Obama-Change you can believe in. Business apparently doesn't believe in his change. 52% of America can be wrong.

How old is this guy? There are so many inaccuracies in this article it seems like he is writing for the jr high newspaper.

Economists were predicting 500K job loss and the report came in at 533K - I would not call that far worse.

I guess I can assume your grandparents are less than 50 because the job market in 1980 - 1982 was worse - over 10% unemployment.

This guy must be writing out of his parent's basement. Do us a favor and get off the internet!!!

"The $34 billion requested by the Big Three to prevent their bankruptcies."

I would urge Jonathan to take his sentence back to his junior high school English teacher for a refresher on diagramming.

The reason the United States economy is the strongest in the world is that we live "almost" pure capitalist society. We are like a self pruning tree, the dead leaves don't get nourshishment. Understand? Giving half of my income every year to my brother in law may be a nice thing to do, but wouldn't it be better if he did some meaningful work?

"52% of America can be wrong."

They certainly were in 2004.

Obama is not even in power yet. Wait until Bush leaves the White House before blaming everything on the Democrats. Show a little self control. Think about baseball for a few months.

Since 1974? How was the comparison made? There were certainties of population growth, new businesses, global trade, higher standard of living, and the computer tools since 1974.
It should be worst than 1974!

It's Clinton's fault! That's what the dumber downs will say. You know who they are. Look where 28 years of right wing rule has gotten us. Of course the neo-conmen will not take not one iota of responsibility for their failed leadership for the coming depression. It's Clinton's fault! It's Obama's fault!

Any money coming from the government is coming out of the pocketbooks of those that still have a job putting a further drag on the economy.

People really are just this stupid I suppose.

Helping distressed homeowners doesn't matter if there are no jobs for them to pay the mortage back.

We have no prospects for new jobs because the equity backed consumer spending engine ran out of gas. It was filled with fake money and it evaporated.

The only solution is to let bloated corporations die and generate huge small business incentives. We need to restart the small business engine. We need to bring back middle class prosperity.

Barrack Obama should cut taxes by 75%. If that means no more welfare then so be it. Business taxes should be cut to 10% of the current levels. The IRS should be disolved and a new 10% total tax code should be put in place. 5% Local, 3% State, 2% Federal. The government will have to trim to the essentials. All social programs would disappear. The end of welfare would help to bring about the end of illegal immigration.

This needs to be done and done now. It is the only hope for the future.

Cutting taxes at this juncture is not going to do any good except give more money to the unproductive snotty rich. Sooner or later somebody's going to have to pay for the right wing war in Iraq. Don't give the right anymore blood money. What we need now in America is liberal creativity put the liberal arts back in school, conservative non-creativity is going nowhere fast. Liberal progressive creativity will create new products and services for a high tech world that is changing fast and into space technology. Space is the wave of our economic future. Tax breaks for the rich is not going to do anything except fatten their bank accounts while they sit back and drink Margarita's on the beach.

"Cutting taxes at this juncture is not going to do any good except give more money to the unproductive snotty rich."

This whole "tax cut for the rich" idiom/garbage that the Democrats have been playing doesn't lead anywhere. Comparing 8 years of Bush versus 8 years of Clinton, Bush saw a 20+% growth in federal revenue, with only a 4% growth in US population. Capitalism and lower taxes versus entitlement... common sense clearly is winning here.

America has been a combinationn of "free markets" combined with socialism since its founding. As soon as major business screws-up, they run to the giovernment to save them! Many CEOs are vastly over-paid and boards of directors are jokes.

Cut the hype and get some perspective. "With today's awful jobs numbers, the time for ideological debates over the free markets is over." Get over yourself. Check out the numbers for France, Germany, Italy, and the UK in the data below and ask yourself if you and your liberal friends really want to give up what you achieved in a free market system .... if there ever was one. A portion of the free market disappeared with the Community Redevelopment Act and with Democratic control of Congress.

http://www.bls.gov/fls/flsjec.pdf

It makes absolutely no sense whatsoever to give money to companies who's products people aren't able to purchase.

This is a modification of an idea that I heard:

Give grant money to automakers for the sole purpose of retooling their factories to produce nothing but Hydrogen or other NON-Fossil fuel cars.

Give grant money to oil companies for the sole purpose of upgrading refueling stations to provide non-fossil fuels for the cars that the automakers will build. Also, provide grant money for the sole purpose of building Wind Farms, Solar Collectors, Geo-Thermal sites, Ocean Tide Electrical Generation so they can refocus on Green energy sources.

Give grant money ($200,000) to every citizen who has paid taxes for at least 10 years.

By putting this large chunk of money into peoples hands, they will have the ability to purchase the cars that the auto makers will build, forcing those companies to hire people for the increased demand. People will have the ability to either pay off or significantly reduce their mortgages, or put money down on a new construction home, creating a call for contractors to hire people to build the houses. People will have the ability to purchase electronics (whether it be home theaters, gaming consoles, computers, etc.) again forcing companies to hire people to satisfy the demand. Parents (and individuals) will have the ability to pay for education, producing better minds, better teachers and better institutions.

With this kind of economic stimulus, people will also be more willing to travel and spend money abroad which will stimulate those countries economies. Charitable organizations will also benefit (even in the harshest of times, Americans are some of the most generous people on the planet and will be even more so with more money to donate).

How is all this going to be paid for? For the first year after the grants have been distributed, there will not be any taxes so that congress can get to work on creating laws to come as close to a 10% flat tax as possible. Then each year afterwards for the next 20 years, the tax percentage goes up 1% a year, capping out at 20%. No person will ever be taxed more than 20% annually for the rest of their lives. Companies will start off at 20% flat tax with zero loopholes (there will be rebates for those companies whose employee base is minimally 90% American citizens).

This idea will stimulate growth, opportunity, and prosperity by putting the money directly into the hands of those who will use the money to stabilize everything from the Housing Market Collapse to the Credit Crisis, Stock Market Meltdown, and Unemployment.

It's good for our economy. It's good for the environment. It's good for foreign relations and trade. It's simply just good.

Rick's comments are right on. Today's "financial reporters" have not got a clue how fiscal and monetary policies interface with each other and make the system function. They all need to take EC101 over again and stop taking 'talking point memos" as gospel. I was one of the 10% unemployed in 1980 so I don't need any wet behind the ears kid telling me this is worst unemployment.