At the peak of the Great Depression, in 1933, 12.8 million people were officially unemployed in the United States.  According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics we’re already past that; 13.9 million officially unemployed!

Now take into account that some sources are saying that the Bureau of Labor is intentionally under reporting the numbers; they should read 17 million unemployed!  Then there are those that say if older unemployment counting methods were used, we’re actually double the officially reported numbers!

Now enter the Federal Reserve (the privately run central bank of the United States).  On November 22, Ben Bernanke quietly asked 19 top banks/financial institutions to conduct a stress test, for the third time since 2009.

The second stress test was completed in March 2011, and several banks failed, including Bank of America!  It was not publicly reported!

Reports say this latest “comprehensive capital analysis and review” would include scenarios like a 6.9% to 8% drop in the U.S. economy, a 21% drop in housing prices, and the potential for 23.2 million people out of work!

Bernanke also asked the six top banks (JPMorgan, Bank of America, Citigroup, Wells Fargo & Co., Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Morgan Stanley) to predict how much money they would lose in such scenarios.

The results are due on January 9, 2012.