I've seen this before. It happened in Seattle in the late 70s. Back then it was a different story. It was based on the aircraft industry that goes through booms and busts. I came out here in the early 80s when I heard that the Steel mills of the rust belt were shutting down. It wasn't an easy start but I knew that the area would come back stronger as airline orders picked up and the economy here expanded with high tech and computer industries. For the most part things have been okay until now. There was always some work to be had even in the depths of the recessions of the 80s 90s and for a time around 2000. So I can feel for the people of Detroit. Like the steel mills of the past car companies won't be comming back. And with the auto companies down many other support companies have left that area. Want to buy a cheap house? Then Detroit is your place. But don't expect to pop down to the local supermarket for groceries because they're gone. I can only imagine the crime rate there as desperate people vie for any scraps of work left. I recall back in the 80s one gal offered to scrub the streets with bare hands if someone would just hire her.
So where are we now? It's been reported that unemployment claims are leveling off. That may be true but I question that. Is the real unemployment rate really going down or are people who have been on unemployment so long that their claims are running out? The maximum was 26 weeks with two 13 week extentions. This all started in December of 2007. The door on construction slammed shut. I feel sorry for those that thought it was going to be a short recession. Many of them are part of the homeless camps now and I think we'll see more as things continue. We'll also see the other ugly side of a down economy, more banks robbed, more home invasion robberies, more violence and theft. But that's not the worst part of it. The worst part is the waiting. Hoping that some company will call back with a job that might come up in the future. And then there's the companies that sit waiting and hoping for business. They've put out their ads, made their cold calls and hope for better times. They've cut their costs to beyond the bone. So with no government or corporate spending yet we sit and wait and hope that we've saved enough.
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4 comments:
They say the recovery has begun but I am not convinced. I still say we still have a way to go "downward". The uglier side will continue to get uglier.
The end of recessions is usually determined well after the fact, in retrospect. That is especially true concerning employment, which tends to be the last part of a recovery to kick in.
As I've said before, probably too many times, we need a national reindustrialization policy. We also need a much better system to make up for the destruction of any semblance of job security. Without it, I wouldn't be surprised if a popular revolt were to occur at some point in the future.
Working people repeatedly having their finances devastated, being increasingly uncertain whether they will be able to pay for and keep a car or house, if they go to buy those things on credit, will at some point become intolerable.
It's been reported that unemployment claims are leveling off.
Read the fine print, new claims keep coming in but are not counted as unemployment claims until approved.
Been following news about Ca? As the 8th largest economy in the world goes, so goes the world, and it isn't looking good.
In fact it keeps going pretty much the way I've been saying it would go and that you better be okay with it.
No problem here though, as long as I keep getting my little amount of SS money I have the world by the tail being as I owe the world nothing anyway and live very basic.
If I have to I can live on half of what my SS money is and be okay with it.
It's not my problem if all these other monkeys got themselves into a big mess because they want so much.
No point in giving them advice because they won't fucking listen to me and follow it.
At this point the question is not how many were unemployed last month but the long term unemployed is at 25 year highs. It will get much worse.
As far as I am concerned it is very critical to our recovery to have health care for all. We are closing in on 50 uninsured. We better do something and I hear Obama's plan is more in doubt every day!
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