Welcome to Room for Debate, a new commentary blog that convenes discussions with knowledgeable experts on news events and other hot topics. We hope these forums, by offering analysis and opinions from different perspectives, will give our readers context for the news. Sometimes our contributors will engage in back and forth with one another. Sometimes they will just share what they know.
Our first forum looks at workplace anxiety in an economy with a spiking unemployment rate. Americans who have jobs count themselves lucky, but more and more of them worry that they too might join the unemployed. How does this contagion of fear affect individuals, industries and society? We’ve asked several experts from various fields to analyze this problem.
In the coming weeks, Room for Debate will hold discussions on other big news stories including the war in the Mideast, the auto industry’s future and the presidential inauguration.
We’re eager for readers to join the discussion. We’re sure that you’ll have a lot to say about the topics at hand, so please post your comments. If you have suggestions and ideas for this blog, please e-mail us.
Six authors read favorite passages from books they would never discard. 
From 1 to 25 of 72 Comments
I’m not hating my job as much these days…
— amyLayoffs this week started early in Wednesday morning leading us to believe it would go on all day. (It did.) Total 12 at HQ plus the closing of 30 stores for a total upwards of 200.
On days like these it’s akin ti standing in an open field with a slew of others as a thunderstorm approaches – where will the lightning strike? It missed me. This time.
The influx of feelings – empathy, relief, anger, guilt, happiness, sadness – are difficult to manage. Loss of motivation and inertia are inevitable, as is a deep-seated resentment of the state of the economy and those who wrecked it.
— TonyI think it’s a sure bet that, like me, everyone in USA as well as the rest of the world is waiting for the other shoe to drop since this crises is effecting ALL sectors of the economy. I’m certain we all feel that no job is secure right now. That’s why we’re saving money and cutting back wherever possible.
— TedAs long as greed and “rugged individualism” continue to trump collectivism in the American ethos, we are doomed to eat each other.
— Jimmy LohmanYou won’t believe this. But an hour ago, I had the idea, after having a letter published refuting a point from the two page OpEd about the New Financial World, that the N.Y. Times needs an interactive blog.
My letter didn’t allow me to give the deeper reasoning behind it, although I was gratified to have been able to show the extreme “moral hazard” for a universal bailout for all who are “underwater” on their mortgages.
I write frequently for Dailykos.com, which is often interesting, but is designed to be a Democratic blog. This also meant that for its entire life, it was a blog to speak truth to power–or at least object to actions of what has truly become the political elite.
I welcome this feature of the Times. The resources and the traditions of this institution must be adapted to the internet age. Yet, the vitriol and tribalism of many blogs must be tempered by a quality of respect for truth and openness of expression.
This is an important innovation for this great newspaper, and I hope it succeeds.
Al Rodbell
— ArodbFrankly, once again, why did you hire all these idiotic psychobabblers who have contributed to the present disaster?
— annaYes, dear psychobabblers, the problem is SYSTEMIC, go home and leave us alone.
My husband and I both graduated college the begining of 2008. I have found a great job in a place that pays well but it took a while. He found a job before I did but was -laid off. He has been laid off three times since March 2008. One job only lasted two weeks. We thought that by getting educations we would have job security and careers, not just jobs. He is really worried and it has been very hard. We took peoples advice, now what do we do and none of those “smart people” who said “get an education” have an answer for us.
— TinaThe sentence introducing this section that says, “…the unemployment rate to 7.2 percent” is misleading.
This 7.2 percent is a middling government statistic pulled from a range.
It could be improved: “the Department of Labor unemployment labor category U3 which reached 7.2 percent in December…”
Of the categories available (U1 – U6) it’s not clear to us readers why U3 is “the” rate for your story, especially when the most comprehensive measure on the list, U6, puts unemployment at 13.5% for last month.
U1 offers the prettiest picture. U6 factors in the most categories of un/underemployed. Your preferred U3 splits the difference while muddying the picture.
