Disaster Ahead?

A great man once posted:

Comparing Labor Market Data in 1996 and 2008

Democrats on the Economy in 1996:

“Our economy is the healthiest it has been in three decades.” (President Bill Clinton, State of the Union Address, January 23, 1996)

Democrats on the Economy in 2008:

“The bottom line is that this administration is the owner of the worst jobs record since Herbert Hoover." (Senator Charles Schumer, Press Release, March 7, 2008)

Key Labor Market Statistics in 1996 and 2008
	March 1996	March 2008
1. U.S. Unemployment Rate	5.5%	5.1%
2. Number of Long-Term Unemployed	1.33 million	1.28 million
3. Average Weeks Unemployed	17.3 weeks	16.2 weeks
4. Median Weeks Unemployed	8.3 weeks	8.1 weeks
5. Not in Labor Force because discouraged over job prospects	451,000	401,000
6. Democrats calling for Extended Unemployment Benefits?	No	Yes
7. President’s Party Affiliation	Democrat	Republican

OK, so today it's 7.6%, and spending is down. And sure, 7.6% is worse than 5.5%, but there was sweetness and light at 5.5% -- how can 7.6% be the worst possible disaster? Or as Nancy Pelosi puts it, "We will soon be pulling our own teeth to sell the fillings for pennies just to buy a scrap of bread that we'll then have to gum, because we don't have any teeth left, but it won't matter because there won't be any bread to buy, because 500 million farmers are starving to death every day."

And would it even be 7.6% if they hadn't been preaching doom and gloom for the last six months? Remember FDR? At is inauguration on March 4, 1933 , under much worse economic circumstances, he uttered his famous words: "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself." Our "new FDR" is giving speeches about how we aren't fearful enough. And about how this stimulus package is too important to debate first.