This chart is offensive

There's just no need for these kinds of shenanigans.

In a note to clients published Thursday, analysts at Macquarie committed an absolutely egregious chart foul by skipping multiple years on the x-axis of a chart.

Typically when we breaches of conduct on chart it involves the y-axis or charts that are zoomed way in to show some price movement in a more-dramatic-than-it-actually-is way.

(Note: there is a y-axis violation in this chart, too, as the right axis does not start at 0, though a lot of people are okay with these types of adjustments.)

But this is a new level. Here's the violation:

Now, the broad idea of Macquarie's note captured in the chart is that debt burdens in the US and other major economies have simply become too high for future growth to really take off.

The thinking here is that if too much of your future output is already committed to servicing the payment on money borrowed in the past then your future prospects are dimmed until this burden is cleared.

And all in all, it's a pretty good note! (I'll probably write more about it in the coming days.)

But there's just no need for this kind of x-axis manipulation.