Economic theories show that there tends to be a "natural" unemployment rate; research tends to place this rate between 6 and 7 percent. Strangely enough, there is no direct relationship between unemployment and inflation, because unemployment differs from the natural rate (which is cyclic in nature) only due to some unexpected surprise.
Also, stock market averages, in and of themselves, have no effect upon the economy, except when people pay too much attention to them. They do tend to be leading indicators, but a drop in the averages does not necessarily mean that the economy is "weak". Only day-traders and the general public worry about the averages...no offense to anyone intended, of course.
Governmental fiscal policy has very little effect on the general health of the economy, but monetary policy--as controlled by the Federal Reserve via interest rates--does. In short, it would not be Bush who can help fix the economy, but Greenspan.
Oh, John D Harris, the conspiracies normally have different faces or names but they are all ultimately the same conspiracy. No new handshakes needed. [img]graemlins/beigesmilewinkgrin.gif[/img]
Aliens don't have claws. Some of them have tentacles and others are psychokinetic (but they don't have hands). [img]graemlins/1dizzy.gif[/img]
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Everything may be explained by a conspiracy theory. All conspiracy theories are true.
No matter how thinly you slice it, it's still bologna.
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