Reportedly, Northeastern maintains a Great Depression-compatible counter

According to Ambrose Pierce-Evans at The Telegraph, The Centre for Labour Market Studies (CLMS) in Boston (US spelling: Center for Labor Market Studies (Northeastern University, Boston), because if you google Centre for Labour Market Studies, even with Boston, you get a different economic group) keeps a count of unemployment using the pre-WWII measurement system, which makes comparisons to the Great Depression possible. That number rose to 18.2% in May, the most recent number noted. He also mentions - I forgot to include this in my last post - that hours per week have fallen to the lowest since the number started being recorded, to 33 hours per week.

Anyway, I suggest reading the article, because the deflationary wage cycle is pretty clear at this point, and he outlines how much of it is hidden via unpaid furloughs and so forth. One thing I did not put together, however, is this little comparison:

Some 342,000 homes were foreclosed in April, pushing a small army of children into a network of charity shelters. This compares to 273,000 homes lost in the entire year of 1932.

That's quite the cold splash of water, even given the large differences in population. Say, why don't we do that math? US population, 1932: 124,840,471. US today: 306,839,779 (est), 2.46 times as many people. Adjusting for that would make 1932's foreclosure rate yield 682,500 foreclosures per year. April 2009's rate yields, 4,104,000 per year. That's six times the rate of 1932. Also note that April was still in an era of partial foreclosure forbearance, and that's over now, so the rate is probably going to climb from that, not fall.

eta: rozasharn looked up data and did math in comments below! Adjusting for homeownership rates on top of population, her math shows we're at four times the foreclosure rate of 1932. Thanks, rozasharn, for being less lazy than me! ^_^

Well that was quite pleasant

It's quite clear now that I should go to Woodinville - when I busk at Woodinville - first thing in the morning. Their market opens at 9am, which is crazytalk, but that's when the customers arrive, and more importantly, that's when it's loads cooler and the sun's at a low enough angle that I can play around market entrance and still be in lovely, lovely tree shade. Also - and I knew this before, but I keep having to relearn it - you make a lot more money hanging around market entrance and exit, because people see you twice - on the way in, and then again on the way out, when they're done with all their purchases. Markets have lately been putting me places that are basically market centre, which is probably best for ambiance, but people really only see you once at that point, and their minds are still on shopping - they're on task and not readily diverted away.

So I'm going to be a bit more on point about hanging out at entrances from now on. It's not just that the money's better - tho' it is, and that matters - it's also that now that people are done shopping, they're a lot more likely to just hang out a bit and listen, which means audience, which means a lot more fun for me as well as them. It's not as much fun as a stage show, mind you, but is is fun, and I'm all over that. ^_^

Well, that's good timing

The day after I posted a warning that banks are jacking around credit-card customers in advance of legislation preventing them from arbitrarily changing contract terms and other such jackassery, an immediate friend¹ got a notice from his credit-card lender informing him that they were 1. raising his credit card interest rate, 2. changing it from fixed-rate to adjustable, and doing so in 3. such a way that the rate can only go up.

Awesome. (For the record, his credit is perfect.)

If you're eligible to join a credit union and get a card through them, I suggest doing so. Regardless, be on the alert for such machinations. They're happening right now.

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¹: name withheld because he's nervous about such things

Music-only journal on Dreamwidth

Okay, so I've decided to make my Dreamwidth journal a music-only journal. Entries from there will be crossposted here, but not visa-versa, and music posts will originate on that journal. So if you're only here for the music and really Do Not Want To Hear about the rest of it, you can go over there. It's a cheerier place, really. ^_^