ECONOMY ENDS, MEN HARDEST HIT: “Overall, the unemployment rate rose to 8.9%, and the number of jobs dropped by 539K. Manufacturing jobs dropped by 149K, somewhat slower than the previous 2 months but still harsh. But the real news is that in every age group, the male unemployment rate is at or near the post-war high. . . . The difference in the pain being absorbed by men and women is astonishing, and may have long-term social and political implications.” (Via Richard Florida, who notes that the unemployment is mostly among men with hands-on jobs. “The highest rates of unemployment remain concentrated in working class occupations. For production, transporation and moving occupations overall the rate is 13.6 percent. For production workers it’s 14.7 percent; movers and transportation workers, 12.5 percent; and construction and extraction jobs, 19.7 percent. For service occupations, the unemployment rate is 8.7 percent.”)