It’s bad, man. The May unemployment report released Friday morning didn’t just announce one month of lethargic job growth–69,000 added, fewer than necessary to even keep up with population growth. The government’s regular estimates can be off by enough to turn whispers of doom to shouts of joy. These things are fickle. But …
Economy
The Bleak Unemployment Report: Is Europe to Blame?
For the first time in almost a year, the unemployment rate rose to 8.2% in May as the economic recovery appeared to not only slow but almost completely stall. And it gets worse.
No, President Obama Isn’t Against Capitalism — but He’s Not Defending It Loudly Enough
“I can’t think of another presidential candidate in history who has ever tried to win the presidency by running against capitalism.” So said Rush Limbaugh of President Obama last week. Asked for a response during a Fox News …
The Myth of American Decline: An Interview with Author Daniel Gross
You don’t have to look very hard to find proof that over the past five years Americans have evolved into a very pessimistic bunch. Far more of us think the country is headed in the wrong direction than think it’s on the right …
Book Review: What America’s Banana King Teaches Us About Capitalism
Americans puzzling over the role of today’s powerful corporations — Bain Capital, Goldman Sachs, Google — may profit from considering the example of the United Fruit Company.
It seems almost quaint to think that a …
Which Advanced Economy Has the Most Debt?
With all the talk of Greece’s impending exit from the euro zone, debt is once again in the headlines. Greece’s massive public sector debt, coupled with its inability to devalue its currency, has put the country at risk of …
Euro Crisis: Why a Greek Exit Could Be Much Worse than Expected
More than one kind of damaging domino effect is possible if Greece is forced to abandon the euro
Is the Stock Market Wildly Overoptimistic?
Stocks appear to be flying too high in light of the enormous number of risks that the U.S. economy faces over the next 12 months.
Which States Have the Most Economic Mobility?
Americans love economic mobility. It’s kind of a founding myth for us: We see ourselves as having broken free from rigid, aristocratic Europe to form a meritocracy that guaranteed a chance to move up in the world. Though there …
European Voters Have Rejected Austerity—So What Happens Next?
Why Aren’t There More Jobs?
Mediocre growth, overly cautious corporations and government cutbacks figure to stifle employment gains until there is some comprehensive economic policy
What You Need to Know About April’s Jobs Numbers
Any way you cut it, the Labor Department’s announcement that the U.S. economy added just 115,000 jobs in April is a disappointment. Economists had been expecting 160,000 new jobs, and even that number is far below the kind of …
