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Here’s a quotable quote popularized by Mark Twain. In fact, Benjamin Disraeli was the original author.
In addition, we are easily confused when we can’t bring different statistics together in one place or find that their darned footnotes still don’t explain what’s included. And, data is filtered through talking heads and reporters who often don’t know what any of it really means. In other words, the true picture is lost. Statistics are never turned into information. We’re simply misinformed. Take the job situation. What follows is a suggestion of why it is worse than reported. College Grads
First, what’s the impact of all those new college grads? There are millions who are thrown into the labor market each year. According to the Digest of Education Statistics, the following were degrees conferred within the United States for the 2008-2009 academic year. This is the breakdown by degree type.
That’s a total of over 3 Million college graduates. Of course, that does not tell us how many were attending night school and already working or not. The National Association of Colleges and Employers said job offers for 2009 college graduates ran 22 percent behind 2008’s. So, right out of the box, it seems that their unemployment level is over 20%. High School Grads
Then, there are approximately 3 Million new graduates from high school. Some percentage are headed to academic and vocational colleges and not seeking long-term employment. However, most high school grads are trying to join the workforce right away. That’s a grim prospect. From April, 2009 to June, 2009, the unemployment rate for that age range (16-19) rose from 23.6% to 27.8%. Independent Contractors
The National Employment Law Project says, “Today, only 37 percent of unemployed workers collect unemployment benefits, which is especially low compared to prior recessions.” We NEVER hear this reported. So many people work as ‘Independent Contractors’ and are not even considered employees. All too often, it’s a phony arrangement demanded by unethical employers. Also, part-time employees are not covered, and so forth. Unemployment insurance is a moth-eaten system. Working People
Economist Nouriel Roubini said, “. . . consider that the total value of labor income is the product of jobs, hours and average hourly wages–and that all three elements are falling right now.” The trend is down. Even working people are going through reductions in weekly hours worked and hourly wages. The forecast for the next year and a half is that more working people will be joining the ranks of the unemployed. New Unemployed People
Here’s one of the ways in which statistics are turned into ‘damned lies.’ Here’s the number of NEW claims for unemployment after the ‘adjustment’ by the Bureau of Labor Statistics: “In the week ending July 11, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 522,000, a decrease of 47,000 from the previous week’s revised figure of 569,000.” The ‘real, unadjusted’ number is in the OPPOSITE direction. BLS also said, “. . . actual initial claims under state programs, unadjusted, totaled 667,534 in the week ending July 11, an increase of 86,389 from the previous week.” So 133,000 unemployed people got adjusted under the rug and out of existence. The trend is exactly the opposite of what was reported by our dear American media. Conclusion
The Bureau of Labor Statistics could do a far better job of research. And, the media reporting is mostly shallow, if not mindless. Again, Mark Twain says it so well: Your comment below is welcome.
Click here to contact your representatives in Washington, D.C.: – Byron |
Posts Tagged ‘Mark Twain’
The Many Kinds of Lies
Saturday, July 18th, 2009Who Owns Our Congress?
Saturday, May 9th, 2009|
If you’ve never before heard the truth about the corruption of our decision-making in Washington, D.C., then you now have a very clear statement. As widely reported this week, Senator Dick Durbin, disappointed at the defeat of his bill,
“And the banks – hard to believe in a time when we’re facing a banking crisis that many of the banks created – are still the most powerful lobby on Capitol Hill. And they frankly own the place.” What more do we need to understand about corporate America calling the shots in our government? The adage is that money is the root of all evil. Well, corporate campaign contributions are the source of the money that buys the election process.There’s really nothing more to explain. Generations ago, Mark Twain observed:
“It could probably be shown by facts and figures that there is no distinctly native American criminal class except Congress.” Today, there is only one party called the Corporatist Party. It has two wings, the Republican Wing and the Democratic Wing. The solution is to ban all contributions to parties and candidates. Until that happens, the corporations will, as Durbin said, “own the place.” Click here to contact your representatives in Washington, D.C.: – Byron |
After The Bonus Uproar, Stay Mad!
Sunday, March 22nd, 2009|
This week’s hullabaloo over the AIG bonuses is an indication that the public is paying attention. However, the public may simply be going after the wrong people. In other words, chasing a red herring instead of attacking the real problem. One can only hope that the anger now turns toward the source of the real problem. The real problem people are the members of Congress. For thirty years, the Congress has gone along with the mentality of the corporate finance community. The mentality said regulations are bad. In fact, it looks as if criminal enterprise is now a part of the definition of free enterprise. Just look the other way and say, “Let the buyer beware.” AIG, and the rest of the financial industry, sold options to their customers which weren’t covered. It’s like selling insurance and hoping that claims wouldn’t come in. Why? Because AIG and the rest didn’t have the money to pay off. And Congress looked the other way. Albert Einstein told us, “Intellectuals solve problems; geniuses prevent them.” The good news is that Congress doesn’t have to be a genius, nor even very smart, to put back all the financial rules of the New Deal. Most of the legislation was written 75 years ago. The “financial crisis” started last year. Have you seen one effort by Congress to put the honest controls back in the system? Have you heard of one piece of legislation? It seems like we’ve seen lots Here’s what one wise man observed as the problem with Congress. Mark Twain boasted,
Click here to contact your representatives in Washington, D.C.: – Byron |