December 31, 2009

Looking forward to 2010!

CHRISTMAS cards are meant to convey the warm wishes and joyful feelings of the holiday season.





They usually come in cheery, or funny, or spiritual types, like some of those posted on this page.



So you can just imagine how befuddled some people felt when they received a Christmas card from the government-run National Statistical Coordination Board. (For those who don't know, the NSCB is the repository of all official govt data such as the GDP, inflation, remittances, income, population, etc.)


Most of the data just show how mucht the economy sputtered in 2009 compared to 2008 (e.g. 3Q 2009 GDP growth rate was 0.5% compared to 4.6% in 3Q 2008, or the poverty rate in 2006 was 32.9% of the population compared to 30% in 2003.) Depressing di ba?

Of course we don't need NSCB's greeting card to know how poorly our country has fared over the years under the presidentita's administration. But hey, at least the academics at the NSCB managed to turn that glaring reality into a positive, and made an unforgettable Christmas card huh? With any luck, maybe under the next administration, NSCB's Christmas cards will feature much improved economic data.

With that last bitching for the year, let me wish everyone all the best for 2010!

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Whoopsie! Before I forget, check out Professional Heckler's fearless forecasts for 2010, and die laughing. Aba! Feeling Madam Auring! ;p

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