50 Statistics About The U.S. Economy That Are Almost Too Crazy To Believe

Sometimes its hard to see the true shape of things when it is masqueraded and spun around by the media. The economy is one of those things, an element of politics which seems to attract certain properties of itself at a time while ignoring others. What's necessary is a complete picture of the U.S. economy in order to realize just how utterly insane the situation is for Americans.

Men Lie. Women Lie. Number don't.
- I think Jay-Z said it once...

#50) In 2010 the U.S. government is projected to issue almost as much new debt as the rest of the governments of the world combined.

#49) It is being projected that the U.S. government will have a budget deficit of approximately 1.6 trillion dollars in 2010.

#48) If you went out and spent one dollar every single second, it would take you more than 31,000 years to spend a trillion dollars.

#47) In fact, if you spent one million dollars every single day since the birth of Christ, you still would not have spent one trillion dollars by now.

#46) Total U.S. government debt is now up to 90 percent of gross domestic product.

#45) Total credit market debt in the United States, including government, corporate and personal debt, has reached 360 percent of GDP.

#44) U.S. corporate income tax receipts were down 55% (to $138 billion) for the year ending September 30th, 2009.

#43) There are now 8 counties in the state of California that have unemployment rates of over 20 percent.

#42) In the area around Sacramento, California there is one closed business for every six that are still open.

#41) In February, there were 5.5 unemployed Americans for every job opening.

#40) According to a Pew Research Center study, approximately 37% of all Americans between the ages of 18 and 29 have either been unemployed or underemployed at some point during the recession.

#39) More than 40% of those employed in the United States are now working in low-wage service jobs.

#38) According to one new survey, 24% of American workers say that they have postponed their planned retirement age in the past year.

#37) Over 1.4 million Americans filed for personal bankruptcy in 2009, which represented a 32 percent increase over 2008. Not only that, more Americans filed for bankruptcy in March 2010 than during any month since U.S. bankruptcy law was tightened in October 2005.

#36) Mortgage purchase applications in the United States are down nearly 40 percent from a month ago to their lowest level since April of 1997.

#35) RealtyTrac has announced that foreclosure filings in the U.S. established an all time record for the second consecutive year in 2009.

#34) According to RealtyTrac, foreclosure filings were reported on 367,056 properties in March 2010, an increase of nearly 19 percent from February, an increase of nearly 8 percent from March 2009 and the highest monthly total since RealtyTrac began issuing its report in January 2005.

#33) In Pinellas and Pasco counties, which include St. Petersburg, Florida and the suburbs to the north, there are 34,000 open foreclosure cases. Ten years ago, there were only about 4,000.

#32) In California's Central Valley, 1 out of every 16 homes is in some phase of foreclosure.

#31) The Mortgage Bankers Association recently announced that more than 10 percent of all U.S. homeowners with a mortgage had missed at least one payment during the January to March time period. That was a record high and up from 9.1 percent a year ago.

#30) U.S. banks repossessed nearly 258,000 homes nationwide in the first quarter of 2010, a 35 percent jump from the first quarter of 2009.

#29) For the first time in U.S. history, banks own a greater share of residential housing net worth in the United States than all individual Americans put together.

#28) More than 24% of all homes with mortgages in the United States were underwater as of the end of 2009.

#27) U.S. commercial property values are down approximately 40 percent since 2007 and currently 18 percent of all office space in the United States is sitting vacant.

#26) Defaults on apartment building mortgages held by U.S. banks climbed to a record 4.6 percent in the first quarter of 2010. That was almost twice the level of a year earlier.

#25) In 2009, U.S. banks posted their sharpest decline in private lending since 1942.

#24) New York state has delayed paying bills totalling $2.5 billion as a short-term way of staying solvent but officials are warning that its cash crunch could soon get even worse.

#23) To make up for a projected 2010 budget shortfall of $280 million, Detroit issued $250 million of 20-year municipal notes in March. The bond issuance followed on the heels of a warning from Detroit officials that if its financial state didn't improve, it could be forced to declare bankruptcy.

#22) The National League of Cities says that municipal governments will probably come up between $56 billion and $83 billion short between now and 2012.

#21) Half a dozen cash-poor U.S. states have announced that they are delaying their tax refund checks.

#20) Two university professors recently calculated that the combined unfunded pension liability for all 50 U.S. states is 3.2 trillion dollars.

#19) According to EconomicPolicyJournal.com, 32 U.S. states have already run out of funds to make unemployment benefit payments and so the federal government has been supplying these states with funds so that they can make their payments to the unemployed.

#18) This most recession has erased 8 million private sector jobs in the United States.

