No good news goes unpunished

Ever notice how most news orgs and blogs ignore the doings on Wall Street unless the stock market has a bad day? Then there's no escaping the headlines that scream "Dow craters, down 100 points!" But good luck finding the story about how the Dow rose 150 points the next day. In a similar vein, we insist upon lashing ourselves with bad news about the unemployment rate each week, even when the news is good. Today, Market Watch reported, "New applications for unemployment benefits sank by 37,000 last week to 391,000 to mark the lowest level since April." Great. Now cue Gloomy Eeyore of Winnie-the-Pooh fame: "But a government official suggested the surprising drop may have stemmed from a variety of 'technical' issues not captured by normal seasonal adjustments," the report said (echoing what the downcast donkey would undoubtedly say). Gee, thanks for brightening my day. Cue Captain Bligh: "You may resume the lashings, Mr. Christian, and put yer back into it man!" Like I said, no good news goes unpunished.