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Our Guide to the 10 Best (and Worst) Careers
With unemployment over 10 percent for the first time in 26 years, The Daily Beast crunches the numbers to determine the careers with the best—and worst—prospects. The results: the 10 high-growth and 10 worst-growth jobs out there.
For the first time since June 1983, the country faces a double-digit unemployment rate. Today’s jobless figures just buttress the fact that while the recession is technically over—Gross Domestic Product expanded in the third quarter for the first time in a year, gaining 3.5 percent—actual job growth, as is typical, is lagging behind. While for some occupations the economic outlook is only likely to get grimmer, other jobs and industries are faring well enough, and are in fact expanding.
Click Below to View Our Gallery of Hot Jobs

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The bottom of the list, meanwhile, is littered with fields contracting by the forces of manufacturing decline (millwright), outsourcing (semiconductor factory worker) and automation (telephone operator).
How did we determine our Hot/Not lists? We started by taking BLS data from 2006 through 2008, and then adjusted for the total employment and median annual wage changes available for this year, giving us numbers that are current through September 2009. Our methodology had two primary drivers: For every occupation, we measured the number of positions created and the wage growth, by percentage, since 2006. Both of those factors were weighed equally. For the hot jobs, we also eliminated occupations making less than a median annual wage of $45,000. (There’s plenty of growth for oilfield roustabouts—paging Levi Johnston— but with a typical 35-year-old earning $29,000, it’s not a field that can be legitimately included as “hot.”)
When will the jobs markets recover for American workers in a tangible way? The Daily Beast doesn’t have an answer for that one. But this list at least provides some clues as to where the jobs are today. And why.
Click Below to View Our Gallery of Not Jobs

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The AP wrote this: "Nearly 16 million people can't find jobs even though the worst recession since the Great Depression has apparently ended."
...worst recession since the Great Depression has apparently ENDED?????? WTF are these dopes saying. If people are losing their jobs, then how in the hell do you say the recession has ended? This is complete and utter cover for this President. Today's media is an absolute JOKE!
That's right, 'cause the President caused all this. Not two elective wars costing billions, not tax-cut-for-the-rich-and-spend by Republicans, not Americans living beyond their means, not lack of oversight on Wall Street and insane overleveraging - it's all Barack Obama's fault.
You're a real Simp, "clearthinker", you know that?
If the president is going to continue to blame all of our economic woes on Bush, then his opponents will continue to blame all of them on him. At some point, he will have to accept responsibility. Especially since the stimulus he touted was supposed to solve the mess "created by Bush" (and a Democrat controlled congress since 2006, which included Obama, and Barney Frank denying reform in Fannie and Freddie, and Republicans with no fiscal responsibility).
Bush isn't solely to blame. Big Government is to blame:
http://www.businessinsider.com/how-the-government-is-distorting-the-pric e-of-everything-2009-11
So how long are you going to cut Obama slack? And blame Bush and every other Republican? When does he become accountable?
When the things he did are responsible for the situation we're in.
aBigDeal:
Big Government run by even bigger business with absolutely no ties to this country anymore are to blame.
Everyone who supports large business and stands for "conservative" values or "liberal" values is fucking stupid and are going to continue to be shat on.
Many denizens of this country have become to shallow-minded and stupid to continue to survive. Hence, stupid and shallow-minded people, all of which are allowed to 'vote' for the same business interests over and over again are to blame. Specifically, the baby boomers are to blame.
The only dopes, and"Simps", are the arrogant republican swine-deregulation started with that greedy schmuck known as Reagan, Clinton was also guilty of loosening the fiscal reigns, but was/is mature and professional enough to admit the he/they were wrong, I've heard him say so. A republican pig will say the housing market tanked because of irresponsible people taking out mortgages they can not afford. A Dem will say, that greedy bankers were chasing the money to get their bonuses. They are both right. The problem is, that in spite of the professional responsibility of the f@##in bankers to gauge whether someone can/or not afford the loans, they did it anyway, kept their bonuses and here we are-"f$#$$%ed"-how anyone with a triple digit IQ can blame Obama for this mess , who has been in office, less than a year, must think that Sarah Palin, can actually walk and chew gum at the same time. President Cheny started these wars, I'm sure some of his "pals" are behind the fiscal corruption that goes on in Iraq/Afghanistan, contract wise-yes , it IS WallStreent, the greed, air of entitlement, the whole "best and brightest BS", if they are the "best and brightest", why are we in the mess we are in-and btw, "big government" IS people, it is US, it is not government who is to blame, it is those particular people, Bush, Cheny, Rove, not to mention the moronic cheerleaders who THINK they are politicians , Hannity, Rush, Glen Beck, Coulter ( an ugly man) who egg on these fools who hate Obama, because he is black, and are intimidated by his intellect, which they/you call "professorial"
HOW CAN YOU SAY THAT ! KNOWING IT'S A LIE. THE MAN WAS JUST VOTED IN OFFICE LESS THAN A YEAR.
