Buffett sees "long, deep" U.S. recession

[Amerigo Vespucci]

Source: Reuters

BERLIN (Reuters) - The United States is already in a recession and it will be longer as well as deeper than many people expect, U.S. investor Warren Buffett said in an interview published in German magazine Der Spiegel on Saturday.

He said the United States was "already in recession" and added: "Perhaps not in the sense that economists would define it" with two consecutive quarters of negative growth.

"But the people are already feeling the effects," said Buffett, the world's richest man. "It will be deeper and last longer than many think."

"It's not right that hundreds of thousands of jobs are being eliminated, that entire industrial sectors in the real economy are being wiped out by financial bets even though the sectors are actually in good health."

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/ousiv/idUSL2422759120080524

[KeepItReal]

1. Here's a new term: Agflation

"Agflation: The real costs of rising food prices"

Reuters has excellent coverage:

http://www.reuters.com/news/globalcoverage/agflation

[opihimoimoi]

2. Unintended consequences from the decision to fuck with the RECOUNT

by SCOTUS...them court fuckers stopped the recount and let Bush steal the enchalada...W then proceeds to fuck all of us with Stupid Decisions...even brags about it....

[KeepItReal]

4. Bush & Co's decisions aren't stupid *if* you have a biz and are a GOP'er

They are helping their people make money hand over fist with no accountability nor fairness involved.

"Follow the money"

[ckramer]

32. Qualifiy the word "biz" with an adjective 'big'

Only the big businesses benefit from Bush policy.

[MidwestTransplant]

39. The benefit only inures to a very small group and it's getting smaller.

Defense contractors, oil execs and that's about it now. Others have made a bunch on his policies that have reaped the current situation but they will eventually pay for his policies (many have been already).

[ozymandius]

7. You mean layoffs at the Supreme Court?

Let's start with those who have "underperformed" for the past eight years. Like, maybe, Thomas and Scalia.

[opihimoimoi]

9. These dudes are supposed to be OBJECTIVE but their rulings reveal a partisan bent

Not a good picture

The results speak for themselves....

[Taverner]

18. Scalia, Alito, Thomas, Roberts - it would be nice to see them swing from a tree

;)

[opihimoimoi]

21. The exposure of their Political Bent will tarnish their Name..funny what 30 pieces can do..

[reprobate]

28. Layoffs in the form of impeachment for those two? Yep, that would work. Plus.....

....Someone should whisper in Obama's ear that as President he has the constitutional right to determine the number of Justices on the court and add as many as he wants to assure an honest and progressive court for decades to come.

The number of justices now is nine. But there's nothing in the constitution that sets that number in stone. It says only that the President's duty is to determine the number and appoint them.

Of course with the impeachment of Thomas and 'Fat Tony', it wouldn't take too many new justices to guarantee a progressive court.

[ckramer]

33. The way this country was setup is that you can never layoff them

They are there for life.

[ozymandius]

35. Yes. Seriously speaking.

However, the comment was meant as sarcasm. It would be fun to see how the "Supremos" would act if workplace rules that apply to just about everyone else were to apply to them.

[unblock]

16. unintended?

you're more charitable than i.

[opihimoimoi]

19. I meant the damage to themselves are so great that they didn't foresee

[SpiralHawk]

3. History will record this as: The Republicon Recession*

* with special distinction reserved for the Imperial Commander George AWOL Bush.

The republicons have thrown America into deep, deep debt, and trashed the economy.

Proving beyond a shadow of a doubt that the word "conservative" is just a phony propaganda meme they have appropriated for themselves and their radical & corrupt policies and practices.

[opihimoimoi]

10. Yup, its a massive Pub Reccession/fuck up.....

[ananda]

11. Dems and others played their parts too.

Nobody is free of blame here.

However, Reeps do represent the worst
of the loss of humanity and common
decency.

[SpiralHawk]

15. Nah. Commander AWOL & republicon cronies are FULLY responsible for the recesssion

As they will be fully responsible for the unfolding depression.

Their so-called economics is radical bullcrap: borrow-and spend.

Republicons borrow and spend.
Republicons borrow and spend.
Republicons borrow and spend.
Republicons borrow and spend.
Republicons borrow and spend.
Republicons borrow and spend.
Republicons borrow and spend.
Republicons borrow and spend.
Republicons borrow and spend.
Republicons borrow and spend.
Republicons borrow and spend.
Republicons borrow and spend.

And then weasel about it- seeking anyone else to blame but themselves.

That's a fact.

[indepat]

24. Let's not forget how much the wealth of the most affluent has increased since the Gipper foisted his

voodoo economics on America whereas the national debt has increased approximately eight-fold and the dollar has tanked. :D

[xxqqqzme]

30. wonder why

red ink republicans never caught on. I thought that was a very descriptive phrase.

