An Unemployment 'Bloodbath'

Julianne Pepitone writes, at CNNMoney.com, that the final week of January began with a "bloodbath for the job market."

As you may have heard, seven companies announced job cuts today that add up to 71,400 jobs.

More than 200,000 jobs have been lost since the first day of 2009, Pepitone reports. And, just to remind people that this isn't a recent phenomenon, she adds, "Nearly 2.6 million jobs were lost over 2008, the highest yearly job-loss total since 1945."

Pepitone quotes Robert Brusca, chief economist at Fact and Opinion Economics, as observing, "It's all about the consumer, and the consumer's been hit hard."

Meanwhile, the fallout over the revelation that Citigroup is spending $50 million on a new jet continues in the blogosphere.

• It's "plane stupid," Gateway Pundit writes.


• The Swamp says Citigroup "hits turbulence" and recommends that Citigroup's executives should "get your crisis-management people cranked up."


• The Washington Independent observes that "it looks like at least one bank is finding a way to spend that TARP money."


• DealBook speculates that "Citigroup could be in some hot water."


• Wall $treet Folly wonders, "How long before Citigroup has its wings clipped and is shamed into selling their brand new corporate jet?"


• "Congratulations, taxpayers," says Right Voices. "You just bought Citigroup a brand-new $50 million corporate jet."


• Blogging Broker just wants the "plane truth" and says that "if you give an executive a GOLDEN PARACHUTE … he will need a nice new corporate jet to bail out of."


• "What a pretty jet, Citigroup," says RedState. "I'll be needing it next week. After all, you bought it with my tax money."


• "Did Citigroup fire its public-relations department when it laid off those 50,000 people a few months ago?" wonders Daily Intel, which proceeds to offer a little advice because "no one seems to be managing their image."

It isn't good P.R., to say the least.

And it isn't only bloggers who are expressing their dismay. The Detroit Free Press says Michigan Sen. Carl Levin is "beside himself ... considering that when the heads of Detroit's automakers came to Washington in private jets to ask for aid they got blasted for it."

There's bound to be more in the days ahead. Stay tuned.