Much of the current misery continues to lie at the feet of the congressional GOP who blocked extending unemployment benefits for 4 weeks while those whose benefits expired were left to starve. They are doing everything they can to block reforming the banking system so that what they did to us this time can't happen again.
your acting like an ignorant ass.
recession is a technical term meaning GDP growth rate decline. that has stopped, and thus the recession is over. Lose of jobs is linked to the economy's growth, but its not equivalent to it.
Boosting the economy and boosting job numbers require different policies. U need to get out of the recession before job growth policies can be implemented, but that doesnt mean recesion over = more jobs.
The manufacturing industry has been at the edge for a long while. And in theory workers should have been able to see that and move on to jobs that are require more human input. Aka more technical/analytical jobs. Unfortunately the unions still enforced high wages, making people lose the incentive to change. while people should be recognizing the value of education and trying to get into college, they are instead being lured right out of high scool by absurdly overpaid union manufacturing jobs.
at least you said I'm acting like and ignorant ass instead of just being an ignorant ass. That's progress.
I understand the economic timetables and methods, however most Americans are not concerned with the GDP and its apparent growth rate. Though this is a good sign, it isn't a productive outcome because jobs is all Americans truly care about. The growth of GDP doens't feed a family. To continually beat the drum that the recession is over is pointless to a person unemployed. It is just putting a bow on a pile of crap. This is how they cover for the president. If this were any other president they would never acknowledge any GDP growth, just the mundane drivel of failure. Yes, I understand the previous administration contributed to this economic collapse, but Obama was hired to fix the problem and the problem is not getting fixed.
clearthinker
You are anything but a "clearthinker". Americans may not be concerned with the GDP, but they absolutely should be. As a prerequisite for job growth it represents a necessary step on the road to a comprehensive recovery, no matter how esoteric or ethereal the concept may be to "most Americans." GDP recovers, then come the jobs. One follows the other, hence the term "pre" requisite.
Also, I am endlessly amused at the petulance and impatience of the people in this country. The economic trends that have led us to the current situation took shape over the course of 3 decades or more, and you demand they be fixed in 1 year? And when they are "fixed" does that mean the time Obama is now dedicating to fixING the problem don't count? Do you see the gap in logic here? This is going to take a while. Just because it isn't "fixed" does not mean nothing is being done. The pain being felt by so many right now should be harnessed to implement reforms that decrease the likelihood of something like this happening again any time soon. Instead, cynical politicians simply channel the vitriol against their opponents in order to gain short term advantage.
Clearthinker? You are not thinking clearly. There is a direct relationship between economic growth (GDP) and the need for additional employees. As the economy deflated, the need for employees deflated as it reinflates the need of employee does likewise. What about that simplistic economic principal do you not understand?
Hello Isaac, Education may not be the answer, because, unfortunately, most people are not college-capable and our education system has brainwashed them into thinking that majoring in English or sociology makes them educated and therefore employable. Most Americans also say "Oh, I'm not good at math" like that's o.k. So, much for technical/analytical jobs then. Only the foreigners (or sons and daughters of foreigners) seem to understand the value of hard work in school and the rewards that follow. America is headed for socialism because the majority are dumb and lazy, but, they certainly have plenty of unearned self-esteem. Like my Vietnamese engineer friend says "we screwed, we really screwed".
"The manufacturing industry has been at the edge for a long while..."
America still manufactures stuff? Understatement of the year.
Amazing how you comment on every topic that it's all Obama's fault. Do you do anything productive? Or is the only thing you can do is finger-point? Because you consider yourself such a clear thinker, tell me - what are your brilliant ideas to fix things? Come on, it doesn't hurt to flex that brain now, does it?
junebug08 - Isn't something that is empty also clear?
it is obamas fault. he hasnt done anything to make any growth in the economy. all hes done is take our money and then gave it mostly to the rich and poor and made you feel good about it. sara had it right by drill baby drill. thats real money. build nuclear energy plants for free never ending energy. everyone wins this way. we get jobs and cheaper energy.
It's real simple lower taxes, cut the 35% business tax to 15%, take the cap & tax bill & the health care bill & send it to the trash barrel. You have to create a job friendly environment for small business. Also take the 750 billion dollar payback bill & kill the rest of the bill. We can't continue to burden our kids with stupid spending we need to go back to how President Ronald Reagan handled the mess he took over from Jimmy Carter.
I don't usually comment on things like this but here goes.President Obama said taxes would be for over 250,000 then it went down to 150,000 now it's 70,000. This was clearly a lie for him. He has more czars that answer to only him than any other president in history which is clear he doesn't know what he is doing to need all the advisors. For every " improvement" he has made the economy gets worse.Bush concentrated on the war in Iraq because WE WERE ATTACKED HERE! Obama's nice reform bill just made our elderly get sent home with aspirin when their pacemaker needs a new battery. The more he fixes the worse it gets and that is noone's fault but his own, and worse it is where we the people, have absolutely no say and these changes that we are supposed to vote on are being passed and announced before we have any word. Songs are being written about how we are being left out to dry by our gov. and we just sit in our unemployment lines, holding our homeless signes while we listen to how good Obama really is.
