Jester,

I often feel frustrated by the fact that I haven't really ever found a way that the 'common man' would be aware of major economic events such as the Fed's policy, and how that plays out in terms of both consequences down the road, as well as how it distributes wealth. I wish it were otherwise. But on the surface, unemployment is down, inflation is non-existant, and gas is cheap. And if they have a retirement portfolio, they probably just smile and feel reassured by the monthly statements. So what is there to complain about? (Unless you used to have a  job with benefits at GM, and now you're delivering packages 'freelance' for UPS.)

You and most others here have undoubtably had the experience of talking to a friend about such things, and watching their eyes glaze over with this 'you are boring me to death' stare, as if you were speaking in Swahili, lol.

Macy's is getting crunched, but IIRC Kohl's is flying on good sales numbers - do you want to 'focus' on the positive or the negative? If you do both at the same time, the 'glaze' kicks in early.