Some spooky economic numbers

Some conversation fodder for your merry Christmas party:

• If the number of Americans that "wanted jobs" was the same today as it was back in 2007, the "official" unemployment rate put out by the U.S. government would be up to 11 percent.

• The average amount of time that a worker stays unemployed in the United States is now over 40 weeks.

• One recent survey found that 77 percent of all U.S. small businesses do not plan to hire any more workers.

• There are fewer payroll jobs in the United States today than there were back in 2000 even though we have added 30 million extra people to the population since then.

• Since December 2007, median household income in the United States has declined by a total of 6.8% once you account for inflation.

• A Gallup poll from earlier this year found that approximately one out of every five Americans that do have a job consider themselves to be underemployed.

• Back in 1969, 95 percent of all men between the ages of 25 and 54 had a job. In July, only 81.2 percent of men in that age group had a job.

• One recent survey found that one out of every three Americans would not be able to make a mortgage or rent payment next month if they suddenly lost their current job.