From Inside Higher Ed (cruel irony):
Amid the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, the University of Southern Mississippi is poised to eliminate -- of all things -- its economics department, faculty were informed this week.
The elimination of economics, along with five tenured and four tenure-track faculty positions, is part of a plan to reduce spending by $11 to $12 million, universitywide, within a year. While university officials stress the plan isn't yet final, they are slated to decide by September 1 whether to go forward with the proposed cuts, according to a news release.
The layoff news is bad enough, but the "worst economic crisis since the Great Depression" stuff is driving me crazy. I don't get how people keep forgetting about the early 80s recession. In 1982, GDP fell by 1.9%, inflation ran above 10% from 1979-81, and the unemployment rate was almost 10% in for two years (1982-83). All of those numbers are worse than during the current recession.
Hat tip: MS
