Category Archives: Employment

NC unemployment claims increase second highest in nation, July 26, 2012, 11948 claims, Second only to CA, NC Labor force decreased and jobs lost

NC unemployment claims increase second highest in nation, July 26, 2012, 11948 claims, Second only to CA, NC Labor force decreased and jobs lost

“The United States economy has lost more jobs than it has added since the recovery began over a year ago.”…NY Times Sept. 20, 2010.

“Guilford (Large NC County) appears on it’s way to a third consecutive year with annual jobless rates in double digits. Economists say that likely hasn’t happened since the Great Depression.”…Greensboro News Record December 2, 2011

Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four. If that is granted, all else follows.”…George Orwell, “1984″

Remember this article from the Greensboro News record reported here on July 20, 2012?

From Doug Clark of the Greensboro News Record July 20, 2012.

“North Carolina loses or gains jobs in June, depending on which state numbers you believe, if any”

“North Carolina lost nearly 8,000 jobs in June from the previous month, the state’s Commerce Department reports this morning.”

“The unemployment rate held at 9.4 percent, but that was because the labor force decreased.”

“Note: There are two sets of numbers in the report. You will see some media reports stating the state gained 16,690 jobs in June.”

“Please weigh in on the credibility of these numbers.”

https://citizenwells.wordpress.com/2012/07/20/north-carolina-loses-or-gains-jobs-in-june-depending-on-which-state-numbers-you-believe-if-any-july-20-2012-greensboro-news-record-doug-clark/

From the US labor Dept July 26, 2012.

“The largest increases in initial claims for the week ending July 14 were in California (+26,244), North Carolina (+11,948), Georgia (+8,372), Alabama (+4,148), and Oregon (+3,019)”

http://www.dol.gov/opa/media/press/eta/ui/current.htm

The unemployment rates for June by NC county will be released tomorrow.

July 21, 2012 Obama economy and jobs bleak, 27 states recorded unemployment rate increases, Black unemployment up 1.4 percent in 2 months, NC rate suspect

July 21, 2012 Obama economy and jobs bleak, 27 states recorded unemployment rate increases, Black unemployment up 1.4 percent in 2 months, NC rate suspect

“The United States economy has lost more jobs than it has added since the recovery began over a year ago.”…NY Times Sept. 20, 2010.

“Guilford (Large NC County) appears on it’s way to a third consecutive year with annual jobless rates in double digits. Economists say that likely hasn’t happened since the Great Depression.”…Greensboro News Record December 2, 2011

Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four. If that is granted, all else follows.”…George Orwell, “1984″

The Obama camp is using every opportunity to divert attention away from the dismal economy and jobs situation. Even the mainstream media has made note of the lies Obama has told about Mitt Romney. The stated unemployment rate in NC is 9.4 percent and that looks suspect, even accounting for historic low labor participation rates.

Doug Clark of the Greensboro News Record of the Greensboro News Record stated yesterday:

“North Carolina loses or gains jobs in June, depending on which state numbers you believe, if any”

“North Carolina lost nearly 8,000 jobs in June from the previous month, the state’s Commerce Department reports this morning.”

“The unemployment rate held at 9.4 percent, but that was because the labor force decreased.”

“Here’s a BLS explanation (sort of) of smoothing. Obviously, this statistical maneuvering makes a significant difference. In the state’s numbers, we either have fewer people working but are gaining jobs, or have more people working but are losing jobs.

Please weigh in on the credibility of these numbers.”

https://citizenwells.wordpress.com/2012/07/20/north-carolina-loses-or-gains-jobs-in-june-depending-on-which-state-numbers-you-believe-if-any-july-20-2012-greensboro-news-record-doug-clark/

On Thursday, July 19, 2012, the US Labor Department reported initial claims were up 34,000 from the prior week to  386,000. 20 states had an increase of 1,000 or more. NC was one of those states.

http://www.dol.gov/opa/media/press/eta/ui/current.htm

On Friday, July 20, 2012, the US Labor Department Regional and State Employment and Unemployment Summary reported:

The national jobless rate, at 8.2 percent.

