I think I'm never going to find a job

I suppose this dismal news should make me feel better but somehow I don't find it that comforting. Unemployment claims rise again for the umpteenth time this year. At least I'm not alone and there's a good reason I'm enduring such lengthy spell of unemployment.

As the chart above, thoughtfully provided by Krugman shows, it's not hard to trace the trajectory of the jobless community over the long term. I certainly blame Bush bubblenomics even if Krugman is more reserved in his judgment.

This chart shows U6, the broadest measure of unemployment and underemployment from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. (No data available before 1994.) You can still argue that presidents really don’t have that much influence on the economy. But remember, Bush supporters eagerly claimed that downward stretch from 2003 to 2006 — coinciding with the worst excesses of the housing bubble — as proof that tax cuts work. Live by the business cycle, die by the business cycle.

Amen to that. Krugman also notes the obvious fix, which is unlikely to happen this year.

We also desperately need an economic stimulus plan to push back against the slump in spending and employment. And this time it had better be a serious plan that doesn’t rely on the magic of tax cuts, but instead spends money where it’s needed. (Aid to cash-strapped state and local governments, which are slashing spending at precisely the worst moment, is also a priority.) Yet it’s hard to imagine the Bush administration, in its final months, overseeing the creation of a new Works Progress Administration.

I'm afraid he's right, especially since the stupid bailout looks likely to be the latest Epic Fail of the Bush administration. I don't foresee anything improving until spring until the earliest and my meager savings will run out long before then. I have a bad feeling it's going to be a long, cold winter.

I expect everyone is in equally bad shape, but on the off chance that anyone reading this little blog has some spare cash, I might point out my donate button on the sidebar. If you have a few spare bucks to help me with the heating bill, it would be greatly appreciated.

[More posts daily at The Newshoggers and The Detroit News.]