AMERICANS: INDEFATIGABLY OPTIMISTIC, BLITHELY OBLIVIOUS, OR JUST PLAIN FIBBERS?

The Author saw this post at one of his favorite sites, Calculated Risk, and the Author just had to “me-too” the underlying article.

The article discussed at Calculated Risk is entitled “Surprise! Americans Set to Open Wallets This Holiday” from the CNBC website. The article, in an off-handed fashion, pays homage to Santa Claus and the panapoly fanciful creatures (Rudolph, Frost the Snowman, Mr. Hankey) that populate the Holiday Season.

THE WAR ON “CHRISTMAS” STARTS EARLY. “BRANG’ IT ON!

The CNBC article highlights several American “hopes” for the Holiday Season:

• Americans plan to spend an average $839 during the holiday season, up 17.6% from last year, the survey says.
• More than half of those Americans surveyed said they are less likely to buy Chinese manufactured products.
• [But] when asked if they’re willing to spend more for products made in the USA, 66% said yes, 20% said no and 14% were unsure.

Does anyone want to wager that Americans have no idea what they will spend for the Holiday Season and have no idea if the figure they estimated for holiday expenditures in 2007 is within a quarter-mile of their expenditures for 2006?

FAIRIES WILL PUT MONEY IN MY 401(K) AND GNOMES WILL BID UP THE VALUE OF MY HOUSE.

Other fanciful revelations appear in the CNBC story. Some defy logic. Others defy description. And some others aspire to defy gravity.

• The CNBC Wealth in America survey reports that two-thirds of Americans say they aren’t saving enough for retirement and, as a cautionary tale, more than half of those already retired say they didn’t save enough for retirement.
• As the Dow closed Friday above 14,000, it is noteworthy that more than half of Americans surveyed believe a recurrence of the 1987 stock market crash, the anniversary of which is this Friday, is unlikely and about half of Americans believe now is a good time to buy stocks.
• [A]n overwhelming 90% of American home owners expect their home process to stay the same or increase over the next 12 months by an average of 3.9%.
• Nearly 80% of Americans said they don’t increase their spending based on gains in the price of either their homes or stock portfolios.

WE WILL NOT BE UNDERSOLD! BUT UNFORTUNATELY, WE ARE OUT OF STOCK.

The Author believes that optimism, when warranted, is a positive and productive trait. But when unfounded and irrational, it is paralyzing and erosive.

WE ARE SELLING TOYS AT A LOSS THIS SEASON IN THE DESERT OF THE REAL! WE HOPE TO MAKE IT UP ON VOLUME.