Not Gone, Not Forgotten

But I did have my power knocked out for the better part of a week thanks to Irene. So my carbon footprint was considerably smaller. No electricity to make toast or coffee with. It was like camping at home.

There were a few things I learned from Irene however:

• Cowboy Coffee can remove chrome off of a trailer hitch. 
• Going green sucked. 
• The only McDonald's that was open experienced an economic boom to the detriment of the closed Burger King, Starbucks, Panera and a few other breakfast places.

But there wasn't any real economic growth in my area from Irene. Just activity.

One area mom told me that she has overblown her budget for food by eating out because it's (a:) easier to do for dinner rather than the hassell of cooking without electricity and the clean up after and (b:) she had to throw out a bunch of food in the fridge because it got too warm and became unsafe to eat.

One more example for the Broken Window Fallacy.

[Had this in the queue but never published it after Hurricane Irene. Apologies for it being a bit dated.]

Nobel Prize Winner In Economics Equates Today's Earthquake To The Broken Window Fallacy. Updated: Could It Be A Parody?

What would you expect from Paul Krugman?

People on twitter might be joking, but in all seriousness, we would see a bigger boost in spending and hence economic growth if the earthquake had done more damage.

As one of the comments at the link puts it, "Japan's economy should be skyrocketing, then."

Why stop there? Get some flash "Economic Recovery" mobs ready to go smash some windows.

You know who benefits from this? The hometowns of whoever the NBA Championship, World Series and the Superbowl. Riots in the streets, turning cars over and burning couches.

This is the sort of economic recovery Detroit, Michigan revels in.

Kinda Related: You know who can use a good earthquake riht about now? Illinois.

Illinois lost more jobs during the month of July than any other state in the nation, according to the most recent Bureau of Labor Statistics report. After losing 7,200 jobs in June, Illinois lost an additional 24,900 non-farm payroll jobs in July. The report also said Illinois’s unemployment rate climbed to 9.5 percent. This marks the third consecutive month of increases in the unemployment rate.

Update: Allahpundit at Hot Air has some doubts if it's really Krugman or some parody.

Is it real or just a goof? Kevin Williamson isn’t sure and neither am I, but given that this is the same guy who fantasized recently about the Keynesian awesomeness of an alien invasion, it’s at least a toss-up. All day long I’ve felt relieved that the quake caused only very minor damage, but now suddenly I’m bummed that the Brooklyn Bridge didn’t fall into the river. Maybe we can get DHS or the NYPD to blow it up? That’s a few thousand jobs right there.

Here's the deal. As with the space aliens comment, Krugman has said some stupid things in the past. The line between what's parody and what he really has said tends to get blurry.

Update II: It's fake but accurate:

[H]ere’s the man himself weighing in. It wasn’t his Google+ page. Duly noted, and I apologize for the error. But I hope he addresses the argument in the fake tweet on his blog. If World War II ended the Great Depression, why is it outrageous to think a Keynesian might see an economic boon to a natural calamity?

What a bummer.

5.8 / 5.9, Whatever It Takes

The east coast was hit with an earthquake today. Centered here in Virginia.

No serious damage noted yet. A gas leak in Fredericksburg at last glance.

It struck my house as if an oversize truck was rumbling down the road. Some shaking and rattling inside. Enough to freak out my daughters. Only after I told them we were having an earthquake.

Via Michigan State University's College of Natural Science.

One thing, everyone should be thankful that it was was mild as it was. Hence the fun and frivolity of it all.