Many economists would agree that the causes of the current recession are different than in 1980-82, and that some of the differences can be seen in the productivity data. Some would say that high real wages are part of the problem — that employers would be hiring more if labor were cheaper.

The push to reform the system is going in exactly the wrong direction. Instead of minimizing patient involvement in payment for treatment, Washington should be seeking to increase patients' role.

Some big-league investors are betting that inflation will rise significantly.  The reason?  "The nation's exploding monetary base is a harbinger of inflation."  Is this right?  Probably not.

Job hires have been low in recent months, but that does not necessarily mean that spurring hiring at small businesses is the best way out of this recession. It is sometimes said that helping large employers can prevent mass layoffs, whereas helping small employers can stimulate new hires. If so, it might be important to know whether the job losses during this recession have come from a surge in layoffs or a collapse of new... More

Total employer compensation costs for private industry workers averaged $27.49 per hour worked in September 2009. State and local government employers spent an average of $39.83 per hour worked for total employee compensation in September 2009.Health benefit employer costs were $4.43 per hour worked for state and local government and $2.01 in private industry.

By mining Google search data, here is an interesting animated view of changing entrepreneurial interest in the U.S. – by state – from 2004 to today.

Here is a chart of the growth rate, from four quarters earlier, of real investment in equipment and software.  Notice the left scale.  Investment spending is very volatile.  This is one of the standard stylized facts about the business cycle.

U.S. employment growth in the next 10 years will continue a shift to service-producing jobs, from the goods-producing sector, according to new projections by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Soon the payroll tax will become for the first time in history the single largest federal tax.

According to a new study by the Tax Foundation, the percentage of taxpayers filing returns who have no tax liability surged in recent years so that today one-third of taxpayers pay no taxes.

Federal and state spending breakdowns.

Here is a chart from a J.P. Morgan research report. It examines the prior private sector experience of the cabinet officials since 1900 that one might expect a president to turn to in seeking advice about helping the economy.

Indeed.com, a search engine that allows job seekers to find jobs posted on company career sites and job boards, says that only one of 12 major industry categories is showing any significant growth in job postings over the last 12 months, Education. Here is a look at the site's analysis of what kinds of jobs are available in the field, and where geographically the jobs are.