Twenty-seven states recorded unemployment rate increases.

“In June 2012, 11 states recorded statistically significant over-the-month changes in employment, 8 of which were increases and 3 of which were decreases. The largest statistically significant job gains occurred in California (+38,300), Ohio (+18,400), and North Carolina (+16,900).”

Note from the Greensboro News Record report:

“North Carolina lost nearly 8,000 jobs in June from the previous month, the state’s Commerce Department reports this morning.”

Citizen Wells: I smell a rat. A NC Democrat Convention rat.

Also significant from the report are the following unemployment increases from April to June 2012.

Blacks: From 13.0 to 14.4 percent.

Asians: From 5.2 to 6.3 percent.

Hispanics: From 10.3 to 11.0 percent.

North Carolina loses or gains jobs in June, depending on which state numbers you believe, if any, July 20, 2012, Greensboro News Record Doug Clark

North Carolina loses or gains jobs in June depending on which state numbers you believe if any, July 20, 2012, Greensboro News Record Doug Clark

“The United States economy has lost more jobs than it has added since the recovery began over a year ago.”…NY Times Sept. 20, 2010.

“Guilford (Large NC County) appears on it’s way to a third consecutive year with annual jobless rates in double digits. Economists say that likely hasn’t happened since the Great Depression.”…Greensboro News Record December 2, 2011

Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four. If that is granted, all else follows.”…George Orwell, “1984″

From Doug Clark of the Greensboro News Record July 20, 2012.

“North Carolina loses or gains jobs in June, depending on which state numbers you believe, if any”

“North Carolina lost nearly 8,000 jobs in June from the previous month, the state’s Commerce Department reports this morning.”

“The unemployment rate held at 9.4 percent, but that was because the labor force decreased.

These are “smoothed” seasonally adjusted numbers.

The picture is more positive year over year, according to the Commerce news release:

“Since June 2011, Total Nonfarm jobs gained 37,000 with the Service Providing sector increasing by 38,600 and the Goods Producing sector decreasing by 1,600. The largest over-the-year increase of major industries was in Government at 13,000, followed by Education & Health Services, 12,100 and Trade, Transportation and Utilities, 9,400.”

In case you missed it, the largest increase in employment was in government … Contrary to claims of public payroll slashing.

Unfortunately, a gain of 37,000 jobs in the past year is anemic. And now we’re slipping. Obviously, this is not an encouraging report for our state.

Note: There are two sets of numbers in the report. You will see some media reports stating the state gained 16,690 jobs in June.

The news release contains these statements:

“Seasonally adjusted Total Nonfarm industry employment, as gathered through the monthly establishment survey, increased by 16,900 to 3,963,100 in June.”

And:

“The number of people employed (smoothed seasonally adjusted) decreased by 7,909 to 4,216,644 over the month …”

Here’s a BLS explanation (sort of) of smoothing. Obviously, this statistical maneuvering makes a significant difference. In the state’s numbers, we either have fewer people working but are gaining jobs, or have more people working but are losing jobs.

Please weigh in on the credibility of these numbers.

Addendum: Please see economist Dave Ribar’s helpful explanation in the comments below.”

http://www.news-record.com/blog/54431/entry/148571

Thank you Doug Clark for this factual, reality based reporting.

