This animated map provides a striking visual of employment trends over the last business cycle using net change in jobs from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics on a rolling 12-month basis.  The graphic highlights the 100 largest metropolitan areas.

The timeline begins in 2004 as the country starts its recovery from the 2001 recession, following the bursting of the dot-com bubble.  Broad economic and job growth was apparent across most of the country.

The map also captures the dramatic job losses in New Orleans in 2005 as a result of Hurricane Katrina.

By 2007, regional evidence of the coming economic downturn starts to appear. Employment growth in California and Florida starts to wane, with the first signs of actual losses beginning in the middle of the year in Los Angeles and Tampa.

By 2009, it starts to look like the computer simulation from Wargames.

Via:  The Geography of Jobs