National unemployment hits 10.2%

[Oddball]

According to their hype on the stimulus plan it would not go above 8%. That failed so miserably that now they are talking about doing more of the same. Yea...that'll fix it.

Think Obama needs some economic advisors who have actually been in the real world?

You mean like Paul Volcker, the greatest central banker who has ever lived?

No better than the greatest cat house madame who has ever lived.

 

[Toro]

So you're saying that Mr. Obama and those who work for him have no idea about what is going on.

Good to know.

No. What I am saying is that the forces are so powerful, they are beyond the scope of government to stop them. They can only mitigate them.

But you also stated that anyone who didn't know that unemployment would go up didn't understand what was going on. Obama said the rate would stay below 8% if his stimulus package was passed. It passed, unemployment keeps going up, ergo...


Just sayin'...

Well, just sayin' and being a pain in the ass.

I have no idea what unemployment is going to peak at. No clue. It wouldn't surprise me if we went to 12%. But if you were paying attention to what was happening 3-6 months ago, 10% unemployment was about as surprising as the sun coming up every day.

As for politicians, I have stated here several times before that I did not fault Bush one bit for saying the economy was going to be fine back in 2007. In fact, I would have chastised him if he said that it was going to go into the tank, as was pretty apparent to me. Economics is part confidence, and it is the job of the President - no matter who he is from what party - to talk up the economy in an attempt to instill confidence. Bush did it, now Obama is doing it. And both of them are right to do so, even if they are being Pollyannaish.

 

[DiamondDave]

Dave..

Still looking for those "trickle down" jobs we were promised

Did Bush lie to us?

Was not defending Bush economic policies.. however you have been and you are defending Obama's... now again... where do you think jobs come from?? What in Obama's plan makes a positive impact on the economy and creates jobs???

Not so fast Dave...

You are the self proclaimed czar of trickle down. We passed the Bush tax cuts, those tax cuts are still in effect. Where are all the trickle down jobs we were promised?

More like "Tinkle down"

I am???... nice that you think that... never stated it, moron

Again... where do you think jobs come from?? Answer the question.... Do you think more jobs come from more money to invest in business, or from more taxation and money going into the government bureaucracy???

I'll give you a hint... the government cannot 'guarantee' jobs... but policies can be in place that can make it better or worse for business to create jobs... and trying to see if you know which policies stimulate that more than others

 

[code1211]

"If we don't pass the economic succubus bill, unemployment could go as high as 8%!"

The bill was passed and unemployment is now in excess of 10%.

Howz that hopey-changey workin' for y'all?

The secret is in the prediction. If it did not pass, unemployment would be at 8.8. It did pass.

Unemployment is at 10.2. Another one was just passed. Next stop: 11%.

A stimulus package works only when it stimulates spending. So far, there has been no stimulus package passed. The aim of the administration is not to end the recession. The aim is to intensify it. Obama's goal is to be the second FDR and that cannot happen in good times.

Either that or Obama is the most stupid person that ever lived.

If we accept that Obama is smart and that he knows what he is doing and that he is a clearly reasoning planner with a dead on solid grip on what needs to be done to achieve his goals, we must accept that he is steering us toward the goal he has in mind.

What direction does that seem to be to you?

 

[FactFinder]

"If we don't pass the economic succubus bill, unemployment could go as high as 8%!"

The bill was passed and unemployment is now in excess of 10%.

Howz that hopey-changey workin' for y'all?

The secret is in the prediction. If it did not pass, unemployment would be at 8.8. It did pass.

Unemployment is at 10.2. Another one was just passed. Next stop: 11%.

A stimulus package works only when it stimulates spending. So far, there has been no stimulus package passed. The aim of the administration is not to end the recession. The aim is to intensify it. Obama's goal is to be the second FDR and that cannot happen in good times.

Either that or Obama is the most stupid person that ever lived.

If we accept that Obama is smart and that he knows what he is doing and that he is a clearly reasoning planner with a dead on solid grip on what needs to be done to achieve his goals, we must accept that he is steering us toward the goal he has in mind.

What direction does that seem to be to you?