#17) Paychecks from private business shrank to their smallest share of personal income in U.S. history during the first quarter of 2010.

#16) U.S. government-provided benefits (including Social Security, unemployment insurance, food stamps and other programs) rose to a record high during the first three months of 2010.

#15) 39.68 million Americans are now on food stamps, which represents a new all-time record. But things look like they are going to get even worse. The U.S. Department of Agriculture is forecasting that enrollment in the food stamp program will exceed 43 million Americans in 2011.

#14) Phoenix, Arizona features an astounding annual car theft rate of 57,000 vehicles and has become the new "Car Theft Capital of the World".

#13) U.S. law enforcement authorities claim that there are now over 1 million members of criminal gangs inside the country. These 1 million gang members are responsible for up to 80% of the crimes committed in the United States each year.

#12) The U.S. health care system was already facing a shortage of approximately 150,000 doctors in the next decade or so, but thanks to the health care "reform" bill passed by Congress, that number could swell by several hundred thousand more.

#11) According to an analysis by the Congressional Joint Committee on Taxation the health care "reform" bill will generate $409.2 billion in additional taxes on the American people by 2019.

#10) The Dow Jones Industrial Average just experienced the worst May it has seen since 1940.

#9) In 1950, the ratio of the average executive's paycheck to the average worker's paycheck was about 30 to 1. Since the year 2000, that ratio has exploded to between 300 to 500 to one.

#8) Approximately 40% of all retail spending currently comes from the 20% of American households that have the highest incomes.

#7) According to economists Thomas Piketty and Emmanuel Saez, two-thirds of income increases in the U.S. between 2002 and 2007 went to the wealthiest 1% of all Americans.

#6) The bottom 40 percent of income earners in the United States now collectively own less than 1 percent of the nation’s wealth.

#5) If you only make the minimum payment each and every time, a $6,000 credit card bill can end up costing you over $30,000 (depending on the interest rate).

#4) According to a new report based on U.S. Census Bureau data, only 26 percent of American teens between the ages of 16 and 19 had jobs in late 2009 which represents a record low since statistics began to be kept back in 1948.

#3) According to a National Foundation for Credit Counseling survey, only 58% of those in "Generation Y" pay their monthly bills on time.

#2) During the first quarter of 2010, the total number of loans that are at least three months past due in the United States increased for the 16th consecutive quarter.

#1) According to the Tax Foundation’s Microsimulation Model, to erase the 2010 U.S. budget deficit, the U.S. Congress would have to multiply each tax rate by 2.4. Thus, the 10 percent rate would be 24 percent, the 15 percent rate would be 36 percent, and the 35 percent rate would have to be 85 percent.
source

The scariest points are numbers 3 and 4 in combination with point 7. They show that the situation is bad now, yes, but the situation will get worse. The younger generations are so much more worse of than they were last decade and the decade before and as the economic divide continues there seems to be no bright light in sight.

The situation seems irreparable. Is it possible to push a 'restart' button? What do you guys think about the numbers?


[edit on 4/6/2010 by serbsta]

Nice post this really lays it all out there and shows just how much a world of hurt we are in for when this house of cards crashes down.

A few weeks ago I was talking to my dad and out of the blue he told me that my generation is going to see things that we could never think of.

He went on to list a few things like the rise of "terrorism", war, worldwide tension and how the financial situation is crumbling and that even he can not be certain of his own well being even after being in a great position at a fortune 500 company for over 25 years.

I am in my mid 20's and I can say with no hesitation that there is no way my generation will get benefits from social security and most of us will not even be able to consider retirement in our early 60's.

reply to post by TV_Nation


Yea... its a scary prospect. I don't know of any other way for the U.S. to get out of this mess other than to press a reset button. Is there such a thing? Does it work? Surely they can't default on their debt, so whats to happen, is it just going to keep exponentially increasing over the years?

Ugh... so screwed up.

#49) It is being projected that the U.S. government will have a budget deficit of approximately 1.6 trillion dollars in 2010.

This keeps the number simple because the UK has a anual deficit of £160bn so lets call that $200bn which says the USA has eight times more debt than the UK but it's population is only seven times bigger which means to me the USA is in more trouble than we are in and as a whole are just as indebted as Greece.

I hear all the rummblings about Europe and talk about the euro being broken up but my money, for now is staying in Euro's and i await the day when the zionists crash the financial system, not that it needs much help and trys to introduce the amero.

They can keep my cash, my Debt the goverment knocked up for me, the police state, taxes and we the people will seize the wealth from bend politicans and banksters and bring them to justice.

i'm a capitalist but can see this is not capitalisium but pure greed and manipulation and i want out the game.

it's not a question of if but when we crash





[edit on 4-6-2010 by LieBuster]

This is the reality of the New World Order. Financial Slavery for 99% of us, 1% living in utter luxury.

