The U.S. economy has been doing poorly for so long now that it’s easy to get dispirited. But there are several reasons to think 2012 might be a good one for American economic performance. The financial crisis of 2008 and 2009, and the subsequent recession, forced America’s private sector to go through a painful reinvention process. American companies had no choice but to make badly needed reforms. These are the kinds of transformations that companies often avoid during good economic times. The result is an American private sector that is more productive and efficient than it has ever been. This has been a painful process for many American workers and their families who lost jobs or who faced an uncertain future. But the state of American business is strong today, with high profits and healthy balance sheets. This should serve the economy well this year and going forward. – Nick Schulz, American Enterprise Institute
The U.S. recession officially ended in June 2009, but most Americans don’t feel like we are in a recovery. That’s because it’s been a weak recovery, with the size of the economy barely bigger today than it was four years ago, when the recession started. Since America is a rich country, it is not growth itself that matters most but employment and, of course, the distribution of income. And the employment numbers have been just terrible. Although there has been some fear of the economy lapsing into recession again, the more likely scenario in the foreseeable future is slow growth with intolerable levels of unemployment, along with rising poverty and inequality, and accompanying social ills. – Mark Weisbrot, Center for Economic and Policy Research
