{"id":84280,"date":"2024-08-10T01:00:29","date_gmt":"2024-08-10T08:00:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lenpenzo.com\/blog\/?p=84280"},"modified":"2024-08-14T09:07:58","modified_gmt":"2024-08-14T16:07:58","slug":"black-coffee-10-aug-2024","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lenpenzo.com\/blog\/id84280-black-coffee-10-aug-2024.html","title":{"rendered":"Black Coffee: Exceptions to the Rule"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"It’s time to sit back, relax and enjoy a little joe …<\/em><\/p>\n

Welcome to another rousing edition of Black Coffee, your off-beat weekly round-up of what’s been going on in the world of money and personal finance.<\/p>\n

I hope everybody had an enjoyable week. Without further ado, let’s get right to this week’s commentary …<\/p>\n

In an upside down world, with all the rules being rewritten as the game goes on, it’s good to feel that some things seem to stay as they always were.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

– Kenneth More<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Golden Rule: He who has the gold makes the rules.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

– Ancient proverb<\/strong><\/p>\n

Credits and Debits<\/strong><\/p>\n

Debit:<\/strong><\/span> Did you see this? Disney CFO Hugh Johnston announced this week that their theme parks may be in for a rough patch during the next couple of quarters because, “Lower income consumers are … stressed<\/a> and shaving a little bit off their time at the parks, and higher income consumers are traveling overseas.\u201d Then again, that\u2019s perfectly understandable when it takes upwards of $500 just to get a family of four through the entry gate. Yeah, I know \u2026 but at least Disney shareholders are making out like bandits. Oh, wait …<\/p>\n

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Debit:<\/strong><\/span> On a related note, a recent survey found that three in four Americans say they’re not financially secure<\/a>. The average American requires a much larger income to live comfortably, the report found. Currently, the average full-time worker makes about $79,000, according to the US Census Bureau. Meanwhile the survey found the average American needs an income of $186,000 to live comfortably.<\/p>\n

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Debit:<\/strong><\/span> By the way, manufacturing jobs are now lower<\/a> than they were not only during the pandemic, but also the depths of the Great Financial Crisis in 2008. See for yourself …<\/p>\n

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Debit:<\/strong><\/span> Meanwhile, the latest job data<\/a> is out and it is so bad that it triggered the so-called Sahm Rule. This controversial rule was cited by the current administration to refute the historical recession definition of two consecutive quarterly GDP contractions – which happened in the first two quarters of 2022. Then again, periods of rising unemployment have been a problem for empires since time immemorial …<\/p>\n