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May 24, 2012
Jeff Jacoby: The peace process battered Israel's reputation
Michael Muskal: 'Pro-choice' position hits record low, according to poll
Chris Farrell: Are We in a Tech Bubble?
The Kosher Gourmet by Penelope Wall: PHILLY CHEESE STEAKS --- hold the steak!
May 23, 2012
Tony Pugh: More private colleges offering tuition discounts
Mary Beth Franklin: How to Choose the Right Annuity for You
Tina Susman: The wig wasn't enough: Man gets 13 years for posing as his dead mom
The Kosher Gourmet by Emma Christensen:A simple way to do fish right
May 22, 2012
Warren Richey: Can US group challenge overseas surveillance act? Supreme Court to decide
Thomas M. Anderson: Walking Away From a Mortgage
The Kosher Gourmet by Megan Gordon: Enjoy a celebration of the most rich and layered flavors: Black bean, sweet potato and quinoa chili
May 21, 2012
Mark Clayton: Cybersecurity: How US utilities passed up chance to protect their networks
Howard LaFranchi: NATO summit: Who will foot the bill for long-term Afghanistan security?
Chris Farrell : Earn Dividends in Emerging Markets with This WisdomTree ETF
Stephen Whiteside, Ph.D. : Mayo Clinic Medical Edge: Social anxiety disorder --- or just shy?
Guy Jackson : Victim's father regrets death of Lockerbie bomber
The Kosher Gourmet by Mario Batali: Famed chef's veal shoulder farsumagru: A festive meat course for late spring
May 18, 2012
Rabbi Berel Wein: Striving: The People of the Book's Book for (All of) the People
Steven Goldberg: 5 Great Stock Picks and the Exchange-Traded Fund that Owns Them
Mary Pickett, M.D.: Ask the Harvard Experts: Don't be forced into gluten-free lifestyle based merely on a doctor's false-positive test
The Kosher Gourmet by Carolyn Malcoun: DIY healthy lunchbox treats: HOMEMADE FRUIT BARS for kids and brown-bagging adults alike
May 17, 2012
Warren Richey: Teacher fired for being unwed and pregnant can sue religious school, court rules
Josh Mitnick: Netanyahu's 'centrist' coalition is already proving it's anything but
Steven Goldberg: Earn Dividends in Emerging Markets with This WisdomTree ETF
Amina Khan: Research links coffee to lower death rates
The Kosher Gourmet by Faith Duran : Cheesy Potato Breakfast Casserole with Cheddar and Sun-Dried Tomatoes
May 16, 2012
Carmen Terzic, M.D., Ph.D. : Mayo Clinic Medical Edge: A variety of exercises can help improve balance
Melissa Healy: National strategy on Alzheimer's disease aims to halt it by 2025
The Kosher Gourmet by Joyce White : GOODNESS GRACIOUS: GREENS! 4 winning recipes that are no longer just for down-home folks (Includes expert tips & techniques)
May 15, 2012
Kristen Chick: Obama administration resumes arms sales to Bahrain despite serious unresolved human rights issues. Activists feel abandoned
Pat Mertz Esswein: Homes are now affordable again and mortgage rates are low. What you need to know before you buy
Kathy Kristof: Our Practical Investor Fights Inflation with These 6 Investments
Sue Hubbard, M.D.: The Kid's Doctor: Lactose intolerant young child? Check again
The Kosher Gourmet by Kathy Hunt: Spread a Little Excitement with EXOTIC CONDIMENTS (4 RECIPES)
May 14, 2012
Lisa Gerstner: How to Protect Your Identity, Finances If You Lose Your Phone
Harvard Health Letters: Heart disease and dementia
The Kosher Gourmet by Megan Gordon: MANGO COCONUT OAT MORNING MUFFINS are a bright but hearty delight
May 11, 2012
Jessica L. Anderson: Get the Best Deal on a Used Car
Jett Stone: Forget face-lifts and fake knees. Scientists have seen the fountain of youth --- and it's broccoli
The Kosher Gourmet by Chef Mario Batali: The famed chef's vegetable dish that tastes true to the season: FAVAS AND SUGAR SNAP PEAS WITH POTATOES AND TARRAGON
May 10, 2012
Sergei L. Loiko: Putin sends warning to U.S., NATO in Victory Day speech at Red Square
Mary Rourke: How being a 'mentch' got Vidal Sasoon his start and fighting in Israel's War of Independence provided him with confidence and a strong sense of his own identity
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The Kosher Gourmet by Betty Rosbottom: Gleaming with its golden, crimson, and snowy white hues, this silken smooth and creamy STRAWBERRY ORANGE TRIFLE looks impressive, but is easy to prepare
May 9, 2012
Sharon Palmer, R.D. How you can reduce your risk -- or delay -- chronic diseases associated with aging
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Jewish World Review
How an economic depression works
By
Marshall Brain
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com | (MCT)
Recently you have probably heard an ominous sentence that goes something like this, "The United States may be on the verge of another Great Depression." You may have heard it more than once, because a number of people have been throwing this idea around lately.