It's hard to know what to think. Yesterday Larry Summers, the presidents top economic advisor, said that jobs would not be forth coming until 2010, which is of course election year. When asked about that He said that the economy recovery was planned ahead but that increase in jobs was not being manipulated for the election year, although it certainly couldn't hurt democrat elections if jobs began to pick up about that time. I guess you just draw your own conclusions.
The majority of economists from both sides of the political spectrum has said for many months that jobs would not begin to return until 2010 at the earliest. Do you believe that the administration has a magic wand that can just produce jobs? If we have a second quarter or economic growth and due to depleted inventories it is likely that we could begin to see unemployment fall in the first or second quarter or at the least the bleeding of jobs should stop. Exactly how do think that the administration can manipulate the increase in jobs? You may enjoy your conspiracy theory but it defies the principals of basic economics. I conclude that you failed Econ 101.
Clearthinker,
You do realize that Obama has been President for less than one year right? You expect an awful lot for 10 months of running a country. I suppose you could accomplish much more if you were President for 10 months huh?
you call yourself a "clear thinker"?, talk about a contradiction in terms...
To begin with, a recession does not officially end until we have two sustained periods of positive GDP which is expected, however by the end of the year based on corporate earning across all sectors. Business will begin to rehire as demand for goods increase. Inventories, particularly, in retail are very low and after XMas will have to be replenished which sparks demand that translate into rehiring. Why didn't you have your panties in wad in 2007 when we began losing jobs? Were you covering for Bush? Did you flunk Econ. 101? In April, 1983, under Reagan unemployment peaked at 10.8% and the recession had officially ended in 1982 The sky did not fall. The world did not end and by 1985 unemployment had fallen to slightly over 7%. What about this do you now understand? In order for unemployment to fall, we have to have economic growth which we did for the first time in over a year during the third quarter.
No it is not Barack Obamas, fault and it is incredible that the former administration is home free.Writning, books,being honored, well this is the USA,and freedom, is what we value!!And this president certainly, cares and wants to do good for his people.!!But its heading wrong.!!!All his promised, all the congress, all the same people in charge,The one and only thing that should have been tackled was>>THE ECONOMY.How do we reach out to mainstream ,??the working ,the small businesses,bridgeloans, small credit help, retrainig,giving the assests directly to those who hire and employ and put food on the tables.!!!What was holding and hurting each american family down.?Making sure the bank help the forclosures, readjust to help families, If we can throw billions out to the Karzai brothers, and everywhere and we will not be paid back,then charity starts at home.!! Not for free,people are not lazy,want to pay and work and produce and thrive, but the same leverage given to big corporations, and big companies,and those in power,had to be offered to mainstream." They do not get it, or do not care, or do not understand ,!!!!where the help should go..The GREAt depression is just, starting.because, the internet exists, we no longer,manufacture,produce,and if you invent, or try to stay in business, or try to survive, and your credit rating is ruined from a swindled foreclosure, and you cannot get help, from the same stimulus for all the big guys,then you die."AND IF WE ARE GOING to support infrastructure, and wars to drug dealers, and throw our money in mispending then do it on the american people. OR get a staff together, of mainstream people,Something is wrong from all ends. We have brilliant, minds, brilliant people, that were bailed out, if those were helped,because they were too big to fail, how can it be, the normal small individual,from a ll walks of life,american citizen is not being helped.AnD OUR GOVERNMENT cannot be the only growth in this country and it will not matter if you are Democrat or Republican, people are staring to say,all thesame
I can't believe that the comment "It's Barak Obama's fault" was even written here! Where were you for the last 8 years when Georgie boy ran the country to the crap hole? Were you paying attention? Seems like a typical republican....see no evil, hear no evil, say no evil.....until the democrat takes over. Face it pal, Bushboy is not home free on this one.....
We have been a nation in decline for 20 years. The extemes in incompetence during the Bush administration pushed us over the edge but it is where we have been headed for quite a while. Twenty years ago we we first in education. Today we have fallen to 18th among industialized nations and are the only English speaking nation that isn't in the top ten. One in three students fail to graduate from high school. We are lagging in manufacturing, trade, healthcare, science, economic growth and life expectancy. The only thing we continue to lead the world in is consumtion of goods and services and obesity.
Speaking as a medical researcher, we've got the worst funding environment and grant funding paylines since Eisenhower. The NIH budget has been essentially flat for the last seven years, with 9% annual inflation in the cost of doing business. There is a horrendous crisis of lack of funding - and I'm one of the guys who -is- well funded, at one of the best funded universities in the country.
I wouldn't recommend going into this field for anyone interested in a regular paycheck. It's a lot of fun, but very unstable, and has very poor pay for the amount of education you have to have to do it.
Because sometimes a recession reffers to a period when the GDP falls for two quarters in a row. Once the GDP begins to show a positive trend again they say the recession has ended...but this is economics remember...its all made up.
