The situation of astronomers is not comparable to "every other position in academia." Let's suppose that imbalance between "transitional" positions (grad stude

The situation of astronomers is not comparable to "every other position in academia." Let's suppose that imbalance between "transitional" positions (grad students, postdocs, visiting researchers/lecturers) and "permanent" positions in Astronomy is the same as, say, Comparative Literature. The difference is that the astronomers can typically, with just a little deflection, use their quantitative skills to find a different permanent job at reasonable pay. But it's much harder for a comp lit person to do so. In other words, both astronomers and literature-lovers might have been deluded about job prospects. It's easier for the astronomers to recover, so their situation is not as dire.