In This Economy,

more and more jobless people are all but giving up on finding employment anytime soon.

And in once recession-proof Las Vegas, the economy is worse than ever:

Vegas' ability to weather previous declines made it seem recession-proof. No longer. The carnage left by the economic downturn that began last year is unlike anything this town has seen.

Tourism is down for the second year in a row, and the people who come aren't spending with the abandon of the past. Last year Jeff Curran gave his son and daughter virtually free rein on the casino floor; this year their daily limit was $25 each.

In 2007, the peak year, 39.2 million people visited. Last year 37.5 million visitors came to town. Tourism officials say convention business is down about 27% from a year ago. If current trends continue, Vegas may barely break 35 million visits this year, the lowest level since 1999.

Even if the slump eases, its effect will be felt well into the future. The Strip -- the roughly four miles of Las Vegas Boulevard that churns out more than half the gambling revenue in Nevada -- is reassessing its habits of spending lavishly on new construction and of targeting the wealthiest or most spendthrift customers.

Room rates on the Strip are so steeply discounted that the top resorts will put you up today for the same price that downscale hotels charged two years ago.