63,000 jobs lost in Feb.
By John Amato Thursday Mar 06, 2008 7:27pm
[from Zencomix click for larger] The economy is not doing very well, I see.
The economy shed 63,000 jobs in February, the government said on Friday, the fastest falloff in five years and the strongest evidence yet that the nation is headed toward — or may already be in — a recession.
President Bush acknowledged on Friday afternoon that it is “clear our economy has slowed.” But he said he was confident that the recently enacted stimulus package, which will soon put checks in the mail for millions of Americans, would indeed be the “booster shot” the economy needs.
I watch Kudlow occasionally and a few months ago he could care less about how the dollar was doing. Now, he's yelling that it's all about the dollar. The ecoomy will hurt McCranky more than anything else.
Bush on 10/04 : I love the fact that more and more people are opening up the front door of their home and: Welcome to my piece of property, welcome to my home."
Too bad those homes are being boarded up and Repo man'd.
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104 a barrel.
Don't worry, sleep tight, under the bridge.
Let's hope there will be a bunch of unemployed Republicans real soon.
Commander Cluster Bomb McClintonberman has a great plan to fix the USA economy for good--permanent occupation of Iraq along with a suicide attack on Iran.
I remember my grandparents lecturing me about the Great Depression and how I could never know how horrible it really was for most Americans living on the edge. I think I may find out soon.
Including Samantha Power and Melanie Morgen?
Not to worry GWB says the economy is slowing down. With his record of assessments that should mean we're in for a boom. Wait he also says the economy is sound and will rebound as soon as we get our 600 bucks. We're fucked!!!
People are stealing ATM machines and hijacking meals on wheels trucks no there's no recession.
So I'm in a cab the other day and the driver has some right-wing radio station on. The host is doing 'man-on-the-street' interviews, asking people who they support for pres. Whenever he gets someone who is for a Dem, he spouts in with:
Do you know that if the Dems let Bush's tax cuts expire, you could pay up to $2000 a year more in taxes, for a family of 4 with an income of $50k to $100k a year?
First of all I don't even know if that is true, but lets say its. I wish I could have been on the phone with this jackass, my answer would have been:
Well, you know I love my country, and would be happy to pay $2000 a year if it meant getting a president who could fix the economy, cause I think that between the gas prices, stagnant raises and increasing inflation, I just might make out better off on the deal. Not to mention anyone who would vote for someone to 'save' $2000 is a lowly crappy American anyway.
Rico @ 4:
Let's hope that it doesn't goes the same way as the '30's German depression. Let's not go there!
IdahoMoe @ 5:
Good one! And can someone please explain how the Clinton's could go from not owning a home prior to occupying the White House to a 2007 estimated net worth of $50 million? What's the secret?
Considering that in the 1930's the U.S.A. had plenty of mineral resources, lots of trained-and-regimented manpower, millions of productive family farms, factories that were practically new, and more than 90 percent left of the greatest petroleum reserve anywhere in the world and we still ended up with a great depression I'm not very optimistic.
pray there isnt a depression....
unlike our parents and grandparents, most of whom didnt have much to begin with, most of us have too much stuff, and are used to plenty
this country will not survive another great depression
but as we have killed off our manufacturing, i see little hope for that not occuring
what kills me is listening to my wingnut pals saying that if a dem gets into the oval office, it will all get much worse
how much worse could it get?
7 years of bush policies have set this country on the brink of disaster
while rome burns, the chimp tap dances
and yet, our dem congress kicks back, holds bs hearings, and then rubber stamps everything that he does
we are all so fucked
Rico @ 10:
Figure out a way to get 50 Million people to give you one dollar each.
L.A. Confidential @ 7:
You mean that doesn't happen everyday?
uncle joe mccarthy @ 12:
Let us count the ways.
