government has less money to spend and this is a problem how?
Savings -- WAY DOWN - not related to free trade

Hedonically adjusted inflation -- WAY DOWN! - yeah
Retail Sales -- UP! - good news, money makes the economy go round, if people aren't spending then other people aren't earning, that's called a recession

Worry about Tomorrow -- DOWN! - also good news, worry about tomorrow causes people to not spend, which causes other people to not earn, which is still called a recession

[bvw]

Whistling past the graveyard is one thing. Whistling while walking down the railroad trasks om a trestle over a steep ravine ... another thing entirely.