BloggeRhythms

To a significant extent, the current administration, like many others before it, relies on the fact that most of the population doesn’t pay attention to much that goes on in the nation. And, unfortunately, many of those who are exposed to complex information and statistics are unable to grasp the meaning of the data.

 

That’s one of the reasons why, some time ago, government changed the formulas for how unemployment is calculated, attempting to make the situation look better than it is.

 

In that regard, back in July of last year, Keith Hall, the former head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which produces the federal government's monthly jobs report, said that to get a truer unemployment statistic:

 

“I'd personally focus on the labor-force participation rate, which includes people working and looking for work. This has been at about 63 percent in recent years, well below the 66 percent that prevailed before the recession. That may not sound like a big difference, but that extra 3 percent would take the number of officially unemployed people up to about 18 million from 12 million. 

 

And that would jack the unemployment rate up to about 11 percent. Which, yikes.”

 

I mention the preceding because, as of yesterday, “The percentage of American civilians 16 or older who do not have a job and are not actively seeking one remained at a 36-year high in May, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.”

 

The report says; “In December, April, and now May, the labor force participation rate has been 62.8 percent. That means that 37.2 percent were not participating in the labor force during those months.

 

Before December, the last time the labor force participation rate sunk as low as 62.8 percent was February 1978, when it was also 62.8 percent. At that time, Jimmy Carter was president.

 

People in the civilian non-institutional population who did not have a job and did not actively seek one in the last four weeks are considered “not in the labor force.” The number of Americans not in the labor force has climbed by 11,480,000 since Obama took office, rising from 80,529,000 in January 2009 to 92,009,000 in May 2014.”

 

So, here we have another case of continual deterioration and reversal of progress not seen in the nation since the irrational peanut farmer. And the longer the incumbent remains in office, the clearer the commonality of he and Carter becomes. Particularly their mutual hatred of the nation they supposedly loved and respected, yet tried their damnedest to drive into the ground.

 

That’s it for today folks.

 

Adios