Fallout

It's really hard to see how the collapse of the housing bubble doesn't lead to serious pain due to a decline in construction and related jobs. Many of these are good blue collar jobs in an economy which doesn't have all that many good blue collar jobs due to the loss of the manufacturing base.

Sheets of uncovered insulation flap in the breeze from unfinished townhouse units in Allentown. Workers at a closed roofing plant near Quakertown are looking for new jobs. A manufacturer of construction trucks says sales are down. For more than a year, ''for sale'' signs have lingered in front yards across the Lehigh Valley.

Now, as the housing downturn lengthens here and nationally, other indications are that it's not just the real estate market that has slowed down. It's the economy. And it's not just people who need to sell their homes who are feeling the pain.