Institutional Investor (February Issue)
“Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, is releasing huge new supplies of natural gas and promising to revive the American economy with cheap energy. The U.S. energy boom may “create 3 million jobs and boost economic growth by 1 to 1.5 percentage points a year between now and 2020.” Chemical and agricultural companies are also poised to benefit from the lower cost of raw materials and energy.
Washington Post (December 10)
“This is not a good time to be starting out in life. Jobs are scarce, and those that exist often pay unexpectedly low wages. Beginning a family—always stressful and uncertain—is increasingly a stretch.” America may be looking at a lost generation of 20-somethings.
Tags: Family, Jobs, Lost generation, U.S., Wages
Washington Post (November 8)
“It’s still about jobs. What will determine the core success of President Obama’s second term is progress — or the lack thereof — in reducing long-term unemployment. We know this from exit polls, which ranked the economy as the top issue (selected by about 60 percent of voters) and, more important, from common sense.”
New York Times (November 6)
“President Obama’s dramatic re-election victory was not a sign that a fractured nation had finally come together on Election Day. But it was a strong endorsement of economic policies that stress job growth, health care reform, tax increases and balanced deficit reduction — and of moderate policies on immigration, abortion and same-sex marriage.”
Tags: Economic policies, Health care, Jobs, Obama, Re-election, Taxes
New York Times (September 16)
“On the most basic level, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act is responsible for saving and creating 2.5 million jobs. The majority of economists agree that it helped the economy grow by as much as 3.8 percent, and kept the unemployment rate from reaching 12 percent.”
New York Times (October 11)
The Times applauds economists Christopher Sims and Thomas Sargent, who were awarded the 2011 Nobel in economic sciences. “The prize committee has rewarded two towering intellects—and delivered a challenge to politicians who are driven more by ideology than by serious consideration of the real-world consequences of their actions.” In particular, the Times hopes politicians will recognize “two important approaches: near-term public spending to spur jobs paired with tax increases to pay for the new programs and, eventually, to reduce the deficit.”
New York Times (August 17)
In the UK, “the thousands who were arrested last week for looting and for more violent crimes should face the penalties that are prescribed by law.” It is, however, petty and misguided to try to further persecute them as Prime Minister Cameron has suggested by “cutting off government benefits even to minor offenders and evicting them.” The Prime Minister should focus on restarting the economy and creating jobs. “Making poor people poorer will not make them less likely to steal. Making them, or their families, homeless will not promote respect for the law. Trying to shut down the Internet in neighborhoods would be an appalling violation of civil liberties and a threat to public safety, denying vital real-time information to frightened residents.”
New York Times (July 15)
The U.S. keeps “blundering toward recession” and haggling over the debt limit is only part of the problem. The deficit is a serious, but not immediate, problem. “It can be solved over time, with spending cuts and tax increases, as the economy recovers.” The immediate problem is job creation. “It is time for the government to step up. If it doesn’t, the weakening economy is bound to become even weaker.”
Wall Street Journal (July 9)
Unemployment is a lagging indicator. That is perhaps “the best that can be said for yesterday’s June jobs report.”Just18,000 new jobs were created and the jobless rate increased to 9.2%. If employment is about to turn the corner, it will be none too soon. “In this recovery we are still seven million jobs below peak employment in 2008.”
Tags: Jobs, Recession, U.S., Unemployment
New York Times (June 12)New York Times (June 12)
Chairman of the Federal Reserve Ben Bernanke stated “growth will recover later in the year as gas prices fall and the effects of the Japanese tsunami fade.” “Too-easy,” the Times says of his answer. “Even if temporary setbacks were to blame, the economy’s inability to take hits without backsliding is a sign of underlying fragility.” Big federal budget cuts should be delayed while measures to stimulate the economy, like job creation and mortgage relief for homeowners, should be undertaken.
Chairman of the Federal Reserve Ben Bernanke stated “growth will recover later in the year as gas prices fall and the effects of the Japanese tsunami fade.” “Too-easy,” the Times says of his answer. “Even if temporary setbacks were to blame, the economy’s inability to take hits without backsliding is a sign of underlying fragility.” Big federal budget cuts should be delayed while measures to stimulate the economy, like job creation and mortgage relief for homeowners, should be undertaken.
