Barry and his regime are patting themselves on the back about the latest unemployment statistic CLAIMING that unemployment dropped last month to 8.9%, the lowest level in nearly 2 years. The regime did say it is worried the number could go up as "discouraged workers" start to look for work again.

This announcement is so full of holes. What caused the drop? A modest job gain of 192,000 jobs? Hard to imagine since nearly 13million people lost jobs during the recession. Is the gubment counting or attempting to count "discouraged workers" people no longer eligible for unemployment benefits that are not working? Are they counting the Underemployed, an example that comes to mind was a Software Engineer I saw on the news about a year ago that had a job, as a pizza delivery driver.

The Bereau of Labor uses a system that is certainly flawed. Discouraged workers are not a new phenomenon although Limbaugh and the talking heads on the right scoffed at the talk of unemployed people giving up searching for jobs while Dubya was in the Whitehouse.

The year+ I was unemployed I never filed anything with the government. So they never knew I wasn't employed (I mean, they knew I was alive, and didn't have any income to file on my taxes, but they don't count that).

I can't understand the comments by Mr.P, though. If I were on unemployment, I would have incentive to NOT look for work. It is when I'm not on unemployment (discouraged worker), when I don't have an income, when I'm not getting money for nothing, that I'd feel the extra need to get a job.

25 or so years ago I didn't work due to an injury and the gub counted me as working. Even sent me a tax bill. Called them up and said wtf, I didn't work that year. They insisted I had to. Repeated I didn't. They asked how I paid my bills. Told them none of their concern. I asked where they came up with the figure they were billing me for since there was no income reported for me that year. Said they just pulled a number out of their butts.

This conversation took place on speaker phone in a lawyers office. Lawyer told them to shove their guess back up their butts.

Name me one thing the gov't is accurate at recording or predicting. Or that is never revised after the fact. Got more holes than Swiss cheese. They throw darts at a moving dart board, missing because it's politically convenient.

(03-05-2011 12:04 PM)SumOfAllFears Wrote:  Name me one thing the gov't is accurate at recording or predicting.

Global temperatures.

(03-05-2011 11:55 AM)Paul M Wrote:  25 or so years ago I didn't work due to an injury and the gub counted me as working. Even sent me a tax bill. Called them up and said wtf, I didn't work that year. They insisted I had to. Repeated I didn't. They asked how I paid my bills. Told them none of their concern. I asked where they came up with the figure they were billing me for since there was no income reported for me that year. Said they just pulled a number out of their butts.

This conversation took place on speaker phone in a lawyers office. Lawyer told them to shove their guess back up their butts.

Was this when you had your lobotomy? Obviously it failed to achieve results.

Seriously, of course the numbers aren't accurate. I think most who follow the numbers know this. Most know they don't count the current large numbers of 99er's or drug pushers or illegals etc. THough, I don't think an unemployment rate should include the "underemployed" because, well, they are actually working. They could however do a separate count for the underemployed(which rhey mght do now, I am not sure).

(03-05-2011 06:25 PM)RobertN Wrote:  

(03-05-2011 11:55 AM)Paul M Wrote:  25 or so years ago I didn't work due to an injury and the gub counted me as working. Even sent me a tax bill. Called them up and said wtf, I didn't work that year. They insisted I had to. Repeated I didn't. They asked how I paid my bills. Told them none of their concern. I asked where they came up with the figure they were billing me for since there was no income reported for me that year. Said they just pulled a number out of their butts.

This conversation took place on speaker phone in a lawyers office. Lawyer told them to shove their guess back up their butts.

Was this when you had your lobotomy? Obviously it failed to achieve results.

Seriously, of course the numbers aren't accurate. I think most who follow the numbers know this. Most know they don't count the current large numbers of 99er's or drug pushers or illegals etc. THough, I don't think an unemployment rate should include the "underemployed" because, well, they are actually working. They could however do a separate count for the underemployed(which rhey mght do now, I am not sure).

I'd rather have a bottle in front of me than a frontal lobotomy

(03-05-2011 06:34 PM)Mr. Peanut Wrote:  I'd rather have a bottle in front of me than a frontal lobotomy

Dorothy Parker is famous for that quip and others like it ("Men seldom make passes at girls who wear glasses"). Her short-stories are not nearly so light-hearted; even more cynical, and mostly dark/depressing at the end.