A Pall of Malaise

I had to comment on an article in today's State Journal-Register: Low budget kept Illinois 200th birthday party on the low-key side. Here is my comment:

The contrast of money raised between now and the 100th Anniversary, and the contrast between Illinois and other states could be considered a reflection that people who earn the most money from our local economy don't live here; a reflection of the divergence of productivity and inflation to wages and salaries; a reflection that the jobless rate going down means jobs are leaving and that Baby Boomers and Gen-X'ers are aging out of being employable. In case you hadn't noticed, there's a pall of malaise cast over us from horizon to horizon here.

On NPR this morning they reported that the jobless rate will be going down sharply, as if it was a good thing, but there are many different, less positive reasons for the jobless rate to go down:

1. The jobless rate going down does not always mean employment is improving.
2. Jobs leaving an area because of shuttering businesses will also reduce the jobless rate because.
3. People leaving an area because they can't find work will also reduce the jobless rate.
4. People aging out of the workforce will also reduce the jobless rate. Currently the Baby Boomers are aging out of the workforce at a record number, and the following generation "X" faces age discrimination as the generation of managers are dominated by Millennials.