L’\u00e9conomiste Robert Reich, qui repr\u00e9sente (avec Krugman) la frange la plus extr\u00e9miste des interventionnistes rooseveltiens et keyn\u00e9siens dans le d\u00e9bat US sur la situation \u00e9conomique, fait fl\u00e8che de tous bois. Il faut dire que les \u00e9v\u00e9nements \u00e9conomiques, surtout le ch\u00f4mage, lui donnent des arguments de plus en plus tranchants. Pour Reich, les USA ne sont pas menac\u00e9s d’une nouvelle phase de la crise, ils ne sont simplement jamais sortis de la crise depuis septembre 2008. D\u00e9sormais la vraie<\/strong> r\u00e9f\u00e9rence de la Grande D\u00e9pression (celle qui dura au moins de 1931 \u00e0 1941) est celle qui convient \u00e0 la situation. (Sur RobertReich.org<\/em> le 14 ao\u00fbt 2010<\/a> et sur Huffington.post<\/em> le 14 ao\u00fbt 2010<\/a>.)<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \t\u00abIt’s nonsense to think of the economy heading downward again into a double dip when most Americans never emerged from the first dip. We’re still in one long Big Dipper.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p>\n \t\u00bbMore people are out of work today than they were last year, counting everyone too discouraged even to look for work. The number of workers filing new claims for jobless benefits rose last week to highest level since February. Not counting temporary census workers, a total of only 12,000 net new private and public jobs were created in July when 125,000 are needed each month just to keep up with growth in the population of people who want and need to work.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p>\n \t\u00bbNot since the government began to measure the ups and downs of the busines cycle has such a deep recession been followed by such anemic job growth. Jobs came back at a faster pace even in March 1933 after the economy started to recover from the depths of the Great Depression. Of course, that job growth didn’t last long. That recovery wasn’t really a recovery at all. The Great Depression continued. And that’s exactly my point. The Great Recession continues.<\/em> []<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \t\u00bbThe central problem is lack of demand and that’s what has to be tackled.<\/em> <\/p>\n<\/p>\n \t\u00bbThree of the four sources of demand have stopped working. (1) Consumers can’t and won’t buy because they’re still under a huge debt load, can’t get more credit, are afraid of losing their jobs (or already have), depend on two wage earners at least one of whom is working part-time and pulling in less, or have to save. (2) Businesses won’t invest and spend on creating more jobs if they don’t see consumers willing to buy more. (3) Exports are stalled because the dollar is so high they cost too much, much of the rest of the world is still struggling with recession, and American firms can make things for sale abroad more cheaply abroad.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p>\n \t\u00bbThat leaves only one remaining source of demand government. We need a giant jobs program to hire people and put money in their pockets that they’ll spend and thereby create more jobs. Put ideology aside and recognize this fact. If it makes you more comfortable call it the National Defense Jobs Act. Call it the WPA. Call it Chopped Liver. Whatever, we have to get the great army of the unemployed and underemployed working again.<\/em>\u00bb<\/p>\n<\/p>\n