What are the real unemployment numbers?

[ralphfurley]

[quote=socrattt]
My point is simply that US numbers are completely out of whack creating a false sense of security in this country. I truly believe that unemployment is already over 11% nationally, but that this government is doing everything in their power to have us think otherwise. It is simple math. Not many think outside the box, they just watch the news.
[/quote]
I completely agree.

Someone told me they changed the way we look at unemployment during the Clinton years. Can anyone confirm this?

[ralphfurley]

[quote=EconProf]Concho, you have voiced a common misconception. Unemployed simply means not working and actively seeking work.
That could be someone entering the work force for the first time, coming out of retirement to seek work, laid off, fired, etc. They may or may not be getting unemployent benefits, and in fact only about 40% of the unemployed currently receive benefits.[/quote]
Thank you for your input EconProf. You answered a lot of the questions I had regarding the number they throw at us.

[ralphfurley]

[quote=EconProf]Concho, you have voiced a common misconception. Unemployed simply means not working and actively seeking work.
That could be someone entering the work force for the first time, coming out of retirement to seek work, laid off, fired, etc. They may or may not be getting unemployent benefits, and in fact only about 40% of the unemployed currently receive benefits.[/quote]
Thank you for your input EconProf. You answered a lot of the questions I had regarding the number they throw at us.

[ralphfurley]

[quote=EconProf]Concho, you have voiced a common misconception. Unemployed simply means not working and actively seeking work.
That could be someone entering the work force for the first time, coming out of retirement to seek work, laid off, fired, etc. They may or may not be getting unemployent benefits, and in fact only about 40% of the unemployed currently receive benefits.[/quote]
Thank you for your input EconProf. You answered a lot of the questions I had regarding the number they throw at us.

[ralphfurley]

[quote=EconProf]Concho, you have voiced a common misconception. Unemployed simply means not working and actively seeking work.
That could be someone entering the work force for the first time, coming out of retirement to seek work, laid off, fired, etc. They may or may not be getting unemployent benefits, and in fact only about 40% of the unemployed currently receive benefits.[/quote]
Thank you for your input EconProf. You answered a lot of the questions I had regarding the number they throw at us.

[ralphfurley]

[quote=EconProf]Concho, you have voiced a common misconception. Unemployed simply means not working and actively seeking work.
That could be someone entering the work force for the first time, coming out of retirement to seek work, laid off, fired, etc. They may or may not be getting unemployent benefits, and in fact only about 40% of the unemployed currently receive benefits.[/quote]
Thank you for your input EconProf. You answered a lot of the questions I had regarding the number they throw at us.

[socrattt]

Just in case you were all curious how they break down the unemployment numbers here is the link:

http://www.bls.gov/cps/cps_htgm.htm

I find the 8th paragraph under “WHERE DO THE STATISTICS COME FROM?” quite amusing:

“Each month, 1,500 highly trained and experienced (THIS HAD ME LOL) Census Bureau employees interview persons in the 60,000 sample households for information on the labor force activities (jobholding and jobseeking) or non-labor force status of the members of these households during the week that includes the 12th of the month (the reference week). This information, relating to all household members 16 years of age and over, is entered by the interviewers into laptop computers (most likely circa 1991 IBMs); at the end of each day’s interviewing, the data collected are transmitted to the Census Bureau’s central computer in Washington, D.C. In addition, a portion of the sample is interviewed by phone through two central data collection facilities. (Prior to 1994, the interviews were conducted using a paper questionnaire which had to be mailed in by the interviewers each month.)”

I guess the highly trained and experienced are about as good as our Department of Homeland Security scanning for devices at the local airports. If you have heartbeat you are a considered highly trained and experienced!! This country is so technologically advanced that I would assume that they could find a more efficient way of determining unemployment, but why would you when this current strategy allows for the US to present an extreme version of a false reality.

[socrattt]

Just in case you were all curious how they break down the unemployment numbers here is the link:

http://www.bls.gov/cps/cps_htgm.htm

I find the 8th paragraph under “WHERE DO THE STATISTICS COME FROM?” quite amusing:

“Each month, 1,500 highly trained and experienced (THIS HAD ME LOL) Census Bureau employees interview persons in the 60,000 sample households for information on the labor force activities (jobholding and jobseeking) or non-labor force status of the members of these households during the week that includes the 12th of the month (the reference week). This information, relating to all household members 16 years of age and over, is entered by the interviewers into laptop computers (most likely circa 1991 IBMs); at the end of each day’s interviewing, the data collected are transmitted to the Census Bureau’s central computer in Washington, D.C. In addition, a portion of the sample is interviewed by phone through two central data collection facilities. (Prior to 1994, the interviews were conducted using a paper questionnaire which had to be mailed in by the interviewers each month.)”

