Intro

Sketch

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Post Show Musings

Outro

“If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?” “Is there life after death?”

“If the POTUS says the economy is great but no one feels it, is it really a recovery?”

I’ll leave the first two for philosophy majors. On the third question, I have some thoughts.

The administration is touting what it calls, “Bidenomics.” Much like Obama chose to own “Obamacare” and turn it into a positive, President Joe Biden is owning the U.S. economy and making it the centerpiece of his re-election campaign. Will it work? Depends.

This week’s episode is a deep(ish) dive into U.S. economic data. The U.S. might be doing better than the rest of the world. Inflation is cooling and people are working. But Americans are also racking up debt, getting priced out of the housing market, depleting their savings and are wholly uncertain about the future. Come election time, it will still be all about the economy, but it won’t be about the numbers. It will be about sentiment.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:58

Sketch: 00:04:54

Chapter One: 00:10:27

Chapter Two: 00:21:52

Post Show Musings: 00:46:06

Outro: 00:54:08

Resources

Foreign Affairs: The End of China’s Economic Miracle

Associated Press: Foreign companies are shifting investment out of China as confidence wanes, business group says

The New York Times: China’s Property Crisis: Why It’s So Hard for Beijing to Fix - The New York Times

Reuters: Analysis: US debt-ceiling deal dooms Biden's revolutionary tax plans

The Conference Board: Leading Economic Index

St. Louis Federal Reserve: Does Labor Market Tightness Vary across States?

Federal Reserve Board: Recent balance sheet trends

St. Louis Federal Reserve: Corporate Profits After Tax (without IVA and CCAdj) (CP)

San Francisco Fed: The Rise and Fall of Pandemic Excess Savings

Federal Reserve Bank of New York: Household Debt and Credit Report

--

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Join the Unf*cker-run Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/2051537518349565

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee® at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic® at unftr.com/blog to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Unf*cking the Republic® is produced by 99 and engineered by Manny Faces Media (mannyfacesmedia.com). Original music is by Tom McGovern (tommcgovern.com). The show is written and hosted by Max and distributed by 99.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, "Unf*cking the Republic®."

