Bleak views of the U.S. economy abound. Real unemployment for August -- which, according to a monthly newsletter report prepared by Leo Hindery, includes discouraged workers (3.9 million), part-time of-necessity workers (8.8 million) and marginally attached workers (2.6 million) -- is up to 29.3 million workers, or 18.2 percent, compared with the still-bleak official unemployment rate of 9.1 percent.
EJ Dionne has today penned one of the most depressingly accurate homages to labor I've read, suggesting that we change the name of "Labor Day" to "Capital Day," arguing that we have "given up on honoring workers as the real creators of wealth and their honest toil ... as worthy of genuine respect."
But I've always had respect for contrarian views -- and I found one in my inbox a few days ago from the insightful research operation of the ISI Group.
The preamble to the report opened: "We are not trying to look at economic releases through 'rose colored' glasses, but the distinctly negative climate in the U.S. three weeks ago has since brightened."
Something to consider on this rather gloomy Labor Day are the ISI Group's observations:
1. Monster online employment index continues to trend up.So, while today is cloudy, there is some hope that America's no-job-growth economy may be tilting slightly up for workers in coming months.
2. Consumer confidence is generally rebounding.
3. Chain-store sales were solid in August.
4. Motor vehicle sales were solid in August.
5. Mfg PMI was better than expected (even after adjusting for the quality of the indicators, most notably inventories).
6. Household employment jumped.
7. Temp employment is up two months in a row.
8. Unemployment claims are trending lower.
9. Verizon workers returned to work, which should add about 45,000 to September's gain.
10. Historically, September-to-November job growth is above the long-term average gain.
Steve Clemons is Washington Editor at Large at The Atlantic . Clemons is also publisher of the popular political blog, The Washington Note.
This post first appeared at The Atlantic.
Follow Steve Clemons on Twitter: www.twitter.com/SCClemons
Leo Hindery, Jr.: Re Jobs, Pick the Big Low-Hanging Fruit - and Stop the Niggling
More Coffee...
R/ PRONESE
Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2011/09/05/2011-09-05_dark_days_for_working_people.html#ixzz1XCqX7FU3
It seems clear that with every new technology and improvment in manufacturing and productivity that human labor is impacted.. they need fewer labor hours to get better results.
It also seems clear that a Basic Income Model will be necessary if we don't want to see the massive slums of the third world in our cities.
There is a solution to the jobs problem and it could quickly put hundreds of thousands of people back to work. It is not pro left or right. It is not from any corporation, it's outside the government control, it's totally voluntary, works in about one week, and helps all with little sacrifice from anyone.
National Hiring Day - This is a day that corporations are encouraged to hire new employees. Corporations are called on to put patriotism first and help their country in
hard times. Those corporations that cannot hire, are asked to stop firing for that month.
http://wp.me/p5S9X-nv
Republicans should love this because it's outside the government and voluntary. Democrats should love this because it helps those needing jobs. Independents should love it because it helps all with little sacrifice from any one corporation, group, or person. Corporations should love this because with just a hire or two they become part of a collective country wide jump start of the economy.
There has never been a time In American History where hiring people would hurt corporations less, and help the country more.
1. If companies can send thousands of jobs overseas, they can hire one American on National Hiring Day.
2. If companies can get millions in tax breaks and subsidies from the government, they can help it in return by hiring one American on National Hiring Day.
3. With companies sitting on all time high profits, they can hire one person on National Hiring Day - which by the way, would help them in return.
4. McDonalds hired 60,000 last May in their own National Hiring Day, surely other companies can hire one person on a nationwide National Hiring Day.
This is not that big a deal for any corporation. It's even voluntary. Corporations need the incentive of patriotism - they've been given plenty, now its time to give back and by doing it, it will break the impasse and get the economy moving for people with jobs, the companies that hire, and maybe even give some direction to congress on how to get people jobs.
Until capitalism is replaced by a system that cares for the people none of the financial statistics really matter.
The US economy is a complicated and very large engine. I am not surprised that ignorant people must make up boogeymen such as the scary '2%' monster that hides under the bed or in the closet.
Please provide something, anything that is remotely intelligent that supports your nightmare about ....' The Republicans are systematically erasing our middle class society...'
http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2011/09/can-the-middle-class-be-saved/8600/
http://www.businessinsider.com/15-charts-about-wealth-and-inequality-in-america-2010-4
The world knows US capitalism is a failure, and they won't follow it. Canada has full health care, low unemployment, no recession. Nations are emulating Canada, Europe. No nation is trying to become the US. So we 4% of the world will suffer for being the home of Ayn Rand, but we're a tiny minority. Worldwide labor will do increasingly better.
US capitalism is a perfect bad example to the world, and they are learning from it.
As for the rest of the world following out example, there is no "rest of the world". There is only China and India. And China is pulling ahead of India precisely because they are following our model more enthusiastically than the still quasi-socialist India.
Now, if a whole bunch of other nations can arrange the same vast natural resources, limited and homogeneous population, and strict citizenship enforcement as Saudi Arabia, Canada, Kuwait, Norway, Brunei, and Australia, I'm sure there would be more countries following their example.
http://thebrooklyndame.blogspot.com/2011/09/labor-day-is-here.html
I fully agree with you; this system in the US is entirely regressive. The trouble is here that US workers have to stop buying into the negative stereotypes about 'socialism', etc. so that they can get the protections that they need. Oh, and by the way, some Third World nations already see that full-on capitalism doesn't work so the systems they will build won't be like what we have here.