No, actually it's the opposite of "all made up." Its a number based on empirical data. Just because the growth of GDP and the growth of jobs are not equivalent doesn't mean the economy did not, in fact, grow at the rate they have cited. It simply means that GDP growth, which is, of course, a prerequisite for economic recovery, is a LEADING indicator and that jobs will follow.
Also, refers has just 1 "f", a recession is defined as THREE successive months of negative GDP growth.
The real takeaway is - the stimulus only worked halfway because the Republicans and Blue Dogs only funded it halfway. You want to fix this quick, do something useful for once and get the hell OUT of the way.
OK Obama did not create this I must admit but he does not have the answer either. Big goverment won't fix big goverment. A fine example is all of the cabinet members who faile to pay their own tax and were appointed anyway. Bailing out the Goldman Sacs when all the non tax payers were former employees and now on the cabinet and can steal with immunity now just like when they were chosen for the job. We also dump mega bucks all over the world trying to buy friends who screw us at the first chance after they get the cash and we the voters have no control over this crap. Let them solve their issues and we can try to solve ours. Enough is enough give us back our country all you career poilticians democrats and republicans and quit selling us out all over the world.
And you know someone who has the answer. Paulsen/Bush bailed out Goldman Sacs. Paulsen was a top executive of Goldman Sacs but Goldman Sacs did want the bailout and the day they were given the all clear sign they paid it back and you made a 17% profit on your investment. Larry Summers is the only member of the cabiner that ever even worked for Goldman Sacs in this administration and that was briefly.
The problem with the health care bill is that it will push health care from 16% of the economy to 21%. The result is that there will be too many jobs in health care without skilled people to fill them, and no jobs in the other sectors of the economy. This is a huge accident waiting to happen!
You're right. This is a very nasty economic accident about to happen. I don't believe this many people are stupid. I think it's just a "loyal to the party" thing that most don't really understand. But if it happens, and they get it in place, we can't back out of it and we're dead.
Perhaps it is a huge opportunity for those who are bright enoungh to enter the healthcare field. You act like people who are uninsured never utilize the healthcare system and that is ridiculous. Education, technology and green jobs continue to grow currently.
This Economic thing is absoutly discusting. There are no jobs anywhere, doing anything. Im a fully Certafied A.S.E. Mechanic, and im stuck in a mom and pop restaurant working for minimum wage, living paycheck to paycheck. I thought that Obama was going to be for the better, but as it turns out were gonna have another Bush in office, and will probibally be Re-Elected at the end of his term. The president or congress OR the government doesnt care about the hard working class. This whole thing is one big sack of broken promises and lies.
"No jobs anywhere, doing anything" ND, SD. MT, Wy all have record surpluses and 4% to 5% unemployment. Throughout the recession healthcare and education have continued to have job demand. Technology is on the way back. No president can wave a magic wand and make jobs appear in your particular field in less than a year.
Go back to school if you can. People just don't seem to understand that you need to have a college degree to get a good paying job.
we certainly can not tax our way out of this, but congress refuses to face reality, and ignores history. Here's a novel idea, why not try some of the things that Reagan did to start the economy rolling again ? OH NO , we could never do that. Pure politics, at our expense. And so, they will be voted out.
Unfortuneately they won't. The best to hope for is that enough voters will weaken the congress an stop this madness. Those @@#@#$%!! in California aren't gonna get rid of Pelosi and she's one of the main problems. When she will not allow a bill to come to the floor she prevents your representative from representing you. So in reality she controls your state too. The system sucks, big time. The only way to stop the bitch is to put enough representatives in congress, democrat or republican, with guts enough to tell her to eat it.
Just what DID Ray-gun do to "start the economy rolling". If you know history, you also know that 1983 (the previous year with this much unemployment) was 2 years into his administration. Reagan's Voodoo economics had the unfortunate reality of being the correct move ONE time. First, he lowered taxes, when taxes were much higher than today. At the time, there was sufficient demand in the economy for this money to go to work, creating jobs. Unfortunately, they treated this economic behavior as a religion.
His second tax cut for the wealthy was the beginning of HUGE deficits, massive debt and, most importantly, the beginning of out-sourcing and the removal of capitol from the US economy.
Financing tax cuts for the ultra-wealthy with deficits, when there is not enough domestic demand to cause real growth, is stupid. The wealthy simply take that deficit and move it offshore, or waste it in other ways that doesn't create jobs or wealth for the Middle Class. Often, it is buried in futures speculation with commodities (energy, food, raw materials), causing price increases and decreased productivity. This was the result of the last Bush #2 tax cut/ deficit.
In 1980: Before Ray-gun Voodoo, the top 1% in income had 8.9% of the GDP.
In 2006: after multiple attempts to replicate the Voodoo success of Ray-guns first "Trickle-on you" policy:
The top 1% had over 25% of the nations income.
Voodoo, "Trickle-Down" economics causes sever income distribution inequality. This destroys the DEMAND side of the economy.
