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Here is what I wonder though. I'm not an economist but I read that the base formula for the GDP is GDP = consumption + gross investment + government spending + (exports − imports)
So if this is accurate you could easily see how the GDP is a poor indicator of whether a recession was on us or not. The reason is our government is spending around 400 million a day in Iraq not to count Afghanistan and all the other spending the government is doing. Also oil alone is costing this country around 700 billion a year. Those two indicators alone could throw off the equation.
The unemployment rate has gone up every month but Feb of this year and is still rising. But exports have actually been on the slow rise this year. GDP Per Capita (meaning the average spending power per person) has risen slightly, but average hourly wage has dropped more than it has risen. Spending power per person can be a little misleading because these people could just be racking up a bunch of dept as they spend.
To me all this signals somewhat of a recession. People are spending money, but they are spending more on gas and food and essentials than ever before. It seems people making a decent, average, living are doing okay, but probably spending beyond their means and they are creating debt for themselves in the process and those making very little are having tough times.
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