This dire financial situation is being pursued across the World, in some economies it's already a reality, e.g., China, but is now being forced across North America, Europe, and the rest of Asia.

The establishment of the NWO won't be accomplished with guns it will be achieved using the lure of food, shelter, and safety for you and your family.

Revolution won't be a way forward as people are now so brainwashed by the media there is no response possible. TPTB have achieved their goals, people are cowed, scared, and as such are no longer able to push back out of fear of losing their job, their home, and the ability to feed themselves and their families.

God help us all (whichever variant you follow).

You are wtinessing the last gasps of a dying man! The "System" will be dead and gone by year's end. Mathmatically speaking, this was inevitable from the very first day that central banks took over. Here is a bit of math for you ponder, simplified of course!

The Federal Reserve prints $500 dollars and lends that $500 out at 10% interest to 5 people, each receiving a $100 loan. At the end of the year each must pay the Federal Reserve back a total of $110. It is important to note that ONLY $500 exists as that is all that the Federal Reserve printed and circulated. Anyone seeing the problem yet? Allow me to continue...

The 5 borrows set out to use their loans to make more money. The first person is able to make $120 and pays backs his $110. The second person is able to make $120 and pays back his $110. The third person makes $200 and pays back his $110. Unfortuantely for the 4th and 5th person, they each only pocketed $30 and are unable to repay their loan - $120+$120+$200+$30+$30=$500 total available dollars. As a result, they are forced to forfeit REAL assets to cover their debt and are left destitute. The 3 who profited deposit that money back into the bank and the Fed ends up with ALL of its money back PLUS REAL ASSETS forfeited through default. Got the picture???

Sadly, this is a VERY simplified version of how the Federal Reserve works. They benefit immensely by creating money out of thin air, without risk, and then collecting on the benefits of circulating it and creating failure. In order to perpetuate this massive ponzi scheme, they then print up more money, sell the seized assets to get some of that money back and put another 10 people in the hole. Wash, rinse, repeat - wash, rinse repeat - get it?

What really needs to happen is that the system MUST collapse if people are ever to enjoy their wealth. That wealth only exists in the form of HUMAN CAPITAL - your labor - and is tradeable for the direct benefits of someone else's human capital - their labor. There is nothing inherently wrong with having a monetary system that unifies the measure of said human capital, BUT it must be rooted in REAL value, like gold. When the supply of wealth is finite and the monetary exchange is finite, only then will you have a system in balance that cannot be manipulated by outside forces who continually skim off the top at the expense of those who own the wealth to begin with.

Bring the whole damned thing down! When these greedy POS's try to introduce their funny money 2.0, people need to say "NO!!!" collectively! For a time, mankind will have to revert to barter and will function in community marketplaces. Soon, REAL money will return and the system will revert to balance. It is important that people understand - for the sake of your children and your children's children - it will NEED to be our generation that goes down in the history books as the "Greatest Generation" who takes it on the chin and relegates the bankers to the darkest chapter in human history. The only question is: Do YOU have enough control over your ego and your greed to be able to do what needs to be done? Think about it...

One measure that has been used by political science to determine the stability of a society is the disparity between the richest and poorest cohorts. The greater the disparity the greater the instability. Looks like the U.S. is truly screwed.

reply to post by kozmo


Great post. It is the greatest con in human history, not just for Americans. Never before has a people been so duped where the ones who are robbing them are using the people, the ones they are robbing, in order to do it. It is like a robber who magically has a gun waiting for him at the door step of every house he decides to rob. Some houses he will enter, and the people will defend themselves, other houses he will catch them sleeping and take everything they own. Over time, there will be less and less people who will be able to protect themselves from the gunman and what happens when the gunman has robbed everything of everyone?

Restart button.

Firstly -- what a great post................. very interesting and informative if not a little depressing....

I read with my heart heavy then when the media in the USA and over here in the UK keep trying to paint a picture that things are getting better, economy in the USA is growing or output is or something..........

I believe there has been a 'flight' back into the SAFETY of the US dollar recently.....? I am still in pounds sterling after selling my houses and cashing in...... but what next, fine wines, art, silver, cigarettes, chocolate, a tent and stove...... I am confused ??

There was a reason that Jesus threw the money lenders out of the temple

And then one adds the concept of "Interest"

I don't think anyone here, on ATS, can grasp the severity of this situation.
At least, IMO, we have an idea how bad it is...

The public, and those who continue to deny the FED scam for what it is, are SO scared to do anything.
This way of life has lead to SO much fear of the gov't, TPTB knows it and takes advantage of it.

