Griper Blade: If the Data Doesn't Support the Conclusion, Change the Data

Standard & Poors were in such a rush to get their downgrade statement out that the ink was barely dry on the first draft they sent out. As a result, the first time was most definitely not the charm.

Politico:

The draft press release, according to POLITICO’s Morning Money, included projections that overestimated U.S. debt by $2 trillion. The initial projections were the general government debt-to-gross domestic product ratio would rise to 81 percent in 2015 and 93 percent by 2021.

In the final release, those numbers were revised down to 79 percent and 85 percent, respectively. Treasury officials noted that the corrected numbers put U.S. debt in line with other AAA-rated nations, including the United Kingdom and France, arguing that the U.S. ratio won't reach France’s level for a decade.

In other words, S&P's initial assessment was BS -- and the corrected assessment is hardly any better. Basically, S&P chose a completely arbitrary number -- $4 trillion -- and demanded the US meet that number in debt reduction. And then, to prove that is was in fact a number chosen at random, the agency's own math is off by 50% of that Most Important and Special Sum...[CLICK TO READ FULL POST]