The industries where jobs can be found include: Accounting, Information Technology, and even food service. This is all according to government data.

There are several surveys out now that are indicating that many companies won’t be hiring anytime soon, but a lot of the companies in the industries listed above will be looking for new recruits and are already out there actively seeking employees.

After shrinking for an entire year, four quarters in a row, the economy is expected to pick up a bit for the July through September quarter; this could lead employers to take away hiring freezes and start hiring people again. However, even with the new unemployment numbers out and showing a decrease in the total number of those who are unemployed, unemployment is expected to increase to 10% by the end of the year. Total job openings stayed steady through June according to the Labor Department.

Of course there are plenty of accounting jobs out there. The college I graduated from often boasts their 100% placement rate for accounting graduates. That number just seems crazy to me. After all, they just took a lot of the same classes I took to get through business school, yet most of them end up working in their field within weeks of getting their diplomas.

Washington D.C. and the surrounding areas in Maryland and Virginia saw something in September that not many places across the country have seen; an increase in home prices. Unfortunately, while the prices increased, the median sale price did fall a bit.

Sales were up almost 19% in September in the area from just a year ago; with the median sale price declining almost 5% to $371,568.

Houses in D.C. are also selling for most of what the owner is asking. The average sale price in the area was 92% of the asking price.

Seeing any area, particularly a large metro area gaining in sales of homes is a pretty good (and not outrageous) sign that the economy is doing a bit better than it was a year ago. Then again, a year ago, credit had completely frozen as the subprime crisis really took off.

As banks have begun to lend again, more homes have started to sell. As the homes start to sell, prices will gradually begin to rise again. The rise will be in areas where there are jobs and every list that I’ve read says the jobs are in Washington D.C. due to the amount of government jobs as well as all of the large companies that are headquartered there.

When I was in Maryland over the summer, it didn’t seem like the recession had hit there as bad as it looked in other parts of the country I have seen in the last year. For example, while Chris and I were in St. Louis in August, restaurants were basically empty at dinner time. It’s not like we were going to obscure places either. The only restaurant I noticed was busy the entire time we were there was a Cheesecake Factory in one of the larger malls in the area. In Maryland, everything was always busy it seemed. Shopping centers were full of cars usually and there weren’t a lot of empty businesses making it look like a ghost town.

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There are millions out of work right now and there are fewer and fewer jobs available for those who are looking or work. Data that was released by the government on Friday showed that the recession is worse than it has been since the beginning of the recession right now.

It’s only expected to get worse because companies are still not hiring and most have no plans on creating jobs to start hiring.

It is so difficult to be unemployed right now because there are about 6.3 people applying for every one job opening. In comparison, when the recession officially began in 2007, there were only 1.7 workers competing for every one job opening in the united States.

Since the beginning of the decade, the largest amount of people who were competing for one job opening was in July 2003, when 2.8 people were looking for every one job opening.

From the beginning of the recession, employers have cut over 7 million jobs. Even though there are fewer and fewer job cuts with each job and unemployment report, there aren’t any jobs being created. Job creation is essential for the health of the economy.

So, people with jobs are feeling a bit more safe when it comes to their jobs. Job security can be priceless, but for those that were laid off or have found themselves unemployed, it is still quite difficult to find work.

It is, of course, more difficult to find work in some areas than others. Jobs are being created in some areas of the country, but there are other parts of the country that barely have any jobs available and are losing them much faster than they’re making them. The more industrial a town is, particularly in this recession, the more that town or county hurts it seems.

Hopefully, the job market will get a bit better sometime soon.

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You know, I was reading an article today and it said that 15.1 million people are out of work and looking for employment. At the same time there are “a lot” of $60,000 a year jobs available right now. The kinds of jobs that are hiring but can’t seem to find people to fill the positions are jobs in pharmacy, MRI techs, energy researchers, accountants, nurses, health care workers, software sales reps, actuaries, physical therapists, electrical engineers, data analysts, plant scientists, and geo-technical engineers.

