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"When asked what percentage of people are unemployed or looking for work, Americans guessed 32 percent. The U.S. unemployment rate is actually closer to 6 percent, of course."
Yeah, the ignorance index is pretty high if you believe this...
"When asked what percentage of people are unemployed or looking for work, Americans guessed 32 percent. The U.S. unemployment rate is actually closer to 6 percent, of course."
Yeah, the ignorance index is pretty high if you believe this...
If you believe the published number has any bearing on the reality of who is employed and who is not...Then it is YOU who is ignorant.
In reality, only a little over 40% of us are employed. That makes the unemployed percentage closer to 60%.
Being "ignorant" of details like the official unemployment rate does NOT mean you don't understand what's going on--perhaps you understand things far better than those spouting meaningless statistics.
Are you aware how few of the unemployed are actually counted in the official unemployment rate? The ONLY people counted towards the official unemployment rate are the ones who met ALL of these criteria:
1. Lost their job due to layoff with no hint of employee fault (many employers claim the employee quit, or had to be fired, to minimize insurance costs);
2. Lost their job that was full time and qualified for benefits under Unemployment Insurance;
3. Worked long enough in the previous job to contribute enough for full coverage under Unemployment Insurance;
4. Waited past the waiting period before applying for UI benefits (3 weeks, in Florida when I was laid off in the 1990);
5. Haven't yet gotten any other job, including temporary or part-time (in my case, UI benefits were denied because I was assumed to have been "working for free" for the employer I subsequently got a job with, 4 weeks later);
6. Didn't move to a different jurisdiction to find work (once you move, any UI benefits stop);
7. Are still actively trying to find work (or pretending to), and returning weekly to fill out forms; and
8. Haven't had their Unemployment benefits expire yet (sometimes 26 weeks, sometimes less).
This statistic, like most government statistics, is so warped as to be meaningless. What Americans understand is that decent jobs are almost impossible to find. If you find one, you will be worked like a slave and paid as little as possible, you won't get raises to even match rising cost of living, and every year you will pay more for benefits employers traditionally paid for. The dollars you earn at your job are worth LESS each year, as Washington continues to devalue the currency. The stock market may soar thanks to QE, and some of the working class may temporarily have retirement accounts that aren't losing money to inflation and fees, but when it crashes it is the little guy that will take drastic losses--and Big Government won't step in with taxpayer dollars like it does for the ultrawealthy.
Each and every one of the statistics touted by Democrats as showing how well we are doing is nothing more than the flip side of a very ugly reality--so America finally got back the jobs lost during the collapse? Too bad the jobs that were lost were full time and well paying, while the new jobs are part time and minimum wage!
Status:
"everybody getting reported now.."
(set 25 days ago)
Location: Pine Grove,AL
29,568 posts, read 16,552,753 times
Reputation: 6044
Quote:
Originally Posted by southbel
Fareed Zakaria. Isn't he the plagiarism guy?
DOesnt matter, all he did was do a story on the information. He was not involved in the research so this argumentum ad hominem fallacy means even less than you wanted it to.
the baby born the second i posted this is not "unemployed" neither is the 108 year old man who no longer has the ability to move, so no, it isnt closer to 60%
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