That is a clinical way of saying it destroys the health of the Middle-Class.
If this 15% of the GDP handed to the top 1% was distributed over the population, you would see much less of this money going to the 3rd world to hire slaves, and much more small business creation HERE.
If the Middle-Class had this income, a majority of the population would be more stable, have less debt and would actually have some equity in their homes to survive a downturn in the economy.
The Middle Class doesn't typically speculate in commodities, or ship their money off-shore. They build businesses and homes HERE, they educate their children, they save for the future.
Reagan doubled the nations debt. He started the Voodoo garbage of running huge deficits to hand Treasury money to the Ultra-Wealthy. Between Reagan, Bush 1 and Bush #2, they are responsible for approximately 80% of the nations debt.
In spite of the end of the Cold War, they continue pumping WAR as an economic tool. Of every $3 spent in the world on military personnel and weapons, we spend $2.
For the mathematically challenged, this means we spend TWICE as much as all other nations of the world - COMBINED.
We could cut our spending in half, and we would still match the entire world combined budget for war.
This is SICK.
When Reagan came into office, the taxes on the most wealthy were too high AND there was a place to domestically spend a tax cut.
EVERY other decision based on Voodoo since has been a bone-head mistake.
BUSH handed the banks and AIG about a $Trillion. They are not spending or lending here now. What makes you believe giving the ultra-wealthy a tax cut is going to be any different. They will simply speculate on Oil and Natural Gas futures, buy Euros and ship more jobs off-shore.
Voodoo (Trickle-down) is EXACTLY the wrong thing to do now. Stimulating demand through the Middle Class, while protecting those harmed by the previous Voodoo IS the right thing now.
Just what DID Ray-gun do to "start the economy rolling". If you know history, you also know that 1983 (the previous year with this much unemployment) was 2 years into his administration. Reagan's Voodoo economics had the unfortunate reality of being the correct move ONE time. First, he lowered taxes, when taxes were much higher than today. At the time, there was sufficient demand in the economy for this money to go to work, creating jobs. Unfortunately, they treated this economic behavior as a religion.
His second tax cut for the wealthy was the beginning of HUGE deficits, massive debt and, most importantly, the beginning of out-sourcing and the removal of capitol from the US economy.
Financing tax cuts for the ultra-wealthy with deficits, when there is not enough domestic demand to cause real growth, is stupid. The wealthy simply take that deficit and move it offshore, or waste it in other ways that doesn't create jobs or wealth for the Middle Class. Often, it is buried in futures speculation with commodities (energy, food, raw materials), causing price increases and decreased productivity. This was the result of the last Bush #2 tax cut/ deficit.
In 1980: Before Ray-gun Voodoo, the top 1% in income had 8.9% of the GDP.
In 2006: after multiple attempts to replicate the Voodoo success of Ray-guns first "Trickle-on you" policy:
The top 1% had over 25% of the nations income.
Voodoo, "Trickle-Down" economics causes sever income distribution inequality. This destroys the DEMAND side of the economy.
That is a clinical way of saying it destroys the health of the Middle-Class.
If this 15% of the GDP handed to the top 1% was distributed over the population, you would see much less of this money going to the 3rd world to hire slaves, and much more small business creation HERE.
If the Middle-Class had this income, a majority of the population would be more stable, have less debt and would actually have some equity in their homes to survive a downturn in the economy.
The Middle Class doesn't typically speculate in commodities, or ship their money off-shore. They build businesses and homes HERE, they educate their children, they save for the future.
Reagan doubled the nations debt. He started the Voodoo garbage of running huge deficits to hand Treasury money to the Ultra-Wealthy. Between Reagan, Bush 1 and Bush #2, they are responsible for approximately 80% of the nations debt.
In spite of the end of the Cold War, they continue pumping WAR as an economic tool. Of every $3 spent in the world on military personnel and weapons, we spend $2.
For the mathematically challenged, this means we spend TWICE as much as all other nations of the world - COMBINED.
We could cut our spending in half, and we would still match the entire world combined budget for war.
This is SICK.
When Reagan came into office, the taxes on the most wealthy were too high AND there was a place to domestically spend a tax cut.
EVERY other decision based on Voodoo since has been a bone-head mistake.
BUSH handed the banks and AIG about a $Trillion. They are not spending or lending here now. What makes you believe giving the ultra-wealthy a tax cut is going to be any different. They will simply speculate on Oil and Natural Gas futures, buy Euros and ship more jobs off-shore.
Voodoo (Trickle-down) is EXACTLY the wrong thing to do now. Stimulating demand through the Middle Class, while protecting those harmed by the previous Voodoo IS the right thing now.
Just what DID Ray-gun do to "start the economy rolling". If you know history, you also know that 1983 (the previous year with this much unemployment) was 2 years into his administration. Reagan's Voodoo economics had the unfortunate reality of being the correct move ONE time. First, he lowered taxes, when taxes were much higher than today. At the time, there was sufficient demand in the economy for this money to go to work, creating jobs. Unfortunately, they treated this economic behavior as a religion.