Americans are SO afraid of losing their jobs, and losing their debt filled lives that they won't even stop working for a week in a national protest.
Which, IMO, would be a great start to show these people that WE run this country.

You can't get people to protest the right way!
They are afraid to lose their livelyhoods.
They are afraid to lose what few jobs they have.

Just exactly what TPTB want...FEAR.
We played into their hands just they way they planned.

This is just the beginning.

I can only hope and pray that the public shakes out of their zombie-like state and do something.

I say we take charge of the situation and get people off the couch.

We need to fight from the inside.

reply to post by havok

Originally posted by havok

They are afraid to lose their livelyhoods.
They are afraid to lose what few jobs they have.

Just exactly what TPTB want...FEAR.

Jim Morrison summed up how to approach fear very nicely.

Expose yourself to your deepest fear; after that, fear has no power, and the fear of freedom shrinks and vanishes. You are free.

Banksters on the run!

Banksters on the run!

He can't shoot you if you take away his gun!

No no no no no! This list is COMPLETELY WRONG.


"#46) Total U.S. government debt is now up to 90 percent of gross domestic product. "

I know for a fact that statistic is wrong. The correct number is around 40% I believe.


This list is complete bull!@#$, I can go nitpicking at these statistics all day..


[edit on 4-6-2010 by fordrew]

Originally posted by fordrew
No no no no no! This list is COMPLETELY WRONG.


"#46) Total U.S. government debt is now up to 90 percent of gross domestic product. "

I know for a fact that statistic is wrong. The correct number is around 40% I believe.

"#10) The Dow Jones Industrial Average just experienced the worst May it has seen since 1940."

This is also wrong.



This list is complete bull!@#$.

Someone needs to go lynch the topic creator for posting disinfo.

[edit on 4-6-2010 by fordrew]

No it is not wrong look here :en.wikipedia.org...

As of June 1, 2010, the Total Public Debt Outstanding was approximately 88.9% of GDP

Originally posted by fordrew

"#46) Total U.S. government debt is now up to 90 percent of gross domestic product. "

I know for a fact that statistic is wrong. The correct number is around 40% I believe.

this is from World Net Daily and, as far as I can tell, is the only stat on the list that comes from a questionable source.

Originally posted by fordrew

"#10) The Dow Jones Industrial Average just experienced the worst May it has seen since 1940."

This is also wrong.

www.bloomberg.com...

Bloomberg is a fairly reputable source, no?

Originally posted by fordrew
Someone needs to go lynch the topic creator for posting disinfo.

I hardly see how the original poster should be treated in any negative manner for posting a list of stats, created by forbes, bloomberg, yahoo news etc. Perhaps, rather than calling for violence towards the messenger, you should read the message, including the sources and, if anything, take offense over their reporting.

reply to post by serbsta



where was this info pulled? did you get it off a website?? i didn't see a link.

i am 23 and in college and these numbers are awefully scary.

s&f great post. this should be all over msm, just like it reads. Burny madoff aint got crap on the goverment.

Being young myself, I don't want anything to do with this debt. I don't really have a voice when it comes to this subject matter so why should I be one of the ones paying this debt back?

Do I support the wars or bailouts of big companies? no. Who's going to be paying for it? Me. Now theres freedom.

I would hate to flee the country before the revolution happens, but if it doesn't happen by the time I'm 25, cya USA. I'll go to a real country. Thinking about New Zealand.

Someone a long time ago said "history is written by the victor".. If we stand up now we will be labeled terrorists but what will we be called once the dust settles? Does it really matter? Standing up and fighting back may not be the right thing to do and it may be the best course of action but no one will know that until it is written in the history books. Those "PTB" people will make it very difficult for any group to even get formed in the first place and it will take a large group to ever get anything moving. There are so many people that are fed up with the state of things now and they say we have to get up off our butts and do something. I personally have looked for allies to help in this field but they are very difficult to locate. It is the fear of putting yourself out there to be found that keeps us from getting anything done. We all want it but we do not want the wrong people to find us. So what do we do? We make our plans for ourselves and our own in the event of something major but we are unable to make plans on any scale with other people in order to prevent that "something major". I don't want to sound defeatist but in this scenario it is all or nothing and until someone is willing to forfeit their life for a cause we will all just sit and wait. I can go on about all those that are trying to effect change but to date they are all doing it in the context of the current 'game'. The game is rigged or broken and we need a game changer in my oppinion.

reply to post by serbsta




Heres a moral question-
is it ok to fight terrorism with terrorism?


And just to be clear, im not advocating whats in the movie above.
Just thought it was relevant to the topic at hand!