There is little doubt that the economy is not healthy. I have used the term “Managed Depression” to describe it, claiming that we are in a long-term slowdown that is more severe than most officials and prognosticators are willing to admit. I glibly defined the term “Managed Depression” some time ago, but many people have asked me for a more rigorous one. Here is the case stated as simply as possible.
What’s in a word? Why is there value in calling this a “Managed Depression” or anything else using the dreaded “D Word”? There are two reasons. The first is that a sense of urgency has been missing as our politics and news analysis has been easily distracted by side issues that seem expedient. The second is that while a Depression is an unusual event historically, it’s not without parallel. We’ve learned a lot along the way and know something about how to handle it. But we won’t get past it until we’re honest and tackle it directly.
Barataria - The work of Erik Hare 