If you didn’t see this coming, I have no idea where your head has been stuck up for the last few years. I guess Great Economic Minds and corporate types just don’t mingle enough with us Po Folk. Too bad they supported Republican policies that killed the middle class golden consumerist goose:

By Martinne Geller

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. chain stores, reeling from the slowest holiday shopping season in five years, got some more bad news on Sunday: 2008 will not be any better and could see changes that may shift the retail playing field forever.

As the National Retail Federation kicked off its annual convention in New York, two retail consultants offered negative outlooks for the U.S. retail industry, which has seen consumers pull back amid higher gasoline and food prices, a credit crunch and a prolonged housing market decline.

“It’s anarchy,” said Wendy Liebmann, chief executive of WSL Strategic Retail, frequently repeating the word she used to sum up the latest results of her company’s bi-annual shopper study.  Read more 

Kevin Drum points out that “….Retail sales in April were down 2.4%, “the most wretched year-over-year showing by major retailers since the International Council of Shopping Centers began tracking the data in 1970,” according to the LA Times.”  Read more