Pirate's Cove

The Grey Lady does the job (somewhat) in breaking down who is losing their job and where

What does the worst recession in a generation look like?

It is both deep and broad. Every state in the country, with the exception of a band stretching from the Dakotas down to Texas, is now shedding jobs at a rapid pace. And even that band has recently begun to suffer, because of the sharp fall in both oil and crop prices.

Unlike the last two recessions — earlier this decade and in the early 1990s — this one is causing much more job loss among the less educated than among college graduates. Those earlier recessions introduced the country to the concept of mass white-collar layoffs. The brunt of the layoffs in this recession is falling on construction workers, hotel workers, retail workers and others without a four-year degree.

The only thing to add to that is that there are considerable amounts of white collar workers who have lost their jobs, and not all retail positions are held by people without a degree.

The Great Recession of 2008 (and beyond) is hurting men more than women. It is hurting homeowners and investors more than renters or retirees who rely on Social Security checks. It is hurting Latinos more than any other ethnic group. A year ago, a greater share of Latinos held jobs than whites. Today, the two have switched places.

And what is President Obama and his administration doing? Have they moved into the role of executive? No. They are still stuck in campaign mode. They are out there attacking Rush Limbaugh, a private citizen exercising his First Amendment rights. They are attacking CNBC’s Jim Cramer, including personal insults. Again, a private citizen. They are attacking the GOP. But, other then that, not much. Oh, except they came up with a cute logo for the recovery.

Meanwhile, Obama is getting in spats with Reid and Pelosi, and many Congressional Democrats are revolting. And double meanwhile, the economy is burning down around his big ole ears. Jennifer Rubin

So although it might not be “smart,” it is sufficient to distract much of the mainstream media, which of course thinks a spat with Rush Limbaugh is front page news and the market panic is someone else’s beat. In this regard, I haven’t weighed in on the Michael Steele-Rush Limbaugh contretemps, in part because many have commented already on the foolishness of the entire episode. I think conservatives, and really all Americans, have more important things to worry about than who apologized to whom and whose remarks are more ”incendiary.” Really, we’re talking about the fate of the free market system, folks.

Good thing The One doesn’t worry about the day to day gyrations of the market, eh? It’s jut people’s lives and retirements at stake.