July 17, 2012, Rush Limbaugh on trickle down economics, Business owners paid last, IRS governments paid first, Consumers make first payment

July 17, 2012, Rush Limbaugh on trickle down economics, Business owners paid last, IRS governments paid first, Consumers make first payment

Trickle-Down Economics “Doesn’t Work. It’s Never Worked.”…Obama December 6, 2011
“John F. Kennedy introduced the idea of a tax cut in the 1963 State of the Union address. The Johnson administration, working with congress crafted The Revenue Act of 1964. The goal was to raise personal income, increase consumption, and increase capital investments. Unemployment fell from 5.2% in 1964 to 3.8% in 1966. Tax revenues were predicted to fall but instead increased.”…Citizen Wells research

“The government’s view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it.”…Ronald Reagan

I caught part of the Rush Limbaugh show a few minutes ago. He was explaining trickle down economics, a topic often distorted, and certainly not understood by the left. Rush responded to the sometimes used reply of the left that business owners get their money first. Rush explained the things that had to get paid before the owners get their money. I would like explain this a bit further.

Rush Limbaugh has done a really good job over the years of explaining that companies do not pay taxes, consumers do. That is a fact. Therefore, let us begin with the income stream and it’s trickle.

When a consumer pays for a product or a service they are immediately paying the federal, state and other taxes. It is built into the cost of the product or service. When taxes go up, as they have during Obama’s tenure, it immediately affects the consumer and job market.

From the receipt of income, the following are paid in priority sequence. This is a general representation.

1. IRS takes priority over all. Remember, the employer part of social security & FICA as well.

2. Depending on the location, some combination of state, local, property taxes and fees.

3. Lease, loan on business location(s).

4. Utilities.

5. Equipment purchase and/or lease.

6. Travel & distribution costs

7. Research & development expenses.

8. Employee salaries.

9. Employee benefits

10. Misc supplies, etc.

11. Out of the remainder, if any, the owner can receive a salary, bonus or money to reinvest.

With the bad economy and high cost of gasoline, many small business owners have been struggling. I recently heard of a small business owner whose personal income had been greatly diminished. He was trying to keep the business alive for his sons.

The business owners are the risk takers and job providers. Hard work and risk that provides jobs should be rewarded.

UNCG more college graduates will boost economy, UNCG UNC schools increased tuition and health care, Other people’s money mentality, College graduates cannot find jobs

UNCG more college graduates will boost economy, UNCG UNC schools increased tuition and health care, Other people’s money mentality, College graduates cannot find jobs

“Guilford (Large NC County) appears on it’s way to a third consecutive year with annual jobless rates in double digits. Economists say that likely hasn’t happened since the Great Depression.”…Greensboro News Record December 2, 2011

“…and Socialist governments traditionally do make a financial mess. They [socialists] always run out of other people’s money. It’s quite a characteristic of them.”…Margaret Thatcher

“The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command. His heart sank as he thought of the enormous power arrayed against him, the ease with which any Party intellectual would overthrow him in debate, the subtle arguments which he would not be able to understand, much less answer. And yet he was in the right! They were wrong and he was right. The obvious, the silly, and the true had got to be defended. Truisms are true, hold on to that! The solid world exists, its laws do not change. Stones are hard, water is wet, objects unsupported fall towards the earth’s centre. With the feeling that he was speaking to O’Brien, and also that he was setting forth an important axiom, he wrote:

Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four. If that is granted, all else follows.”…George Orwell, “1984”

More PP, pedagogy platitudes from the Obama crowd, the folks who thrive on spending other people’s money.

From the Greensboro News Record July 8, 2012.

“Success comes down to a matter of degrees”

“UNCG officials say helping more people finish college will boost area’s economic vitality”

“Guilford County needs more people like Greta Germino . Lots of them.

Next spring, Germino — a 33-year-old single mom who dropped out of college at 19 — will finally graduate.

Getting a nutrition degree should help Germino financially.

“I decided to go back because I value education and I know you need a degree in this economy,” she said. “I could always make more money. Who couldn’t?”

Germino’s return to college also will help the local economy, provided that thousands of other Guilford residents join her in completing degrees they started but never finished.

Increasingly, economists, educators and business leaders have focused on the link between a community’s economic vitality and its college attainment rate.

Research shows that for every 1 percent a region improves its attainment rate, its per capita income jumps $763.

