Friday, April 02, 2010
Jobs: It is ugly out there
This morning we learned that the jobs picture has hardly improved, and may indeed be worsening. Regardless of the direction, we know that we would need so much economic growth to get unemployment back down to 6% that we are unlikely to get there in the next five years, much less in the next two election cycles. Why? Simply put, it is different this time. Via Paul Kedrosky, from the Calculated Risk blog:
More here.
Unfortunately, just when we need policies that promote employment we are making it more expensive and more risky to hire people.
4 Comments:
By 
, at
Fri Apr 02, 06:22:00 PM:
Unemployment is our single biggest challenge. It's been pushed off the front pages, but it'll return before November.
This graph looks so bad because it's measuring actual job losses, not "unemployment." The latter figure can be manipulated, and has been.
The recent slight uptick in the red line is being pointed to as reason for optimism. But if that's all the Sugar Rush we get while we're running a $2 trillion annualized deficit, "job losses" may go up even more ... maybe even a lot.
Government can't "solve" this. Obama & Co have actually already made it worse.
By 
Lynn, at
Fri Apr 02, 10:13:00 PM:
I feel like a guy who called the fire department because his house was on fire, only to have Larry, Moe and Curly show up with a gasoline pumper and a bulldozer.
By , at
Sat Apr 03, 11:19:00 AM:
Comedian Will Durst on the recent uptick in employment: "We've turned the corner. Here's hoping we don't roll 12 times, hit a tree and burst into flames."
By , at
Sat Apr 03, 11:20:00 AM:
Obama told us that we needed to pass Healthcare to not go broke.
Now he's telling us that we need to pass Energy to solve unemployment:
Charlotte NC speech - April 2
The answer -- he says -- is Clean Energy: we need to go balls out making the lithium batteries that we'll need for our new electric cars. Oh yeah... weatherstripping too.
Everything you need to know is in The Bible ... and the first ten seasons of The Simpsons. In Season Fourth, Episode Fourth - "Marge v The Monorail" a con man sells Springfield on a project to solve all their problems. Everyone falls for it. except Marge.
Here's the Springfield Town Hall meeting. Sound familiar?
This episode is a take-off on The Music Man, and was written by Conan. Many reviewers put it in the Simpsons Top 10 All-Time ... "doughnuts, is there anything they can't do?"