“If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?” “Is there life after death?”
“If the POTUS says the economy is great but no one feels it, is it really a recovery?”
I’ll leave the first two for philosophy majors. On the third question, I have some thoughts.
The administration is touting what it calls, “Bidenomics.” Much like Obama chose to own “Obamacare” and turn it into a positive, President Joe Biden is owning the U.S. economy and making it the centerpiece of his re-election campaign. Will it work? Depends.
This week’s episode is a deep(ish) dive into U.S. economic data. The U.S. might be doing better than the rest of the world. Inflation is cooling and people are working. But Americans are also racking up debt, getting priced out of the housing market, depleting their savings and are wholly uncertain about the future. Come election time, it will still be all about the economy, but it won’t be about the numbers. It will be about sentiment.
Chapters
Intro: 00:00:58
Sketch: 00:04:54
Chapter One: 00:10:27
Chapter Two: 00:21:52
Post Show Musings: 00:46:06
Outro: 00:54:08
Resources
Foreign Affairs: <a href="https://www.foreignaffairs.com/china/end-china-economic-miracle-beijing-washington">The End of China’s Economic Miracle</a>
Associated Press: <a href="https://apnews.com/article/china-foreign-companies-investment-trade-a47887e2c89050d291ebd169b0989cc4">Foreign companies are shifting investment out of China as confidence wanes, business group says</a>
The New York Times: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/22/business/china-economy-property.html">China’s Property Crisis: Why It’s So Hard for Beijing to Fix - The New York Times</a>
Reuters: <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-debt-ceiling-deal-dooms-bidens-revolutionary-tax-plans-2023-06-01/">Analysis: US debt-ceiling deal dooms Biden's revolutionary tax plans</a>
The Conference Board: <a href="https://www.conference-board.org/topics/us-leading-indicators">Leading Economic Index</a>
St. Louis Federal Reserve: <a href="https://www.stlouisfed.org/on-the-economy/2023/aug/does-labor-market-tightness-vary-states">Does Labor Market Tightness Vary across States?</a>
Federal Reserve Board: <a href="https://www.federalreserve.gov/monetarypolicy/bst_recenttrends.htm">Recent balance sheet trends</a>
St. Louis Federal Reserve: <a href="https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/CP">Corporate Profits After Tax (without IVA and CCAdj) (CP)</a>
San Francisco Fed: <a href="https://www.frbsf.org/economic-research/publications/economic-letter/2023/may/rise-and-fall-of-pandemic-excess-savings/">The Rise and Fall of Pandemic Excess Savings</a>
Federal Reserve Bank of New York: <a href="https://www.newyorkfed.org/microeconomics/hhdc">Household Debt and Credit Report</a>
--
If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@UNFTR">www.youtube.com/@UNFTR</a>
Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: <a href="https://unftr.com/rate">unftr.com/rate</a> and follow us on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Unfucking-The-Republic-102319714930389">Facebook</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/unftrpod">Twitter</a> and <a href="https://www.instagram.com/unftrpod/">Instagram</a> at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at <a href="https://www.unftr.com/">unftr.com</a>.
Join the Unf*cker-run Facebook group: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/2051537518349565">facebook.com/groups/2051537518349565</a>
Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee® at <a href="https://shop.unftr.com/">shop.unftr.com</a>.
Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic® at <a href="https://www.unftr.com/blog#subscribe">unftr.com/blog</a> to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.
Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: <a href="https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1PpzNXBub9FLngMradJByC?si=abaed3d396504fae">spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.</a>
Visit our bookshop.org page at <a href="https://bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod">bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod</a> to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at<a href="https://bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations"> bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations</a>.
Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at <a href="https://www.unftr.com/accessibility">unftr.com/accessibility</a>.
Unf*cking the Republic® is produced by 99 and engineered by Manny Faces Media (<a href="https://www.mannyfacesmedia.com">mannyfacesmedia.com</a>). Original music is by Tom McGovern (<a href="http://www.tommcgovern.com/">tommcgovern.com</a>). The show is written and hosted by Max and distributed by 99.
Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, "Unf*cking the Republic®."

Unf*cking The Republic® (UNFTR) is a series of audio essays on the grand American experiment lovingly curated and presented by a quasi-anonymous political writer. 

Each essay reflects on a singular topic that is generally misunderstood or purposely obfuscated by the so-called “powers that be.” As we know, history is written by the victors and can be perilously manufactured to favor destructive world views. These views become intractably ingrained in the public consciousness and pervert public policy, oftentimes with horrific results. 

As of this podcast’s founding, we find ourselves living in a true kakistocracy. The disconnect between what we believe and what is actually happening below the surface or in plain sight is where this podcast lives. 

Together we’ll upend conventional wisdom, blow up narratives on the left, right and center and use magical devices like facts, logic and reason to explain how exactly we arrived in bizarro America, the funhouse mirror version of what was originally intended. #UNFTR

Unf*cking The Republic® (UNFTR) is a series of audio essays on the grand American experiment lovingly curated and presented by a quasi-anonymous political writer. 
Each essay reflects on a singular topic that is generally misunderstood or purposely obfuscated by the so-called “powers that be.” As we know, history is written by the victors and can be perilously manufactured to favor destructive world views. These views become intractably ingrained in the public consciousness and pervert public policy, oftentimes with horrific results. 
As of this podcast’s founding, we find ourselves living in a true kakistocracy. The disconnect between what we believe and what is actually happening below the surface or in plain sight is where this podcast lives. 
Together we’ll upend conventional wisdom, blow up narratives on the left, right and center and use magical devices like facts, logic and reason to explain how exactly we arrived in bizarro America, the funhouse mirror version of what was originally intended. #UNFTR

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