Is the Economy Really in Trouble, or Not?

I write about economics for a living. Part of my job is to look into the maw of economic data, financial market indicators, anecdotal reports from businesses and whatever else I can get my hands on, and turn it all into a crisp, clear narrative about the United States and global economies.

But right now I’m stuck. I have no idea how the United States economy is doing. And the closer I look at the data, the more contradictory it looks.