1. OPEC, rebuffing calls from U.S. President George W. Bush to increase oil output, cited “mismanagement” of the American economy as a major factor driving prices up. Record prices are suddenly creating the sharpest tensions in years between the oil cartel and the United States, the world’s largest oil consumer. Two days after the president called for more oil on the global market, OPEC members, meeting in Vienna, Austria, chose to leave their production levels unchanged, declaring that the market has plenty of oil already. The cartel’s president on Wednesday blamed financial speculators and American economic problems, which have helped lower the value of the dollar, for the high oil prices. After the meeting, oil prices settled above $104 a barrel, a record.
Ragnarok @ 9:
I've heard that THAT will be the model for us - that is what we should expect.
Heaven help us.
I think Bush may wait until JUST BEFORE THE ELECTION - let the economy completely collapse and then call martial law and cancel the election. I'm such a pessimist right now - the economy is so bad and it's only going to get worse . . . .
*
Rico @ 10:
Write a book and steal the title from Billy Joel.
Alberta is hiring and paying damn good money, if you wanna work in oil.
Concerned"Hussein"Canuck @ 14:
I didn't see ONE homeless person on the streets during Clintons entire two terms. The day after Bush was sworn in people were standing on street corners with signs and a cup.
uncle joe mccarthy @ 12:
Of course it's going to get worse - it's on the verge of collapse now. And it won't be the fault of any democrap - it's the re-PIG-lics who have done this.
Stupid people are very good at denial though.
*
uncle joe mccarthy @ 12:
The chimp dances because he has all the machinery set in place to "replenish the coffers." Do you remember that remark? Sky high oil prices and a world set for perpetual war, all accomplished by a total and deliberate absence of diplomacy during his term, anywhere in the world. How else could he expect to replenish the coffers so quickly after he leaves office?
Can anyone think of a reason not to vote for whoever gets to be the democratic nominee.
bush who was enabled by his fucking parents for his whole life
has no concept what it means to MAKE A LIVING. the only people in
his world who are doing well and living off the poor of this country,
are his wealthy friends. this bastard lives with his head for far
up his ass, that when he blinks, it scratches his throat.
L.A. Confidential @ 19:
Maybe where you live LA, but there have been homeless people for as long as we've been alive, and then some. That never goes away. Worse under Bush? How could it not be.
Wow. Dana Milbank, college friend of recently resigned Obama advisor Samantha Power, just took a big dump on Barack Obama, claiming his "head [was] in the clouds" and attacking him for not standing up for Power. Cripes. Way to be objective, Dana.
You're looking at it all wrong.
You say: "63,000 jobs lost."
I say: "63,000 workers liberated."
Clavis @ 25:
It is nice to see Obama's campaign looking like they are punishing their staff for stupid remarks (true or not)........Hillary should take notes.
Trittydi @ 16:
i agree with you with the exception, bush will declare martial law for any reason and probably after the election to keep the newly elected president from taking office.
i think i am more pessimistic than you.
Trittydi @ 15:
The plan is to keep shoveling paper (fictitious capital) into the markets to keep it "afloat" till they are out in Jan 09.
They may just pull it off but it might be running through dust with the walls and ceilings of the economic house collapsing all around them. It's that close.
Clavis @ 25:
Nasty
What are you going to do with your tax rebate? We'll use ours to pay PART of our family's health insurance premium.
Thanks George, you f*cker!
L.A. Confidential @ 29:
Bushie is shovelling something. Not sure about the paper part, but he is definitely shovelling something for the last 8 years.
Joementum @ 26:
LOL there you go. Free at last!
Ron @ 22:
Yes.
And you'll never guess who's claiming "tax credits" just for "creating" jobs of a purely "make-work/fake-work" nature, laughing all the way to the bankers @ the expense of the vulnerable in need of work, but unlikely to obtain same all the more....
L.A. Confidential @ 33:
Indeed, free to die in the gutter. ;)
Speaking of Voodoo Trickle Down Economics BSers that almost bankrupt a nation!!!
Rico @ 34:
Well, spit it out.
Ragnarok @ 9:
We got a 30's German plan for education, German plan on consolidating the brown people in a secret camp with torture, German plan for stripping your civil rights for national security, and German plan for state control media and propaganda, So far we seem to be following the 30's German plan quite nicely.
