U.S. Economy

2009

• Fixing Too Big To Fail

  Mike Konczal : Economic Policy

  How well will Representative Barney Frank's proposed regulatory reform legislation address the "too big to fail" problem?

• Save the Children, in Zimbabwe and at Home

  Ophelia Hu : Youth

  What is poverty? One volunteer's perspective shows us it's all relative.

• The New Okies: Brain Drain in Class of '09

  Jeanette Blalock-Davis : Youth

  Going abroad is no longer just a school-time pleasure cruise. It's an employment opportunity.

• Graduating in the Recession

  Michael Cohen : Youth

  A struggling young journalist is forced to take up a job on the side delivering pizza, but with tips dwindling, he wonders if it's really worth it.

• The Weight of Our Problems

  Aleena Durrani : Youth

  The looming presence of debt collectors makes high school an even harder.

• Did Republicans Rally the Stock Market?

  CNBC

  The Nation's Christopher Hayes disproves claims that the November 4 jump in the markets is directly correlated with "the Republican sweep" on election day.

• Battered But Never Broken

  Jacob Stokes : Youth

  After fifteen years as a production manager, one man is now forced to haul trash out of abandoned public housing. Instead of panicking, he is turning the crisis into an opportunity to do good.

• Economic Adaptation

  Christine Chang : Youth

  The recession has been a rite of passage for Generation Y, who are now more than prepared for the struggles of adulthood.

• The Recession Epidemic

  Eric Siguenza : Youth

  There is no better way to teach someone the value of a dollar or about financial responsibility than a recession.

• Boston Bound

  Christopher Criswell : Youth

  Everything's a gamble. The American Dream is about waiting to get lucky now.

• Working Women: Strength in Numbers

  Katha Pollitt : Feminism & Women

  First feminism was dead because it was a "failure"; now it's dead because it was such a success.

• Big League Blues

  Dave Zirin : Sports

  The NFL is only the highest-profile example of the economic crisis pervading the world of sports.

• Deficit Hawk Hysteria

  William Greider : Economic Policy

  The time to pay down the deficit will come only after the economy recovers.

• Break Up the Banks

  The Editors : Banks & Banking

  To reform the financial sector, we must break up "too big to fail" conglomerates and reinstate the Glass-Steagall Act.

• 

  Slide Show: Showdown in Chicago

  At the annual American Bankers Association conference in Chicago, protesters faced off against the bankers who refused to extend them credit even after getting bailed out.

• Why the Health Insurance Excise Tax Is a Bad Idea

  Steve Early & Rand Wilson : Health Insurance

  Max Baucus's scheme to tax the benefits of workers slightly better off--so revenue can be raised for private insurance subsidies--is a lose-lose proposition.

• More OutrAIGe

  Greg Kaufmann

  Nightmare on Wall Street continues--come March 2010, AIG plans on upping the bonuses for its Financial Products division to nearly $200 million, bringing the total to $426 million since December 2008.