Derisive diatribes about the state of the nation, nation states and swerving leftward

20 September 2004

Visions of Polyanna have now conquered my mind...

An article in today's Washington Post has confirmed the middle class's sense of foreboding regarding the economy. Key points of the article include:
"All kinds of jobs that pay in the middle range . . . are vanishing . . . Such jobs were a big reason America's middle class flourished in the second half of the 20th century. Now what those jobs share is vulnerability."

"Of the 2.7 million jobs lost during and after the recession in 2001, the vast majority have been restructured out of existence, according to a study by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York."

"Meanwhile, income inequality has grown. In 2001, the top 20 percent of households for the first time raked in more than half of all income, while the share earned by those in the middle was the lowest in nearly 50 years."

"The growing income gap corresponds to a long-term restructuring of the workforce that has carved out jobs from the center."

Of course, Shrub keeps telling us to remain optimistic. To spit in the face of these dour economic statistics or intel reports on the Iraqi quagmire. So I guess I need to go out and get a big U.S. flag and hang it across my porch before my house and car get repossessed and I get hit by the next war tax.