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So why can White House spokespeople say we're not in a recession while well-known economists argue over whether we are or are not? The definition of a recession is not clear cut, in part because no two recessions have the same economic data footprint. As this Time magazine article notes, a recession means different things to different segments of the economy. A drop in sales to retailers (but how much of a drop?) To labor groups, an increase in unemployment (but how much of an increase?)
Harvard's Economist Sumner Slichter tells Time: A recession is "no more than a momentary drop in employment and production"—and the U.S. "is in one right now." But Staff Chief Grover Ensley of the Joint Committee on the Economic Report says the economy is in the midst of a downward adjustment, but not necessarily a recessionary adjustment. Got that?
So, this week's Shine Money Poll question is straightforward but not necessarily simple: Do you think our economy is in a recession?
