NYT Tries to Explain Why Unusually High Levels of Consumption Are Not Even Higher

One of the bizarre statements that is routinely repeated by people who should know better is that consumers are not spending and that is one of the reasons that the recovery has been so weak. The NYT has a piece along these lines this morning. The reason why this argument is bizarre is that consumption is still unusually high, not low.

The saving rate out of disposable income has been averaging just over 5 percent for the last 3 years. This is above the near zero rate at the peak of housing b...