His second tax cut for the wealthy was the beginning of HUGE deficits, massive debt and, most importantly, the beginning of out-sourcing and the removal of capitol from the US economy.
Financing tax cuts for the ultra-wealthy with deficits, when there is not enough domestic demand to cause real growth, is stupid. The wealthy simply take that deficit and move it offshore, or waste it in other ways that doesn't create jobs or wealth for the Middle Class. Often, it is buried in futures speculation with commodities (energy, food, raw materials), causing price increases and decreased productivity. This was the result of the last Bush #2 tax cut/ deficit.
In 1980: Before Ray-gun Voodoo, the top 1% in income had 8.9% of the GDP.
In 2006: after multiple attempts to replicate the Voodoo success of Ray-guns first "Trickle-on you" policy:
The top 1% had over 25% of the nations income.
Voodoo, "Trickle-Down" economics causes sever income distribution inequality. This destroys the DEMAND side of the economy.
That is a clinical way of saying it destroys the health of the Middle-Class.
If this 15% of the GDP handed to the top 1% was distributed over the population, you would see much less of this money going to the 3rd world to hire slaves, and much more small business creation HERE.
If the Middle-Class had this income, a majority of the population would be more stable, have less debt and would actually have some equity in their homes to survive a downturn in the economy.
The Middle Class doesn't typically speculate in commodities, or ship their money off-shore. They build businesses and homes HERE, they educate their children, they save for the future.
Reagan doubled the nations debt. He started the Voodoo garbage of running huge deficits to hand Treasury money to the Ultra-Wealthy. Between Reagan, Bush 1 and Bush #2, they are responsible for approximately 80% of the nations debt.
In spite of the end of the Cold War, they continue pumping WAR as an economic tool. Of every $3 spent in the world on military personnel and weapons, we spend $2.
For the mathematically challenged, this means we spend TWICE as much as all other nations of the world - COMBINED.
We could cut our spending in half, and we would still match the entire world combined budget for war.
This is SICK.
When Reagan came into office, the taxes on the most wealthy were too high AND there was a place to domestically spend a tax cut.
EVERY other decision based on Voodoo since has been a bone-head mistake.
BUSH handed the banks and AIG about a $Trillion. They are not spending or lending here now. What makes you believe giving the ultra-wealthy a tax cut is going to be any different. They will simply speculate on Oil and Natural Gas futures, buy Euros and ship more jobs off-shore.
Voodoo (Trickle-down) is EXACTLY the wrong thing to do now. Stimulating demand through the Middle Class, while protecting those harmed by the previous Voodoo IS the right thing now.
Yes, for sure lets try that and we can rise to 10.8% unemployment like we had when Reagan was president. Repeat after me. We have proven that as Geo. H W Bush said VooDoo economics did not work and placed us exactly where we are today. Reagan's economic problem was inflation not deflation. Are you suggesting that we further deflate the economy?
No political opinion here for now: I just want to know why Occupational Therapy Assistants rather than PTs, PT assistants or what your article refers to as "fullblown occupational therapists," or Registered Occupational Therapists. The only OT Assistant I know personally was recently laid off. All the OTs and PTs I know are employed ... and I know quite a few. If changes in health care provision do occur, all of the therapies will be dealing with similar problems or blessings -- do OT Assistants have some sort of secret we OTs haven't heard of? One advantage they lack is that they cannot work without the supervision of an OT.
I suppose the same applies to some of your other Hot and Not professions: poor research on your part, and the pressure to publish quickly ...
A recession is defined to be a period of two quarters of negative GDP growth.
One dollar if passed around, in ten stores for example, has power of 10.
The multiplier effect, when it goes the other way slows down volume and economic acitivity.
So when volume increases, positive economic growth is said to occur.
This could mean that more people are losing their jobs, stores are charging less for items, so people buy more volume, and the store will never again hire full time help.
It could mean big grocery stores, are lay off clerks, and bringing in self serve stations, and making more profit.
If the wars were declared over, then we would have alot of those men and women looking for jobs too.
So we need wars, they are good for the country.
Of all the "Hot Jobs" listed, no one mentioned Wings' Girl at Hooters. An oversight? I don't think so.
Medical Researcher was recommend as the 2nd HOT jobs.
I wouldn't recommend this field to anyone. First of all the average pay is WAY OFF. I did this for 14 yrs laid off from a pharmacuetical company and still can't find a Job after 1 yr. Some of my ex co-workers have been looking for 2 yrs. Entry level in academics make around 28K depending on the location. Maybe in 5 yrs things will pick up, maybe 2 yrs, after the infusion of funds start to creep back into the system, meanwhile I have to make a career change. if you are studying this college I would recommend a serious reconsideration into a different field.
I am in a low paying field with mega education so I sympathize, but you can work as a Medical Researcher with a BS and billions were alloted to medical research in the recovery act. It has yet to hit the system but when it does possibly jobs will become more available. Lets face it science doesn't pay well so you have to find other aspects of what you are doing gratifying or it isn't worth it.