[HughBeaumont]

38. I call it "Borrow and Waste" . . .

. . . because sometimes spending yields a tangible result. They've done nothing but flush OUR money down the Pentasewer to fight a made-up enemy.

[ckramer]

34. Agree

I didn't remember democrats had said anything when Alan Greenscam lowered and lowered the interest rate to close to zero.

That's the real cause of the current housing bubble.

[davekriss]

14. Republican colleagues have...

...already independently approached me and remarked that we are only in an economic mess because the Democrats gained control of the House and Senate in 2006. :banghead: (I think they just want to see steam come pouring out of my ears.)

[Lorien]

25. Why else would dems be *allowed* to win by a slim majority? n/t

[hvn_nbr_2]

20. Republicon recession brought to you by George W. Hoover. nt

[tama]

29. Well....

in fact they will record this as: The Great Depression aka The Beginning of the Final Collapse of Civilization.

Civilization based on greedy expansion is now colliding with the physical limits of growth, as Club of Rome told us thirty years ago.

[earthboundmisfit]

5. The world is in the hands of GAMBLERS

"It's not right that hundreds of thousands of jobs are being eliminated, that entire industrial sectors in the real economy are being wiped out by financial bets even though the sectors are actually in good health."

Gambling's fine when you're not doing it with other people's LIVES.

[ozymandius]

8. Speculation is the new term for cannibalization. n/t

[gristy]

6. "deeper and last longer than many think"

Anyone else notice the zero value in this statement? Many think there will be no recession at all. Many others think it will be catastrophic.

[Pathwalker]

12. Wouldn't that make it a Depression?

Right now, we're locked in stagflation.

[ozone_man]

31. That's what it will be.

First economists have to get used to calling it a recession, then they'll work up enough courage to use the D word. Actually DD. Deflationary depression.

[On the Road]

13. That Means a Lot to Me

The economy is still receiving massive stimulation from the fiscal deficit, low interest rates, and tremendous growth in the money supply. That will have long-term consequences but works against an immediate recession.

As a result, I am expecting a Japan-style stagnation that will last at least several years, but not a sharp or deep recession. But if Buffett disagrees, I might have to rethink that.

[roamer65]

17. We're seeing the beginnings of an hyperinflationary depression.

It should be gale force by around 2010.

[nikto]

22. WARREN Buffet?

What does HE know?

I want to hear what JIMMY Buffet has to say.

[Xenotime]

23. When is he going to stop sitting on all his money and do something with it?

[Tansy_Gold]

36. No kidding.

I just love it :sarcasm: when these BILLIONAIRES make pronouncements on the economy.

Does it NEVER occur to them that they and their ilk are RESPONSIBLE for it?

:grr: :grr:
:grr: :grr:
:grr: :grr:
:grr: :grr:
:grr: :grr:
:grr: :grr:


Tansy Gold, thinking other things are "not right" and already feeling the effects of this "recession"

[percussivemadness]

26. Talk down the economy, reduce business valuations

then step in a buy the aforementioned businesses up for cents on the dollar.Result,increased holdings of healthy businesses which have been undervalued due to Buffet`s proclamation. Then do an interview 6 months later saying surprisingly the US has moved out of recession, and all those businesses I bought up have quadrupled in value...

Buffet knows exactly what he is saying, which is why he is the world`s richest man...

Jesus, I hope none of you ever try to play poker for real money.

Peace

[Amerigo Vespucci]

27. Tony Soprano, upon watching David Scatino's sporting goods store go down the tubes...

"This is what I DO. This is how I MAKE MY MONEY."

So there are people in the world who pull the strings and there are people in the world who have their strings pulled...same as it ever was.

David Scatino

* Played by: Robert Patrick
* Appears in: "The Happy Wanderer", "Bust Out", "Funhouse"

David Scatino is a childhood friend of Tony Soprano. He is often called Davey. He owns the local sporting goods store (Ramsey Sports and Outdoors) and his son, Eric, was a good friend of Meadow. Reluctantly, Tony allowed David to participate in a high stakes poker game with full knowledge that he did not have the financial assets or poker savvy to win or break even. David quickly became heavily indebted to Tony. Tony took over his business, and took David's son's car as a down payment. The car was given to Meadow, but she quickly rejected it when she realized it once belonged to her friend. Having lost his life savings, his business, his son's college fund, and the respect of his family, he divorced and moved out west to work on a ranch near a major gambling destination.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_characters_from_The_Sopranos_-_Friends_and_Family

[mdmc]

40. we will see

[samsingh]

37. a repug recession