Courtesy of Michael Panzner, Financial Armageddon
Although there’s no obvious connection between these three charts (and accompanying commentary), together they paint a frightening picture of where things stand in today’s America:
The average Joe is falling further and further behind
"Household Income Trends During the Recession and Economic Recovery" (Sentier Research)
Real median annual household income has fallen significantly more during the economic recovery period from June 2009 to June 2011 than during the recession lasting from December 2007 to June 2009.
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The influence of the moneyed Interests continues to grow
"Money and Politics: Ask What Your Country Can Do For You" (The Economist)
MUCH as some businesses whine about government intrusion, others do pretty well out of it. An index based on the amount of lobbying that American firms do has outperformed the broader market since its creation in 2008; data going back to 1998 show that it has done better over the longer term, too.
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The American public, which correctly anticipated the economic downturn (unlike Washington and Wall Street), sees major trouble ahead
"More See Crisis Ahead; GOP Fractured on Best Candidate to Fix economy" (Washington Post)
Overall, the number of Americans seeing a possible meltdown ahead has jumped 10 percentage points since March 2010.