As of July there was a 6 to 1 ratio of people looking for employment and open jobs. People are definitely out there looking for work, but they simply can’t find anything because of whatever conditions they have found themselves in.

In my case, I feel as though I am limited first of all, by the degree I received (in a time when most companies are cutting their marketing budgets, I graduated with a degree in marketing communications). Secondly, I feel as though I’m limited by my geographic location and being tied down to a house. I think this is where a lot of the people who are looking for work and can’t find jobs have found themselves. Right now, those who have houses don’t want to sell them because they know they’re going to take a loss on the house if they have purchased it in the last 2-5 years.

Also, no one wants to have to move when the job that they are moving for may not be completely secured. I know someone who has a house and lives there, but travels to wherever he has work. When you are contracted out for work, you cannot move around every single time you have a contract end and relocate…particularly if you have a family. Children can’t handle being uprooted several times; it is difficult for them.

Also, most of these jobs seem to be in fields that people aren’t exactly fighting to be in. At most colleges, you can compare the size of a business school class to the size of a geo-technical engineering class and I’m sure that you will notice a difference in how many students decide to go into business rather than geo-technical engineering.

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Your resume is the main way to market yourself to potential employers and now that jobs are scarce for some of us, it is important to play on your best skills, accomplishments, and why you would be an asset to the company.

Of course, there are a few ways to downplay some of your own pitfalls without lying on your resume.Yahoo’s The Savvy Networker had a list of tips on how to boost your resume, and I just thought it would be fun to revisit; especially because I know how hard it can be to get your foot in the door at any job.

First, eliminate resume gaps by taking out the month from your dates of employment. There are times in most people’s lives where they have been unemployed for some time or there were a couple of months where you were “between jobs” and gaps in employment make employers wary. However if you put 2004-2009 instead of May 2004 – March 2009 then the gap between March and now is gone.

Then, you should be able to describe your previous jobs. When you put on your resume where you worked and what you did, perhaps it would be good to tell your potential employer exactly what the company did or does. The reason for this is that not all companies can be a huge brand name that everyone recognizes.

For Example:

Global Supply Company
Inventory Manager 2006-present

Global Supply is the Midwest’s largest distributor of heating and cooling equipment to contractors. As Inventory Manager I was responsible for managing $1M in equipment and coordinating deliveries and outbound shipments among our 45 suppliers and 400+ contractor clients.

Also, don’t use corporate lingo in your resume. When you say something like “cross-functional collaborator” you are simply asking for your resume to be passed over. Yes, that may have been your actual job, but if you say something that you actually accomplished such as your ability to distribute your company’s product to resellers, then your resume will look a bit more practical than others that put some kind of lingo on their resumes.

Finally, make your resume sound human. Robots can spit out phrases and overused cliches like “attention to detail.” However, you can actually add something that sounds a bit more human. How much better does it sound to say that you are able to tackle office chaos and calm down your coworkers? Hmm…

Of course, these are all just boosters. Your real accomplishments are whats going to sell a potential employer on your resume.

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Sometimes we all have to make the decision as to what is more important: Our time or our money. A lot of times these two don’t exactly go hand-in-hand. As a matter of fact, the examples I will give will only talk about choosing one or the other.

Saving money has gotten extremely important to those who have lost their jobs or who have suffered through a reduction in income since the beginning of the recession. One of the best examples I can give as to a trade off between time and money is supper time in most households.

Cooking supper at home will typically save you money in opposition to going out to eat, however going and picking something up will always be more of a time saver. Say you’re on your way home from work and you call your local [insert restaurant name here] and pick it up; you’re going to spend more money than if you would have cooked all the food at home, but you now just get to pick up the food and take it home to your hungry, waiting family. After they finish eating, the garbage gets recycled or thrown away and there isn’t any mess to clean up (or if there is, it is usually minimal if your kids didn’t get into a huge food fight or something during dinner time).

Time and money also come into play when you’re thinking about things such as thrifty shopping. Many shoppers who are out there shopping to save money will visit many different stores and spend a lot of time clipping coupons just to save money. Time conscious shoppers are more willing to shop at the same store for everything, or just venture to a couple of grocery stores.

