Sounds like the hole in the trickle down spigot is closed! Those of us in the building trades are well aware of this situation as we have been waiting for the occasional drip to become a trickle for 30 years. Guess those on the top waited so long to let the wealth trickle it has siezed up on the top because now those on the top no longer have any customers with money in their pocket on the bottom.
I would be surprised if those in the building trades are not finding work in the Bakken. Last time I was there, every company was looking for experienced workers. Williston, as noted in this blog, broke a record for building permits in 2010 (and 2010 is not over) with $100 million in new building permits. The old record? $44 million in 2009.
The Bakken oil E&P companies have minimal cash hordes and are constantly looking for ways to raise more cash. They are spending $6 million / well / month for each rig they have and it's because there is minimal govt interference. Federal regulation of fracking will shut down this industry, also.
I am extremely disappointed and frustrated that the federal government lost a decade with regard to making us more independent from "Saudi oil." We squandered time and money on "cap and trade" schemes, on renewable energy projects which could never deliver on promises, and on environmental impact studies that went beyond the pale.
The point is that had the folks who control the spigots championed domestic industrial activity in oil and gas industry, clean coal technology, high-speed rail, highway infrastructure (new and repair) and improved air transportation, we would all be in a better place. The corporations with huge amounts of cash don't control the spigots: those who write regulations, enact tax laws, and subsidize new industry control the spigots.
There is a drilling moratorium in the Gulf,along the eastern seaboard and Alaska; Congress has put a hold on the TransCanada XL pipeline; and the BLM is slow-rolling leases in Utah. Corporations have trouble spending money if not allowed to pursue projects.
With regard to no money at the bottom, I seldom go out to eat any more (cannot afford to do so) but when I do, I have a minimum of a half-hour wait to get a table, and these are restaurants frequented by middle income, such as Appleby's and Chili's. And these are in cities where recession has been particularly severe (not in the Williston area, but in Los Angeles, for example). Someone has money to go out to eat.
Here is a take that is somewhat "lefty" but still interesting. http://www.minnpost.com/stories/2010/12/06/23900/digging_into_labor_data_unemployment_is_largely_a_problem_of_least_educated
"In Minnesota, the gap is even wider. The unemployment rate for high school dropouts was 19.2 percent on average during 2009, according to the Bureau's latest state-level statistics. [PDF]
And get this: For Minnesotans with college degrees, the 2009 average rate was 3.4 percent."
There are are few other factors. 75% of women with children worked in the Twin Cities before the crash so many may stay home (daycare is way down). Also, Minnesota has a reputation as a "welfare magnet" so a lot of unemployment might be from outside of Minnesota coming here.
"Educated" unemployment here is spotty. A lot of the younger were "consultants" or "freelance" so they aren't eligible for unemployment benefits. For example, I was being recruited into mental health social work but even this area got layoffs.
I have a solid pension so I don't need to work. I'll defer work if someone needs the job and can do it.
That said, I regularly drive by several local Applebys. The parking lots look busy. My doc tells me to watch my diet so I try to cook at home even though I can afford restaurants. That said, I like a stool at my local bar which seems busier than it was a year back. Their kitchen seems busy both for eat in and take out even though there is a McDonalds a block away.(at half the price).
There is some new construction sprouting up here in the TC, MN but it is spotty.
As for business, I watch way too much CNBC where the "captains of industry" keep harping that they can't "play the game" if the "rules" keep changing.
I have made the same observation over and over: restaurants seem busier than ever; if not busier than ever, certainly busier than I would expect during the "worst recession since the Depression."
Sounds like the hole in the trickle down spigot is closed! Those of us in the building trades are well aware of this situation as we have been waiting for the occasional drip to become a trickle for 30 years. Guess those on the top waited so long to let the wealth trickle it has siezed up on the top because now those on the top no longer have any customers with money in their pocket on the bottom.
ReplyDeleteI would be surprised if those in the building trades are not finding work in the Bakken. Last time I was there, every company was looking for experienced workers. Williston, as noted in this blog, broke a record for building permits in 2010 (and 2010 is not over) with $100 million in new building permits. The old record? $44 million in 2009.
ReplyDeleteThe Bakken oil E&P companies have minimal cash hordes and are constantly looking for ways to raise more cash. They are spending $6 million / well / month for each rig they have and it's because there is minimal govt interference. Federal regulation of fracking will shut down this industry, also.
I am extremely disappointed and frustrated that the federal government lost a decade with regard to making us more independent from "Saudi oil." We squandered time and money on "cap and trade" schemes, on renewable energy projects which could never deliver on promises, and on environmental impact studies that went beyond the pale.
The point is that had the folks who control the spigots championed domestic industrial activity in oil and gas industry, clean coal technology, high-speed rail, highway infrastructure (new and repair) and improved air transportation, we would all be in a better place. The corporations with huge amounts of cash don't control the spigots: those who write regulations, enact tax laws, and subsidize new industry control the spigots.
There is a drilling moratorium in the Gulf,along the eastern seaboard and Alaska; Congress has put a hold on the TransCanada XL pipeline; and the BLM is slow-rolling leases in Utah. Corporations have trouble spending money if not allowed to pursue projects.
With regard to no money at the bottom, I seldom go out to eat any more (cannot afford to do so) but when I do, I have a minimum of a half-hour wait to get a table, and these are restaurants frequented by middle income, such as Appleby's and Chili's. And these are in cities where recession has been particularly severe (not in the Williston area, but in Los Angeles, for example). Someone has money to go out to eat.
Here is a take that is somewhat "lefty" but still interesting. http://www.minnpost.com/stories/2010/12/06/23900/digging_into_labor_data_unemployment_is_largely_a_problem_of_least_educated
ReplyDelete"In Minnesota, the gap is even wider. The unemployment rate for high school dropouts was 19.2 percent on average during 2009, according to the Bureau's latest state-level statistics. [PDF]
And get this: For Minnesotans with college degrees, the 2009 average rate was 3.4 percent."
There are are few other factors. 75% of women with children worked in the Twin Cities before the crash so many may stay home (daycare is way down). Also, Minnesota has a reputation as a "welfare magnet" so a lot of unemployment might be from outside of Minnesota coming here.
"Educated" unemployment here is spotty. A lot of the younger were "consultants" or "freelance" so they aren't eligible for unemployment benefits. For example, I was being recruited into mental health social work but even this area got layoffs.
I have a solid pension so I don't need to work. I'll defer work if someone needs the job and can do it.
That said, I regularly drive by several
local Applebys. The parking lots look busy. My doc tells me to watch my diet so I try to cook at home even though I can afford restaurants. That said, I like a stool at my local bar which seems busier than it was a year back. Their kitchen seems busy both for eat in and take out even though there is a McDonalds a block away.(at half the price).
There is some new construction sprouting up here in the TC, MN but it is spotty.
As for business, I watch way too much CNBC where the "captains of industry" keep harping that they can't "play the game" if the "rules" keep changing.
We are on the same page.
ReplyDeleteI have made the same observation over and over: restaurants seem busier than ever; if not busier than ever, certainly busier than I would expect during the "worst recession since the Depression."