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Are our farms and factories just not in need of the labor to keep everyone who wants or needs to keep a 40 hrs a week job employed?
If technology has somewhat replaced the need for labor, then what is the point of even aiming for a 6% unemployment rate?
I read about the larger number of people on food stamps, then was thinking so what? Maybe this is the modern world. Maybe there really isn't a lot of worth while work for these people to do anyway and if they are starving that will lead to more crime.
I am half talking out of my rear end. I don't know how much reality there is to this, but I do know that we have machines to make food and stuff that didn't exist 10 or 20 or 30 years ago. And I do know that the population is growing.
The unemployment problem is less about not having enough jobs for all that might need one...
than it is about having far too many people available for the jobs that actually need doing.
The unemployment problem is less about not having enough jobs for all that might need one...
than it is about having far too many people available for the jobs that actually need doing.
Yeah, makes sense. The more people we have, the more customers there are. So the more you have to produce, then more efficient it becomes and the less need there is for labor. Why not have an across the board 4 day work week?
Seems like the way it is now, there are a lot of people working 40 or 50 hours and a lot of people not working at all or 20 hours a week. So the people working 40-50 hrs a week are paying for the unemployed and very underemployed not to starve to death.
"jobs that actually need doing" is not meaningful, after all, how would one exactly determine this?
We had full employment just a few years ago, today high unemployment. What major difference has occurred in the US economy over the last few years that would make the previous jobs some how obsolete?
"jobs that actually need doing" is not meaningful, after all, how would one exactly determine this?
We had full employment just a few years ago, today high unemployment. What major difference has occurred in the US economy over the last few years that would make the previous jobs some how obsolete?
The housing bubble and the dot com bubble. You could say that they are symptoms or artificial solutions to a greater issue. Did we need so many new houses built, remodeled and sold to speculators/investors? No, but it kept people busy for a while. It would have been just as well if people were paid to move bricks from one pile to another.
It would have been just as well if people were paid to move bricks from one pile to another.
Except that this would produce nothing of value and the building during the real estate bubble produced numerous homes, commercial buildings,etc all of which will be used sooner or later. Once the excess created during the real estate bubble gets soaked up people will be out there building once again.
Booms/busts are a natural part of an economy, there was full-employment before the boom and there will be full-employment again...unless of course the government or fed does something to prevent it.
Except that this would produce nothing of value and the building during the real estate bubble produced numerous homes, commercial buildings,etc all of which will be used sooner or later. Once the excess created during the real estate bubble gets soaked up people will be out there building once again.
Booms/busts are a natural part of an economy, there was full-employment before the boom and there will be full-employment again...unless of course the government or fed does something to prevent it.
Yeah, I was exaggerating. I suppose building a new building is better than moving a pile of bricks. The only thing is that unused building held by banks deteriorate. Maybe you haven't driven through some areas of the country I have. I've seen town after town on large stretches of highways with 100s of deteriorating houses and commercial building. They aren't even worth fixing to use, because there is no economy to support their use. See there's the key! We need a real economy, not bubbles.
Booms/busts are not the same as bubbles. Booms and busts are cyclical. Bubble burst and don't come back, meaning that particular bubble won't get reinflated to the same level. A house that sold in CA for 700,000 in 2006 and is now $400,000, won't go back up to $700,000 (adjusted for inflation) in our lifetime.
Look around you.
Do you see any major deficiencies in the efficacy of *anything*
based in not having enough people employed?
Yes, its called the federal deficit....that is what is supporting the unemployed. The only reason the employed have not realized a material reduction in their standard of living is because the government is using their gigantic credit card to support the unemployment, but this is short-term. If the employment situation doesn't improve the employed will have to realize a major reduction in their standard of living via large tax increases. Not only will you have to pay down the government credit card, but you'll have to fully support all the excess welfare payments.
Quote:
Originally Posted by MrRational
What needs doing aside from infrastructure rebuilding that wasn't being done before either...
that isn't getting done now?
Needs? Again, how does one determine that? Who's perspective are you looking at?
Again, how does one determine that? Who's perspective are you looking at?
again... ex·peri·ential·ly adv.
ex·pe·ri·en·tial (k-spîr-nshl)adj. Relating to or derived from experience.
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ri·en
tial·ly adv.
k-spîr
-
n
l)adj. Relating to or derived from experience.