For anyone the answer will likely be different. Some will feel as though their time is more valuable than the savings they will get from shopping at different stores and spending time clipping coupons while others will feel as though their money is more valuable than the time they spend doing all the things that save them money.

As for me, I find myself in the middle (as I imagine most would). I won’t go out of my way to save $1 on groceries, but I will shop at different stores if it means I can use my favorite coupons. I also try not to go out to eat too often, not for the cost but simply for the nutritional value or lack there of. I really enjoy saving money, but I also value my time.

What do you do? Are you a time saver or a money saver? Or do you fall somewhere in the middle?

As a response to the success of the cash for clunkers program, GM will be turning on some of the plants that were temporarily shut down and will begin amping up production.

The employees that were cut to 4 days a week will begin working their 5 days a week again; the workers that were left without jobs when their plants halted production will have jobs again. No one is complaining about the good news for jobs.

But, is this really a good idea for GM?

Sure, the company will be producing the more fuel efficient cars, thanks to the cash for clunkers program these are the cars that are being bought up as though they won’t be there tomorrow. However, after the program is over and consumers go back to not being able to afford the cars without the huge down payment of an old car or truck, what will happen to the extra cars that they are producing?

The cash for clunkers program was always a temporary fix to a much larger problem with auto makers. I believe that GM is smart for trying to cash in on it, but it’s a bit too little too late because the program will be out of cash in September and what will happen then?

I hope GM doesn’t get itself into a lot of trouble by amping up production on the cars and then losing money on them.

UPDATE: The Cash for Clunkers program is set to end on Monday at 8:00 PM. So GM should probably think twice about restarting the production.

What do you do about your dead end job?

Question:

We all feel like our jobs hit low points at times, but what do you do when you know that your job isn’t going anywhere and you’re basically stuck doing the same job with no hope of ever being promoted or getting a raise?

Answer:

That question is easy; you start looking for another job, but be responsible and find another job before you quit the first one. Most people have lots of responsibilities and can’t just go around quitting their jobs without something else lined up first. Then again, you could quit your job while you have no prospects and get in the unemployment line in your parents’ house.

If you had a choice where would you retire?

Question:

While people are losing jobs and portions of their retirement funds have been wiped out, is there anywhere in particular that you would like to retire to, or have you changed your retirement plans?

Answer:

I recently read that Panama is the “new Florida” as far as retirement goes. Thanks to cheap, and good quality, health care and the low cost of living, Panama has become a great place to retire to.

I would consider moving to another country once I retire, but that is a few years away and I have a lot of time to think about it.

While summer officially began just a couple of weeks ago, many retailers are already putting their summer merchandise on sale and to the clearance racks dismissing this summer as a complete wash.

Department stores like Macy’s have discounted summer clothing and swimwear down 50%. Other retailers have slashed the prices of barbecue grills, tents, gardening tools, and piles of clothing. Some of those items are going straight to liquidation rather than to the retail stores.

This is good for people trying to save some money, but it is a bad sign for retailers as it shows that retail sales have been weakening since the end of May.

Consumer confidence increased in April and May, but is predicted to level off for the month of June. The figures, which come out later today, won’t be helped by the major retailers releasing June sales results next week. Consumer spending makes up 70% of the economy and if consumers are worried about the economic condition, chances are that spending won’t increase too much in the near future.

Fall merchandise will start hitting shelves in August, so these retailers are trying to move summer merchandise to make room. This could mean that we’ll see more discounts like we did last year for clothing.

Some are blaming the weather, which has been particularly rainy for parts of the country. The rain has led to unseasonable weather. However, where I live, it has been unbearably hot with little rain to help. Then again, when I go through the “summer” section of any local stores, the shelves have been nearly picked clean.

Some are still worried about the economy and think it’s to blame for the lack of consumer spending. Employers are still cutting jobs (even if it is at a slower rate than the beginning of the year) and the average price for a home is still falling.

What do you think about the reincarnation of Circuit City?

