Just when it looked like the job market was going to rebound, recent unemployment numbers revealed a disappointing reality.

Twelve years into the 21st century, the dominant financial and economic fact is that we are still living in the wake of athe vast housing and mortgage bubble, which peaked in mid-2006, almost six years ago.  

Facebook Inc. took a momentous action last week. And I don’t mean its announced intention to sell shares for $28 to $35 in an initial public offering later this month.

It's comfortable living in a cocoon -- associating only with those who share your views, reading journalism and watching news that only reinforce them, avoiding those on the other side of the cultural divide.

Liberals have been doing this for a long time. In 1972 the movie critic Pauline Kael said...

Ready for the battle in November? You probably think I’m talking about the election. No, I’m talking about the battle around your Thanksgiving table. The dinner conversation will turn to politics and the economy, and it will be your job to stick up for capitalism and free markets.

Americans have the highest health spending on the planet. Why? Because they can afford to do so. What few people realize is that the U.S. has increased its standard of living vis-à-vis its biggest competitors despite rising health expenditures (figure 1.6c).

What will happen to housing, mortgages and sovereign debt as we keep struggling with these problems, both in the United States and in Europe? What should happen? An expert panel will debate these and other issues around the current financial and economic dilemmas.

The dominant financial and economic fact of 2011 is that we are still living in the wake of the great 21-st century bubble. The dominant problem with being in the wake of the bubble is that we cannot escape Pollock's Law of Finance, which states: Loans that cannot be paid will not be paid.