I would have to assume that he or his economic advisors are clueless. Chasing the Dems out of Congress because of high unemployment would be antithetical to any FDR 2 goals, heh?

 

[code1211]

What a bunch of whiners!

Hey, rightist wingtoids, go compare the rate with that of Reagan's in his full third year in a much less trying situation.

You guys demonstrate daily that you are irrelevant, and I and others are going to keep reminding you of that.

You are out of touch with history. When Reagan took office, the Misery Index, loudly quoted by Carter during the '76 campaign, had almost doubled in 4 years. The trajectory of the country was straight down in 1980. It had been getting worse for 4 straight years.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Misery_index_(economics)

During the Presidential campaign of 1976, Democratic candidate Jimmy Carter made frequent references to the Misery Index, which by the summer of 1976 was at 13.57%. Carter stated that no man responsible for giving a country a misery index that high had a right to even ask to be President. Carter won the 1976 election. However, by 1980, when President Carter was running for re-election against Ronald Reagan, the Misery Index had reached an all-time high of 21.98%. Carter lost the election to Reagan.

<end quote>

GWB left Obama with a Misery Index of 7.29 which was a decrease of .64 from Bush's first year in office. The Clinton Administration ended with a Misery Index of 7.29.

By September, Obama has already increased that by .88 to 8.51 and since then, unemployment has blossomed into the 10.2% that we will probably yearn for by February.

The Country divides roughly into two groups: Those who remember how the Carter years felt and those who will find out.

Does anyone recall what the unemployment rate was when the Dems took control of both houses of Congress?

 

[Oddball]

"If we don't pass the economic succubus bill, unemployment could go as high as 8%!"

The bill was passed and unemployment is now in excess of 10%.

Howz that hopey-changey workin' for y'all?

The secret is in the prediction. If it did not pass, unemployment would be at 8.8. It did pass.

Unemployment is at 10.2. Another one was just passed. Next stop: 11%.

A stimulus package works only when it stimulates spending. So far, there has been no stimulus package passed. The aim of the administration is not to end the recession. The aim is to intensify it. Obama's goal is to be the second FDR and that cannot happen in good times.

Either that or Obama is the most stupid person that ever lived.

If we accept that Obama is smart and that he knows what he is doing and that he is a clearly reasoning planner with a dead on solid grip on what needs to be done to achieve his goals, we must accept that he is steering us toward the goal he has in mind.

What direction does that seem to be to you?

I'm going with Obammy being incomprehensibly economically stupid, being led by Marxist advisers who know exactly what they're doing.

Same result.

 

[KittenKoder]

To those that blame Pres. Bush. Compare unemployment rates under Bush with under Obama. They nearly doubled under Obama.

Bureau of Labor Statistics Data

Year Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Annual
1999 4.3 4.4 4.2 4.3 4.2 4.3 4.3 4.2 4.2 4.1 4.1 4.0
2000 4.0 4.1 4.0 3.8 4.0 4.0 4.0 4.1 3.9 3.9 3.9 3.9
2001 4.2 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.3 4.5 4.6 4.9 5.0 5.3 5.5 5.7
2002 5.7 5.7 5.7 5.9 5.8 5.8 5.8 5.7 5.7 5.7 5.9 6.0
2003 5.8 5.9 5.9 6.0 6.1 6.3 6.2 6.1 6.1 6.0 5.8 5.7
2004 5.7 5.6 5.8 5.6 5.6 5.6 5.5 5.4 5.4 5.5 5.4 5.4
2005 5.2 5.4 5.2 5.2 5.1 5.1 5.0 4.9 5.0 5.0 5.0 4.8
2006 4.7 4.8 4.7 4.7 4.7 4.6 4.7 4.7 4.5 4.4 4.5 4.4
2007 4.6 4.5 4.4 4.5 4.5 4.6 4.7 4.7 4.7 4.8 4.7 4.9
2008 4.9 4.8 5.1 5.0 5.5 5.6 5.8 6.2 6.2 6.6 6.8 7.2
Bush ends, Obama begins
2009 7.6 8.1 8.5 8.9 9.4 9.5 9.4 9.7 9.8 10.2

Who is to blame again?

