Irony alert: Monster.com says it's cutting 7 percent of its workforce (that's 400 jobs) after a crummy fourth quarter and dropping share prices. This is apparently some kind of bad economic bellwether, Reuters reports: "The staffing sector -- seen as a barometer of economic health -- has been hit by a slowdown in Europe and an uncertain recovery in the United States, where the unemployment rate currently stands at 8.5 percent." Ugh. Yes, the jokes are filling up Twitter about how those laid off work at the right place for job-seekers. Whatever help those laid off might get in their search from their former employer has got to be pretty cold comfort.

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Adam Martin