“It’s all about skills — who has them and who doesn’t,” said Dewayne Matthews , a vice president at the Lumina Foundation for Education in Indianapolis. “A lot of people knew that skills mattered, but it was not something that people focused on.”

Since the onset of the recession, that has changed.

And now that focus has come to Guilford County.

A group of UNCG officials want to significantly boost the county’s college attainment level in the coming years, a move they believe will significantly help the area’s struggling economy.

On Sept. 11 , they will call together 40 to 50 government, education and foundation leaders to look for ways to encourage people like Germino to go back to school and get their degrees.

“This is an economic thrust to help this community thrive,” said Steve Roberson , UNCG’s dean of undergraduate studies , who pushed the idea of the gathering. “We have to become known as a destination city for economic development. I don’t know any better way to do it.””

“Winners include such places as the Raleigh metro area, where 41 percent of residents have a college degree. The Charlotte region has a rate of 32.2 percent , which is about the national average for all metros.

But the Greensboro-High Point metro area, a three-county area that includes Guilford, Rockingham and Randolph counties, comes in at just 25.6 percent , well behind the rate for the nation and its two largest neighbors.”

“Initially, UNCG officials want local leaders to focus their efforts on Guilford County, which has a college attainment rate of nearly 42 percent , slightly above the national average.

Guilford’s rate far outpaces those of its metro partners, Randolph (22.3 percent) and Rockingham (21.8 percent).”

“Currently, Guilford has more than 67,000  people who started degrees but never finished college. That’s about 21 percent  of the work force.”

http://www.news-record.com/content/2012/07/07/article/success_comes_down_to_a_matter_of_degrees

More college graduates will boost the economy of UNCG & other colleges. I am in favor of reality based education with real world based goals. However we are fundamentally funding college degree, ideological indoctrination mills.

What we need is less government and more entrepreneurs to create jobs.

The argument put forward in this article is flawed on several levels. First, and most hypocritical is their concern for people getting an education while they have spent like drunken sailors in recent years and raised both tuition and healthcare costs. I spoke to a UNCG student this morning who was just hit with the large healthcare cost increase on top of the tuition increase. He works and uses student loans to support his family. This is creating a hardship.

From Citizen Wells February 12, 2012.

“Amid chants of protest from about 100 students, the UNC Board of Governors this morning approved President Tom Ross’ proposal for tuition and
fee hikes over the next two years.

Ross’ plan would raise tuition by an average of 8.8 percent across the system and keeps increases below 10 percent on every campus.

UNCG’s in-state undergraduates would see a $423, or 7.5 percent, increase in tuition and fees under Ross’ plan. Trustees had sought an increase of 7.8
percent.”

“The state mandates that at least 25 percent of the money from the tuition dollars go toward financial aid for needy students. Some board members recently have spoken out about that requirement, saying it essentially calls for students, who themselves may be struggling, to subsidize the education of other students.”

“Welcome to the world of socialism, redistribution of wealth. In a way I am glad this is happening. A real world example of taking from the “rich” and giving to the “poor.””

https://citizenwells.wordpress.com/2012/02/12/unc-tuition-hikes-university-of-nc-system-raises-tuition-costs-in-dismal-economy-working-students-and-families-pay-others-tuition-income-redistribution-unc-tuition-hikes-university-of-nc-system/

From Citizen Wells May 2, 2012.

“Obama spoke recently at UNC, The University of NC, and presented more of his Orwellian lies about education costs and helping students.

Obama and the Democrats have a problem in NC.

UNC system schools recently announced tuition increases.

The unemployment rate in NC is among the highest in the nation. Those about to  graduate face bleak prospects.

And despite Obama’s lies about Obama Care reducing the cost of health care, UNC students just found out that their health care insurance is increasing significantly.”

“On top of rising tuition and fees, those UNC system students who buy the university-sponsored health insurance plan will face steep premium increases in the next academic year.