It is a sentence that strikes fear in the heart of any American. Even though few who actually lived through the Great Depression of the 1930s are still alive today, we have heard so many stories and seen so many photographs that we understand the pain that the Great Depression brought. We know that we don't want to experience anything like that again.
But what exactly is an economic depression? And what makes a depression so painful?
One way to understand a depression is to look at its opposite. What is a "good" economy? When the U.S. economy is behaving normally, one thing we see is an expanding job market. The number of jobs in the economy is growing. This means that unemployment is low. When someone needs a job, or wants to change jobs, an expanding job market makes it easy to find employment.
In a good economy, that expanding pool of jobs combines with increasing wages. Over time, people are making more money for what they do. In addition, inflation is low, so the increasing wages are able to outpace inflation and provide a rising standard of living for everyone.
The rising standard of living and a growing population translates into a growing economy. People are able to start new businesses, and existing businesses are able to sell more stuff. The stock market reflects this growth by rising.
A tool called the GDP, or Gross Domestic Product, measures the size of the economy. If you add up all the money that people, businesses and governments spend on products (like food, clothing, cars and paper) and services (like hospital care, dry cleaning, car insurance, and package delivery), you have the GDP for the country. In a good economy, the GDP is growing at a healthy clip. Three to 4 percent GDP growth per year (after inflation) would be considered a good average for the United States.
So, when jobs are expanding, wages are increasing, inflation is low and the economy as a whole is growing at a nice clip, times are good. People are happy with the economy.
A depression is the exact opposite of this rosy picture. For example, in the Great Depression jobs were scarce. The unemployment rate went as high as 25 percent during the worst of the crisis, compared with the 5 percent unemployment figure that we see today. Instead of growing, wages fall in a depression. So the people who still have jobs are making less money as time goes by.
Because fewer people have jobs, and those who do have jobs are making less money, people have less money to spend. This means that businesses have to close or scale back. Banks also fail and close, meaning that loans dry up (nearly half of the banks closed during the Great Depression). And that means the GDP is shrinking rather than growing. GDP growth turns negative in a depression. The stock market reflects all of this economic discord and plummets.
The effect of high unemployment and lower wages is where the real pain of a depression comes from. Without jobs, people can't make their house payments or their car payments. So they lose their homes and cars. Eventually, for a large segment of the population, there isn't enough money for essentials like food and clothing. In the Great Depression, this led to soup lines in cities and shanty towns in rural areas. It was an economic disaster that lasted for about a decade, although actual negative GDP growth only took place in five of those 10 years.
Several government programs in the 1930s worked toward ending the Great Depression. They included the Works Progress Administration, or WPA, which provided millions of government-backed jobs, the start of Social Security, which helped provide income to the elderly, and the creation of the National Labor Relations Board, which helped increase wages for workers. But it was the massive war-time spending during World War II that finally finished the Great Depression.
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Previously:
How the liver works
How 3D movies work
How oil pipelines work
How jet packs work
How seismographs work
How Olympic technology works
How Personal Rapid Transit works
How 3G works
How the Global Position System (GPS) works
How octane works
How cruise missiles work
How submarines work
How miles work
How octane works
How food preservation works
How beer works
How holding your breath works
How smoke detectors work
How heat pumps work
How your night vision works
How concentrating solar collectors work
How your key fob works
How the common cold works
How the Large Hadron Collider Works
How making a TV show works
How dry cleaning works
How exoskeletons work
How an oil refinery works
How landfills work
How the Orion spacecraft works
The cutting edge in HDTV
Redefining the CD
How the HDMI cable scam works
How glow-in-the-dark toys work
How the subprime mortgage crisis works
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How Tasers work
How giant TV screens work
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How Air Force One works
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Why aren't we flying to work?
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How Colony Collapse Disorder works
How airbags work
How the U.S. income tax works
How gum works
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How Daylight Saving Time works
How a cruise missile works
How snow making works
© 2007, How Stuff Works Inc. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
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