Just when you think that the economy can't suck any further, along comes news that U.S. employers shed 533,000 jobs in November. That's the biggest decline since 1974.

Stock markets are trading down because the figures were far worse than what economists expected. The unemployment rate was a whopping 6.7% but that figure is a bit misleading because many people have given up looking for work.

Former Treasury Secretary John Snow put it bluntly: "This is really bad news." That may be the understatement of the year. The economy has reached a state of wretched awfulness not seen since my grandparents were young. Everyone is being pinched. I have family members who have lost their jobs and I have told them that I see no hope for them returning to work any time soon.

Maybe the job losses will finally give Congress the kick in the butt in needs to aggressively intervene in the economy. Jobs are a lagging indicator, indicating that the economy may plunge further into the abyss. That means that the U.S. government is going to have to help some people who in more normal times would be told to walk the plank.