[SHiRO]

OK I understand and you are right.

btw you have to view the whole Spain situation in context. It's not as if the country is at the edge of the abyss or something. The only country in Europe that is truly screwed is Greece. People are getting hit hard there, maybe for a decade to come or more.

Spain always had "high unemployment". It also has a relative big informal sector. And those 25% unemployed do work some of the time, it's just that they go from short term (sometimes just a week) work to short term work while being registered as unemployed. In the US those people don't even show up in the statistics. My cousin is "unemployed"...yeah, he helps out in my family's store. They make money...
In truth the "real" unemployment figure of Spain is a lot closer to the real unemployment figure in the US though still higher. What is lacking is a common definition here.

It's not an ideal situation and especially for young, highly educated people it's tough at the moment. The job market in Spain is highly immobile and outdated.
But people are not starving, living on the streets (living with your parents at 30 is not unusual). In fact, the lifestyle in Spain is something to be envied, even now. Going out (to eat) is even cheaper than in the US, with quality places everywhere and the climate can't be beaten.

My aunt and uncle did have to fire all their employees in their store. Well those guys/girls made about 900 euro a month, still live at home and are now collecting 600 euro or so in benefits and a lot of time to spare to do the odd job here and there. Their financial situation hasn't changed much. The smart ones went back to school. Career prospects remain grim though, hopefully Spain will lift itself out of this crisis soon, it certainly has a lot of potential. In 2000-2008 it was absolutely booming.