Long-term unemployment rises.
By on Jul 5th, 2008 at 5:00 pm
Long-term unemployment rises.
The WSJ reports, “In another sign of the harsh toll being exacted by the economic downturn, the number of Americans unemployed for six months or more has risen sharply over the past year and is likely to increase even more.” According to new Labor Department data, the number of people unemployed for at least 26 weeks has risen to 1.6 million — up 37% in the past year.
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I laughed when Monica Crowley claimed that democrats didn’t have the economy as an issue in this election.
July 5th, 2008 at 5:05 pmJust waiting for the first troll to blame this statistic on laziness…
July 5th, 2008 at 5:13 pmAnd no, trolls, this is not the “Democrat” Congress’ fault. Or Clinton’s. Or Carter’s.
Just like you credited Bush for that “roaring” economy that never was, responsibility for this one falls squarely on your Dear (mis)Leader’s shoulders.
If I were you, I’d start by learning to deal with the fact that Bush is one of the worst (if not the very worst) president in history.
July 5th, 2008 at 5:13 pmneoconEconomics 101: Fraud must propel any economic upturn, and an economic depression must follow. That’s just THE math.
HOMEWORK: Write a paper on how you coped with your jealousy during the Clinton years.
July 5th, 2008 at 5:23 pmrozerze Says:
dems i guess gotcha so that atleast conyers could be should forned too that over them so bush imploiyment costs to the at for..
July 5th, 2008 at 5:25 pmIt’s those damn high school seniors graduating from summer school is what it is.
/Snark off
July 5th, 2008 at 5:26 pmIf I were you, I’d start by learning to deal with the fact that Bush is one of the worst (if not the very worst) president in history.
Comment by Gregor Samsa
Just thought that should be repeated, but I’d go with “very worst”.
¶ AIO
July 5th, 2008 at 5:27 pmrozerze, you’re a real genius. I have a tenure-track position I’d like to fill..
July 5th, 2008 at 5:28 pm#2
July 5th, 2008 at 5:29 pmGood afternnon my friend
Remember it isn’t just the laziness. It is also the result of those mythical ladies that have kids just to increase their benefit. Oddly it is also the result of those same hard working women having late term abortions just for fun
Too true, dbadass. I forgot about that wingnut fave — the Welfare Queen™.
July 5th, 2008 at 5:34 pmWho said recession?
July 5th, 2008 at 5:38 pmThat is only 2% of the working population. Add that to the 4.5% on the unemployment rolls (Those collecting unemployment for six months.), it comes to 6.5%. That is one heck of a slice of Americana. It is also 1.5% short of the number observed in what we refer to as the Great Depression of 1929-1937!
July 5th, 2008 at 5:54 pmsix months s/b under six months
July 5th, 2008 at 5:55 pmThe US DOL does not count those who have been unemployed for over 6 months as they are off unemployment benefits. They are still unemployed!
July 5th, 2008 at 6:02 pmAnd hate_america’s statistics raises the ante to 7.5%. We are now only half a percent away from the Great Depression!
July 5th, 2008 at 6:04 pmLazy Ingrates! Pull yourself up by your own bootstraps!!!….What? You used to work for Bootstraps Inc. until they outsourced? Well go back to college fool!
July 5th, 2008 at 6:12 pmAnyone who posts porn as much as Hate America does must be deeply closeted himself.
Why not make a clean start, HA? Admit to yourself how much that picture excites you, and you’ll be on the path to a healthy tomorrow.
July 5th, 2008 at 6:14 pmThe less employed = the less paying taxes = the quicker the fold of social programs including social security.
Bush’s MISSION ACCOMPLISHED will then be complete.
July 5th, 2008 at 6:14 pmThe problem is, Bush outsourced long time ago the bootstrap production to China and India.
July 5th, 2008 at 6:14 pmLol spaniard, beat you to it!
July 5th, 2008 at 6:15 pmHave any of you read the porn section of Schlosser’s Reefer Madness? That Sturman fellow was quite the visionary.
July 5th, 2008 at 6:16 pmthe brown acid Says:
Lol spaniard, beat you to it!
July 5th, 2008 at 6:15 pm Recommend (0) | Report Abuse
Really, the neocon book of tricks is soo transparent :D
July 5th, 2008 at 6:21 pmEvil Spaniard Says:
Really, the neocon book of tricks is soo transparent :D
Ain’t that the goddamn truth..
July 5th, 2008 at 6:22 pmBush and McInsane’s plan to increase the number of military eligible people is a resounding success!
More proof of how the GOP continues to increase the employment opportunities for Americans.
They must be so proud.
July 5th, 2008 at 6:24 pmBefore this year, Bush’s monthly average was +72,000 jobs. But now that we have about minus 350,000 jobs this year, what does that make his average, students? Clinton averaged 237,000 jobs per month and you need 110,000 per month to keep up with population growth.
