Flickr cc by-Virginia Zuluaga

Unemployment: safety net or hammock?

Despite hopeful signs that the recession is ending, unemployment remains in the double digits. At 12.4%, California’s jobless rate is the highest in the country. As lawmakers debate whether to extend unemployment benefits again, some of the Nation’s jobless have found a silver lining in the economic meltdown. They’re called the “funemployed.” Supported by unemployment checks, these happily jobless folks aren’t spending their days poring over job listings. They’re travelling on the cheap, shopping for new clothes and learning to play the cello. They are, some might say, milking the system as long as they possibly can, content living for today. Does this sound like someone you know? Is this kind of behavior justifiable?