Bye Bye Jobs

When the last recession hit in 2002, it affected my industry as much as any other. I lost my staff job and found slim pickings elsewhere. Now I'm finding that business here is pretty robust, but nationwide it's just cratering.

Employers trimmed jobs from their payrolls in June for the sixth straight month, as the government's closely watched report Thursday showed continued weakness in the labor market.

The Labor Department reported a net loss of 62,000 jobs in the month. That matched the job loss figure for May, which was revised higher from 49,000. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com had forecast a loss of 60,000 jobs.

The June number brought to 438,000 the number of jobs lost by the U.S. economy so far this year.

The unemployment rate remained the same, but remember it jumped a half a percentage point a month ago. According to ADP, the private sector slashed 79,000 jobs last month, so this is not just about construction or service industries. It's very broad and very scary. And the 13-week extension of unemployment benefits might help in the short term, but long-term we have serious economic issues.

Look, when Starbucks has to close 600 stores in this coffee-addicted economy because people can't afford their drinks anymore, you know something's extremely wrong. Who do you want steering the ship of state in these troubled times? Not the guy who admits that he doesn't know anything about the economy.