Labor Dept. statistics can be found here:
— Dimitri Rotovhttp://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.t12.htm
My heart goes out to the forty-something couple with two young kids who have advanced degrees and have been unemployed for 16 months and can’t even get a call-back on a secretarial job. My heart goes out because I don’t see it changing much for them. They will be in their 50’s soon and considered too old and expensive to get the senior management level jobs they deserve. Ageism is a cruel companion to the brutal job market. I had a 30+-year VP-level career in corporate communications when I was laid off 14 months ago. I decided to reinvent myself, cut my pay in by two-thirds and apply my experience to a worthy cause in the non-profit world. But they don’t even call!
— Marcie“a worthy cause in the non-profit world. But they don’t even call!
— Marcie”#9
Dear Marcie,
— annaI can assure you they don’t need you. They are paying and will be paying for a while for those “corporatists” who have been running American non-profit sector (as managers and board members) for a couple of decades.
Enjoy your freedom.
….and just when did we two-legged uprights not have fear to deal with …. let’s face it,… deal with it …. and win.
— merry m…. we CAN do that you know …
I subscribe to the theory that simple is better. The issue with the economy really boils down to two very basic items, houses and cars. These are the two most expensive items we purchase ( generally) and the two that most affect the economy. What has happened is the normal family is now in fear and they see the government handing out billions which they will pay for but seeing nothing in return. In order to put the hands in the money of the people, taking a ground up approach I suggest the following;
1. Create an investment tax credit for anyone buying a house or a car. It does not matter how many houses you buy, what the price is or where. 15% of the purchase with a minimum of $ 15,000 for each house, based on the purchase price. 10% for each car regardless of the price, size, truck, suv or hybrid. For houses you would have to keep them for three years, maintain them and pay the taxes. Investors would be incentivized to purchase low cost homes, improve them and place them in the rental pool and perhaps as an added bonus, no tax on the income for one year. In addition, after three years, no tax on the capital gains. Inventories would vanish in months. Car lots would be empty.
2. Allow individuals to take money out of their 401k and IRA accounts, tax and penalty free to pay bills. This would keep credit scores higher, allow individuals a break and enable them to make payments when and where needed, perhaps even avoiding foreclosure on thier home.
It’s simple. It does not require the government to go in to overtime printing cash and handing it out to banks and businesses. The only cost comes when something happens, when an individual makes a decision to invest in the countries future. If you agree with this approach, take the time to send a note to your congressman or woman.
— Dennis, Park City Ut.“We took peoples advice, now what do we do and none of those “smart people” who said “get an education” have an answer for us.”
Tina, I feel for you but in the four years that you attended collge didn’t one professor ever mention to you that even educated people get laid off from time to time?
Keep plugging away and things will improve. Oh, one more thing. Do you really regret listening to those smart people and getting an education?
Jay A.
Good luck . Jay
— JayI have found that as the economy gets worse, and the jobs scarcer, the managers get meaner and more irrational.
— mheenganProbably there is no way we can avoid fear when change of any magnitude enters our lives. We may not be able to avoid a natural fear response, but we do have a choice about how we react to and live with it. This may well be the cutting edge in personal growth. If we choose to be open to our own potential in fearful times we invite movement toward the best that we might become. It takes the edge off the fear and gives us hope for the future!!
— jeanne WeikertThe Republican’s have us all feeding from the fear trough!.
— gbarberI know that there is a lot of anxiety out there are the news seems to get progressively worse.
I work for a small firm that specializes in art, architectural, and museum objects conservation. So far we seem to have a full slate of projects. I really have never worried about what may happen – I do my best every day, try to make contacts and network for new projects, and lead a busy life. I think that there is this tremendous reservoir of hope and good will for Obama – and the confidence and trust in banks and Wall Street are zed, nada, less than nothing. It is remarkable that in just six months that the free market has led people to place their trust in government once again.
— David HarveyBush and co. just filled the pocket of those who you can serve just as freely as they took your hardly earned tax money. Why do you complain here? nobody give back your job nor your money, sleepness nights, smiless days, but they enjoy very much the overseas vacations paid by you!
— kataIf all of you, every american would get 100.000 or 300.000 fromthe 750 billion, the economy would blooming, everybody would pay the bills and many small business could start providing whatever americans need. The people – individuals! – who made this country great, are still capable to stand in their feet despite those greedy parasites who stole not only your money but your good mood, creativity, your tomorrow! bloodsuckers make you worry so you won’t have time and energy to think and create!
