No “green shoots” in employment

Unemployment rose in nearly every state in the nation in May, with many reaching record unemployment levels not seen since 1976. So much for green shoots. If 70% of our economy is driven by consumer spending, and more and more consumers are out of work, how exactly are we coming out of this mess? Where is the driver going to come from? Even with the government doing everything it can to keep the printing presses pumping out money there isn’t a viable way to easily replace that massive consumer spending. I’m no economist, but the common sense in me says that an umemployed consumer doesn’t spend like one with a job and a house-sized ATM.

The top hardest hit states in terms of unemployment are: Michigan, Oregon, South Carolina, Rhode Island and California. (Image courtesy of CNN.com)

When you’ve got the nation’s most populous state in the top 5 in unemployment, a budget deficit of $20+ billion and new taxes going in left and right (not to mention a whole slew of Option ARM resets coming down the pike) it’s rather silly to be talking of recovery at this stage in the game.

What do you think?

Some more images of doom from CNN:

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