Unemployment rate to 8.8%

[boedicca]

For additional perspective on the nature of job creation:

Underemployment has increased.

Gallup Daily tracking finds that 20.3% of the U.S. workforce was underemployed in March -- a slight uptick from the relatively flat January and February numbers.

...

A rise in the percentage of part-timers wanting to work full time (from 9.2% to 9.9%) is responsible for the March increase in underemployment. Unemployment saw a slight, but insignificant, decline in March.

Underemployment Rises to 20.3% in March

 

[8537]

Great - you prove that Bush's policies helped the economy recover from the devastating double whammy of the DotCom crash and 9/11. Things got worse after the inevitable result of the 1997 CRA - Subjective Lending Standards - Everybody Deserves A House Regardless Of Their Ability To Pay policy reached its logical conclusion.

...if only the issuers of all those toxic subprimes were CRA-regulated banks...

 

[boedicca]

Great - you prove that Bush's policies helped the economy recover from the devastating double whammy of the DotCom crash and 9/11. Things got worse after the inevitable result of the 1997 CRA - Subjective Lending Standards - Everybody Deserves A House Regardless Of Their Ability To Pay policy reached its logical conclusion.

...if only the issuers of all those toxic subprimes were CRA-regulated banks...

You don't get it.

Once lending standards were loosened for some, they were loosened for everyone. This is why we had a huge, speculative bubble as people were able to buy and flip properties with no money down. Which was great...until prices burst and they were left holding a bunch of underwater property.

 

[Meister]

We can banter all day long on this....the only thing I can see that's changed in the last 3 months was that Congress was taken over by the republicans. Perception on the direction of the economy may have changed in the last election. Just sayin....

 

[Wry Catcher]

Great - you prove that Bush's policies helped the economy recover from the devastating double whammy of the DotCom crash and 9/11. Things got worse after the inevitable result of the 1997 CRA - Subjective Lending Standards - Everybody Deserves A House Regardless Of Their Ability To Pay policy reached its logical conclusion.

...if only the issuers of all those toxic subprimes were CRA-regulated banks...

You don't get it.

Once lending standards were loosened for some, they were loosened for everyone. This is why we had a huge, speculative bubble as people were able to buy and flip properties with no money down. Which was great...until prices burst and they were left holding a bunch of underwater property.

But aren't Bankers our best friends? Don't they always smile, dress well and give away free stuff?

 

[Wry Catcher]

We can banter all day long on this....the only thing I can see that's changed in the last 3 months was that Congress was taken over by the republicans. Perception on the direction of the economy may have changed in the last election. Just sayin....

Cool. So it's all psychological and all that was necessary was for the Republican Party to take over the House of Representatives. I just knew someone would simplify the cause and effect. Thanks Meister. Oh, and thanks to Boedicca for her spin on cause and effect - making everything so simple is very appealing - just ask any tea bagger.

 

[Meister]

We can banter all day long on this....the only thing I can see that's changed in the last 3 months was that Congress was taken over by the republicans. Perception on the direction of the economy may have changed in the last election. Just sayin....

Cool. So it's all psychological and all that was necessary was for the Republican Party to take over the House of Representatives. I just knew someone would simplify the cause and effect. Thanks Meister. Oh, and thanks to Boedicca for her spin on cause and effect - making everything so simple is very appealing - just ask any tea bagger.

I know you won't ever be able to understand that having a majority in the House, Senate, and the Presidency does have a psychological effect on businesses. I find your answer actually laughable, wry....thanks, it's still early and you put a smile on my face.

 

[Wry Catcher]

We can banter all day long on this....the only thing I can see that's changed in the last 3 months was that Congress was taken over by the republicans. Perception on the direction of the economy may have changed in the last election. Just sayin....

Cool. So it's all psychological and all that was necessary was for the Republican Party to take over the House of Representatives. I just knew someone would simplify the cause and effect. Thanks Meister. Oh, and thanks to Boedicca for her spin on cause and effect - making everything so simple is very appealing - just ask any tea bagger.

I know you won't ever be able to understand that having a majority in the House, Senate, and the Presidentcy does have a psychological effect on businesses. I find your answer actually laughable, wry....thanks, it's still early and you put a smile on my face.

