The Economy Is About Jobs, Not Stock Prices

Paul Krugman, cutting as usual to the chase, provides this bottom line little set of statistics on the real state of the economy (where ECONOMY = JOBS):

In June 2007, around 63 percent of adults were employed. In June 2009, the official end of the recession, that number was down to 59.4. As of June 2011, two years into the alleged recovery, the number was: 58.2. [New York Times, 8/4/2011.]

Krugman pointed this out a few days ago; it is worth recalling in light of the gyrations of the stock market this week. It does not matter what the stock market does. Ignore it. What matters is whether or not the average person has a job or is unemployed, frustrated, stressed, angry, unproductive...

So if politicians talk about ANYTHING ELSE, they are probably hiding something (like their inability to solve real problems). Bob Reich explains this very clearly.

And here's the video on how to generate those jobs [Real TV].