The cost of health insurance will climb from a range of $61 to $77 monthly to a range of $118 to $133 monthly, according to a memo sent from UNC President Tom Ross to the UNC Board of Governors. On an annual basis, most students will pay about $500 to $700 more in 2012-13, depending on the campus.”

https://citizenwells.wordpress.com/2012/05/02/obama-lies-work-on-unc-students-unc-student-health-care-increase-tuition-increase-high-unemployment-obama-uses-orwellian-language-to-sway-students-occupy-white-house/

UNCG officials are urging people to graduate from college to boost the local economy. How does that square with the following.

From the Greensboro News Record June 18, 2012.

“It’s not often that our part of the world comes in first in anything . But economist Don Jud has found an example. And it’s a biggie.

In recent months, Jud says, the Greensboro-High Point metro area has far outpaced state and national averages for employment growth in goods production.

That means companies in Guilford, Rockingham and Randolph counties, which make up the local metro area, are hiring people to make stuff.

“That’s the best news I know,” Jud said.

But there’s just one problem: Jud and others can’t say with any certainty why we’re doing so much better than everyone else.

“I think I have spotted a trend,” said Jud, who defined goods-producing jobs as those in construction and manufacturing. “Why it is ongoing and how likely it is to continue, I really don’t know.”

Jud said that from April 2011 to April 2012, goods-producing employment in the area increased 6 percent. That compares to a 1.8 percent growth rate nationally and just 0.2 percent for North Carolina.

During those 12 months, Jud said, employment in the local metro has grown by 5,200 jobs, with more than 75 percent of that coming from the goods-producing sector.

Area people involved in economic development welcomed the surge.”

http://www.news-record.com/content/2012/06/18/article/manufacturing_jobs_up_in_triad

I began as a math major at UNCG and lucked into computer software elsewhere. Has math and logic changed there?

June unemployment rate 8.2 percent, Labor force participation rate 63.8 percent, Manufacturing and Wages Drop, Waxman Declares a Depression

June unemployment rate 8.2 percent, Labor force participation rate 63.8 percent, Manufacturing and Wages Drop, Waxman Declares a Depression

“The United States economy has lost more jobs than it has added since the recovery began over a year ago.”…NY Times Sept. 20, 2010.

“Guilford (Large NC County) appears on it’s way to a third consecutive year with annual jobless rates in double digits. Economists say that likely hasn’t happened since the Great Depression.”…Greensboro News Record December 2, 2011

“the Times of the nineteenth of December had published the official forecasts of the output of various classes of consumption goods in the fourth quarter of 1983, which was also the sixth quarter of the Ninth Three-Year Plan. Today’s issue contained a statement of the actual output, from which it appeared that the forecasts were in every instance grossly wrong. Winston’s job was to rectify the original figures by making them agree with the later ones.”…George Orwell, “1984″

From Philly.com July 7, 2012.

“U.S. unemployment rate stays at 8.2 percent”

“Three years after the official end of the recession, the nation’s payrolls added 80,000 jobs in June, well short of the 100,000 to 150,000 jobs that economists say are necessary each month to keep up with population growth.

The unemployment rate remained unchanged at 8.2 percent, the U.S. Labor Department reported Friday.

The recession, which rocked the nation’s economy and is still influencing business and consumer spending, began in December 2007 and ended, officially, in June 2009.

“We’re three years past the end of the recession, and for many Americans, the recovery has never shown up,” said Mark Vitner, senior economist at Wells Fargo Securities in Charlotte.

“We’ve been consistently adding jobs,” said Heidi Shierholz, a labor market economist at the Economic Policy Institute in Washington. “But we’ve been adding what we need to roughly tread water. It’s not what we need to dig out. It’s just what we need to hang on.”

Stock markets fell in response to the news. The Dow Jones industrial average closed down 124.20 points at 12,772.47.”

“Retailing declined, with the biggest drops in department and general merchandise stores, reflecting a general cutback in consumer spending.

