America Changing Into A Nation Of Hamburger Flippers
While Wall Street and Washington debate the technical
descriptions of a recession, the agreement of the US Census Bureau accounts
reveal a surprising statistic: US
employment figures incorporate a massive
proportion of what can best be called casual, temporary and
seasonal job opportunities. We all know how
the traditional companies jobs have transferred to China. But a lot of
those wanting to find the market
bottom level today are unaware to the fact that the actual ranks of store-front clerks, restaurant
workers, yoga teachers and delivery personnel–to say
just a few categories—have all served to improve the employment files in
recent months and years.
Then, obviously, the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan made their own contribution to the US
employment data. A minimum of 150,000 working-age,
non-military individuals are doing their bit within the conflict zones; so they don’t
figure in the collection of jobless
Americans. And, right at home,
security orders have required arms and war-related
equipment manufacturers to hire different
personnel since 2003. “If we decide to bring our troops
back today, the economical situation will
deepen, almost at once,” one Wall
Street expert admitted on state of anonymity.
“Very handful of {those} going back will discover
any really good jobs.”
In fact, American economists right across the political
array are unable to identify the
fact that the global economy is
nowhere as powerful as was being frequently
proclaimed just a few few months
ago. A closer look in the engines allegedly
driving global demand, namely China and India, will
present how the record information derived
from repeated {government}
announcements regarding GDP overall
performance was extremely shallow,
even inaccurate. Very briefly, in the case
of China, foreign investors was
unable to take into account the
influence of loose credit
and inflated real estate values; when it comes to India, western analysts have proven themselves
incompetent at either calculating the
possibly devastating influence of just one bad harvest or even the phenomenal role black money plays
within the day to day lives of ordinary citizens. [The
expression “black money” can be used to describe a wonderfully broad range of tax avoidance
schemes and criminal activities; certain knowledgeable observers point
out that the sheer sized India’s
underground economy exceeds 50% of India’s GDP.
In the appearance on CNN’s Larry King Live yesterday, Donald
Trump emphasized that the US is at a recession today, and
that the real extent of the
problems relating to housing and
credit cards was to unfold in coming months. Mr. Trump
laughed off Washington claims that “the structural foundations of the
economy are strong”, and for very good reason. Because
that claim is basically unsubstantiated: perhaps for doubt of political repercussions, nobody in authority would like to
detail those structural foundations on the record.
There are too many powerful underlying factors
playing a role in shaping America’s future: oil prices, debt default, global
demand, commodity prices, currency exchange rates,
international trade and, lest we forget, the war on terror. Whether any or all of those factors could be construed as “structural
foundations” is best left to the academicians.
But, theory apart, the two compelling realities to
contend with right away. Firstly, neither
President Bush nor the presidential hopefuls have produced a comprehensive researched position paper addressing the
complexity of the situation. Secondly, all
those rosy predictions of increasing demand (for
virtually everything) in the developing world are returning to haunt forecasters. Quite
simply, a deteriorating situation is being compounded by
ignorance, or intellectual dishonesty, or both.
As far as the employment statistics are concerned, the
change of seasons can help perpetuate the “all’s well
with the world” illusion. As spring takes hold, the career matrix will again expand—deck chair and
patio salesmen, gardening and pool assistants, bar tenders, life
guards and gym instructors. Not to say the apparently ever-expanding
world of hamburgers, pizzas, tacos, donuts and coffee cups.