I received the following report from Levine Breaking News - a great news feed that hits a few times each day - that stated the United States is officially in a recession that started a year ago.  This status was delivered today from the National Bureau of Economic Research, a committee of economists that dates business cycles.

According to their report - they found that:

"A peak in economic activity occurred in the U.S. economy in December 2007," the National Bureau of Economic Research said in a statement. "The peak marks the end of the expansion that began in November 2001 and the beginning of a recession." 

Did we really need this report to tell us that our country is in a recession?  Yes, home sales here in Florida are up a little, but values are in the tank!  What's more - consumer confidence, which in my opinion is the key factor in determining whether we're doing well or not - is near all time lows! 

I guess every major occurence needs official sancioning.  Now we have it.