Information Misrepresentation: Unemployment

Information presented to the Public by various outlets is being crafted to misrepresent reality in an effort to skew political thinking, gain economic advantage and nudge social justice further down the American psyche. This is the third in a series of blog posts detailing instances in this regard, as it is imperative the Public recognize the significant level of misrepresentation and how vast the manipulation is.

Information Misrepresentation: Unemployment

Last Friday, the job numbers were released and media outlets across the spectrum were thrilled to report the unemployment rate had fallen from 8.2% to 8.1%.  The decrease was presented as evidence that Americans are getting back to work and the measures to assist the economy by President Obama are bearing fruit.

Nothing could be further from the truth, and as usual, the media is complicit in a far reaching misrepresentation of the facts participatory in supporting the re-election of the President.

Weekly jobless claims continue to register at around 350,000, and this past month only 115,000 jobs were added.  Somehow, the unemployment rate decreased. The reason for this apparent anomaly is that unemployed individuals who no longer actively seek employment fall of the calculus.

If Obama was succeeding in getting America back to work, the unemployment rate would be increasing at this point because as folks found work as jobs became available, those sitting on the sidelines would jump back into the fray seeking employment.  Hence, our underemployed and unemployed citizens full time employment would rise as they re-enter the equation, increasing the unemployment rate upward.

Shadow Stats has the real unemployment rate at 22%.  Even so, as ever so accurately reported by the excellent blog Zero Hedge, simply put, this is sad.  The labor participation rate is the lowest it has been since 1981.  That is stunning.  Take a look at the following charts presented by Zero Hedge:

Labor Participation Rate




Persons Not In Labor Force


These charts, with data not seen since the Great Depression, show a catastrophe in the making.  Not only are individuals and their families hurting, but our productivity is taking a beating.

By not participating in the work force, workers are falling behind in levels of training, education and self fulfillment.  New technology is outpacing those able to perform supportive functions in support of these technological gains.  Over time, this will significantly impair our competitiveness.  Try not playing golf for a few years and then hitting the links.

One of the few patriots in the media to throw a penalty flag on all the gleeful reports of an improving unemployment rate is CNBC's Rick Santelli, who call them out his Santelli Exchange report:



We have an economic calamity going on in America due primarily to inept leadership from the Oval Office and the entire Obama economic team.  Time is short to turn chart a path to prosperity, and if we fail, we will become like Europe and our position as the economic superpower may be lost forever.

Free markets, with limited governmental interference, regulation and taxation, presents the playing field from which innovation, invention, work ethic and prosperity is born.  Lets get to work!