Buried Headlines: July 18, 2012

As part of yesterday's Buried Headlines, I posted a commentary from ZeroHedge in which "Tyler" argued that the economic and political conditions that made it possible for the U.S. to prosper after WWII do not exist today. Recently, Joel Kotkin wrote for Newsweek that young adults haven't had such dim economic futures since the Great Depression. In his piece, Kotkin focused on the burden Baby Boomers are becoming to younger generations, which is decent angle to take. After all, irrationally-exuberant credit expansion was a primary cause of the 2008 Financial Crisis. But debt aside, younger Americans' economic futures are dim because:

1) The Fed has increased the scale and scope of career-killing long-term unemployment by prolonging the country's economic malaise by pumping massive amounts of liquidity instead of allowing the economy to delverage and clear itself of malinvestment after the financial crisis. Long-term unemployment early in a person's career is especially damaging to his lifetime earnings.
2) With the exception of its corporate cronies, Washington has become hostile to the private sector, which is responsible for the overwhelming majority of the nation's payrolls.
3) The federal government has become increasingly authoritarian. No society in the history of man has prospered economically in the absence of liberty. Liberty is under assault in this country.

At any rate, here is Kotkin's piece:

Are Millennials The Economically-Screwed Generation?

ECOMINOES FLASHBACK: We Are The Lost Economic Generation

In Obama news:

Oops! Obama’s Top Bundler Was In Charge Of Bain During Massive Layoffs

"Mission Accomplished": President Obama's Jobs Panel Missing In Action

In other news:

New Study Shows Potential Impact Of Tax Hikes On Small Businesses

ECOMINOES FLASHBACK:  Washington On The Back Of Small Business

FLASHBACK: Government Regulation Hurts Small Business, Helps Big Business

So Much For "Housing Has Bottomed": Shadow Housing Inventory Resumes Upward Climb

Spain Goes From Bad To Worse

Bank of America Being Questioned On Libor

Surprise! Democrats Propose Plan To Sidestep Anti-Tax Pledge

U.S. Building Missile Defense Station...In Qatar

Duh! Chávez Accused Of Eroding Rights

ECOMINOES FLASHBACK:  Sad Images Of Hugo Chavez's Trolleybus

From The Land Of Mad Max: Plan to Raze Detroit's Empty Homes In Final Stages