To Kurt Rankin, an economist at the PNC Financial Services Group, the drop in retail spending is emblematic of what has been happening since the recession ended.

“Consumer psychology was impacted dramatically and is still suffering from the lingering aftereffects,” he said. Scared by what they saw, Americans are putting their money into reducing their personal debt, rebuilding retirement nest eggs, and increasing their savings, he said.

“We’re stuck with a slow-stall speed recovery,” Rankin said, “and that’s kept hiring and consumer spending from breaking free.”

Friday’s results were particularly disappointing after Thursday’s optimistic trio of portents:

There was the survey from the ADP payroll company showing the addition of 176,000 jobs in June, outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas’ news that June’s announced job cuts were the lowest in a year, and the report that first-time claims for unemployment had dropped for the week ending June 23.

The bad news in June’s Labor Department report included an increase in the “U-6” statistic – the measurement of the miserable – to 14.9 percent. That’s all the unemployed, plus discouraged workers, plus part-time workers who would like full-time work, and others marginally associated with the labor force.

The “U-6” rate is down from 16.2 percent a year ago, but up from 14.8 percent in May.

“We may be suffering through a major heat wave, but the economy is cooling off,” said Bucks County economist Joel Naroff of Naroff Economic Advisers. “With so much uncertainty about the world economy and politics, businesses have decided the best course is to do very little.”

The average length of unemployment grew to 39.9 weeks, up from 39.7 in May and virtually unchanged since 39.8 weeks in June 2011, a testimony to the unrelenting difficulty that the long-term unemployed have in finding jobs.

The median length of unemployment, which is the amount of time it takes most people to find work, has fallen a little more than two weeks in a year, from 22.1 weeks to 19.8 weeks.

Of the 12.7 million unemployed, up 29,000 from May, 41.9 percent have been out of work for more than 27 weeks. Federal emergency unemployment benefits are due to expire at the end of the year, meaning that those who now become unemployed can expect to receive only 26 weeks of benefits, assuming that they qualify.”

http://www.philly.com/philly/business/20120707_U_S__unemployment_rate_stays_at_8_2_percent.html?cmpid=138890509

The Labor Force Participation rate remains at historic lows. It was 63.8 for June.

From the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

 
Download:
Year Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Annual
2009 65.7 65.8 65.6 65.6 65.7 65.7 65.5 65.4 65.1 65.0 65.0 64.6  
2010 64.8 64.9 64.9 65.1 64.9 64.6 64.6 64.7 64.6 64.4 64.5 64.3  
2011 64.2 64.2 64.2 64.2 64.2 64.1 64.0 64.1 64.1 64.1 64.0 64.0  
2012 63.7 63.9 63.8 63.6 63.8 63.8              

http://data.bls.gov/pdq/SurveyOutputServlet

From Rush Limbaugh July 03, 2012.

“Manufacturing, Wages Drop. “Nostrilitis” Waxman Declares a Depression. Who’s to Blame? Democrats Say…Walmart!”

“BEGIN TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: Well, folks, I hate to be the bearer of this kind of news, but the news is what it is. And this news is from the Washington Examiner: “Wages Drop, Only 5th Time in 33 Years … Average weekly wages fell in 2011, one of only five declines since the category was created in 1978 by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In a just-released review of employment in the nation’s largest 322 counties, BLS found that weekly wages dropped over the year by 1.7 percent to $955 in the fourth quarter of 2011 from a high of $971 in the fourth quarter of 2010. … The wage drop comes as employment has increased in a majority of the counties in the last quarter of 2011.” Employment has increased? “That irony makes it the only quarter in history where wages shrunk while employment grew.”

I’m telling you, if the election were today, it would be a landslide defeat for Obama. I don’t care who Romney picks as his veep, it isn’t gonna matter, if the election were held today.

