Unemployment Climbs, No Relief In Sight

[laughingliberal]

NEW YORK -- The American unemployment rate rose to 9.8 percent in November and the economy added a paltry 39,000 net jobs, the government reported this morning, dealing a substantial blow to hopes that better fortunes are taking shape.

Many economists had been expecting to see the number of jobs rise by about 150,000, amid recent talk that a real and sustainable recovery is finally underway, following the most punishing economic downturn since the Great Depression.

But the disappointing monthly snapshot of the nation's job market released by the Labor Department chastened such views, underscoring the enormous strains still weighing on the economy, leaving 15 million Americans still officially out of work.

"It's almost dead in the water," said Dean Baker, co-director of the Center for Economic Policy Research in Washington. "There's no sector showing good job growth right now. You really can't find anything good in this report."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/12/03/unemployment-joblessness-benefits_n_791550.html

[NRaleighLiberal]

1. My sober take on this - WHY should we expect the numbers to improve?

Factories have closed/are closing
Seems like downsizing is occurring everywhere
Unemployment benefits running out - less shopping, less stuff needed, leading to more downsizing

So - where are the jobs supposed to be coming from if we don't make much any more and people can't buy much any more? The only way I can see the unemployment number decreasing is when more people start giving up/falling out of the data collection.