So much for the Iroquois nation plan for the Democracy of our country.
Don't worry all......just pick up the phone and dial a friend and say Al Qaeda over and over......then wait and you'll get visited....taken away to a warm resort...meals are free...oh and the showers?
WASHINGTON — The White House says President Bush will veto legislation on Saturday that would have barred the CIA from using waterboarding _ a technique that simulates drowning _ and other harsh interrogation methods on terror suspects.
Bush has said the bill would harm the government's ability to prevent future attacks. Supporters of the legislation argue that it preserves the United States' right to collect critical intelligence while boosting the country's moral standing abroad.
"The bill would take away one of the most valuable tools on the war on terror, the CIA program to detain and question key terrorist leaders and operatives," deputy White House press secretary Tony Fratto said Friday.
The unemployment rate is actually far higher than they claim it is. One factor is only people who qualify for unemployment benefits and are actively looking for work are counted as unemployed. It is not actually a count of people who are unemployed. Another factor is that the Bush regime changed how employment figures are calculated to count people who are underemployed or employed only part time as employed. Much of the so-called employment gains over the last 7 years have been people who are under-employed or are just working part time. Even with that, we have seen the Corporate Media trumpet paltry job gain figures of a little more than 100,000 jobs per month when it really takes 300,000 or more to keep up with the population that is entering the job market.
paranoia @ 39:
The only thing now needed is wiretapping.......er? Oh boy!!!!
I heard on the msm that the ceo of countrywide was knee deep in the BS and now is trying to dig himself out of by saying all he did was for his family.
I think he should be on the street corner selling pencils like those that he told that they could afford a house and questionable loans. instead he'll keep his houses and all that money of course the investigations on the hill are just a show for the masses ( those that watch) just like all investigations go no where.
If I had the damn government rebate check, I would be able to get a bottle of wine. The Great Depression is always about the cheap wine jones.
15 years of NAFTA and the like, and there's not enough good paying jobs left in this country. We ain't seen nothing yet. This is just the tip of the iceberg that's looming ahead.
Ron @ 22:
Yes. Preserving, protecting and defending the Constitution of the United States of America against ALL enemies both foreign and domestic, so help me God.
There is no one currently running (save perhaps Ralph Nader) who I would trust to take that oath and MEAN IT. Especially when one considers that McCain, Hillary Clinton and Obama have all ripped the heart out of our Constitution with their support of the illegal invasion and occupation of Iraq, the Patriot Act, the bogus "9/11 Omission Report", The Military Commissions Act (which deep-sixed habeus corpus), torture, spying on the American people etc. etc. etc.
And there you are.
Oh, and P.S. Here's the return we are getting for our hard earned tax dollars:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=667SaGS-Jqg&feature=related
http://www.evtv1.com/player.aspx?itemnum=6244&aid=
http://www.evtv1.com/player.aspx?itemnum=11017&aid=
http://www.evtv1.com/player.aspx?itemnum=8149&aid=
Snowball @ 41:
You got it.
Which matters most? 63,000 lost jobs or the word "monster"?
Ron @ 38:
Well it's off topic but since you insist...The reason would be that I perceive that electing a certain democratic nominee is highly likely to lose us once again hard, fought-back majorities in both the House and Senate in later off-year elections simply because of her uncanny ability to polarize just about everybody and anything.
Snowball @ 41:
Your correct in my opinion. Besides, the employment report is just one piece of data that came out. We have been seeing a whole list of continuous economic bad news for some time now. None of the Government's economic data should be taken as accurate. In fact, if the numbers for a given piece of data show a downturn you can bet that its probably much, much worse. The numbers they produce (I.E. unemployment, employment figures, CPI, PPI, etc.) will and always have been skewed or altered to show improvement and stability in the economy. Every Government does the this same thing.
Abbybwood @ 46:
So, does that mean you are going to vote republican? You know that Nader will never win the election.
