Economy? Graduate has hope

Ethan Waite is a Coeur d'Alene High student whose senior project focused on the effects of Sept. 11, 2001, combined with job shadowing Press columnist Sholeh Patrick.

This June marks the culmination of the past 12 years of my life: my high school graduation. As I approach this milestone I have thought about what memories truly stand out from these years. I have made friends, played sports, celebrated birthdays and holidays. Yet the clearest memory I have is not from any of those events but from a day of tragedy throughout the United States - Sept. 11, 2001.

I remember almost everything about that morning, from eating Cap'n Crunch cereal when my father called, telling me to turn on CNN, to when I got to school where all any of us fourth-graders could talk about was the attack on the World Trade Center. That day became a defining moment in my life, and as I have reminisced I have wondered if a day that so deeply affected even the youngest of us made an impact on our local economy. I wondered how 9/11 affected Idaho's economy compared to a more recent event, such as the 2008 recession.

After researching the effects on our economy of both 9/11 and the 2008 recession I have concluded that while 9/11 barely grazed the surface of our economy, the recession devastated it. Sept. 11 struck fear into the U.S. for a week, maybe two, but our economy on a national and local scale rebounded extremely quickly. According to University of Southern California economics professor Adam Rose, "It shows that Osama bin Laden's policy strategy to damage the U.S. economy was short-lived in its effects, due to the resiliency of the U.S. economy."

In fact, in 2002, Idaho's jobless rate increased only by 0.5 percent to 5.4 percent. By 2006 it was down to 3.2 percent.

The effects of 9/11 on the economy were strictly superficial.

"The recession of 2008 had a greater effect on our economy than the impacts of 9/11," concludes Steve Griffitts, president of Jobs Plus.

Sept. 11 did its greatest damage through fear. For more than a week all major airlines were shut down and the stock market closed. Sept. 11's financial impact was instantaneous and short-lasting. The Coeur d'Alene area was not financially impacted by the attacks. Empire Airlines - a major Coeur d'Alene employer - did not close after the attacks and due to our geographical location there was no fear of a repeat attack nearby.

The 2008 recession is a completely different matter. According to Griffitts, the financial impact of the recession was deep and thorough, impacting an all-too-unstable Idaho housing market. People were no longer able to afford new homes, leaving houses sitting on the market. Quickly jobs in mills, construction, and housing began to disappear and the jobless rate rose as high as 10.6 percent in February 2010.

Locally, there is no comparing the effects each had on the economy. The 2008 recession wins hands down. Yet I graduate knowing that I have seen the worst of the recession in Idaho. In March Idaho's jobless rate fell for the first time in 32 months, to 10 percent - a minor but significant improvement. Ad revenue in media outlets like The Press is increasing as is hiring, both indicators of an improving economy.

I have seen Idaho's economy ravaged in the past year, but I leave Coeur d'Alene High School knowing our community faces a bright future.