It's the jobs, stupid

For a straightforward take on the true effect of the present economic morass, including an illuminating chart that shows the relative job/income performance of the economy during the various cycles of recession/recovery, check out this short, telling article.

Bottom line: Not since records have been kept, through five decades of such cycles, have jobs and incomes continued to remain mired in loss for so long. Indeed, we're now losing ground on real income of wage-earners, long after the "recovery" should have floated all boats.