~T is the season for annual economi...

~T is the season for annual economic forecasts, and our editorial offices are now strewn with the latest clip But if you're a bit dazed or hung above from the holidays, reading forecasts is not the thing to clear your head.

The reason, of course, is that no pair forecasts agree. Even worse, they all hedge their bets. in succession the rudimentary level, this involves the use of qualifying words and phrases like "perhaps," "possible," "many" (no exact number given), "often" (no exact oftenness given), and "the probability of" A more sly ...