With unemployment among blacks topping 15 percent nationally and 20 percent in several states, the N.A.A.C.P. is reportedly ready to put pressure on President Obama to do more to create jobs.

The N.A.A.C.P. plans to join the A.F.L.-C.I.O. along with the National Council of La Raza to make the case that the president’s $787 billion stimulus program has not been effective enough in dealing with unemployment.

Just yesterday ABC News reported that the Obama administration slashed 60,000 jobs from its most recent report on the program because outlets submitted “unrealistic data.” Its effectiveness in creating private sector jobs overall has been questioned as well. There’s also debate over how many Americans may owe the IRS in their 2010 tax returns over a discrepancy in how many taxes were withheld from paychecks as a result of a credit imposed from stimulus legislation.

All of this has spurred the aforementioned groups to call for an increase in spending on schools and roads, in addition to billions of dollars in fiscal relief to state and local governments to forestall more layoffs and a direct government jobs program, “especially in distressed communities facing severe unemployment.”

Hilary O. Shelton, the N.A.A.C.P.’s senior vice president for advocacy and policy, told the New York Times:

“It’s time for us to really stoke this issue up. We’re not so much trying to convince him to do something he doesn’t want to do, but urging him to move forward on an issue we have agreement on.”

The groups also call for tax credits and loans to small and medium businesses to spur private-sector job growth.

Federal Reserve Chairman and killjoy Ben Bernanke gave a speech yesterday warning of a weak recovery with high unemployment for the foreseeable future. Bernanke blamed banks for slowing the recovery and keeping unemployment high by not opening lines of credit despite receiving hundreds of billions in taxpayer bailouts to open lines of credit.

How does corporate America respond? Executives at both GE and Bank of America Merrill Lynch both said yesterday that they expect Congress to approve a second economic-stimulus package to help what would otherwise be a slow economic recovery. So the answer to unemployment is déjà vu?

Hopefully that phrase comes to mind for Nancy Pelosi, who is said to be switching her focus to job creation as we reach the end of the year.

Whatever action she along with Congress and the administration take, hopefully it’s not simply throwing a bunch of money at large banks that need to be broken up anyway.

Leave your feedback below and send your own recession stories to therecessiondiaries@gmail.com.

Despite new claims from Warren Buffett that the worst is over, there’s still much to be miserable over.

There is rampant unemployment, foreclosures have declined slightly but they’re still higher than they were a year ago, men continue to struggle to find work, the deficit is soaring, gas may reach the price of $4.00 a gallon again, and there are ten new states on the verge of California-like budget disasters.

For parents, the stress is daunting. For children, it’s apparently even worse. The New York Times published a recent report on how high stress is increasingly being passed on from parent to child.

They report:

For many families across the country, the greatest damage inflicted by this recession has not necessarily been financial, but emotional and psychological. Children, especially, have become hidden casualties, often absorbing more than their parents are fully aware of. Several academic studies have linked parental job loss — especially that of fathers — to adverse impacts in areas like school performance and self-esteem.

“I’ve heard a lot of people who are out of work say it’s kind of been a blessing, that you have more time to spend with your family,” Mr. Bachmuth said. “I love my family and my family comes first, and my family means more than anything to me, but it hasn’t been that way for me.”

The article pointed to children yanking out their hair, failing in school, and having a strained relationship with one or both parents.

It would be easy to argue that people should simply stop giving into the superficial and place less emphasis on money and enjoy the added time with family. But when you have bills and you have no clue where your next dollar is coming from following the Huxtable’s guide to family life seems a lot less important. Moreover, for many a career defines who they are. Without anything to do you begin to feel hopeless and lose a sense of yourself and your purpose. All of these factors create a stressful climate that takes its toll on the entire family.

For those of you currently out of work, or at the very least, making less than you used to, how has it changed the climate in your home? Have the relationships with your children or spouse been strained?

And though you may have a right to be stressed, is it time for you to get out of your funk and speak candidly about your situation with your children?

I’d love to hear from you.

Leave your comments below and send your own recession story to therecessiondiaries@gmail.com.

On the day we honor those who have served in the military, let us reflect on the nearly 2,300 men and women who didn’t have to die last year.

