Sorry for the size of the graph below, but I've never learned to shrink it.
Exportation and earnings will rise as long as there is a market for the products produced... and the growth is based upon a myriad of factors, from inflation to cheap credit to the purchasing power of the baby boomers to natural progression.
Likewise, ownership has as much to do with borrowing power than actual prosperity. Do you have any idea how much debtor spending has increased in the past decade? And how much it will impact the economy when THAT particular merry-go-round breaks down? Much of the borrowing and credit extension is related to lower personal earnings. It is already starting to happen in the RE markets, and it's going to be one hell of a headache.
Employment is a double-ended argument, because national employment numbers mean little as far as the actual health of the average family economy is concerned... If I lose my $100,000/year-plus-benefits job as a quality control manager in a plant, and find a job as a (fill in the blank) at $90,000, or $60,000, or $40,000, how is that a benefit? Particularly if the job pool for lateral movement or advancement is shrinking every year? If I become self-employed and earn $100,000 a year with no insurance or 401K, how is that a benefit? If I graduate from school and take a $30,000/yr job, that does wonders for the net employment numbers but very little in terms of the actual cost of job exportation to the average American.
Sorry for the size of the graph below, but I've never learned to shrink it.