Question:

Talk about “zombie retail.” Circuit City is coming back in the form of an online store. The name was recently acquired by Systemax and will be re-launching sometime soon. What do you think about this?

Answer:

Well, honestly, bringing back the store means that some jobs will be going back to Circuit City. Systemax is also promising a larger selection with lower prices, so that could be good right now also. However, I do think it’s strange how the store went extinct and before anyone really had time to lament the loss of Circuit City it may be coming back in the form of an online only store.

At the same time, there should be some economic recovery happening by the end of the year, at least that’s what people are predicting. So far, predictions have been off, but it has been a good thing. When it came to the number of jobs lost in April, some were expecting 600,000 jobs lost, but there were only 539,000.

When compared to April 2008, unemployment was 5%.

Since the beginning of the recession in December 2007, the nation has lost 5.7 million jobs.

However continuing claims were up 185,000 to a seasonally adjusted number of 5.47 million jobless collecting unemployment. The number is more than the 5.33 million economists were expecting.

When jobless rates start to fall, it could signal that jobs are not being lost as fast as in the past few months. However, with the continuing claims rising, it means that many are still unable to find jobs.

So while many jobs aren’t being lost at the rate they were a month ago, employers still aren’t hiring.

Hopefully the number of jobless will begin to decrease.

Just when I had put the thought into the back of my mind, up pops Yahoo! News saying “Job forecast for new college grads grim.” Well, I thought, there goes that 10 minutes of thoughts not surrounding my future.

I’ve spent four years in school wondering exactly what they’re trying to teach us and finally this semester it was all put together. All my classes are focused on implementing what we’ve learned rather than being talked at. The thing is, I really enjoy my major and am actually really disappointed about not likely finding a job in my field. P.S. living in Mississippi probably doesn’t help.

An article from the AP lists everything from playing guitar and enjoying time with kids to stressing out over bills and money. However, the consensus is that, given the opportunity, they would go back to work in a heartbeat.

I don’t have to sit here and talk about how awful it is to sit around and wonder when the next interview is going to happen. But, I can’t help but wonder what the millions of fired and laid off workers in the United States are doing.

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The good news (if you can look at it that way) is that Nissan will not be cutting all the jobs at once. Job cuts are expected to happen over time between now and March 2010.

Directors on the board for Nissan’s fiscal year ending in March will not be getting any bonuses. They will also be taking a 10 percent pay cut. Manager’s salaries will also be reduced by 5%.

GM, which saw its sales drop 49 percent in January, told policymakers in December that it faced possible near-term collapse without government aid. The company has received $9.4 billion in emergency funding as part of a rescue plan the U.S. government approved in December.

Whatever GM decides to do, it needs to do it quickly. It has until March 31st to prove to the government that it is worth saving.

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Caterpillar is expecting its worst and slowest sales year since the end of World War II.

Manufacturing plants of equipment like Caterpillar should be expecting the cuts. Since new construction is down and commodity prices have dropped, there are far fewer people building new things or mining for metals and other commodities.

Last year, Starbucks closed several hundred stores all across the country due to falling profits and a looming recession. Now it has announced another 300 store closings and a loss of 6,700 jobs. Two-hundred of the stores will be located in the U.S.

I never understood why Starbucks chooses to locate in some areas, but not others. For example, I live in a college town with a student population of around 12,000. We have one Starbucks inside the student union and it’s a collaboration with Barnes and Noble. Yet, in the Grapevine Mills Mall just outside Dallas, there were 2 full size Starbucks. I like Starbucks, but for me, it’s just too inconvenient to buy on a regular basis.

Analysts have crowned Amazon the online winner of the holiday spending season, at a time when consumers dramatically cut back purchases. Executives cited its lowered prices and discount shipping program, Amazon Prime, that helped boost sales and encourage repeat purchases.

“It looks like they took a lot of market share and made substantial gains,” said Jeffrey Lindsay of Sanford C. Bernstein. “The good thing is that Amazon hasn’t had to discount to the extent that people feared to achieve this.”

