As a soon to be member of that statistic I take little solace in the term "lagging indicator".

I joined this group on Tuesday.

I'm curious to know how many Agonistas are part of that 10.2%, how many expect to be soon, etc... Thanks.

I would not be surprised if it hit 11% next year. On top of everything else, I worry that some populist ultraconservative may beat Obama in 2012, if we are still over 10% then.

Washington Post, By V. Dion Haynes and Dana Hedgpeth, November 7

For Lisa Hall, this is what 10.2 percent unemployment looks like: spending all day at shopping malls going from one store to another in search of a $10-an-hour job, but being constantly told that no one is hiring.

For M&M Appliance in Northwest Washington, this is what a jobless recovery looks like: Even though sales are up on high-end kitchens, the owners have no plans to fill several key positions lost through layoffs and will continue to have a decimated staff juggle numerous jobs.

While signs abound that the economy is growing, employers throughout the region and across the country illuminate the stark picture painted by the government's unemployment data released Friday. Officials at many businesses say they are maintaining hiring freezes initially imposed earlier this year, and some are even planning a fresh round of layoffs in the new year. The few companies in hiring mode are flooded with applications: General Electric received 10,000 online applications for 90 $13-an-hour positions assembling washing machines at a plant in Louisville.

"We were totally overwhelmed by the response," GE spokeswoman Kim Freeman said.

redundant last week. Picked up some basic nursing work, so battling on.

The star power of Barack Obama has seen the United States eclipse Australia as the place most people want to visit and do business with.

The annual Country Brand Index, which ranks nations like retail brands, found the US had unseated Australia, which held the top spot for the past three years.

Australia has slipped to third, with Canada rising to second place.

New Zealand and France complete the top five country brands in this year's index that included 102 countries.

"The revitalisation of Brand USA, and other factors, have resulted in the effect on Australia's ranking," said Tim Riches, chief executive of FutureBrand Singapore, which conducted the survey.

"It highlights the importance of keeping a country brand fresh, relevant and engaging in a highly competitive international marketplace."

The index is based on a survey of about 3,000 business and leisure travellers from nine countries.

In addition to branding countries, it also identifies global trends in travel and tourism, which FutureBrand says is the world's fastest growing economic sector.

The US was seen as the ideal place for business, one of the top places for families, shopping and quality products, as well as one of the countries people wanted to visit whether for the first time or again.

The survey echoes a similar poll that showed the US was the most admired country globally, largely thanks to Mr Obama's global popularity.

It also identified the United Arab Emirates, China and Vietnam as the top three nations likely to become major tourist destinations in the next five years.

Croatia, South Africa and India also made the list.

With the global economic crisis tightening purse strings across the world, the survey showed that bargain-driven travel would remain a major trend.

It says consumers will "think like financial analysts in choosing destinations and properties that are undervalued and booking trips that allow them to maintain the style they were accustomed to in boom times".
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/11/06/2735858.htm?section=justin

That doesn't come close to the reality of 20% of the labor force either unemployed or under-employed. What you are witness to is the sinking of the U.S. into a 2nd world country. How many years can the unemployed go without work before they just disappear into the unaccounted homeless?
The real cost of this is incalculable and will further degenerate the U.S. to it's ultimate demise.