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Recession Briefing 9.16: Gardening Won’t Solve Everything

What you need to know today to survive and thrive in the recession.

“The idea that gardening is going to solve household budget woes plus the obesity epidemic, to boot, is a bunch of fertilizer,” writes Martha White. (The Big Money)

The Federal Reserve chairman, Ben S. Bernanke, said Tuesday that it was “very likely” that the recession had ended although he cautioned that it could be months before unemployment rates dropped significantly. (New York Times)

The downturn in high-end fashion is hitting celebrity-backed brands hard. Many are disappearing. (Wall Street Journal)

Even though unemployment has reached its highest level in 26 years, most workers have received a raise over the last year. (New York Times)

Akron, Ohio, and Pittsburgh have done unexpectedly well amid the recession, according to a new ranking of the best and worst performing cities. One lesson: There’s more to economic activity than housing. (Christian Science Monitor)

Most of the U.S. commercial real estate industry is expected to remain in recession through 2011 with an industry-wide recovery not expected to begin until 2012, according to a survey. (Reuters)

“What happens if we emerge from the Great Recession as a society sharply divided between a small privileged upper class, and an underclass that lacks basic economic security?” asks Bruce Judson. (The Business Insider)

Women are at increasing risk of being trapped in abusive relationships during the recession, a leading U.K. campaign group has claimed. (Press Association)

Warren Buffett, the billionaire investor who last year called the financial crisis an “economic Pearl Harbor,” said the U.S. economy has “hit a plateau at bottom.” (Bloomberg)

“Once we have new homes or new jobs, and our financial situations are back on track, will we remember what we learned amid the recession?” asks Sara Clemence. Here are five lessons we hope will outlast the recession, the recovery and beyond. (Recessionwire)

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Tags: economy, gardening, real estate, recession, recovery, The Unemployed Life