Political sweeps week starting early

According to several news media outlets, President Obama has requested a joint session of Congress to be called on September 7 for the purpose of announcing a new jobs plan.

We have mixed reactions to this news.

As to the fact that the President is purporting to do something about the fact that there are about 14 million Americans out of work: good.

As to the fact that the plan will undoubtedly do little to address the real problems underlying unemployment, while possibly adding to the national debt: bad, but in fairness we'll keep an open mind until we hear the speech.

As to the fact that it will have taken him about 960 days into his presidency to take action on the most pressing domestic issue: pathetic.

As to the fact that the President is looking to make the announcement on the same day as a planned nationally-televised debate between candidates for the Republican nomination to replace him: curious. Objectively, we admit it would be difficult for the President to schedule anything these days without claim that there is at least a tinge of politics to what he's doing. On the other hand, are we seriously supposed to believe this was the only time in four years that the President was available to announce a jobs plan?

As to the opportunity facing Republican candidates in the face of this news: enormous. Basically, President Obama is giving them fodder to use against him in the debate. He's teeing it up perfectly. The candidate best able to make the case against the President and his plan will replace him in January, 2013.

We can't imagine that this news is sitting very well with the people over at NBC (the network hosting the GOP debate) or with Speaker Boehner. Here's hoping that NBC proceeds with the debate as planned, and that Speaker Boehner says a majority of the House is planning to be busy that night listening to other people who may actually have credible ideas to grow jobs (but that the President is, of course, welcome to use the room).

Massachusetts By The Numbers

Just in case you're wondering how our state government is doing these days, we thought we would provide you with the following crib sheet:

290,000	Approximate number of unemployed people in Massachusetts as of March 3, 2011 (Source: WBZ)
8.3%	Massachusetts unemployment rate as of March 3, 2011 (Source: WBZ)
1100	Number of jobs Fidelity has announced that it will trim from its Marlborough campus by next year (Source: The Boston Globe)
21	Number of full or partial days Governor Patrick has been out of state since January 1 of this year (Source: The Boston Globe)
0	New jobs announced by the Patrick Administration while the Governor has been on his trade mission to Israel and Great Britain (Source: The Boston Globe)

If I hear that $!%&^#@ hippopotamus song one more time....

These days, it seems like the only place to go for some optimism and holiday cheer is one of those radio stations that play holiday music 24/7.

But even there, this holiday season, the timeless melodies telling us it's "the most wonderful time of the year" ring hollow because the underlying chorus is anything but joyful.

During a time that is otherwise supposed to provide a break from their daily lives, the headlines are making it virtually impossible for anyone to relax.

Just today, we got news that "Framingham-based TJX Co. says it plans to eliminate 4,400 jobs and shutter it’s A.J. Wright discount stores." (Boston.com story). State Street, Raytheon, Genzyme and Biogen all made similar announcements in recent weeks. (Read more.)

These aren't anonymous people. Just log into Facebook and you're likely to find a friend announcing that they've lost their job. One friend recently posted that they were about to head out to the "office holiday / job security party" at his company.

Please pass the egg nog.

During this past election year, politician after politician told Massachusetts voters that creating jobs was their number one concern and priority. So, what are they up to these days? Turns out, not much.

We learned this week that a special commission created in 2008 to create jobs never even met. In fact, when asked by the press about the commission's status earlier this week, Governor Patrick's response was, "The who? The commission that I created?" (Hear his comments at this link.)

But rest assured, just because state officials aren't finding jobs for most Massachusetts residents, they've been having no trouble finding jobs for their cronies in the Probation Department. According to the Report of the Independent Counsel released on November 9, the hiring and promotion process within the Probation Department is so bad that it "represents a pervasive fraud against the Commonwealth." (For the full report, click here.)

It's beginning to look a lot like Massachusetts politicians are too busy stuffing their own stockings to worry about the fact that countless people this year are struggling to fill the empty space beneath the tree in their living room. And, no matter how loud you crank those holiday tunes, that reality isn't going away any time soon.

"Hiring pickup?" What hiring pickup?

The headline of an AP story that broke on Boston.com this afternoon caught us off-guard:


"Two-year low for layoffs hints at hiring pickup"

For real? We're not economists, but this just seems a little too good to be true.

Just yesterday, the Globe ran a feature article about how the clock is about to run out on many people's unemployment benefits and about how difficult it is for many of them to find a job.

"The Globe has been writing about Massachusetts residents who have relied on these [unemployment benefit] extensions, and reinterviewing some yesterday underscored how bad the labor market is. Nearly all were still looking for work," said the Globe story.

Also yesterday, State Street announced that it started a round of 400 layoffs here in Massachusetts. And they're just the latest example.

