In the latest installment of or our Op-Vid series Megan McArdle talks the 2012 election, explains why the economy is in it’s current status and how President Obama isn’t necessarily to blame.

President Obama has broken his promises, and Romney-Ryan is our only hope for prosperity writes Harvard historian and Newsweek columnist Niall Ferguson in next week’s issue available with bells n’ whistles on iPad today or in glorious print at the newsstand on Monday. AND if you’re by a telly you can catch Niall talking Obama, Biden, Romney, Ryan and all things 2012 on CBS Face the Nation w/ Bob Schieffer later this morning at 10.30am.

Until consumers demand better conditions in overseas factories — as they did for companies like Nike and Gap, which today have overhauled conditions among suppliers — or regulators act, there is little impetus for radical change.

Well, there you have it tumblr. Until you—yes, YOU—demand better conditions for the people toiling away building your MacBooks, iPhones, and iPads, nothing will drastically change. You can start by signing this petition. Or this one. And if you haven’t read the Times piece on the factory conditions in China, read it.

majorleaguesports-deactivated20 asked: Do you think Congress is responsible for this countries economic problems, or President Obama?

Can we say neither?

Sure, Congress & the administration have had a rough year trying to get along, but most of that hasn’t really affected our economic policy to a degree that it would really send us over the edge.

If you’re looking for someone to blame, we would start with the ten years prior at the Fed, then look at the banks and how they so poorly dealt with a rapidly collapsing housing market, and then Europe, which today is largely responsible for many of the fears and woes that things are going straight back to 2008. If you haven’t, we’d also recommend you listen to this This American Life podcast which really does a great job of explaining “The Giant Pool of Money.” It won a Peabody!

I generally think customers don’t want to be nickled and dimed.

You can say that again. The head of retail products at Pittsburgh-based PNC Financial Services, on the news that big banks have backtracked on their plan to charge monthly debit fees. (WSJ)

motherjones:

It’s like they’re not even pretending anymore.

Also important: Cain believes banks may have had “something to do with the crisis in 2008,” but hey, he says,  we’re not in 2008 anymore! “We’re in 2011! Okay?” No. That’s not OK.

cheatsheet:

Ah ha! Spotted this yesterday from NewsBeast headquarters, but couldn’t make out what the banner said. “THANKS FOR THE DOWNGRADE. YOU SHOULD ALL BE FIRED.” 

Single Mom Hires Small Plane To Buzz Wall Street With Message: You Should All Be Fired

cheatsheet:

“It’s Still the Economy, Stupid”

latimes:

The Huffmans are stocking up on cheese powder, dehydrated tomatoes and canned ham, watching warily as food and fuel prices rise despite a supposedly recovering economy. And they’re not alone. “This sort of stockpiling was once the purview of survivalists preparing for Armageddon,” reports Faye Fiore. “But Huffman’s fear isn’t the end of the world so much as the $5 basket of grape tomatoes she bypassed the other day at her local supermarket.”

Photo: Tami Huffman in her basement.  Credit: Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times

Love this story. We spent time with some similar folks who call themselves “preppers.”

(Source: Los Angeles Times)

Julia Baird on how the recession is redefining failure.