Recession as the new normal

http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/virginia-house-painter-fights-to-keep-business-as-recession-becomes-a-way-of-life/2011/08/26/gIQAiIYHoJ_story.html

The average length of time a person is unemployed rose to 40.4 weeks last month, the longest period ever, and an estimated 1.1 million Americans have given up on looking for work entirely.

A record number of people exist on the fringes of the workforce: part-timers looking for more hours and the self-employed eager for more work.