ARRA included some money for medical research, but because of the way it's allocated, it's likely to do more harm than good. A bit complicated to go into, but basically the spending priorities were set by congress rather than by the NIH, including a requirement that all the money be spent in 18 months. Hard to do meaningful research on an 18 month timeline ...
well, there goes my grand plan to go into the sciences. guess i will just have to continue with my phd in "obscure literary field requiring dozens of languages and a medieval style dissertation process". after graduation, the big bucks will SURELY come rolling in...
in the meantime, thank goodness i get paid as a grad student. i suspect my dissertation process will take about as much time as it takes for the economy to pick up some semblance of recovery.
I worked in biotech for a while, the lab assistants (those with a bachelors degree) made very little. You need a PHD in order to get a good paying biotech position.
There is something radically wrong about your rankings if you 'discovered' that employment in "medical researcher" is HOT. You need to research this better - sinepari37 is exactly on point about 5-10 years of indentured servitude AFTER a Ph.D. Then there is the pharmaceutical industry where science-related employment is pretty much in shambles. If you were/are a pharmaceutical chemistry or biology related Ph.D. in disease research and were to be laid off from pharma, your ONLY jobs available to you are in India and China. This has been true for several years now. DB - get a better research team!
@ jg90210 who wrote:
we certainly can not tax our way out of this, but congress refuses to face reality, and ignores history. Here's a novel idea, why not try some of the things that Reagan did to start the economy rolling again ?......
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Just what DID Ray-gun do to "start the economy rolling". If you know history, you also know that 1983 (the previous year with this much unemployment) was 2 years into his administration. Reagan's Voodoo economics had the unfortunate reality of being the correct move ONE time. First, he lowered taxes, when taxes were much higher than today. At the time, there was sufficient demand in the economy for this money to go to work, creating jobs. Unfortunately, they treated this economic behavior as a religion.
His second tax cut for the wealthy was the beginning of HUGE deficits, massive debt and, most importantly, the beginning of out-sourcing and the removal of capitol from the US economy.
Financing tax cuts for the ultra-wealthy with deficits, when there is not enough domestic demand to cause real growth, is stupid. The wealthy simply take that deficit and move it offshore, or waste it in other ways that doesn't create jobs or wealth for the Middle Class. Often, it is buried in futures speculation with commodities (energy, food, raw materials), causing price increases and decreased productivity. This was the result of the last Bush #2 tax cut/ deficit.
In 1980: Before Ray-gun Voodoo, the top 1% in income had 8.9% of the GDP.
In 2006: after multiple attempts to replicate the Voodoo success of Ray-guns first "Trickle-on you" policy:
The top 1% had over 25% of the nations income.
Voodoo, "Trickle-Down" economics causes sever income distribution inequality. This destroys the DEMAND side of the economy.
That is a clinical way of saying it destroys the health of the Middle-Class.
If this 15% of the GDP handed to the top 1% was distributed over the population, you would see much less of this money going to the 3rd world to hire slaves, and much more small business creation HERE.
If the Middle-Class had this income, a majority of the population would be more stable, have less debt and would actually have some equity in their homes to survive a downturn in the economy.
The Middle Class doesn't typically speculate in commodities, or ship their money off-shore. They build businesses and homes HERE, they educate their children, they save for the future.
Reagan doubled the nations debt. He started the Voodoo garbage of running huge deficits to hand Treasury money to the Ultra-Wealthy. Between Reagan, Bush 1 and Bush #2, they are responsible for approximately 80% of the nations debt.
In spite of the end of the Cold War, they continue pumping WAR as an economic tool. Of every $3 spent in the world on military personnel and weapons, we spend $2.
For the mathematically challenged, this means we spend TWICE as much as all other nations of the world - COMBINED.
We could cut our spending in half, and we would still match the entire world combined budget for war.
This is SICK.
When Reagan came into office, the taxes on the most wealthy were too high AND there was a place to domestically spend a tax cut.
EVERY other decision based on Voodoo since has been a bone-head mistake.
BUSH handed the banks and AIG about a $Trillion. They are not spending or lending here now. What makes you believe giving the ultra-wealthy a tax cut is going to be any different. They will simply speculate on Oil and Natural Gas futures, buy Euros and ship more jobs off-shore.
Voodoo (Trickle-down) is EXACTLY the wrong thing to do now. Stimulating demand through the Middle Class, while protecting those harmed by the previous Voodoo IS the right thing now.
Thanks for the info, Justin, plus the history and analysis.
What he said...
That was funny clearthinker.
In serious times like these, we mustn't rely on the media to tell us what really is going on. We need to perhaps get a hold of an independent economist to tell us the real deal.
On the way to the recession, they (they being the monolithic media) invoked so much fear and anxiety in the marketplace that everyone, including myself, felt as if the world was coming to an end.
Then after a clear recession admission, "'they" started with restless talks of "there are no signs of a quick recovery." I don't know how capitalism works in the U.S., but everywhere else in the world - a recession JUST DOESN'T DISAPPEAR over night.
