What is happening to the economy?

It’s complicated times in the Western world (he says with some irony).  If you are wondering what is happening to the economy and why, it’s very difficult to discover unless you are right in it.  And this is why I love the blogosphere.

My friend Rob Paterson has not only lived in the high levels of the world of high finance, but has alos been through a stock market crash before, in 1987.  As such the story he is telling on his blog is deep and informed, and it’s also accessible.  This is because Rob cares about storytelling, and he has spent a number of years now working with public radio and television in the United States helping stations in their effort to create news that is useful.  Nowhere has this been more important than now, when the meltdown in the mortgage and now the financing sectors of the American economy has devastated families and communities.  

In times like this, it’s important to know where you are.  Rob’s writing at the moment is a big piece of theeconomic news I’m getting because it is reasoned, inquisitive and asks the right questions.  That doesn’t mean he is preaching good news, but the alarms he are ringing are useful for me, pointing at what I can do personally to set myself well to ride this storm out.  

Thanks Rob!

(In Canada, there is a sweet irony to me turning to Rob for this…The Globe and Mail‘s business section is called “Report on Business” and is often contracted to ROB.  I like my Rob better.)