Shadowstats claims that real GDP growth has been negative for every year since 2000 with the exception of 2004. Nearly 2 decades of GDP contraction. Seriously?

It's better known as being completely unreliable. It's the post-truth version of econ stats. It builds its own reality, selectively choosing and omitting facts.

There are a lot of detailed and nuanced articles/posts on the Internet that debunk this site and point out serious flaws. I can't compete with the quality out there, but you must read more before feeling so confident in this site.