Jobs Report: Patience and Fortitude Required

By: Jill Schlesinger
Topics: Financial Decoder

This post by Jill Schlesinger originally appeared on CBS' MoneyWatch.com.

The BLS November Employment Report is out and the news is better than expected. 11,000 jobs lost (versus estimates of 100,000) and rate dipped to 10% from 10.2% in October. Recovery, here we come, right? Sort of.

For months, the news on jobs has been as follows: less bad=good. That's OK if you're an economist, but obviously not particularly helpful if you are one of the six people looking to land that one job offering. As MoneyWatch blogger Mark Thoma notes, this has been a brutal decade for private sector jobs.

As I think about the scourge of unemployment in the country, I keep coming back to Patience and Fortitude, the lions that guard the steps to the Main Branch of the New York Public Library.

(CBSNews.com/Gordon Donovan)

The lions began their reign on 42nd Street in 1911 as "Leo Astor and Leo Lenox," after library founders John Jacob Astor and James Lenox. However, during the hardships of the 1930s, New York City Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia renamed them Patience and Fortitude, the qualities he believed would help New Yorkers navigate the perilous Great Depression.

It seems apt to invoke Patience and Fortitude as we (hopefully) emerge from the Great Recession. After all, when the twenty year debt bubble exploded, everyone was going to pay the price. My grandmother, a survivor of the Depression herself, used to say "cheap is expensive" when referring to shoddy goods and services - I would update that by saying "cheap credit is expensive." It will undoubtedly take patience and fortitude to survive the recession and the subsequent recovery.

More on MoneyWatch:
•Laid Off? 7 Rules for a Graceful Exit
•Review: Best Personal Finance Sites
•5 Money Tips in 60 Seconds
•What's Next for Real Estate?
•Best and Worst States for Student Debt

(CBS)

Jill Schlesinger is the Editor-at-Large for CBS MoneyWatch.com. Prior to the launch of MoneyWatch, she was the Chief Investment Officer for an independent investment advisory firm. In her infancy, she was an options trader on the Commodities Exchange of New York.

Jill Schlesinger
>> View all articles
Jill Schlesinger, CFP®, is the Editor-at-Large for CBS MoneyWatch. She covers the economy, markets, investing or anything else with a dollar sign. Prior to the launch of MoneyWatch in 2009, Jill was the chief investment officer for an independent investment advisory firm. In her infancy, she was an options trader on the Commodities Exchange of New York.
Follow on Twitter »

3 Comments Have Your Say
Email Story Send to a Friend
Share This Tell Your Friends
Tweet This Tweet This
More Share It

Add a Comment


by sunday42 December 10, 2009 11:20 AM EST: Tell that "Patients and Fortitude" crap to those in the unemployment lines. Oh, and you might want to throw in "Hope and Change" too.; Reply to this comment


by hartmanlord December 5, 2009 9:53 AM EST: By NO means use the TARP or any other form of government resources to stimulate the economy. The way to do so is to reduce taxes on those working (not more handout to the unemployed) in the lower 90% income bracket and increase taxes equally on the top 10%. The lower 90% will spend that money (unlike the wealthy that hoard) creating demand and JOBS. DUH!
The reason the government won't do this, the rich control the methods of stimulas and they darn sure will not tax themselves. Instead they will use government funds and give more to the wealthy (business and banks) and HOPE it trickles down.
Look at the wealth distribution and income levels in 1929. Scary!
How hard is to know that spending creates demand that creates jobs? Instead, we are going to spend government money (and create hugh deficits) to create jobs for there is no demand.
It is better to let us go into a complete depression, with all the pain and suffering that will lead to a reduction in wealth and income to the top 10%. Either way the result will be the same. Choose!; Reply to this comment


by nowhiningallowed December 4, 2009 4:14 PM EST: Not good news. No real growth. Continued job losses are still worrisome. It's easy for the president to pontificate. He really doesn't care how much suffering any of the citizens are going through. All he really cares about are those in his inner circle and his buddies that won't challenge, question or criticize him. That's how they keep their job. When the administration and the federal government starts massive layoffs and cutting spending, then maybe we can believe that the president cares. It's the same old, same old.; Reply to this comment