I'm not to sure what their game plan is right now but it seems they're trying to usher us out of the misery, which they've no doubt helped to exacerbate. I say just tune them out and do an independent research at a local library perhaps.
As an office vagabond (a temp in other words) from Canada, I do see a slight difference in the marketplace, so maybe there is some truth to what they are saying as Canada's economic recovery depends heavily on America's.
~Addis
http://www.thoughtiswack.com
Well all of you have left your comments. Im going to leave mine. For starters, Barack Obama didn't create our financial mess.. He and more specifically Congress has made it drastically worse... I know, I had a kick ass job last year I built overhead doors. Now before this I worked in retail for almost 10 years while going to college..I was the new guy at the shop.. so natuarally I would be the first to be laid off or have my hours cut.. I was hired to be a manager over a position which we had for accordian doors. They are rather expensive.. we had many contracts for them though. Anyway the same week Obama followed by Mccain ..started touting their economic reform policies as reasons why they should be elected....and pumping scare tactics into all uneducated people about how we were headed for this.. depression...if they werent elected, by the end of that week,.. we had lost the last 6 major contracts ..after retail numbers were reported as down greatly for the first time...in a long time.. after Americas people had been scared to death out of spending anything extra thinking we were headed for some great depression. Thats what Triggered this.. I know I saw both sides of it. The housing deal was supposedly the underlying cause of all this right...well Acorn helped advocate all these bad loans ... who helped teach Acorn strongarm tactics? O wait .. Barack Obama I believe it was.. according to Fox News. The House and Senate are what make up Congress, Congress is what writes laws and passes them. Not the President. The President only has the power to veto. Furthermore it takes a act of Congress to approve a stay of the military past 90 days..Although the so called Bush war hasn't helped what has led up to our economic breakdown... it ceartainly wasn't the underlying cause.. the housing market was. and this started full force under the last two years of the Clinton administartion...not Bush.. although im not a big fan of Bush Im not going to blame him for what is not his fault. Getting us into the war .. That can be laid at Bush's feet. However..all the things that have led up to the collapse of the housing market have taken place under Democratic Congress with supermajority. Although the past 30 years have had mosly Republican Presidents the majority of the house and senate elected have been Democrats. I lay blame at Bush for not speaking out more about this, he tried to tell Congress 5 times, Barney Frank blocked him. He should have gotten on tv to address the American public about this, after the failed attempts so that we could keep Barney Frank from getting re elected. I lay blame at Congress for continuing to fund this BS ACORN..and not checking up on them. Not to mention Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac for not speaking up about being forced into the position they were in.. or for going through with it in the first place.. My blame goes all the way around not just to Bush, not just to Obama. However Im tired of his glory boy routine.. He needs to stop being the supermodel posing for everything.. and get to work. And I perosonally think he needs to abandon health care reform till the economy is straight again. Actually I would prefer he abandon it all together. As I have been a licensed health and life insurance sales agent.. I know what he is doing is going to cost America A LOT OF JOBS... not to mention limit us in our medical rights and privelages. All this money the Obama Administration has borrowed from China, has been spread all around. Some to the most useless of things. It should have been focused strictly at the problem , the housing market. And all this.. I lay at Obamas administrations feet. Because it was under his watch that we borrowed this money from China.. money that right now we cant afford to payback. However..were printing more and more money, Thank you Chris Dodd, this drives up the inflation rate. We print much more of it.. and I can use my paycheck for toilet paper.. Get real, this is just as much Obamas fault as it is Bush's and Congress's in particular the same congress in power now has been in power since the last half of the so called failed Bush administration. Well obviously the Obama administration is going to be just as much of a failure if we allow these candy apple ass senators and reps to stay in power. Its time for new faces up there folks. And that is where I blame us, the American citizens who elect these people to serve us and don't do their research on these people and just follow blindly into the election booth because they do what? give us a piece of candy and a nifty bumber sticker and a pencil? You demand accountibility out of them all, what about accountibility out of us? We put them there! Sincerely Christopher Archangel.
Ridiculous list. I went through the top 10 or so and except for 'pharmacist,' I found nothing but unique, rare, upper middle-class, highly educated positions. The people who wrote this nonsense are incredibly out of touch. I was a business consultant for twenty years and the best decent-paying jobs right now, that are actually available, are environmental engineer and mechanical engineer. They require training but no more than a two or three year technical degree. After that, being a mechanic, or going into one of the trades--electrician, plumber etc.--are the best options. They always are. Get a clue. BOKO
I agree with BOKO for the most part. You guys may have done some 'analyzing' and whatnot pouring over (more like spilling coffee on) 'statistics' to come up with this beastly list, but I ain't buyin'. This looks like some kind of marketing ploy to lure people into industries that we should be moving away from, such as...OIL!
This might be the first media coverage of shrinking job sectors that didn't include media jobs. I'm surprised and intrigued, and this helps put things in perspective (if it's accurate/up to date).
Thank you.
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