Thursday, October 1, 2009

More Mixed Signals


You really don't know who to believe these days.

There are some experts who say the bad economy has bottomed out, and a slow recovery is underway. I have been receiving some credit card offers in the mail recently. They disappeared when the economy went in the tank, so the return might be interpreted as a good sign.

On the other hand, Major League Baseball is experiencing its biggest attendance decline, more than six per cent, since 1952.

I traveled Business Route 6 in Dickson City a couple recent afternoons. Other than Olive Garden, it was dead. The same goes for the downtown Scranton mall.

USA Today says people will spend less on Halloween this year. I'm betting the same will be true for Christmas. Consumer confidence is down, and that's never a good sign.

Gasoline is cheap, relatively. Nearly 100 banks have failed this year.

No wonder people are confused. For every good sign, there's at least one bad one, and in times of uncertainty, the wallets close up.