As the forces of economic downturn ripple widely across the United States, the job market of 2008 is shaping up as the weakest in more than half a century for teenagers looking for summer work, according to labor economists, government data and companies that hire young people.

This deterioration is jeopardizing what many experts consider a crucial beginning stage of working life, one that gives young people experience and confidence along with pocket money.

Little more than one-third of the 16- to 19-year-olds in the United States are likely to be employed this summer, the smallest share since the government began tracking teenage work in 1948. That is a sharp drop from the 45 percent level of teenage employment reached in 2000.

[Read](http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/25/business/25teen.html?_r=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin “Read the Article”) (New York Times)

Convinced the planet’s oil supply is dwindling and the world’s economies are heading for a crash, some people around the country are moving onto homesteads, learning to live off their land, conserving fuel and, in some cases, stocking up on guns they expect to use to defend themselves and their supplies from desperate crowds of people who didn’t prepare.

The exact number of people taking such steps is impossible to determine, but anecdotal evidence suggests that the movement has been gaining momentum in the last few years.

These energy survivalists are not leading some sort of green revolution meant to save the planet. Many of them believe it is too late for that, seeing signs in soaring fuel and food prices and a faltering U.S. economy, and are largely focused on saving themselves.

[Read](http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24808083/ “Read the Article”) (AP via MSNBC)

The tides of chance will splash everybody with a little bad luck from time to time. But a tsunami of economic troubles and unfortunate demographics is deluging the nation’s 3.3 million high school seniors. The class of ’08 may well be the unluckiest group of high school grads in modern history. They are certainly the largest senior class ever, which means they face far worse chances of getting into a selective college than their older—or younger—brothers and sisters. Indeed, they are opening a record number of thin college rejection letters right now.

And the joy of thick acceptance letters is increasingly soured by record-high tuition prices, while unprecedented collapses in real estate values and credit markets have diminished the funds that many families expected would cover their costs.

[Read](http://www.usnews.com/articles/business/paying-for-college/2008/04/10/competition-is-tough.html “Read the Article”) (US News and World Report)

If you’ve ever sat in rush-hour traffic, gazing longingly at the cars rushing by in the high-occupancy vehicle lanes, try doing something your parents warned you never to do: Hop in a car with a complete stranger behind the wheel.

In a few cities, like Washington, D.C., formerly lone motorists can zip over into those HOV lanes thanks to a rare breed of commuter called a “slug.” And with gas prices through the roof there’s now an extra incentive to do it.

[Read, Listen, and/or Watch](http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=90700559 “Read, Listen and/or Watch”) (NPR)

Too young to retire, too old to get a new job. That’s how many older workers are feeling these days.

While it’s not easy to land a job in this weak economy, older workers are in a particularly tough spot. Corporate downsizings are hitting this group hard, with many companies looking to shed the higher-paid positions these employees often occupy. Even worse, older job seekers are discovering the search is even rougher as many employers shy away from hiring those closer to retirement than to the start of their careers.

[Read](http://money.cnn.com/2008/05/21/news/economy/olderworkers/index.htm?cnn=yes “Read the Article”) (CNN)

There are 12 parking lots across Santa Barbara that have been set up to accommodate the growing middle-class homelessness. These lots are believed to be part of the first program of its kind in the United States, according to organizers.

The lots open at 7 p.m. and close at 7 a.m. and are run by a homeless outreach organization.

It is illegal for people in California to sleep in their cars on streets. The parking lots are designed to be safe places for the homeless to sleep in their vehicles without being harassed by people on the streets or ticketed by police.

[Read](http://www.cnn.com/2008/LIVING/wayoflife/05/19/homeless.mom/index.html “Read the Article”) (CNN)

So many people have so many things they can no longer afford. This is an excellent time to be a repo man.

Boating was traditionally the pastime of the well-off, but the long housing boom and its gusher of easy credit changed that. People refinanced their homes and used the cash for down payments on a cruiser, miniyacht or sailboat. From 2000 to 2006, retail sales for the recreational boating industry rose by more than 40 percent, to $39.5 billion, while the average loan amount more than tripled to $141,000.

Last year, as real estate faltered, the gears went into reverse. The number of boats sold fell 8 percent. Many boats are fuel hogs, and rising gasoline and diesel prices meant a weekend jaunt could cost hundreds or even thousands of dollars. Owners found they could not sell a boat for what they owed and could not refinance either.

The solution for some is simply to stop paying on the boat, but one day they come home and it is gone – taken by the repo man.

[Read](http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/20/business/20repo.html?ref=business “Read the Article”) (New York Times)

Fairfax County is developing a program to allow as many as 100 first-time home buyers to purchase foreclosed houses at cut rates to bolster the county’s affordable-housing efforts and help prevent the region’s mortgage crisis from causing neighborhood decline.

Dubbed the Silver Lining program, county housing officials have proposed spending as much as $6.4 million over two years to help such middle-income professionals as teachers, police officers and firefighters afford the region’s housing. With county loans, qualified buyers would be able to purchase the properties directly from participating banks at below-market prices and be eligible for low-interest mortgages.

Although Fairfax has not been hit nearly as hard by foreclosures as neighboring Prince William and Loudoun counties, the number of foreclosures has risen dramatically as a result of the subprime mortgage crisis — from 198 in 2005 to 4,527 in 2007. Most of the foreclosures are clustered in Springfield, Herndon, Centreville and the Route 1 corridor. The situation has raised concerns about depressed property values, a decline in maintenance and higher rates of crime, including vandalism.

The effect of foreclosures on surrounding neighborhoods and the county overall is real and measurable. Citing the Center for Responsible Lending, the report notes that foreclosed properties with subprime loans in Fairfax lost an average of $5,545 in value. It also states that as many as 65 properties around a foreclosed property lose value. With about 3,000 properties in that category, that means declines in property values could envelop entire communities. It also means that the county’s housing stock has lost more than $1 billion in real property value.

[Read](http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/05/19/AR2008051902513.html?nav=rss_metro/va “Read the Article”) (Washington Post)