Does this AP headline today somehow suggest that things have changed overnight?

We are wary of economists and government officials who seem so eager to say the economy is on an upswing. It's easy to play fast and loose with economic data, especially unemployment numbers.

Yes, it's indisputably great news if the number of first-time filers for unemployment drops. But it's not necessarily a signal of a turnaround. There's only one number that makes any difference - the unemployment rate, which nationally remains unchanged at over nine percent. Even in the AP story, economists say they don't expect those numbers to improve anytime soon.

"The economy would need to consistently add 200,000 to 300,000 a month to make a noticeable dent in the unemployment rate.... It could take until near the end of this decade to drop the unemployment rate to a more normal 6 percent," says the AP.

Check out the stories yourself. What do you think? Please post us a comment:

ASSOCIATED PRESS 12/2/2010
http://www.boston.com/business/articles/2010/12/02/two_year_low_for_layoffs_hints_at_hiring_pickup/?p1=News_links

BOSTON GLOBE 12/1/2010
http://www.boston.com/business/articles/2010/12/01/jobless_benefits_slated_to_end_for_many_on_christmas_day/?p1=News_links

Dude... so, like, what's a high school student to do these days?

One of us is the parent of small children and visited school this morning for a teacher conference. When the two of us got into the office later on, that experience got us talking. In particular, it got us thinking about what it must be like to be in high school these days and to be looking out at the prospects waiting for you after graduation.

What does a guidance counselor tell high school students these days? Well, at least when we were in school, kids graduating from high school had three basic options to choose from:

Behind door number one, you can pursue a higher education, whether it's college or some sort of trade school. There's never been a more expensive time to try to get a college education than now. And with millions of Americans out of work, the prospect of having Mom and Dad pay for school or being able to co-sign loans is increasingly bleak. This makes the promise of a college education more difficult than ever before to access.

That brings us to door number two – going straight into the workforce and getting a job. This is indeed a bleak prospect, with a national unemployment rate of about 9 percent. It's particularly difficult because some older Americans are underemployed as a way to get work after being laid off. As older Americans take these jobs, it's tougher for less experienced workers to obtain entry-level work.

Finally, there is door number three – serving your country by entering the military. This time-honored career is still a viable option for youth graduating from school. But, with America engaged in several ongoing conflicts and with trouble spots spanning the globe, it's a more dangerous option than it has been for years.

So, what's the solution? We don't really have one to offer, that's not the point of this post. It's mostly just an observation that for many high school students today, one of the most important promises of the American Dream (that you will inherit a world that is better off than it was in your parents' generation) is an increasingly-empty promise.

Are you or someone you know a high school student right now, looking at these options? Care to share your story? Any high school guidance counselors? What are you telling your students? Please post a comment below. We'd love to hear from you.

Massachusetts businesses feeling the post-election blues?

The Associated Press reports that Massachusetts employers have announced a wave of layoffs in the one week since Deval Patrick was re-elected Governor.

Could there be any doubt why? AIM reported before the election that business confidence was up, partly on the assumption that pro-tax-cutting candidates would be elected to the U.S. House in November. Could it be that Massachusetts businesses have the post-election blues after seeing Mass. Democrats prevail again?

One of Patrick's first initiatives when he took office was to raise corporate taxes by hundreds of millions of dollars. And, he capped off his first term by signing into law a crushing 25% increase in the state sales tax. Do we expect anything to really change in a second term, especially with the prospect of a multi-billion dollar state budget deficit next year?

It's disappointing to see tax policies sting some of our state's largest employers. But, small businesses are feeling the pinch too, even though it doesn't always make headlines. We see it every day as we talk to fellow small business owners struggling to deal with the rising cost of health care and tax increases.

These are the people who know on a deeply personal level what it's like to meet a bottom line and keep their people employed. These are the people who actually write the checks for health insurance, rent and federal and state taxes. They know first-hand how Massachusetts' economic policies rob businesses of any incentive to grow.

Small business owners are good citizens. By their very nature, they want to create jobs and be a thriving part of the state's economy. And, they're more than willing to pay their fair share for services they use. The problem is that, in Massachusetts, the government takes advantage of them. In the Bay State, growing your business means having to pay substantially bigger tax bills and deal with much higher costs of doing business. At the end of the day, it's often a wash, and small business owners simply can't get ahead - or even survive.

If we expect to retain and grow jobs here, our political leaders need to understand that small businesses need room to breathe, and that raising taxes is not the answer every time they try to spend money and state coffers come up short.

As a state, we rely on the entrepreneurial spirit of small business owners to keep our economy going. Yet, we do little as a state to encourage that spirit and allow it to prosper.