Image from, with caption: Bunworth Banshee, "Fairy Legends and Traditions of the South of Ireland", by Thomas Crofton Croker, 1825
"Consumer spending, the primary form of economic activity in the United States, has been growing at a healthy pace, up 0.6 percent in October. 'What we know about Main Street is they’re spending like banshees [JB see below] on Christmas stuff, and that’s because we’ve seen a real increase in wages at the low end of the spectrum,” said Diane Swonk, the chief economist at Grant Thornton.
From The Wall Street Journal
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A banshee or bean-sídhe (/ˈbænʃiː/ BAN-shee; Modern Irish bean sí, baintsí, from Old Irish: ben síde, baintsíde, pronounced [bʲen ˈʃiːðʲe, banˈtiːðe], "woman of the fairy mound" or "fairy woman") is a female spirit in Irish mythology who heralds the death of a family member, usually by wailing, shrieking, or keening.
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