Can you imagine living in a city with 25% unemployment and 45% underemployment?

[Stinky The Clown]

That would be Detroit. Tonight's NBC weekend news did a story on Detroit.

Twenty Five Percent of the city's entire work force is unemployed. And that cite is most probably the U-3.

The U-6 could easily be 40% ..... or more.

They also cite the stat that has 45% of the employed people working less than full time.

At the height of The Great Depression, the unemployment rate was 24.9%.




Can you imagine living in such a place with such conditions?

[Skittles]

1. I want to see Detroit rise again

yes

[leftstreet]

2. America, Fuck Yeah!

[madrchsod]

8. "life after people"

[Lucky Luciano]

16. hell on earth - looks like the south bronx 25-35 years ago

[Duke Newcombe]

3. I'll see your Detroit...

and raise you an El Centro, CA

Also, the Central Valley of California is no paradise, either. Once you're there with no money or job, you're well and truly trapped.

[Stinky The Clown]

7. Duke .......

.... izzat my general (Wes Clark) as your avatar?

I'm sure there are places as bad as Detroit. What makes it worse is the symbolism. "Detroit" used be synonymous with one of our country's greatest economic engines.

[panader0]

4. It's easily that high around here.

Most of the guys I know work piece-work. Hang drywall for 10 bucks a board, etc. They can't file for unemployment when times are tough, their statistics don't show up on the ledger. Unemployment/underemployment is much higher than reported.

[Rapanui1]

5. If you think that is bad

20% unemployment and 55% underemployment. GOP at the helm attacking kids education neocon thugs running around, welcome to the literal hell on earth aka Phoenix AZ. The heat is so bad that most even lose the slight iota of intelligence that evolution has awarded mankind.

[timeforpeace]

6. Hereabouts we would call that the good old days.

[Fire1]

9. Last I heard GM would be hiring. Local news last week.

But that still doens't account for the larger percentage of unemployment. Many of those factory jobs will never return. Detoit has got to bring new industry. We thought when Jenny cut the business tax that would lure big business but to no avail. The waiting list for No Worker Left Behind is three years long. Mostly for those green energy jobs in the future. It's truly a sad state of affairs.

[alp227]

10. Fewer jobs --> More crime, less safety!

People got nothing to do but stupid things, nothing to sell but coke, and nothing to contribute to the well-being of society. As I walk through Detroit, I inch closer to the valley and the shadow of death with the fear of getting robbed or attacked by some unemployed fool desperate for a few dollars. I hear babies crying and see ragged, unkempt people with signs saying "will work for food". Later, I go order some fast food and notice that the crew looks really classy. One worker explains that he has a master's degree in some science but lost his job.

That's how I'd picture it. I haven't been in Michigan since 1997 (when I was just six, and my family moved to California). This situation is just oh-so-scary. BTW, when will someone write a parody of "What a Wonderful World" only this time the theme being a over-unemployed city?

[lib2DaBone]

11. Yet we give Billions to Israel...Columbia... Afghanistan....

Why is it that the last people that count are AMERICANS?

[bik0]

12. Didn't the gov't just buy GM paying billions?

[handmade34]

13. last time I was in Michigan

there was a piece on mprn about "urban homesteading" I'd like to think something positive may come of this eventually... my brother lives in Milford and he has become a stay at home dad while his wife has to commute to Lansing (she is a nurse) he is an architect and was doing volunteer work to create parks in detroit but had to quit...

[paulsby]

14. if you have a relatively long investment horizon, i'd be looking @ real estate

in detroit.

[bik0]

15. I believe the average price for a home is around $5K in Detroit

but the the houses are valued much higher for tax purposes and there are few city services in some of the more run down areas.

[muntrv]

17. People have been leaving Detroit in droves for the past 50+ years. They

need to get rid of the abandoned buildings.

[Ardent15]

18. Sadly, Detroit is not alone in this..

There are many cities and towns in America like this.