I guess the highly trained and experienced are about as good as our Department of Homeland Security scanning for devices at the local airports. If you have heartbeat you are a considered highly trained and experienced!! This country is so technologically advanced that I would assume that they could find a more efficient way of determining unemployment, but why would you when this current strategy allows for the US to present an extreme version of a false reality.

[socrattt]

Just in case you were all curious how they break down the unemployment numbers here is the link:

http://www.bls.gov/cps/cps_htgm.htm

I find the 8th paragraph under “WHERE DO THE STATISTICS COME FROM?” quite amusing:

“Each month, 1,500 highly trained and experienced (THIS HAD ME LOL) Census Bureau employees interview persons in the 60,000 sample households for information on the labor force activities (jobholding and jobseeking) or non-labor force status of the members of these households during the week that includes the 12th of the month (the reference week). This information, relating to all household members 16 years of age and over, is entered by the interviewers into laptop computers (most likely circa 1991 IBMs); at the end of each day’s interviewing, the data collected are transmitted to the Census Bureau’s central computer in Washington, D.C. In addition, a portion of the sample is interviewed by phone through two central data collection facilities. (Prior to 1994, the interviews were conducted using a paper questionnaire which had to be mailed in by the interviewers each month.)”

I guess the highly trained and experienced are about as good as our Department of Homeland Security scanning for devices at the local airports. If you have heartbeat you are a considered highly trained and experienced!! This country is so technologically advanced that I would assume that they could find a more efficient way of determining unemployment, but why would you when this current strategy allows for the US to present an extreme version of a false reality.

[socrattt]

Just in case you were all curious how they break down the unemployment numbers here is the link:

http://www.bls.gov/cps/cps_htgm.htm

I find the 8th paragraph under “WHERE DO THE STATISTICS COME FROM?” quite amusing:

“Each month, 1,500 highly trained and experienced (THIS HAD ME LOL) Census Bureau employees interview persons in the 60,000 sample households for information on the labor force activities (jobholding and jobseeking) or non-labor force status of the members of these households during the week that includes the 12th of the month (the reference week). This information, relating to all household members 16 years of age and over, is entered by the interviewers into laptop computers (most likely circa 1991 IBMs); at the end of each day’s interviewing, the data collected are transmitted to the Census Bureau’s central computer in Washington, D.C. In addition, a portion of the sample is interviewed by phone through two central data collection facilities. (Prior to 1994, the interviews were conducted using a paper questionnaire which had to be mailed in by the interviewers each month.)”

I guess the highly trained and experienced are about as good as our Department of Homeland Security scanning for devices at the local airports. If you have heartbeat you are a considered highly trained and experienced!! This country is so technologically advanced that I would assume that they could find a more efficient way of determining unemployment, but why would you when this current strategy allows for the US to present an extreme version of a false reality.

[socrattt]

Just in case you were all curious how they break down the unemployment numbers here is the link:

http://www.bls.gov/cps/cps_htgm.htm

I find the 8th paragraph under “WHERE DO THE STATISTICS COME FROM?” quite amusing:

“Each month, 1,500 highly trained and experienced (THIS HAD ME LOL) Census Bureau employees interview persons in the 60,000 sample households for information on the labor force activities (jobholding and jobseeking) or non-labor force status of the members of these households during the week that includes the 12th of the month (the reference week). This information, relating to all household members 16 years of age and over, is entered by the interviewers into laptop computers (most likely circa 1991 IBMs); at the end of each day’s interviewing, the data collected are transmitted to the Census Bureau’s central computer in Washington, D.C. In addition, a portion of the sample is interviewed by phone through two central data collection facilities. (Prior to 1994, the interviews were conducted using a paper questionnaire which had to be mailed in by the interviewers each month.)”

I guess the highly trained and experienced are about as good as our Department of Homeland Security scanning for devices at the local airports. If you have heartbeat you are a considered highly trained and experienced!! This country is so technologically advanced that I would assume that they could find a more efficient way of determining unemployment, but why would you when this current strategy allows for the US to present an extreme version of a false reality.

[sdduuuude]

Sounds to me that if we just convince everyone to stop looking for work, we’ll be at 0%. Problem solved.

[sdduuuude]

Sounds to me that if we just convince everyone to stop looking for work, we’ll be at 0%. Problem solved.

[sdduuuude]

Sounds to me that if we just convince everyone to stop looking for work, we’ll be at 0%. Problem solved.

[sdduuuude]

Sounds to me that if we just convince everyone to stop looking for work, we’ll be at 0%. Problem solved.

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