Unemployed Teens

The Employment Policies Institute (EPI) issued a press release back in early July that was reported on today by CNSNews.com, that included statistics for teen unemployment in the United States.  Washington, D.C. leads the list, with a phenomenal average teen unemployment rate of 50.1 percent.  California and Georgia were tied for second, each with 34.6 percent.  The national average is 25 percent.  What this means is that 1 of every 4 teenagers between 16 and 19 is unemployed across the country.  Such statistics may provide a bit of explanation as to why young people are rioting and looting in the streets of London--the youth of the world have no work to otherwise occupy them.

This about broke my heart when I first read it.  As the EPI explains, "the consequences for this generation of young people missing out on their first job are severe, including an increased risk of earning low wages and being unemployed again in future years."

What may be helpful here, however, is understanding the underlying cause of such statistics.  "One of the prime reasons for this drastic employment drought," they continue, "is the mandated wage hikes that policymakers have forced on small businesses. Economic research has shown time and again that increasing the minimum wage destroys jobs for low-skilled workers while doing little to address poverty."  Elsewhere on EPI's website (http://epionline.org/) , they explain, "For every 10 percent increase in the minimum wage, teen employment at small businesses is estimated to decrease by 4.6 to 9.0 percent."

Could the answer, or at least an answer, to unemployment really be as simple as the elimination of the minimum wage?  Makes sense to me.  Whatever my situation, if I get hired for $4.00/hour, that's $4.00/hour more than what I would be making if I couldn't get hired in the first place, because a potential employer couldn't afford to pay me a minimum wage.

Republicans Debate

Well, 2012 is an election year, and since the economy is struggling right now, and since Republicans are wont to blame President Obama for all the country's economic difficulties, August of 2011 is not too soon for those Republicans campaigning for President to convene in their second debate of the year.  The participants were Mitt Romney, Michele Bachman, Tim Pawlenty, Ron Paul, Herman Cain, Jon Huntsman, Rick Santorum, and Newt Gingrich.

Ah, there's nothing like a good old fashioned debate for some good old fashioned, American political mudslinging.  And, as both the Obama campaign (who will no doubt be running in the primaries unopposed), as well as the Romney campaign has stated, "it's gonna get ugly".  Of course, the echoing statements were in regards to the campaign against their respective opposing party, but the Republicans tonight didn't seem to get that, and took advantage of the opportunity to sling some mud against each other.  Of course, just about every participant had something negative to say about Obama, but Bachmann and Pawlenty, both from Minnesota, seemed to hold a grudge that the other was running.

Oddly enough, what made this debate most memorable were the Republicans that weren't there--particularly Sarah Palin, former Governor and V.P. candidate in 2008, who has been scoping Iowa for the past couple of days, and, even more significantly, Rick Perry, whose spokesman announced just today that he plans to announce his candidacy on Saturday.  Tea Partiers like Palin, but Republicans really like Perry, who apparently has done some good things as governor of Texas.

Tanking Stock Markets

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 519 points today.  If that isn't bad enough, it's fallen over 14 percent in the last month, as investors flee to cash and gold in the wake of an ongoing debt crisis, a bleak employment outlook, a downgrading of the government's credit rating, and general fear of a declining American economy.  Moreover, this is happening in markets all over the world, as economies struggle as a result of the declining American economy, as well as their own.  In Asian, Australian, German, French, British, and Canadian stock markets, investors have been selling off their equities.

We can't really say that this is surprising.  Here in the U.S., unemployment claims are at 9 percent (which, as we all know, is a government statistic, and doesn't include everyone who's un- or underemployed), indicating that businesses simply aren't hiring.  If they're not hiring, they likely aren't producing or making enough money to hire.  Hence, we hear terms like "recession", "depression", and "contraction".  Whatever you want to call it, the economy is obviously not expanding, which leads investors to not want to invest in it.

The term, "confidence" has been bandied about quite a bit, lately, and nowhere does such such a term come into play with such significance than in regards to economic activity, and particularly in consumerist economies such as the United States.  A lack of confidence in the economy means that businesses won't hire, because they doubt an increase in their customer base, while the guy he can't hire struggles to pay his bills, and so can't become his customer.  It's a vicious downward spiral, this lack-of-confidence-in-the-economy thing.  This is no doubt why politicians are forever claiming that economy is sound, and if it isn't, perpetually claiming that they can fix it. 

Well, yours truly, for one, doesn't have much confidence in either the economy or the politicians, with all the economic uncertainty floating about.  I certainly hope that changes soon.  I could use a job.

Global Unrest

There appears to be a growing global unrest taking place in 2011.  Already this year, the world has witnessed --

-- the Egyptian Revolution, and the overthrow of Hosni Mubarak

-- riots in Athens, over their debt crisis, and severe cutbacks in government spending.

-- massive strikes and protests in Lisbon, over their debt crisis, and severe cutbacks in government spending

-- thousands of Spaniards in Madrid, protesting their 21 percent unemployment rate, government corruption, and austerity measures (a result of their debt crisis)

-- multiple protests in the Philippines, over everything from low worker pay to oil exploration and drilling.

-- protests and riots in Syria against the rule of President Bashar al-Assad, where (reports say) over 1600 people have been killed over the last four months

-- protests in Israel over their rising cost of living

-- riots, looting, and arson in a number of cities in Great Britain

Even here in the United States, a gang of black youths targeted white Wisconsin State Fair-goers in Milwaukee for beatings.

What's going on here?  I mean, what is the underlying cause of such global unrest?  Is it all the result of sinking economies and corrupt governments?

After reading all these accounts, I noticed the one thread that ties all of these events together.  It's not economies (though to be sure, failing economies are an underlying concern).  It's not race.  It's not anarchy.  No, the vast majority of those involved in these protests and uprisings consist of a younger generation of people.  I am reminded of the college campus protests of the sixties.  As it happens every so often, the youth of the world are making their voice heard.

Rioting in Britain

Over the last 3 nights, British poor people have been rioting, replete with all the arson and looting that goes with it.  I am reminded of the Rodney King riots here in L.A., but this seems worse, somehow.  This one's aided by Twitter (ah, the wonders of modern technology!).  I suppose you would call this the mother of all flash mobs.  Fortunately, the violence appears at this point to be dying down, but I fear that the sentiments that generated such an event may take root here in the United States, as the economic situation gets worse.

Two girls being interviewed during the actual violence said, "we're showing rich people that we can do what we want," which seems to make it a class warfare situation, and highlights the concept of a widening gap between rich and poor.