These veteran deaths are not attributed to service in the ongoing conflicts in Iraq or Afghanistan. According to a study released by the Harvard Medical School, these 2,266 represent veterans under the age of 65 who died last year as a result of not having health insurance.

The Huffington Post reports that these findings prove that uninsured veterans represent a figure this is “more than 14 times the number of deaths (155) suffered by U.S. troops in Afghanistan in 2008, and more than twice as many as have died (911 as of Oct. 31) since the war began in 2001."

Now is not the time for a veteran to go without proper health insurance, particularly those suffering with declining mental health. The Los Angeles Times highlighted a recent survey from Rand Corp. that finds nearly 20 percent of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans reporting PTSD or depression.

What’s causing their strife? Outside of the obvious, you can add economic woes to the list of problems – including homelessness, which is on the rise among our veterans. The New York Times reports that almost one-third of adult homeless men are veterans. About 3 in 100 served in Iraq and Afghanistan – and it’s only taken them 18 months to land on the street.

As a result, politicians like Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York are pitching to New York businesses to hire veterans for a tax break from the federal government in return. The Work Opportunity Tax Credit, which was expanded earlier this as part of the Economy Recovery Plan, seeks to help thousands of veterans returning home from Iraq and Afghanistan find steady employment despite scarce jobs being available.

In Los Angeles, General Shinseki helped broker a deal between two nonprofit groups to convert two buildings into a housing and treatment facility for veterans. And President Obama has issued an executive order intended to aid veterans find work within the federal government.

These are all essential steps, but more attention still needs to be brought to the plight of the ex-soldier.

It’s easy to look back on this day as nothing more than another day off. But as someone who has witnessed people enter the military with great promise only to see them return and become a shell of their former selves I realize just how important it is that we ensure our veterans get the care that they need following their service to the country.

As cliché-ridden as that sounds, it still sounds a lot better than spotting an ex-soldier living under a freeway or dying too soon over lack of health care or the will to live.

Downtown Los Angeles has been notorious for being a haven for thousands of the area’s homeless residents. However, having recently relocated to the city and not living that far from downtown I must say that when I venture downtown I don’t see an area overflowing with homeless people. And now, thanks to a new survey conducted by the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, I have facts to go with my anecdotal observation.

Despite California seemingly not having a roll of pennies to its name, the population in LA County has dropped 38% since 2007. The count, conducted over three days in January, has the region’s homeless population at 42, 694, down from 68, 808 in 2007.

Michael Arnold, executive director of the authority, told the Los Angeles Times: “We know that things are changing. “We know, we can sense, we can feel that there’s a change out there. These numbers provide us with some documentation, that things are really happening in Los Angeles.”

Is this change rooted in policy or geography? The Times reported:

In a news release that accompanied the report, the authority's executive director said the drop in overall homeless numbers can be attributed to efforts by the city, county and local service providers to address poverty and homelessness. Those include L.A. County"s $100-million Homeless Prevention Initiative and the city's push for permanent supportive housing.

The report said the most important change is "a paradigm shift. ... Programs are centered on housing placement of homeless families and individuals and providing the tools and skills they need to stay housed."

So it’s not simply an issue of area LA homeless residents leaving the metro area via free will or force; the city has made a real effort to reduce the problem. And with the state having obvious financial problems this is quite the achievement.

Perhaps Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty can take notes from Los Angeles. In 2004 the Republican governor and prospective presidential candidate proposed an ambitious plan to reduce chronic homelessness. However, Pawlenty has since fallen short of that goal – now claiming it’s unrealistic to think things could stay the same given the state of the economy.

Yet, Los Angeles County has managed to do so.

Last Tuesday, the Department of Veterans Affairs laid out a five-year goal of curbing the number of homeless veterans, pledging $3.2 billion to an issue that is increasingly affecting those who served in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

And late last week, Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson announced the city would be shifting its strategy on homelessness – placing greater emphasis on finding permanent housing than providing emergency shelter beds.

Judging from the results of Los Angeles County, perhaps other mayors need to join Mayor Johnson in following LA’s lead.

Leave your feedback below and send your own recession story to therecessiondiaries@gmail.com.