Under Obama, Economic Stagnation Is the New Normal

RCM ^ | 12/10/2012 | Louis Woodhill

[SeekAndFind]

Friday's "Employment Situation" report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) showed that 5.4 million Americans have dropped out of the labor force since Barack Obama took office. The labor force declined by 350,000 in November, despite an increase of 191,000 in our working age population.

The unprecedented decline of labor force participation under President Obama is not news. However, it also appears that millions of brain cells have dropped out of the mental labor force of America's economic analysts. How else can we account for headlines like these?

"Jobs report: A pleasant surprise" (Jared Bernstein)

"The employment emergency is over" (Felix Salmon)

"Fiscal cliff? What fiscal cliff? No evidence in jobs numbers" (Stephen Gandel)

In case anyone didn't notice, the BLS jobs report was terrible. Unemployment didn't go down in November (from 7.9% to 7.7%) as the BLS reported, it actually went up. The true unemployment rate, calculated at the labor force participation rate that existed when Bush 43 left office (65.8%), increased from 10.7% to 10.8%. This put the true unemployment rate 1.3 percentage points higher than when Obama's so-called "economic recovery" began, almost 3.5 years ago.

As of November 2012, total employment was still 3.2 million below its peak, which occurred five years earlier. This is particularly ghastly, because America's working age population has increased by 11.2 million since then. Less than 1% of incremental working-age Americans have managed to get jobs since Obama took office.

But wait. There's more.

[brownsfan]

This is all stuff that’s been discussed. It’s interesting to watch it unfold, but totally predicted by conservatives who are watching the situation.

The country fails, the media says it’s the best you can expect, the masses turn back to their smart phones and Honey Boo Boo, content.

[Thorliveshere]

It’s still exactly what Obama wants. We need Conservative leadership with some big brass ones to go after Obama and his ilk! Where are they!?!

[Buckeye McFrog]

What is different is that large swaths of our population, comfy with their Obamaphones, their EBT cards and SSI disability checks, no longer seem to care.

[brownsfan]

“What is different is that large swaths of our population, comfy with their Obamaphones, their EBT cards and SSI disability checks, no longer seem to care.”

Our public schools have eliminated critical thinking skills. Americans who are in the Obamaphone/EBT set, are generally stupid. Chronically stupid. The ideal communist citizen. And you’re right, not only do they not care... they are HAPPY.

This is not the America I grew up in, and I don’t feel particularly American anymore.

[Trod Upon]

At this point “America” is sounding more and more like an echo of greatness from the past, like “Rome” or “Athens.” Much like the Rome and Athens of today, it’s becoming just another place on the map, eaten up with brainwashed mongrels who use the slowly-waning power of the kleptocracy to strip the carcasses of their neighbors. At some point it will end. Whether because there is no flesh left to strip or because the remnant Americans stand up and stop it remains to be seen. It’s definitely not looking good at this point.