MR PRESIDENT... PUT US TO WORK!

With prices starting out at the lows of the day so far, it seems as though some were anticipating a disappointing number. We did hear a bit of twisted logic that holds that a particularly poor jobs number will force the Administration and Congress into hammering out another stimulus package.

With the number only half as bad as expected crude oil prices climbed almost a dollar higher within minutes. Diminishing volume during the rest of the session, as participants exit for the Labor Day holiday, probably means the tone may be set.

Reflection though will reveal that this data offers very little to cheer about. Most importantly, people are NOT going back to work. The economy may be eliminating successively fewer jobs , but that is a backhanded compliment if ever we've heard one.

The Great Depression playbook isn't working. Near-zero short-term interest rates, record-low borrowing costs as reflected in the bond market, a giant stimulus package and tax credits for small businesses that hire the long-term unemployed have all failed to do enough. NOT losing is NOT gaining! Enough with the happy talk already!

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