If there is Anything that will sink McAngry it is the Economy, although his anger is also a problem since quite a few Military Higher-ups have come out and said he's a hothead.
But truth is, the American public is all about materialism, and that takes money. So if the public pocket-book is getting dusty inside THAT will be what unseats the GOP and this time they can't blame it on the Democrats spending.
Ron @ 22:
http://www.salon.com/opinion/greenwald/2008/03/07/house_fisa/index.html
Can you say, something smells? Oh ya, it does.
unsurebtwilling @ 43:
I watched the hearings today on c-span. That guy is a total snake. None of his own homes are in foreclosure. Yep, he has more than one mansion.
Tax cut will fix this!
Vote, schmote:
http://www.hd.net/drr227.html
And:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=GzPXer7946E
And truth be told, in my heart (after 40 years as a hard core Democrat) I still support Ron Paul and the principles of liberty, a money supply based on silver and gold (as mandated by the Founders), limited government and a non-interventionist "military" foreign policy....the very same military-industrial complex Eisenhower warned us about....and we ignored him. Now at our own peril.
Rico @ 49:
God that's wrong, and the real answer is easy. Bush has "Fucked Forward" the next President. Might as well vote McStain as he is the one I would most like to see have to take the screwing (would have preferred Guiliani of the Mittster). Barack and Hillary are basically good people. They don't deserve what's coming.
Keep in mind, if you are working part time or under-employed, i.e. working 35 hours a week (that is, less than 40), or are fired (many employers will find a pretense for firing you instead of laying you off), to my knowledge, you do not qualify for unemployment benefits. Therefore, you are not counted as unemployed when you lose your job. On the other hand, they do count you as employed as long as you keep your job. Funny how that works.
Ron @ 22:
Commander Cluster Bomb McClintonerman, says that we should vote for John SIDNEY McCain, if Obama gets the nomination. She has this fixation with the phone ringing at 3AM. I say, if it is 3AM, and the phone rings, it is likely to be Monica.
Perino: ‘White House Has Been Very Forthcoming In Putting Forward LIEs’
...I meant NIEs. My bad.
Snowball @ 58:
It might depend on the state. In IL if your employer is willing to extend unemployment benefits to you, you can get them. We give them to everyone we fire as it is easier than having to fight to decline them. I don't know how it works other places
Sidney Scooter III @ 59:
ya know,I've had about all I can take on this Clinton bashing.
.Do you really think that's what she meant?Have you stopped and thought about it,or, have you just gone on some kind of knee jerk reaction.Have you even considered that she knows she can kick McCain's ass in the general election.I'm sorry,but, your comment is ridiculous.(edited)
I think the Fed is approaching a rock and a hard place. If they don't lower interest rates, the economy tanks. If they do lower interest rates, the dollar tanks. Seems to me they're going to lower interest rates further. I wonder how much longer foreigners are going to purchase our debt at low interest rates, without consideration of dollar devaluation.
Channel 4 (Britian) had a show where they said something about the mortgage fiasco being followed by a larger "Credit default swaps" fiasco. We'll see.
Fanon @ 61:
I think it depends on the ethics of the employer, not the state. I've had jobs that worked either way. Some employers never pay their unemployment insurance hoping that they can let employees go without them applying for benefits. I know, been there, done that. Many small businesses do it. The employer gets a slap on the wrist for doing it when they are caught and have to pay up. It's a gamble for them, but one many are willing to take.
I'm still trying to figure out how that $600 is going to make such a dramatic turn for the better on the economy. I live in Ohio and it wont even pay my entire gas bill!
Marcus Aurelius @ 57:
They are the lesser evil! I wouldn't vote fore one of them if it wasn't because of this crap two party system.
R2K @ 55:
Yes, that will once again be the mantra. That always plays out well with the voters but makes little to no fiscal sense. I've never seen a Government maintain its current spending on programs while simultaneously cutting off or reducing its main source of revenue (I.E. tax cuts). The only way that this can be legitimately achieved is if the Government is already running a surplus which obviously is not the case with this Government.
