While every single economist and “straight to CNBC” pundit was quick to blast the atrocious economic performance in Q1 as solely due to the “harsh weather”, what has emerged in various retail earnings reports so far in Q2 is that, drumroll, they lied. In fact, as one after another “stunned” retailer admits, the depressed spending observed during Q1 continued, if not deteriorated even further, in the second quarter.