Why do people always get lazier under Republicans (sarc)?
July 5th, 2008 at 6:30 pmBut what about those who no longer report as unemployed…
http://seekingalpha.com/ article/ 81052-improving-how-we-report-unemployment-data
8.2% unemployed!
July 5th, 2008 at 6:42 pmNot quite. According to FactCheck.org, “The rate is based on a huge survey and counts those who are out of work whether they get benefits or not.”
July 5th, 2008 at 6:55 pm“Long-term unemployment rises.”
Yup, only in Bush’s United Snakes: Land of thieves. Home of the slaves.
Time to vote for change, folks, come November.
July 5th, 2008 at 6:58 pmThanks for that link, euphgeek.
Also from the same linked article:
Not counted, however, are those who have simply given up looking for work. These can include persons who might look for work if jobs were more plentiful or if better jobs were available. The unemployment rate would be higher if such persons were counted.
and
Here are the various rates for January 2008:
Official unemployment rate: 4.9%
Rate counting “discouraged workers:” 5.2%
Rate counting all “marginally attached workers:” 6.0%
Rate counting above, plus “part time for economic reasons:” 9.0%
…and we’ve lost, what — Keith says 350,000 since these stats were compiled? And added probably half a milliion to the workforce?
And they’re still claiming an “unemployment rate” of 5.5%?
Can someone explain this to me?
July 5th, 2008 at 7:43 pmJoint Economic Committee and TP say loss of 440,000 for 2008.
http://thinkprogress.org/ 2008/ 07/ 03/ 6th-straight-month-of-job-losses/
July 5th, 2008 at 8:06 pmEconomists say America’s giant economy needs to create about 100,000 jobs every month to absorb new labor market entrants.
When the ”Jobs Report” is announced every month, we compare it to the 100,000 standard. Did we do better or worse than the standard?
However, when reporting jobs lost we re-set the standard back to zero. For the month of June, it was recently reported that the economy lost 62,000 jobs. Through the first six months of this year the economy has shed nearly 500,000 jobs.
I think everyone would agree that is a devastating number.
If we compare the job loses against the “job creation” standard we get a much more meaningful picture of the economy. Add the 500,000 jobs lost to the 600,000 jobs, require through the first six months, to absorb new labor market entrants and you quickly see the economy is short nearly 1.1 million jobs.
When you show the impact of our recent college graduate’s inability to find a job, added to dad’s layoff, the human toll comes into clear focus. The inability to pay off student loans and the mortgage will ripple throughout the economy.
While our infrastructure is in desperate need of repair or replacement, we have at least a million people looking for work.
July 5th, 2008 at 8:26 pmHi Hate America:
July 5th, 2008 at 9:52 pmAre you still the little white guy scared of the black guy/pussy for life type?
We suffer while the REICH WING WEALTHY corporatist ship our jobs overseas and they make tons and tons of $$$$$ off of peasants who were farmers who had to go to the big city to work because they couldn`t afford to be Peasant Farmers trying to compete with U.S. crops that are subsidized.NAFTA ,GATT, the world bank and the international Monetary fund are all run by crooks and wealthy politicians who want to see the New World order come to fruition so they can have it all while we continue to decline into poverty.
July 6th, 2008 at 1:42 amPhuck you SHRUB and your administration and old man Johnny is going to get his rearend kicked in November just to stop this decline and hopefully level it off so America can have a better birthday next year.
Think about why there’s no mention of the unemployment rate in this thread.
It’s because it is still historically low (and relatively stable) at 5.5%, despite the alarmism.
Here’s a more accurate picture:
http://www.reutersfxhub.com/ fxhub/ forex-news-detail.jsf?newsId=24517&pageId=0&title=US%20June%20payrolls%20fall%2062,000;%20unemployment%20rate%20steady%20at%205.5%20pct
July 6th, 2008 at 3:53 amThere’s a decent chart in this link that compares unemployment rates around the world for comparasion (you have to scroll down):
http://en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/ Economy_of_the_European_Union
If the current U.S. unemployment is 5.5% and few countries have a lower rate, is there really that much cause for alarm?
July 6th, 2008 at 4:00 ambackup Says:
There’s a decent chart in this link that compares unemployment rates around the world for comparasion (you have to scroll down)
Good doggie!
I knew you could learn!
July 6th, 2008 at 5:25 ambarfly.
Yesterday, you get pretty excited about me posting a link to snopes (the complete link with the disclaimer) and you accuse me of lies of omission because I somehow expect the casual reader won’t scroll down to get to the disclaimer.
You cry out that I’m a fraud and a liar and I owe you an apology and I should eat a ‘crow omelet’. (I thought it was a little over the top, but okay).
I came around (mostly due to Gregor’s post) that the information I linked to didn’t accurately back my claim and conceded the point.
So, here we are, on a thread lamenting unemployment that ‘omits’ the most universal measure; the rate (I suggest because it’s relatively low and stable).
