Jobless claims jump, wholesale food costs surge

Thanks, Glenn.

For the first time in my memory a story about the economy mired in despond does not begin with the word: UNEXPECTEDLY!  For some reason, the MSM never sees this coming.  After all, when the Lightworker's in charge, this can't be happening.

(Reuters) - U.S. jobless claims jumped to their highest level since October last week while food and energy costs lifted producer prices in December, pointing to headwinds for an economy that has shown fresh vigor.

Can you say "stagflation?" 

Where is this "fresh vigor" that's Reuters is referring to? Let’s face facts, why should companies hire more people when they are making very good money with the people they have? So why should anyone be surprised that massive hiring is NOT going on? Despite liberal desires, companies do not have as their primary objective the creation of jobs; that is a byproduct of being successful.  With current levels of unemployment, people are getting their finances in order by paying off debt instead of incurring new debt; with houses continuing to lose value, making it difficult to move to a new location for a new job, what sane executive is going to go on a hiring spree absent a jump in demand for his product?

We are in for a long period of high unemployment while the President and the Democrats in congress attempt to bring about change through a command and control approach to economic growth. The same people who have managed to turn the postal monopoly into a gigantic money loser can’t be expected to determine which industry or technology will be the next big thing.

And need we be reminded that Obama has told us that the future of the job market is the "green energy" industry?

Evergreen Solar is laying off 800 people in Devens, MA after receiving $60 million in government aid. This is an example of how the great green job machine works in reality.  800 people are now out on the street because of the unrealistic promises of politicians who are totally ignorant of both technology and business.  How anyone could believe that Massachusetts could produce solar cells competitively with China, when even the iPad is being assembled offshore is a testament to either ignorance or wishful thinking.  It is also a testament to the cavalier attitude of politicians to the money they take from taxpayers.

Finally, does anyone who writes about the cost of living ever go to the grocery store and shop for food? I wondered about this when the media made fun of Sarah Palin for saying that food prices are rising. Palin was right about food prices and the shootings in Arizona, yet not enough people inside the Beltway take her seriously.  Of course no one took Reagan seriously either.

Here's an article from Reuters: 

Wheat prices rose 47 percent last year, corn more than 50 percent and U.S. soybeans by 34 percent. The U.N. Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) said in its report key grains prices could rise further, a view underlined by a U.S. report published on Wednesday....

For China, corn prices are just too high, so it has canned a proposal to import millions of tonnes of the grain in 2011, two industry sources with knowledge of the plan said on Thursday.

The initial Chinese proposal had been drawn up as a way to combat food inflation, a worry for Beijing because China's food inflation is running in double digits....

Data earlier showed that India's food inflation pulled back slightly from a year high of more than 18 percent to just below 17 percent.

In case you have not noticed, the US is part of a global economy, not insulated from the effects of commodity prices throughout the world, as you have noticed every time you fill your tank. And yet, the American government is continuing to mandate that millions of tons of corn should be converted into an inefficient gas additive to "solve" an non-existing crisis while fostering the real possibility of global starvation.