All this chart proves is that Bush did a decent job at lowering it until the recession hit.

 

[The T]

"If we don't pass the economic succubus bill, unemployment could go as high as 8%!"

The bill was passed and unemployment is now in excess of 10%.

Howz that hopey-changey workin' for y'all?

The secret is in the prediction. If it did not pass, unemployment would be at 8.8. It did pass.

Unemployment is at 10.2. Another one was just passed. Next stop: 11%.

A stimulus package works only when it stimulates spending. So far, there has been no stimulus package passed. The aim of the administration is not to end the recession. The aim is to intensify it. Obama's goal is to be the second FDR and that cannot happen in good times.

Either that or Obama is the most stupid person that ever lived.

If we accept that Obama is smart and that he knows what he is doing and that he is a clearly reasoning planner with a dead on solid grip on what needs to be done to achieve his goals, we must accept that he is steering us toward the goal he has in mind.

What direction does that seem to be to you?

I'm going with Obammy being incomprehensibly economically stupid, being led by Marxist advisers who know exactly what they're doing.

Same result.

I concur.

(IMAGE Courtesy Of EIB)

 

[mdn2000]

The Carter years sucked, gas prices doubled, unemployment was 10-11% in michigan, Iran was kicking our ass. Under Obama gas is staying high, Obama promises less energy at higher prices, General Motors is taken over by the government with a large portion given to the Unions. Manufacturing jobs are lost and Obama states unequivically that those jobs are never coming back.

I wish I could state it eloquently and cleverly but I can not. Obama hates the USA, Obama thinks we are guilty of all the sins of the world, Obama thinks capitalism has stolen its wealth from the poor thus we must redistribute our wealth to the poor, watch the upcoming global warming talks, african nations already say the USA should pay for global warming damage done to their countries. Obama is making speeches all the time telling the american people we are going to have it hard for a long time. Obama does not care about the USA.

 

[The T]

The Carter years sucked, gas prices doubled, unemployment was 10-11% in michigan, Iran was kicking our ass. Under Obama gas is staying high, Obama promises less energy at higher prices, General Motors is taken over by the government with a large portion given to the Unions. Manufacturing jobs are lost and Obama states unequivically that those jobs are never coming back.

I wish I could state it eloquently and cleverly but I can not. Obama hates the USA, Obama thinks we are guilty of all the sins of the world, Obama thinks capitalism has stolen its wealth from the poor thus we must redistribute our wealth to the poor, watch the upcoming global warming talks, african nations already say the USA should pay for global warming damage done to their countries. Obama is making speeches all the time telling the american people we are going to have it hard for a long time. Obama does not care about the USA.

Why do you say that? I think you did a masterful JOB here all by yerself my friend.

 

[JakeStarkey]

Does anyone recall that the misery index is not a comparative value of worth here, where as the unemployment rates work well as tools of comparison. And the fact Regan did qualitatively worse than Obama has so far. No true blue American wants any shape or form of ronnie regainism economics.

 

[CryGlennCry]

I am not going to try to make some kind of excuse because I can't and won't.
And I'm not going to try to paint a "not SO bad" picture of the unemployment numbers, because they are terrifying. Thank god I have a job.
But reading the posts here I really think a lot of you are just plain nutty.
To think that the president of The United States would be ACTIVELY trying to bring down this country is absolutely ludicrous.
You have to see that..right?
I mean the previous administration was PROVEN to have done things that have turned out to be great detriment to our country in many aspects. But I don't for a minute think these tragic missteps were done to purposefully harm the country.
C'mon...we are all Americans.

 

[DiamondDave]

Dave..

Still looking for those "trickle down" jobs we were promised

Did Bush lie to us?

Was not defending Bush economic policies.. however you have been and you are defending Obama's... now again... where do you think jobs come from?? What in Obama's plan makes a positive impact on the economy and creates jobs???

Not so fast Dave...

You are the self proclaimed czar of trickle down. We passed the Bush tax cuts, those tax cuts are still in effect. Where are all the trickle down jobs we were promised?

