Thursday, June 10, 2010

Short Memories

Last week economic news was thrilled by 431,000 new jobs, but cautioned that 400,000 of those were temporary jobs at the Census Bureau.

This week the thrill is a reduction of 255,000 in the numbers of filings for continuing unemployment claims. This is, apparently, wonderful news.

Nobody seems to connect the two facts. Last week 400,000 people get temporary jobs at the Census, this week 255,000 fewer filed continuing unemployment claims, and this is good news? It seems to me that if the 400,000 who are now working at the Census did not file, and one certainly hopes they did not, then at least 400,000 fewer claims should have been filed, but only 255,000 fewer claims were filed, so in effect 145,000 new claims seem to have been filed.

Short memories and disconnected facts do make life easier, but…

1 comment:

  1. It will also be a talking point for the politicians to boast about. Then when the temporary gig is over, they will cry opposition again, and the BS is renewed. Gack

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