There are of course, more sneaky ways to maintain the Government's massive over spending though. One method is simply to borrow the money and add it to the nation's debt. The U.S. Government, as everyone knows has been doing that for a long time now. Another method is to simply "print" up the money to cover those lost revenues. By doing this, the Government, through its central bank debases its own currency and creates inflation. When the consumer buys the goods at those higher prices the business records a larger than usual profit. When tax time comes around those businesses record that larger profit on their returns and the Government's tax revenues increase.
mudshark @ 62:
Your comment is the only one that is a logical response. We won't win the Whitehouse if we can't quit hating each other's candidate. I wanted Edwards and now I would prefer Obama but I will vote for Clinton if she gets the nomination. Another 4 years of repug will only mean more of the same or worse. Remember, we have to win huge majorities in the house and senate also.
REAL TIME WITH BILL MAHER 123:
Fri 3/7 11:00 PM--HBO High Definition - EAST
Fri 3/7 11:00 PM--HBO - EAST
Sat 3/8 01:00 AM--HBO2 - EAST
Sat 3/8 02:00 AM--HBO High Definition - WEST
Guests: Former Rep. Joe Scarborough, Jeremy Scahill, Jacob Weisberg. HBO's politically incorrect muse Bill Maher hosts this cutting-edge, live talk series. (TVMA) (AC,AL)
Rico @ 10:
Probably more legal than Obama did it since they were being heavily and unjustly scrutinized.
REM comes to mind. "It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine!"
Ron @ 68:
Supreme Court nominees! Say it over and over. Supreme Court nominees!
P.D. @ 71:
I was thinking of Devo's Freedom of Choice.
Fanon @ 72:
Yep!....
hat tip to Snowball,she's been the one driving that message.
mudshark @ 73:
Or 'We're on the Road To Nowhere'
Fanon @ 72:
The list is soooo long.
Fanon @ 72:
Absolutely!
Yes, Republicans and their Libertarian cousins will proclaim loudly that tax cuts will stimulate the economy. This is just B.S.. Wealth percolates up, it does not trickle down. The very people who are most likely to spend on goods and services are those who make so little that their taxable income amounts to naught. The best way to stimulate the economy is to tax the richest among us and funnel that wealth to the lowest income bracket by government spending on jobs programs that give people work experience and disposable income that can be spent on goods and services. This in turn, leads to greater business opportunities in the private sector. Keynes had it all figured out.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keynesian_economics
Many Americans smile each time they see an increase in the equity value of their broker accounts due to the Dow making new highs month after month. This gain in wealth is an illusion second to none because there is one important number that is missing from monthly statements. It is the real value of the Dow after factoring in the collapse of the U.S. dollar global purchasing power parity index. What the American public sees each month is the value of the nominal Dow, which is an illusion of wealth.
Let’s do a Dow “real money index” reality check. Simply take the Dow nominal value, which is what someone sees in his or her monthly statement and multiply it by the U.S dollar trade-weighted index. Before we do this, please make sure you are sitting and prepared for a disturbing piece of reality. In 2000, the Dow top was 11,700 nominal x 1.24, which was the dollar trade-weighted index. This equals 14,508 global purchasing power parity (GPPP) points. In 2007, the Dow at 13,500 nominal multiplied by a dollar index of 0.81 equals 10,935 GPPP points. That’s a 25 percent real stock market decline.
Ummm. Huge majorities? You mean all the filibustering and BlueDog Dems? Do any of You actually watch Congress or just assume a D vote means progress?
republicans famous line when talking about democrats their the party of tax and spend.Well since george broke the bank with his war.Like Cristy Whitman threw New Jersey into debt.Both will take the attention of democrats to get both under control.To, do will take some higher taxes to pay for the George and Whitman's blunders.And the public short on memory will fall for the republicans montra.When they accuse the democrats of tax and spend again.
Tin soldiers
"He joined up to get a job
And show he wasn't scar