Long Term Unemployment...Whose Problem, Exactly?

Oddly enough, it's everyone's responsibility and yet no one at all, really. More than any other dynamic from the 20th century on, levels of unemployment serve to bring different strands of economic thought into sharp contrast with one another. While the long term unemployed still languish in their forgotten spaces, dialogues continue unabated in the public at large, as to who might be the bigger fool for somehow "allowing" the lingering issue of the early 21st century.

We especially continue a dialogue that existed in the days of the Great Depression, even if those difficult times existed prior to the memory of many who are now living. I am quite fortunate in that I still get to hear some of my father's recollections. For him, one of the primary takeaways of those hard times was to live a practical and frugal life. Yet, even that rationale underwent quick adaptations for those who were born in the later days of the depression. Some who experienced the hardships of those times learned to hoard: not just things, but also, money. Unfortunately, hoarding of all kinds turns into a difficult passive response which can destroy economic momentum . It is quite literally the economic equivalent of a house full of "stuff", which finally gets in the way of one's ability to move around and even utilize the space properly.
 
Even as cyclical aspects of unemployment continue to fade into the background, structural aspects of unemployment are finding their way into ongoing daily realities. One of the most significant is the changing statistics of suicide rates, as they appear poised to continue on an upward trajectory into the foreseeable future. The significance of a Venn diagram, in one study, is an integration of three seemingly insignificant factors, at least on their own: thwarted belongingness, perceived burdensomeness, and capacity for suicide, which ultimately takes on the aspect of fearlessness as to the act itself. Such studies are reminders that we can't just put long term unemployment on the back burner, yet again. Recent recessions gave most economic thought divisions a chance to hold up their identity flashcards a time or two, then economic life rebounded to normal. That hasn't happened this time.

What to do, when simply restating one's actual position no longer seems to suffice? Formalized education and other institutional structures have a strong response mechanism when it comes to models and research in defense of one's position. However, the problems come in whenever it's time to step beyond one's actual identity, to the "great beyond" of hashing out solutions. Because of this situation, amateurs such as myself also get caught up in the maelstrom, which is not as unlikely as it sounds. Those with "real jobs" in this regard have careers and one's relative wealth position at stake, thus are often caught in the expectations of the status quo. So the end result is that the solution destroys the "moneymaking" aspect of the problem! Small wonder that think tanks and formal education might shut down the "factory" that manufactures solutions for problems! Well maybe not as simple as that but you get the idea...

One of the interesting aspects of Market Monetarism is the degree to which it has some Keynesians reclaiming the issue of unemployment as their own personal territory, in a sense. Which would be fine if....um, fiscal policy could actually filter as effectively through society as efficiently as monetary policy, at least when monetary policy is done properly (Bernanke are you listening?). The primary advantage to monetary policy is the fact that - because it filters through so many channels - one can't just line up at the source of the fiscal spigot to demand more than their "fair share" of ongoing economic activity. Unfortunately, anyone with a good travel budget can still go to Washington and claim their portion - along with that of a few other "special" million or so - when it comes to fiscal efforts. However, very little of a fiscal or monetary nature is getting to the long term unemployed now. In spite of the struggles over appropriate mechanisms for aggregate demand, the unfortunate reality is that opposing voices focus more on cyclical and short term aspects of unemployment in general. People are still getting rich tending to the needs of the poor - public and private interests alike - while fewer than ever have jobs to go to.

If anything realistic is going to be done about structural long term unemployment, it is going to take more than just the efforts of political parties or even economists for that matter, many of whom also point to supply side concerns. What those supply side concerns really boil down to is this: structural unemployment is a problem that belongs to all of us. We bring the younger generations and solitary Baby Boomers back into the world of the living when we commit to finding ways to include them. Otherwise, we not only spend the rest of our days pointing fingers at one another, but inadvertently leave a future to tomorrow's inhabitants which is less than optimal by any stretch of the imagination. Lest anyone think it doesn't matter, they also take the chance of ending up alone - which is such an unnecessary and disappointing place to be. We really are in these circumstances together, even stubborn libertarians such as myself who want to be in a shared space by the most free means possible.