Fascinating article in The Atlantic Monthly

"Since last spring, when fears of economic apocalypse began to ebb"

HA!  Began to ebb for whom?? 

Not for the millions of home owners who have lost their home, their equity, their security and their dignity.

Predictions of an end to this apocalypse are, IMO, at best mere wishful thinking or at the worst, politicking.

I don't agree with the conclusion:

Concerns over deficits are understandable, but in these times, our bias should be toward doing too much rather than doing too little.  That implies some small risk to the government's ability to continue borrowing in the future; and it implies somewhat higher taxes in the future too. But that seems a trade worth making.

I think govenment needs to step out of the way and allow the spending decisions to be made by private individuals.  You can't spend your way to prosperity.  It's wishful thinking and it would be great if it were possible, but more government spending is just going to dig the whole deeper.

Spencer: Thanks for this. I agree with this. I think no growth with high unemployment will be the norm for the next several years. I'm a free market guy and have to wonder how much the bailout actually slowed down a recovery.

Spencer - I read the article when it appeared and agree that we're experiencing "structural" changes in employment.  And I don't believe the average American yet understands the ultimate consequences.  It does not bode well for the housing market and for the recovery in general.

I think things are going to be screwed up for some time. For some, on the other hand, it'll all end sooner than we all think. December 2012, right? lol

I think I will need to write a post to summarize my thoughts on this. 

This doesn't HAVE to be a jobless recovery... it is the spending (which the author seemingly agrees with) along with the increases in government regulation that seem to be dragging jobs down. 

It IS repairable, but not with the current climate in DC.

Spencer - While reading the first page of the article, I felt as if I was being beat upside the head with a bad news stick.

This article has several things that have been concerning me for the past many months, explained much more articulately than I could.

Any optimistm anybody? Any at all?

If everybody is so darn miserrable how can we help our customers? I am not talking about Zillow, I am talking about real estate professionals.

Let me find the link to some article that would contradict this. :-) (Btw, the truth is if you really read the article you will probably find at least one sentence that contradicts the title or the whole idea of the article)

Maybe it will be featured, as well. Who knows.

Let's go with the talking heads on TV, newspaper and Internet articles. That will be just great.

As a REALTOR(r) research your own market and see what is happening. (Who knows you may be surprised.)And then give a good advice to your clients or potential clients.

Let's stop whining and complaining. If we can't change it let's make the best of it.

@ Jackie: Thanks!

Like I've said all along, "Without jobs, how will people buy homes?"  This article does a great job of describing our current predicament.  Thanks for posting this!

Poison for the mind. . I try to stay away from it. . 

How quickly we gather and ohhss and ahhss for news that has one only purpose. .  to validate your frustrations and find something to blame for your short-comings .

The subconscious mind LEADS your destination. . .

LEADS!

You want to feed it good things. .

I understand that you can not crawl under a rock and ignore all problems. . 

no one can do that, what I'm saying. .when the difference between doing it and not doing its just a click on your mouse. . you have a choice then.

Sorry, I'm a fan of The Secret and I a true believer of it . .you all should read it

The comments were an indication of the great divide in our country right now. Glad a read it...

There is no "Good News" and no "Bad News" -- just DATA. 

Matt Heaton posted a link to this on Facebook.  The word jobless is an anachronism. How do you count the "workless" or "workpoor" who may be working but make no money working? The US is becoming a 3rd-world nation. Stop all attempts to prop up the real estate market with government (tax payer) gifts! Privatize Freddy and Fannie and put Frank and Dodd in jail!

Important information. Well worth thinking about.

I chose optimism and hope this article is off base!

fascinating indeed! Sad. Horrible. Crazy times for sure. While this article points out we are coming out of the Great Recession, I heard the opposite this morning. Over 50 million people in America filed for unemployment for the first time this week, stock market (investors) are freaking out and things seem to be taking a DIP again. I too want to be optimistic but this whole thing is hitting way to close to home, and everyone around us are experiencing the same.