According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the number of Americans living below the poverty line is currently 46.2 million. That's the highest this number has been since the census started tracking poverty 52 years ago.

The official definition of poverty is a family of four who makes less than $22,113 a year. According to the recent results, published Sept. 13 in The New York Times, this means 15.1 percent of Americans live in poverty.

Further, economists have stated that 86 million people who were out of work last year did not manage to work one week out of the year.

We know there are people in Newton County who are among these statistics, and we also know that even those who are employed have seen their paychecks shrink and their job responsibilities increase.

Last week, President Obama presented a new jobs bill that will hopefully relight the fire under the American economy. Our editorial staff has some reservations about the plan, but our disagreement with the president's policies does not run deeper than our dislike for watching our neighbors suffer in these trying economic times.

We hope to see some light at the end of the tunnel soon.