>Tom,
>
>>Take it as you wish. I have heard two figures for the number of employees returning from the grocery strike in Southern California. 75,000 and 125,000 – choose your own number as there is no consistency from these media reports.
>>
>I think I'll take it as the good news that it clearly is. A few hundred thousand new jobs (give or take 125,000) IS good news. (Unless you are in the opposition party and need some bad economic news to boost your candidate.)
>
>>Hearing that employment is occurring is good news to me. I would like to know why strikers were added to the role of the employed for the first time? It does improve the "numbers", but few people care to hear anything other than how many new jobs were created.
>
>I don't have a clue about that, but would like to know how those situations have been counted in the past. Did the government suddenly change their method of counting, or has it always been done this way? Good questions...
>
>>Like Boby McFerrin sang, “Don’t worry – Be Happy”! :)
>
>Was that his song? I had no idea. Saw him on PBS doing a concert thing with some classical orchestra a few years ago and thoroughly enjoyed it.
David;
If I may continue this subject please read the following. Contrary to what some may think I like to know facts and why and how things occur. If I am wrong then I am wrong. The method used to determine unemployment is at the URL.
http://www.bls.gov/cps/cps_htgm.htmNow I know how the U.S. Government measures unemployment. I also know I was wrong.
This is unlike what I have read in the newspapers for the last 40 years. I must admit that my newspaper reading is limited to the San Francisco Chronicle, San Jose Mercury News and Los Angeles Times.
As Will Rogers said, "I only know what I read in the papers." Well, I know a bit more than that one source provides. However, even recently I read that only those receiving unemployment insurance were considered unemployed. Somewhere between the newspaper, radio, television, magazine, word of mouth, personal experience and ignorance may lay the truth. You make your own reality based upon a number of factors.
Now that I know how the US unemployment rate is calculated I asked myself about the method used to calculate California’s unemployment. From what I can determine the BLS (blame it on Bruce!) also gives those numbers.
The economic experts predicted 123,000 new jobs in March, and 308,000 were reported. From what I have read 125,000 new jobs were created by the returning strikers in the Southern California grocery strike. These new jobs displaced 125,000 temporary workers hired to fill the positions of the strikers.
I do not care what political party is in office. Statistics are always suspect and can show whatever you wish to prove. Politicians will do whatever they please and we should enjoy it without question. Also we should not raise questions that may offend others.
This is like the "new math", introduced in 1964 at U.C. Berkeley. Well not realy - it just seems that way.
Personally I would like to see our employment problems take a bright turn. It would be nice if that happened. I just see too many negative indicators in my area to get excited and jump to the conclusion that things are all right. When you are not one of the numbers of the unemployed none of this really matters. We will know more in the coming months.
By the way for the lurkers out there I like to argue a subject from many viewpoints and I am willing to listen to the opinions of others. Your opinions might just lead me to the truth. However to be honest I think that God is the only one who knows the truth – we just have opinions – correctly or incorrectly formed. The correctness of ones opinions is determined by the audience be it yourself or others. :)
Above all keep a smile on your face and enjoy what life has to offer.
Tom