So business is ALL about emotion? One is mistaken in suggesting there are other variables - independent and dependent - causing business cycles? I'm surprised that made you smile; if I didn't know better I'd assume the bliss you feel is a product of ignorance.

 

[Meister]

Cool. So it's all psychological and all that was necessary was for the Republican Party to take over the House of Representatives. I just knew someone would simplify the cause and effect. Thanks Meister. Oh, and thanks to Boedicca for her spin on cause and effect - making everything so simple is very appealing - just ask any tea bagger.

I know you won't ever be able to understand that having a majority in the House, Senate, and the Presidentcy does have a psychological effect on businesses. I find your answer actually laughable, wry....thanks, it's still early and you put a smile on my face.

So business is ALL about emotion? One is mistaken in suggesting there are other variables - independent and dependent - causing business cycles? I'm surprised that made you smile; if I didn't know better I'd assume the bliss you feel is a product of ignorance.

No...it's your ignorance, wry, make no mistake about that. Like I said...you wouldn't be able to understand it.

 

[8537]

Great - you prove that Bush's policies helped the economy recover from the devastating double whammy of the DotCom crash and 9/11. Things got worse after the inevitable result of the 1997 CRA - Subjective Lending Standards - Everybody Deserves A House Regardless Of Their Ability To Pay policy reached its logical conclusion.

...if only the issuers of all those toxic subprimes were CRA-regulated banks...

You don't get it.

I get it just fine, thank you very much.

Once lending standards were loosened for some, they were loosened for everyone. This is why we had a huge, speculative bubble as people were able to buy and flip properties with no money down

Non-CRA institutions set their own lending standards. And those standards grossly undercut CRA-regulated institutions. Your claim is akin to saying "Depository institutions were forced by the government to make bad loans, so nondepository institutions decided to make even worse loans".

That makes no sense.

 

[8537]

We can banter all day long on this....the only thing I can see that's changed in the last 3 months was that Congress was taken over by the republicans. Perception on the direction of the economy may have changed in the last election. Just sayin....

Well the private sector has been creating jobs for over a year now.

Just sayin...

 

[Trajan]

When I remember the Democrats moaning about how miserable the Buuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuush economy was when we were suffering the intense pains of 4.5% unemployment, this seems disingenuous. However, the fact it is finally under 9% for the first time in two years is a Very Good Thing, and a definite silver lining to the hurricane we are suffering under.

Even so......
This counts as whistling through the graveyard.

hey, I am down, my article spoke to a 'recovering' economy, I don't know where the hate is coming from, I say;

take it away boyz!!

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gqsT4xnKZPg&feature=related]YouTube - "Happy Days are Here Again!" (Ben Selvin and the Crooners, 1930)[/ame]

 

[Sallow]

Good news for America is bad news for Republicans, as proven once again by this thread.

They simply don't want people employed. And if they are unemployed..they don't want them to get unemployment checks.

After you are born..and if you are not one of the Bushes, Koches, Thanes, or any number of billion dollar babies..they want you to die..and die quickly.

And miserable.

 

[Annie]

It would be good news if believable. Seems Gallup finds the same problem:

Gallup Daily: U.S. Employment

Gallup Daily: U.S. Employment
Each result is based on a 30-day rolling average; not seasonally adjusted

Gallup's U.S. employment measures report the percentage of U.S. adults in the workforce, ages 18 and older, who are underemployed and unemployed, without seasonal adjustment. "Underemployed" respondents are employed part time, but want to work full time, or they are unemployed. "Unemployed" respondents are those within the underemployed group who are not employed, even for one hour a week, but are available and looking for work. Results for each 30-day rolling average are based on telephone interviews with approximately 30,000 adults. Because results are not seasonally adjusted, they are not directly comparable to numbers reported by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, which are based on workers 16 and older. Margin of error is ± 0.7 percentage points.

 

[Trajan]

Good news for America is bad news for Republicans, as proven once again by this thread.

They simply don't want people employed. And if they are unemployed..they don't want them to get unemployment checks.

