Peter Kenny of Knight, who was a great help to our efforts at the NYSE, writes a morning note for investors each day which I find among the best in the marketplace.
His note yesterday morning (shown below) contained some interesting facts about true household income and unemployment.  I thought you would enjoy it.
 

My View : A few interesting data points to consider… The typical American family, according to data recently released by the US census bureau, has seen its median household income after inflation fall to $50,054 in the past 12 months. That is 8% lower than in 2007. In the same period, Median household net worth has declined by close to 40% to $77,300. I have recently spoken to the elevated levels of unemployment from a historical perspective. In short, the national unemployment rate, which significantly understates under states the dire condition of the employment picture here in the US, remains above 8% officially but unofficially is above 15% (U-6). This has been the case for over 40 months – the longest stretch of its kind in modern American history. Additionally, over the same period we have witnessed a 70% jump in those receiving food stamps. The national debt has seen a surge of close to 4.5 trillion over the same period – an increase of roughly 34%. Vegas odds have President Obama winning by a landslide. The question remains, will his re-election be accompanied with “coat tails” giving his party control of Congress and the Senate? Markets : Markets gave more ground yesterday as we adjust to a new world of old QE. The initial jump in markets that we saw a week and a half ago has been followed by 8 days of lackluster performance trending lower. We have come to the end of the third quarter and will likely see a bid as window dressing never goes out of style. An increase in dividends, and corporate buybacks have all worked to support a market the over achieved by most metrics over the past 9 months. The fourth quarter will be a wakeup call.

 
 
 
Posted by Bob Zito on 09/28/2012