When it relates to those who have been beaten down by the recession. January’s job numbers were unexpectedly low, leading to a decrease in the official unemployment rate (9.7%, from 10%) and the underemployment rate 16.5%, from 17.3%), as well as a slight increase in average hours worked, which any economist worth his or her salt will tell you
could signal future hiring, as employers usually hire temp workers before permanent ones.
We’re so far from the headspace of the prosperity years it’s difficult to feel optimism; we’ll have to settle for the sensation that this could possibly signal a move towards better days if nothing else goes terribly wrong. As if. All this speculation about better days is taking away from precious time we could be spending gnawing on the leather from our shoes for nutrients and concentrating on finding a way to keep winter out of our old refrigerator boxes.