After you are born..and if you are not one of the Bushes, Koches, Thanes, or any number of billion dollar babies..they want you to die..and die quickly.

And miserable.

I thought I had seen a report that Rdean had died stuck to a chair.....that was a fast rebirth.

 

[Trajan]

It would be good news if believable. Seems Gallup finds the same problem:

Gallup Daily: U.S. Employment

Gallup Daily: U.S. Employment
Each result is based on a 30-day rolling average; not seasonally adjusted

Gallup's U.S. employment measures report the percentage of U.S. adults in the workforce, ages 18 and older, who are underemployed and unemployed, without seasonal adjustment. "Underemployed" respondents are employed part time, but want to work full time, or they are unemployed. "Unemployed" respondents are those within the underemployed group who are not employed, even for one hour a week, but are available and looking for work. Results for each 30-day rolling average are based on telephone interviews with approximately 30,000 adults. Because results are not seasonally adjusted, they are not directly comparable to numbers reported by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, which are based on workers 16 and older. Margin of error is ± 0.7 percentage points.

I'm sorry, they don't count. Their numbers are not convoluted and counter-intuitive enough to be taken seriously.

 

[pinqy]

It would be good news if believable. Seems Gallup finds the same problem:

Gallup Daily: U.S. Employment

Gallup Daily: U.S. Employment
Each result is based on a 30-day rolling average; not seasonally adjusted

Gallup's U.S. employment measures report the percentage of U.S. adults in the workforce, ages 18 and older, who are underemployed and unemployed, without seasonal adjustment. "Underemployed" respondents are employed part time, but want to work full time, or they are unemployed. "Unemployed" respondents are those within the underemployed group who are not employed, even for one hour a week, but are available and looking for work. Results for each 30-day rolling average are based on telephone interviews with approximately 30,000 adults. Because results are not seasonally adjusted, they are not directly comparable to numbers reported by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, which are based on workers 16 and older. Margin of error is ± 0.7 percentage points.

I'm sorry, they don't count. Their numbers are not convoluted and counter-intuitive enough to be taken seriously.

they use the same definition for unemployed as BLS, they just cannot seasonally adjust.

 

[Sallow]

Good news for America is bad news for Republicans, as proven once again by this thread.

They simply don't want people employed. And if they are unemployed..they don't want them to get unemployment checks.

After you are born..and if you are not one of the Bushes, Koches, Thanes, or any number of billion dollar babies..they want you to die..and die quickly.

And miserable.

I thought I had seen a report that Rdean had died stuck to a chair.....that was a fast rebirth.

Eh?

Three words.

Governor Jan Brewer. 2 notches on that belt and counting.

Nuff said.

 

[Annie]

It would be good news if believable. Seems Gallup finds the same problem:

Gallup Daily: U.S. Employment

I'm sorry, they don't count. Their numbers are not convoluted and counter-intuitive enough to be taken seriously.

they use the same definition for unemployed as BLS, they just cannot seasonally adjust.

Not quite. Hasn't changed much in a year. If no adjustments, there should be changes on those alone in the final percentage for the month.

 

[boedicca]

We can banter all day long on this....the only thing I can see that's changed in the last 3 months was that Congress was taken over by the republicans. Perception on the direction of the economy may have changed in the last election. Just sayin....

Well the private sector has been creating jobs for over a year now.

Just sayin...

And the civilian labor force has shrunk by 489K while the Civilian Population has increased by over 1.8M. A year ago, the labor force participation rate was 64.9%; now it is 64.2%.

If we had the same participation rate as a year ago, unemployment would be:

Civilian Population: 239.0M

Labor Force 155.1M @ 64.9% participation rate
Labor Force 153.4M @ actual participation rate
Net increase 1.7M
Official Unempl. 13.5M
Adj. Unempl. 15.2M

Adjusted U3 Unemployment rate = 9.8%

THE ONLY REASON WHY UNEMPLOYMENT HAS FALLEN IS BECAUSE PEOPLE ARE NO LONGER BEING COUNTED AS UNEMPLOYED BECAUSE THEY HAVE GIVEN UP LOOKING FOR WORK.

Employment Situation Summary Table A. Household data, seasonally adjusted

Total Employed 139.9M