The recession continues to grip a majority of the states. The recovery and stimulus were based on false premises and succeeded only in providing a temporary solution to the housing market collapse. The national jobless rate remains unchanged in July at 9.5 percent highlighting what little improvement our economy has witnessed since last year, when the unemployment rate was 9.4 percent.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on August 20 that regional and state unemployment rates were little changed in July. Eighteen states and the District of Columbia did record a reduction in unemployment, but 14 states registered rate increases and 18 states had no change. Twenty-seven states and the District of Columbia also reported unemployment rate decreases from a year earlier, but 20 states posted increases from last year and 3 states had no change. The recovery act has dwindled and temporary census workers have returned to unemployment. Without these props, unemployment has returned to levels reflecting our true economic condition.

To underscore this point, no region of the country experienced a statistically significant unemployment rate change from last month and the Midwest was the only region to register a significant rate change from a year earlier, at -0.6 percent. Despite reported gains, the national employment outlook remains poor. Digging deeper uncovers an even darker image.

Prior to 1994, long-term discouraged workers, defined as those who have given up looking for work or are working part-time when they wish to be working full-time, were still identified in unemployment calculations. The current official rate of employment, called the U-3 unemployment rate, which recognizes neither short-term nor long-term discouraged workers, stands at 9.5 percent. The U-6 unemployment rate provided by The Bureau of Labor Statistics that includes short-term discouraged workers is approximately 16 percent. The U-6 unemployment figure still fails to account for both long-term and short-term discouraged workers. When these workers are factored in, the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate jumps to a whopping 22 percent.

The United States suffered the loss of 176,000 jobs per month from June to July. Averaged over the past six months, job growth in many states is slower than population growth. And as states struggle to balance their budgets during this protracted slump, state and local employees are being laid off adding yet another barrier on the path to recovery.

The drastic consequences of our vapid consumption (predominantly based on debt) and poor government policies that encouraged outsourcing and offshoring are in full view now. Private businesses and 14.6 million unemployed workers are waiting to see if the government is willing to act and get this country back on the road to recovery.

The problem is most officials do not know what to do, and as one wrong move may cost them their position, many are reluctant to try anything drastic at all. This is why American citizens must educate themselves and inform our representatives what must be done, disregarding the political aisles that normally separate us. Our country was willing to unite and engage in bipartisanship following the September 11th attacks; we must do this again. We must stand by the politicians that keep their promises and follow a healthy economic mandate, and we must remove those who refuse to consign the will of the populace over their own self-interests.

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