Amazon is killing the competition at this point. While Circuit City is liquidating, Best Buy is cutting jobs and countless other retailers are scaling back, Amazon is flourishing? I think it may have something to do with more price conscious shoppers. When you can buy something on Amazon and pay a percentage of the price you can find the item for in an brick and mortar, chances are you’ll shop at Amazon…
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Each automaker’s jobs bank varies, but at GM, laid-off workers could get 85 percent of their base pay, plus benefits, without reporting to work while the company tried to find them jobs elsewhere. Or workers could get full pay by reporting to a factory or union hall, where they could be called upon to perform community service or tasks around the plant.

Starting Monday the 1,600 people who are currently receiving the benefit from GM will be forced into the unemployment line. And while they have been able to stay in the jobs bank for years, unemployment usually only lasts around 48 weeks.

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There are also new lobbying rules. This is from the AP:

Obama’s new lobbying rules will not only ban aides from trying to influence the administration when they leave his staff. Those already hired will be banned from working on matters they have previously lobbied on, or to approach agencies that they once targeted.

The rules also ban lobbyists from giving gifts of any size to any member of his administration. It wasn’t immediately clear whether the ban would include the traditional “previous relationships” clause, allowing gifts from friends or associates with which an employee comes in with strong ties.

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Last week, Jobs announced that he would be going on a six month medical leave. Speculation about his health ranges from his pancreatic cancer has returned to he needs a transplant due to complications from the treatment of the cancer.

Investors are angry because Jobs’ appearance has not been consistent with what was being disclosed and when his health condition was finally disclosed, stock prices dropped 7% in one day.

Here is the text of the speech:

“My fellow citizens:

I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you have bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors. I thank President Bush for his service to our nation, as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown throughout this transition.

Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath. The words have been spoken during rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace. Yet, every so often the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms. At these moments, America has carried on not simply because of the skill or vision of those in high office, but because we the people have remained faithful to the ideals of our forebears, and true to our founding documents.

So it has been. So it must be with this generation of Americans.

That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war, against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.

These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable but no less profound is a sapping of confidence across our land — a nagging fear that America’s decline is inevitable, and that the next generation must lower its sights.

Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America — they will be met.

On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.

On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.

We remain a young nation, but in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.

In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of shortcuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted — for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things — some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labor, who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom.

For us, they packed up their few worldly possessions and traveled across oceans in search of a new life.

For us, they toiled in sweatshops and settled the West; endured the lash of the whip and plowed the hard earth.

For us, they fought and died, in places like Concord and Gettysburg; Normandy and Khe Sanh.

Time and again these men and women struggled and sacrificed and worked till their hands were raw so that we might live a better life. They saw America as bigger than the sum of our individual ambitions; greater than all the differences of birth or wealth or faction.

This is the journey we continue today. We remain the most prosperous, powerful nation on Earth. Our workers are no less productive than when this crisis began. Our minds are no less inventive, our goods and services no less needed than they were last week or last month or last year. Our capacity remains undiminished. But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions — that time has surely passed. Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.

For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. The state of the economy calls for action, bold and swift, and we will act — not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth. We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together. We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology’s wonders to raise health care’s quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. All this we will do.

Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions — who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short. For they have forgotten what this country has already done; what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose, and necessity to courage.

What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them — that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply. The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works — whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end. Those of us who manage the public’s dollars will be held to account — to spend wisely, reform bad habits, and do our business in the light of day — because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government.

Nor is the question before us whether the market is a force for good or ill. Its power to generate wealth and expand freedom is unmatched, but this crisis has reminded us that without a watchful eye, the market can spin out of control — and that a nation cannot prosper long when it favors only the prosperous. The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our gross domestic product, but on the reach of our prosperity; on our ability to extend opportunity to every willing heart — not out of charity, but because it is the surest route to our common good.

As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our founding fathers … our found fathers, faced with perils we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience’s sake. And so to all the other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman, and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and that we are ready to lead once more.

Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with sturdy alliances and enduring convictions. They understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please. Instead, they knew that our power grows through its prudent use; our security emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility and restraint.