I don’t think things are going to get better economically until the job losses stop and new jobs start being created. The New Deal job creation programs got people back to working again and stopped the downward spiral. We are in a major downward spiral.
— Sharon ReaganI think the tax cuts are going to be ineffective. The only thing that is going to get the economy going again is jobs.
I agree with Dennis (12) in principle, but I doubt that the elimination of capital gains tax after the investment tax credit is necessary to provide incentive. On the access to 401K funds, I’d be careful not to go overboard, as that would spark a rush to liquidate retirement accounts, further deflating the value of investment assets and weakening many people’s retirement prospects. Perhaps liberalizing the self-loan provisions of the law would be a better approach.
— PaulOn the revenue side, the restrictions on rollovers from regular IRA and similar accounts to Roth should be eliminated. This would generate taxes relatively pain free, as many folks sitting on now deflated pretax retirement assets would elect to pay now rather than later, when values will have rebounded and tax rates will be higher.
Very good initiative. Although this first theme selected is very important, I wish you would also give space to comments of the horrendous war in Gaza, which is the most pressing issue for the whole world today . Maybe it would help remedy the lame, biased and censored coverage the NYT is offering its readers lately. The Washington Post, The Independent, The Economist, the BBC and even CNN, with their more balanced account put you to shame.
— angela costaI believe that we are still a wealthy enough country that we could and should put in place, across the board the basics, an economic safety net of medical care, food stamps, utility bill subsidies, housing subsidies, etc.,…to harbor all Americans when things can go bad on individual Americans,…I also want to make the point that I don’t believe that this will lead to a welfare state or that Americans will get sluggish and lose interest in working,…I myself, disabled with severe arthritis and living on my social security benefits would trade this subsistence level for a job that enables me a better standard of living and also very importantly integrates me more fully into a community of work and social connection. We need this baseline of economic safety net to keep people from falling through the cracks and a further degradation of our social fabric. This economic baseline, little bit of help and hope goes a long way toward keeping the fabric of well-being whole,…And provides a constant springboard from which people can return to work,…For a country still as wealthy as our is, this is the very least that should be provided.
— StephanieIs job security in a decaying economy possible in any institution?
— ShirleyThe DOE gave the high school where I teach an “A-” (minus) for 2007/2008 school year. Of course, while a move from “B” to “A-” gave us a sense of pride and satisfaction for a job well done, it also gave us a nervous jolt when we addressed the DOE’s expectations for 2008/2009 school year. We teachers and staff knew almost as soon as we raised our glasses to salute our victory, we had a tougher road ahead of us, a road that will become a perpetual incline to what I deem will not only maximize the workload, but will also raise the burn-out rate that comes from teaching 100 plus teenagers five days a week. Hence, is job security possible in any institution? The fact is that while schools may have less layoff than businesses, the expectation grade of “A” for schools may prove unreachable since DOE’s maximum level of proficiency is already being challenged by students. I teach juniors and seniors who are right now in this crisis economy submitting applications to colleges that could cut back or close as the decaying economy continues. Consequently and in unison, while students wonder if it’s worth the effort to attend college, we teachers are pushing them to produce at academic levels they have never reached before. Is that where we should be taking them? Can it prove to be a benefit? As a teacher with ten years teaching background and three degrees, I can barely wrap my mind around our devastating situation; it makes me sad to know how perplexing the crisis must seem for teens that are at the threshold of becoming young (hopefully independent) adults. It is my wish that higher learning institutions will keep their doors open long enough for my juniors and seniors to complete an undergraduate degree, but then what, will there be jobs waiting for them? I see myself as a bolt screwed into the wheel of a Hope Mobile that blindly labors over each incline never stopping – yet!
Dennis has some good ideas but it seems to me that the overriding need is jobs..jobs…jobs..If the GOP wants to filibuster, let them….the American people I am sure will not let them succeed
— ray Brett“but we do have a choice about how we react to and live with it. This may well be the cutting edge in personal growth. If we choose to be open to our own potential in fearful times we invite movement toward the best that we might become. It takes the edge off the fear and gives us hope for the future!!”#15
And the meaning of this … is?
I am sure that our psychobabbling panelists will love this masterpiece.
Orwell, Orwell, where are you now when we really, really, really need you.
— anna