[andy58-in-nh]

If it were not for a facility with statistical legerdemain, countless government economists would also be out of a job, worsening our employment picture even further. And whatever would we do with all of those unused shovels?

Oh well. I suppose if we are going to have a Potemkin "recovery" to accompany our hollowed-out economy, we might as well enjoy the increasingly creative denials of incipient danger from the geniuses who helped yank the plug out of the nation's washtub and yet insist the water level is rising.

[AmusedBystander]

If someone translated this into English, a few people might actually be able to discuss the subject.

[algernonpj]

The money quote: "So we wonder, how long before someone, anyone, points out that well over half of the job "gains" in the past year have come from a purely statistic fudging of data, based on the same endless growth assumption that destroyed the credibility of the ratings agency excel models, and which has no actual mapping to real jobs?"

What are the odds of this happening?

Where in the MSM will you find out that if you look at the seasonally adjusted Household data, which is used to get the unemployment rate of 9.2%, the number of employed decreased by -445,000 and the civilian labor force decreased by -272,000. In addition, 7,124,000 (not seasonally adjusted) of those not in the labor force currently want a job. The civilian non-institutional population at the same increased by +176,000.

In addition 125,000 new legal workers were brought into the US to compete for the ever scarcer jobs.

[nascarnation]

Statistics aside, I believe in the Carville Precept.

And I believe Baraq is toast in 2012.

[Slings and Arrows]

Boss: “What’s two plus two?”

Economist: “What do you want it to be?”

[NRG1973]

I betcha that an honest investigation would show that there were more “deaths” of business in that timeframe than there were “births”.

[skimbell]

Bureau of Labor Statistic employee of the month...

[RightInEastLansing]

Can anyone explain what this birth/death adjustment is all about?