We are the keepers of this legacy. Guided by these principles once more, we can meet those new threats that demand even greater effort — even greater cooperation and understanding between nations. We will begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people, and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan. With old friends and former foes, we will work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat, and roll back the specter of a warming planet. We will not apologize for our way of life, nor will we waver in its defense, and for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror and slaughtering innocents, we say to you now that our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken; you cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you.

For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus — and non-believers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.

To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect. To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society’s ills on the West — know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy. To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.

To the people of poor nations, we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds. And to those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to the suffering outside our borders; nor can we consume the world’s resources without regard to effect. For the world has changed, and we must change with it.

As we consider the road that unfolds before us, we remember with humble gratitude those brave Americans who, at this very hour, patrol far-off deserts and distant mountains. They have something to tell us, just as the fallen heroes who lie in Arlington whisper through the ages. We honor them not only because they are guardians of our liberty, but because they embody the spirit of service; a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves. And yet, at this moment — a moment that will define a generation — it is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all.

For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the firefighter’s courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent’s willingness to nurture a child, that finally decides our fate.

Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends — hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism — these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility — a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation, and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.

This is the price and the promise of citizenship.

This is the source of our confidence — the knowledge that God calls on us to shape an uncertain destiny.

This is the meaning of our liberty and our creed — why men and women and children of every race and every faith can join in celebration across this magnificent Mall, and why a man whose father less than sixty years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath.

So let us mark this day with remembrance, of who we are and how far we have traveled. In the year of America’s birth, in the coldest of months, a small band of patriots huddled by dying campfires on the shores of an icy river. The capital was abandoned. The enemy was advancing. The snow was stained with blood. At a moment when the outcome of our revolution was most in doubt, the father of our nation ordered these words be read to the people:

“Let it be told to the future world … that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive…that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet (it).”

America, in the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember these timeless words. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children’s children that when we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God’s grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations.

Thank you. God bless you. And God bless the United States of America.”

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One of the ads features a man clinging to steel beams. It looks like if he lets go, he will plummet to his death, and he knows it. However, when the camera backs out a bit, you see he’s only a few feet off the ground.

That ad would be more funny, to me and possibly to others, if right now people had the opportunity to change where they wanted to work or the field they wanted to work in. Construction is one of the fields that is hemorrhaging jobs right now too.

The video can be seen here

1. “What does your company do?”
This is something that should be researched before the interview process. “We need to show up for a job interview knowing what the employer does, who its competitors are, and which of its accomplishments (or challenges) have made the news lately.”

2. “Are you going to do a background check?”
When you ask this question, you’re saying “Please don’t do a background check…I have a shady past.” and it makes it more likely for your potential employer to run one on you.

3. “When will I be eligible for a raise?”
“Instead of asking about your first raise before you’ve got the job, you can ask (at a second interview) ‘Does your organization do a conventional one-year performance and salary review?’”

4. “Do you have any other jobs available?”

5. “How soon can I transfer to another position?”

6. “Can you tell me about bus lines to your facility?”
Again, this is something else that you should probably find out yourself.

7. “Do you have smoking breaks?”
“Lots of companies don’t permit smoking anywhere on the premises, and some don’t like to hire smokers at all. Why give an employer a reason to turn you down?”

8. “Is [my medical condition] covered under your insurance?”
You could ask to see a benefits pamphlet from the potential employer rather than flat out asking this question. Besides, an interviewer will not likely know the answer to this question either.

9. “Do you do a drug test?”
See #2

10. “If you hire me, can I wait until [more than three weeks from now] to start the job?”
If you ask for tons of time off before you start working — unless you have a very good reason — the employer may think, ‘How serious is this candidate about working?’”

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“I want to thank all the speakers and performers for reminding us, through song and through words, just what it is that we love about America. And I want to thank all of you for braving the cold and the crowds and traveling in some cases thousands of miles to join us here today. Welcome to Washington, and welcome to this celebration of American renewal.

