Key Obama economic adviser Larry Summers coined a telling way to look at the current American economic state of play. He said the U.S. is experiencing a “statistical recovery and a human recession.”
It is a phrase that should resonate through much of the industrial world, where high and long-standing unemployment is increasingly becoming a huge domestic political issue.
Speaking on a panel at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Summers said one in five American men aged 25 to 54 are unemployed. He said given a “reasonable recovery,” that rate could improve to one in seven or one in eight. That still contrasts with a 95% employment rate for that group in the mid-1960s.
He said the U.S. can gain from increased global integration, but if it is to be politically sustainable it “has to work for people.” That means job creation in the U.S. is a crucial issue.
Translation into normal people speak: “Us (the wealthy, ruling class) are recovering nicely. You’re fucked.”
0
Support the Blog — Buy This Book!
For Kindle and with free ePub version. Only $9.49 Great reading.
Here is what Gary Shapiro CEO of the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) said: Dvorak's writing sings with insight and clarity. Whether or not you agree with John's views, he will get you thinking and is never boring. These essays are worth the read!
Put this ad on your blog!
Syndicate
Subscribe to Main Blog feed here:
Subscribe to Comments too (below):
Junk Email Filter
In other words, the economy is still in the tank and going nowhere but we’re not going to tell you that.
The people who SHOULD be unemployed keep getting re-elected.
I know a computer/tech guy doesn’t want to hear this but technology has taken away many of the jobs that people used to do. Add in outsourcing and there you have it.Companies like Verizon are laying people ff in droves because a tech in the field can now test high speed data circuits with a blackberry.We are going to have to figure this out, companies are not going to hire while productivity increases with fewer people.By the way I took a buy out at age 60 to save a job for a younger tech with a family.
Either you lot are too wet behind the ears to have ever been through a recession before – or you never learned a damned thing.
Just about every indicator turns around before jobs start to reappear. That requires perks and benefits; so, part-time hires start first – and already have.
Read around through the information that the managers and administrators in every industry are required to read – and you’d realize most are preparing to compete with each other for the best of the unemployed. The employable men and women who’ve broadened skills and education while out of work.
The rest of you will continue to sit around and whine – especially since most of you haven’t been unemployed through the tough times, anyway. Otherwise you wouldn’t be hanging around here.
Broadband is one of the first things to cut when the bills begin to mount, so the people who need to hear this are probably not reading this blog. But my ever thoughts are with the unemployed and especially those with families to support.
He said the U.S. is experiencing a “statistical recovery and a human recession.”
Seriously, I would like to know how long you have to sit around doing some really good drugs, to come up with a statement like that!
I think that statement pretty much sums up what I have been saying all along. That politicians and high level bureaucrats live in a world unto their own, completely removed from day to day realities that the rest of us live in.
IT IS A JOBLESS RECOVERY.
LARRY SUMMERS NEEDS TO BE MADE JOBLESS NOW!
“god” seems to have reality covered from experience. I watch some of the same indicators for what little investing I do. Here’s Bloomberg’s report from ISM on the same topic:
http://tinyurl.com/ybwg759
For those of you who read stuff.
It’d sure be nice to see anyone who utter the phrase “Jobless Recovery” get pelted with rotten vegetables.
I just don’t understand why they think they’re fooling anyone. This is why people don’t trust the system stop effing lying to us.
We’re in a phony “statistical recovery” solely due to $trillions in bad debt liabilities transferred to the taxpayers’ tab combined with hundreds of $billions given with no strings attached to people in the financial sector, (thanks to their government subsidiary), people who fully deserved to be doing the orange jumpsuit perp walk for widespread, systemic fraud over a year ago. Combine that with the “legalized” fraud allowed by an end to the mark to market rule which allows the criminals to hold useless assets on their books at full, bubble-era “value” thereby allowing the “to big to fail” banks that are actually fully insolvent to maintain the facade that they aren’t.
Intel is doing great. Unfortunately all the jobs related to making computers are now outsourced and off-shored.
If the economy isn’t jobs, then what is it? A means to make rich rich and poor poor?
The recovery can be measured once the government stops spending more than its revenue!
If the government can’t stop spendng more than it takes in, then there is no ongoing recovery.
and remember this guy is an expert! he was one of the many other that told us that the economy was just effen wonderful before it tanked…
yeah i’d believe HIM!
This reminds me of the former President, the elder Bush, who declared during his attempt for a second term, that “the recession was over.” Quantitative analysis was right: the recession was over. BUT, “it’s the economy, stupid” won out, because people living in the streets, struggling to stay in their homes, etc., i.e., qualititative analyses suggested something very much different. And while Clinton might have agreed with Bush behind closed doors, he wanted very much to be pres, and “felt the pain” of the crying masses (no doubt while he felt them up at the same time).
This is that all over again. Jobs are slow to return. Some components of a jobs bill may help. But my favorite feature would be to make it so damned expensive to continue employing cheap Chinese labor that jobs would have to return to our soils. Oh, and don’t forget all those support jobs in New Delhi and Mumbai that could come back home.
Larry Summers is absolutely right.
Statistically, the indicators are up. The DOW is up, GDP growth in 4Q09 is up, etc etc. However, at the individual (human) level, unemployment levels remain constant, consumer confidence remains iffy .
The sheep won’t be able to understand this but the Obama administration knows that reconciling the two are key to overall recovery.
I work at Hahvahd and they are the nastiest, most back stabbing, self serving bunch of worthless degenerates I have ever worked for (and I work in a department pretty high up in the organization). Collectively the administration reveals little or no common sense in doing almost everything, and they are terrible at designing and running systems. I wish the rest of the country knew this, as when they see HARVARD on someone’s resume, they should RUN LIKE HELL. These people, and the Yalies and the rest of the worthless elites are a large part of what went wrong with America. Don’t vote these people and their lackeys into office. Hahvahd SUCKS and Summers is a class example of it.
#16, But my favorite feature would be to make it so damned expensive to continue employing cheap Chinese labor that jobs would have to return to our soils. Oh, and don’t forget all those support jobs in New Delhi and Mumbai that could come back home.
I have a question, and I am not defending the move offshore by asking it, but how much would the price of goods go up if American workers had to produce those goods?
And I would like some facts, not guesses.
#19 -not to worry, the current administration is in the process of lowering wages across the board.
one example: if you are on unemployment, in one of the “emergency extension” acts over the summer, you received a letter stating that while you looking for a job, if you find a job that pays 80% of your last job (a 20% pay cut) you MUST TAKE IT.
They supply a sheet for which your are to fill out (minimum twice a week) every job offer you contacted: ie list name of company and phone number. Failing to fill out and send this sheet in at the end of the month, disqualifies your benefits. (this is in NYC) (my g/f is on unemployment) So you see, they are already getting us used to the idea of working for less pay..
This whole crisis is scripted. i think within 4-5 months a major event will happen that will be used to bury the fact this is a papered over recovery.
-remember, in a few months ARM mortgage resets start taking place again.. (Operation Housing Bubble Pop v2.5)
-s
@ #15 add Liberty Conspiracy to that list. Mr. Goldsmith is a tactical technician when it comes to deconstructing the state and all of its machinations, especially the economy.