More like "Tinkle down"

As stated, asshole... where did I ever proclaim that???

Answer the question, asshole

 

[code1211]

Does anyone recall that the misery index is not a comparative value of worth here, where as the unemployment rates work well as tools of comparison. And the fact Regan did qualitatively worse than Obama has so far. No true blue American wants any shape or form of ronnie regainism economics.

How old are you?

 

[code1211]

I am not going to try to make some kind of excuse because I can't and won't.
And I'm not going to try to paint a "not SO bad" picture of the unemployment numbers, because they are terrifying. Thank god I have a job.
But reading the posts here I really think a lot of you are just plain nutty.
To think that the president of The United States would be ACTIVELY trying to bring down this country is absolutely ludicrous.
You have to see that..right?
I mean the previous administration was PROVEN to have done things that have turned out to be great detriment to our country in many aspects. But I don't for a minute think these tragic missteps were done to purposefully harm the country.
C'mon...we are all Americans.

You miss the point, at least with regard to what I said.

Presidents have an immense impact on this country's economy and therefore the world's economy and every action they take needs careful review. A wise man in that office with a keen view of history and understanding of the effect of his actions will take a different path than a lesser man.

Compare the two Bush presidents faced with the same choice as the invasion of iraq proceeds. One stops due to the implications of advancing and the other "goes it alone".

Which was the wise decision?

Bush has the economy crash due to 9/11 and Obama has the economy crash due to the banking debacle. One tells folks to go out and go shopping. The other says that this is worst economy in history and we all need to brace for the worst.

Which was the wise advice?

Reagan takes office after a decade of worsening economic numbers, unemployment out of control, inflation out of site, mortgage interest rates in the teens, hostages in Iran, failing car companies, oil prices doubled, international prestige dissolved. the Cold War raging and a general feeling of hopelessness gripping the nation.

Reagan said that we, as Americans, were blessed, powerful, creative and that America was both the hope and the envy of the world. That the rest of the world looked to us as a "Shining house on the hill". Reagan said and believed that the power of this country flowed from the people and that the best Government was one that got out of the way and let that power find a direction to benefit those that work to create it.

Compare that message to the one that Obama proclaims: That we have lost jobs that won't return, that we are not capable to overcome anything without government help, that we have injured all of the world and we need to make amends, that most of the pain and suffering in the world is the result of what we do and don't do, that the rich are stealing from the poor, that the whites are stealing from the blacks, that every group is against every other group. That our wealth today is the result of injustice and our history is one of criminal greed.

Which advice seems more likely to inspire achievement?

Which advice seems more likely to inspire excuses, in-fighting, division and confusion?

Every leader of every organization be it a team or a club or a company knows that he must inspire the soul, enrich the spirit, enhance the strengths and overcome the weaknesses within his group if he is to lead his group to success. He must effectively direct his group to a clear vision of what it means to be successful.

Reagan was called "The Gipper" due to his rallying approach to communication. He chose to inspire people to achieve to make a better country. The results of his re-election in which he came closer than any other modern President to a 100% Electoral College sweep speaks volumes.

Obama has not the first clue on what he is doing now that he in in office. He understands only campaigning and winning elections. As a Community Organizer, he was adept at fanning the rage and outrage of his community to elicite action to get more from the haves to the have nots that he was working to help. Watch his best speeches today. They are accusative, divisive, blame fixing, class defining and fatalistically pessamistic.

His method is to divide. It's what he does and it is his winning move. He uses it at every opportunity. It's his default approach to everything.

It's possible that he could change, but not likely.

As long as he chooses to play one end against the other in everything he does, we as a people cannot win.

 

[code1211]

To those that blame Pres. Bush. Compare unemployment rates under Bush with under Obama. They nearly doubled under Obama.