In the course of our history, only a handful of generations have been asked to confront challenges as serious as the ones we face right now. Our nation is at war. Our economy is in crisis. Millions of Americans are losing their jobs and their homes; they’re worried about how they’ll afford college for their kids or pay the stack of bills on their kitchen table. And most of all, they are anxious and uncertain about the future — about whether this generation of Americans will be able to pass on what’s best about this country to our children and their children.

I won’t pretend that meeting any one of these challenges will be easy. It will take more than a month or a year, and it will likely take many. Along the way there will be setbacks and false starts and days that test our resolve as a nation.

But despite all of this — despite the enormity of the task that lies ahead — I stand here today as hopeful as ever that the United States of America will endure — that the dream of our founders will live on in our time.
What gives me that hope is what I see when I look out across this mall. For in these monuments are chiseled those unlikely stories that affirm our unyielding faith — a faith that anything is possible in America. Rising before us stands a memorial to a man who led a small band of farmers and shopkeepers in revolution against the army of an Empire, all for the sake of an idea. On the ground below is a tribute to a generation that withstood war and depression — men and women like my grandparents who toiled on bomber assembly lines and marched across Europe to free the world from tyranny’s grasp. Directly in front of us is a pool that still reflects the dream of a King, and the glory of a people who marched and bled so that their children might be judged by their character’s content. And behind me, watching over the union he saved, sits the man who in so many ways made this day possible.

And yet, as I stand here today, what gives me the greatest hope of all is not the stone and marble that surrounds us today, but what fills the spaces in between. It is you — Americans of every race and region and station who came here because you believe in what this country can be and because you want to help us get there.

It is the same thing that gave me hope from the day we began this campaign for the presidency nearly two years ago; a belief that if we could just recognize ourselves in one another and bring everybody together — Democrats, Republicans and Independents; Latino, Asian and Native American; black and white, gay and straight, disabled and not — then not only would we restore hope and opportunity in places that yearned for both, but maybe, just maybe, we might perfect our union in the process.

This is what I believed, but you made this belief real. You proved once more that people who love this country can change it. And as I prepare to assume the presidency, yours are the voices I will take with me every day I walk into that Oval Office — the voices of men and women who have different stories but hold common hopes; who ask only for what was promised us as Americans — that we might make of our lives what we will and see our children climb higher than we did.

It is this thread that binds us together in common effort; that runs through every memorial on this mall; that connects us to all those who struggled and sacrificed and stood here before.

It is how this nation has overcome the greatest differences and the longest odds — because there is no obstacle that can stand in the way of millions of voices calling for change.

That is the belief with which we began this campaign, and that is how we will overcome what ails us now.

There is no doubt that our road will be long. That our climb will be steep. But never forget that the true character of our nation is revealed not during times of comfort and ease, but by the right we do when the moment is hard. I ask you to help reveal that character once more, and together, we can carry forward as one nation, and one people, the legacy of our forefathers that we celebrate today.

Thank you, America. God bless you.

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Circuit City was listed on the NYSE in 1984. Since then the brand has built equity and rose to the largest retailer of consumer electronics before Best Buy became the “top dog.”

It always seems like the electronics stores are the ones that fall the fastest. CompUSA was another example, however, in the end they found a buyer.

Now Best Buy really has no serious brick and mortar competitors. There was a class “review” where my professor split us up into 3 teams. One was Best Buy, then Circuit City, and the last one was Radio Shack…

Is that all we have left, Best Buy and Radio Shack??

JPMorgan says we haven’t seen the worst of it yet.

I think that we have seen the worst (as far as the financial markets are concerned). Perhaps the stock market will fall some more, we all KNOW more jobs will be lost.

So, what do you think? When do you see the economy getting back to “good.”

From the AP:

The company said the move will save about $700 million a year starting in 2009, and total $1.5 billion in annual savings when combined with the previous cut.

Most of the new layoffs will hit the mobile devices business, while about 1,000 jobs are tied to corporate functions and other business units.

There hasn’t been a lot of good news for Motorola recently. Even the popular RAZR has finally been outsold in the past few months.

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