I have no problem with people talking about how things actually are — we’re in a tough recession, and people are losing jobs, retirement savings, etc. I’m complaining only about the people who deliberately exaggerate it just to get attention or score political points, and talk about things that the numbers don’t seem to support, like another depression, or the complete collapse of the West, etc.

I might adopt a fear-mongering strategy presuming that it would be more effective at getting the word out. Perhaps I’ve decided that the risk of making things worse is outweighed by the possibility of getting more people to take the situation seriously. Markets may or may not be 100% unpredictable (not sure myself), but there is no question that they are affected by behavior. Economic indicators are ultimately just a *measure of* behavior.

I might freak out a lot of people with my fear-mongering, but if I can get a larger number of people to settle down it might be a net win.

That said, I think the fearmongering actually does help force the indicators lower, so those people deserve some of the blame for the situation they’re self-righteously complaining about.