Some of you have heard me refer to the current economic situation as a "depression." I still stand by this application, despite the argument that a "depression maintain a significant loss in employment and output for three straight years." (I wonder if the phony economy that we experienced for the last 4-8 years counts?)
That definition includes a downturn of three or more years, with a 10 percent drop in economic output and unemployment above 10 percent.

According to CountryStudies.US, a depression entails, "a severe decline in general economic activity in terms of magnitude and/or length." The variable of longevity in the definition is an "and/or" one and I agree. For example, one does not have to wait three years to know that he or she will be older; wait 3 years to know that their existing SUV gets inferior mileage; or wait 3 years to know that a mortgage payment can't be paid today. A depression depends on who you are talking to; it's a people thing.

Magnitude, in my opinion, is a greater predictor of America's economic dilemma and it's mammoth. There are many indicators that are stark and obvious: home foreclosures, unemployment, failing U.S. auto industry, small and large business closures, and the dumping DOW. There are some less obvious ones too. They might also include the decreased rate of immigration or undocumented immigration into this country, and the shear quantity of applicants for any given menial job.

For example, several months ago, Dicks Hamburgers, a long time icon in Spokane, reported record numbers of high-level applicants wanting to flip burgers. In Massilon, Ohio, there were 700 applications for a single janitorial job. One of those applicants, Donna Croston, said that she was looking for work after the two factories she worked in closed their doors.

And then we can look at immigration. Once a sought out destination, America is no longer the money or "worky" place to be. Do you remember all those jobs "that Americans don't want but immigrants do." According to the U.S. Border Patrol, arrests of immigrants coming over the U.S. - Mexican border have dropped significantly. In the time between October 2007 and February 2008, there were 257,861 arrests. Between October 2008 and February 2009, this number dropped to 195,399. Bottom line, it's no better here than some other homelands.

I think that the "feel" and some of the smaller soft indicators are just as important. Just thinking out loud... and of a Dicks cheese burger.