Bureau of Labor Statistics Data

Year Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Annual
1999 4.3 4.4 4.2 4.3 4.2 4.3 4.3 4.2 4.2 4.1 4.1 4.0
2000 4.0 4.1 4.0 3.8 4.0 4.0 4.0 4.1 3.9 3.9 3.9 3.9
2001 4.2 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.3 4.5 4.6 4.9 5.0 5.3 5.5 5.7
2002 5.7 5.7 5.7 5.9 5.8 5.8 5.8 5.7 5.7 5.7 5.9 6.0
2003 5.8 5.9 5.9 6.0 6.1 6.3 6.2 6.1 6.1 6.0 5.8 5.7
2004 5.7 5.6 5.8 5.6 5.6 5.6 5.5 5.4 5.4 5.5 5.4 5.4
2005 5.2 5.4 5.2 5.2 5.1 5.1 5.0 4.9 5.0 5.0 5.0 4.8
2006 4.7 4.8 4.7 4.7 4.7 4.6 4.7 4.7 4.5 4.4 4.5 4.4
2007 4.6 4.5 4.4 4.5 4.5 4.6 4.7 4.7 4.7 4.8 4.7 4.9
2008 4.9 4.8 5.1 5.0 5.5 5.6 5.8 6.2 6.2 6.6 6.8 7.2
Bush ends, Obama begins
2009 7.6 8.1 8.5 8.9 9.4 9.5 9.4 9.7 9.8 10.2

Who is to blame again?

All this chart proves is that Bush did a decent job at lowering it until the recession hit.

Let's see...

When did the Dems take control of Both Houses of Congress?

 

[California Girl]

I blame us.... for electing idiots - on both sides.

 

[logical4u]

The Carter years sucked, gas prices doubled, unemployment was 10-11% in michigan, Iran was kicking our ass. Under Obama gas is staying high, Obama promises less energy at higher prices, General Motors is taken over by the government with a large portion given to the Unions. Manufacturing jobs are lost and Obama states unequivically that those jobs are never coming back.

I wish I could state it eloquently and cleverly but I can not. Obama hates the USA, Obama thinks we are guilty of all the sins of the world, Obama thinks capitalism has stolen its wealth from the poor thus we must redistribute our wealth to the poor, watch the upcoming global warming talks, african nations already say the USA should pay for global warming damage done to their countries. Obama is making speeches all the time telling the american people we are going to have it hard for a long time. Obama does not care about the USA.

How about stating it: "The Carter years sucked, gas prices doubled, unemployment was 10-11% in michigan, Iran was kicking our ass. Under Obama gas is" high, Obama is kissing Iran's ass, "less energy at higher prices, General Motors is taken over by the government" to give Unions political payback. "Manufacturing jobs are lost and Obama " wants to keep it that way.

Yup, you should ask a person to 'define' change when they start talking.

 

[logical4u]

I am not going to try to make some kind of excuse because I can't and won't.
And I'm not going to try to paint a "not SO bad" picture of the unemployment numbers, because they are terrifying. Thank god I have a job.
But reading the posts here I really think a lot of you are just plain nutty.
To think that the president of The United States would be ACTIVELY trying to bring down this country is absolutely ludicrous.
You have to see that..right?
I mean the previous administration was PROVEN to have done things that have turned out to be great detriment to our country in many aspects. But I don't for a minute think these tragic missteps were done to purposefully harm the country.
C'mon...we are all Americans.

Please, give us a demonstration of where the President has shown that he 'loves' this country and wants to 'serve' this country.
Tell us where he has been 'decisive' as a leader.
Tell us where he has been 'decisive' as Commander an Chief; we have guys in the middle east, catching bullets while this guy claims to be thinking, what' the matter, didn't George Soros visit him again and tell him what to do?
Please explain to us how running up the national debt on luxury giv-aways (health care for all, cap n trade, a green tax imposed by the UN will be signed by him in Copenhagen) will help this country.
I don't want idealistic statements, I want results. Show where something actually happened, like transparency...not, no lobbyists...not, bringing people together...not (he has gone out of his way to marginalize and attack several groups), bringing change and accountability to DC...not.

The only results this administration is offering is: changing us from citizens to subjects [of the USA (via the health care reform bills), via the UN (by signing a treaty in Copenhagen that will superceed our Constitution), and robbing the population and the country to buy a position in the 'global gov' his buddy George has been working towards, since WWII.
Do you support his policies?