Then Jim Shepherd is an idiot who never bothered to learn how the unemployment rate is calculated. Anyone interested can go to the BLS site linked below:
..which explains why the debt levels for the average American are going through the roof and why the savings rate is now negative. The term “smoke and mirrors” comes to mind.
There's a term that comes to mind but it's not smoke and mirrors.
Looks like our debt to income ratio has increased by less than 1% over the past decade during a time of historically low interest rates and record home ownership. Does this look like our debt is going through the roof to you?
If the savings rate is so bad today, why have we achieved a record household net worth in this country? The savings rate, as calculated by the government, is always highest during economic downturns. As a matter of fact, the rate of savings was 12% during the 1982 recession. Maybe Americans find better returns in the stock markets than they do in passbook savings. I'd suggest other sources for your information than Jim Shepherd.