I haven’t called anybody a fraud. I haven’t accused TP with ‘lies of omission’. I’m not asking anyone to eat crow omelettes or apologize.
I just offered other information to refute the sentiment.
I’m here trying to get a better understanding, resist my own partisanship, and add to the discussion, if I can.
I’m offering an olive branch. I’m willing to fore go the insults and partisanship in the hopes of having a more meaningful discussion.
July 6th, 2008 at 10:20 am#hate_america Says:
This just in; employment rate is 94.5%. Keep that consumer confidence low Toilet Paper.
Even that number is inflated, idiot troll. How many of those people who do have a job have a job that makes as much as the job they had 9 years ago? Many people I know have a job making significantly less than they did before Bush took office. And several people I know are working two jobs just to make up the salary of one livable job. So, not only do we have a large unemployment problem, we also have a large under-employment problem.
July 6th, 2008 at 10:49 ambackup Says:
There’s a decent chart in this link that compares unemployment rates around the world for comparasion (you have to scroll down):
http://en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/ Economy_of_the_European_Union
If the current U.S. unemployment is 5.5% and few countries have a lower rate, is there really that much cause for alarm?
Yes, it is a cause for alarm for the people in this country who don’t have a job or are underemployed.
The 5.5% is not an accurate reading. It doesn’t take into account the underemployed and/or the people who have run out their unemployment benefits.
Also, many of the European countries that supposedly have higher unemployment rates than we do are what you would call “socialist” countries. The reason why this is important is that in those countries people who are unemployed don’t get six months of benefits and are then told, “too bad, so sad, you are now on your own”. Most of those countries have programs wherein the unemployed are giving a stipend to live off of until they find another job. It may not be what they were previously making, but it’s enough to keep them from going into the poor-house.
July 6th, 2008 at 11:00 ameuphgeek Says:
WaltTheMan Says:
The US DOL does not count those who have been unemployed for over 6 months as they are off unemployment benefits. They are still unemployed!
Not quite. According to FactCheck.org, “The rate is based on a huge survey and counts those who are out of work whether they get benefits or not.”\
Read the report from the US Department of Labor in the following link. If you do, you will find that those who are too discouraged to even look for work, or inconsistently look for work (meaning they are unemployed) are NOT counted in the unemployment statistic.
http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/empsit.pdf
So, the unemployment rate quoted by the government is not the true rate of people who are unemployed.
July 6th, 2008 at 11:08 amBilbo Hussein Baggins Says:
Also, many of the European countries that supposedly have higher unemployment rates than we do are what you would call “socialist” countries. The reason why this is important is that in those countries people who are unemployed don’t get six months of benefits and are then told, “too bad, so sad, you are now on your own”. Most of those countries have programs wherein the unemployed are giving a stipend to live off of until they find another job. It may not be what they were previously making, but it’s enough to keep them from going into the poor-house.
July 6th, 2008 at 11:00 am Recommend (0) | Report Abuse
Here (and probably in most of the western EU countries) exist also an extensive program of subsidized (”free” in USA lingo) courses for unemployed people. That’s the way I got a 300 hour one on networking (NT and Novell Netware, very expensive courses then), when my employer layed off all the employees when he retired. Nowadays, I work in a consulting firm, thanks to that course.
A concept that don’t understand most of the “fiscal conservative” people, specially Republicans in your country. By spending money in “welfare” (frankly, is denigrating how this word, otherwise a good one, has become a pejorative in your country), people can far easily pull itself with his bootstraps, and become a more productive member for the society sooner. Now, I have a far better payed work than I had before the layoff, and I have no problem paying taxes, and knowing my money goes to pay for some other’s bootstraps, because I know I live in a society. Socialism? No, its common sense.
July 6th, 2008 at 11:49 amBilbo. I do believe that the U.S. unemployment numbers are under weighted. And I concede that the trend seems to be toward higher unemployment. It is a problem and cause for some concerns going forward.
But, even considering that, unemployment is not as much a problem (today) in the U.S. as it is in many/most other places in the world. It is still tame by historic standards and by comparasion to the rest of the world.
But, considering the annecdotal evidence, it seems more likely it will get worse before it gets better.
July 6th, 2008 at 2:46 pmI don’t see why someone making minimum wage should have any problem at all paying for $4 gasoline.
And as for healthcare, If they are going to die, they’d better do so quickly to reduce the surplus population. Only problem is that there will be less people to buy our products.
Seriously though, the divide in the USA is getting preposterous. I just saw a tv clip where diners pay to be hoisted into the air and eat at several hundred feet above the ground. A single dinner is several thousand dollars.
July 6th, 2008 at 6:21 pmAnd nowhere in my comment did I dispute that. What I was disputing was WaltTheMan’s assertion that just because someone is not getting unemployment benefits, that doesn’t mean they aren’t counted as unemployed.
July 6th, 2008 at 11:44 pm