In manufacturing news. “US manufacturing shrank in June for the first time in nearly three years, adding to signs that economic growth is weakening.” That’s how the AP chose to characterize it. Production declined. The number of new orders plunged. Good Lord, folks. After three-and-a-half years of being told by this administration that they have the answers for this, that they have the answers and we’re on the rebound, we’ve turned the corner, we’re coming back from the brink. Every policy that this administration has instituted has done great damage. They talked about the manufacturing. We have a little montage of media Drive-Bys talking about it.
SANTELLI: Holy smokes. We haven’t been under 50 since July of ’09.

LIESMAN: The softness in the economy is evident in the ISM’s.

VARNEY: The ISM report for the month of June came in weak. That’s taken the market down.

SCHATZKER: A dismal picture this morning.

PAYNE: Below 50 means contraction, not expansion. Manufacturing is the thing that’s supposed to be the game-changer for our economy.
RUSH: That was Charles Payne, Fox Business Channel there, the last comment you heard, and he’s exactly right. Henry “Nostrilitis” Waxman was on C-SPAN Newsmakers on Sunday morning. They’re talking about the economy. One of the panelists was a woman named Kate Hunter from Bloomberg, and she said to “Nostrilitis” Waxman, “Most people seem to think that, you know, passage of the health care law in 2010 contributed to Democrats losing control of the House that year in midterm elections. I’m wondering, do you think that tradeoff was worth it, getting the health care law passed and losing the House?”

WAXMAN: If that were the tradeoff. But, look, the president inherited a terrible economy. We were hemorrhaging jobs in 2008 when he got elected, so by the time he took office in 2009, we had over 10% unemployment. We had the banks frozen. They couldn’t deal with their assets. The economy has not recovered. Some people call it a recession. I think it’s a depression.

RUSH: It’s a depression. The Democrats are tweeting about manufacturing, I kid you not: “Ten Reasons Walmart is responsible for the decline of American manufacturing.” That’s what the Democrats are tweeting. Walmart’s responsible for it. How can that be? Walmart depends on people manufacturing stuff so they can stock it. But I thought the private sector was doing fine. That’s what Obama said. Private sector’s doing fine. Now it’s Walmart’s fault.

BREAK TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: Here’s Henry Waxman, “Well, you know, he inherited a horrible economy, hemorrhaging jobs in 2008.” They started hemorrhaging jobs in this economy after Obama was elected in 2008. Go back and look at the monthly unemployment numbers and then take a look at November and December and then January. The bottom fell out, the Wall Street bottom fell out. And it hasn’t recovered. But these people had all the answers. Hope and change. Everything was gonna be better now. They had miracles waiting to enact. Everything they have done has brought great damage to this economy under the guise of fixing it.

END TRANSCRIPT”

http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/daily/2012/07/03/manufacturing_wages_drop_nostrilitis_waxman_declares_a_depression_who_s_to_blame_democrats_say_walmart

 

Obama Obamacare taxes facts, Negative impact on jobs economy, Huge Obama lie about not taxing lower incomes, Unemployment labor force participation affected

Obama Obamacare taxes facts, Negative impact on jobs economy, Huge Obama lie about not taxing lower incomes, Unemployment labor force participation affected

“Nobody who makes under $200,000 a year will see their taxes go up as long as I’m president.”…Barack Obama

“I absolutely reject that notion [mandate is a tax].”…Barack Obama

“The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command. His heart sank as he thought of the enormous power arrayed against him, the ease with which any Party intellectual would overthrow him in debate, the subtle arguments which he would not be able to understand, much less answer. And yet he was in the right! They were wrong and he was right. The obvious, the silly, and the true had got to be defended. Truisms are true, hold on to that! The solid world exists, its laws do not change. Stones are hard, water is wet, objects unsupported fall towards the earth’s centre. With the feeling that he was speaking to O’Brien, and also that he was setting forth an important axiom, he wrote:

Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four. If that is granted, all else follows.”…George Orwell, “1984”

Much has been said about the recent Supreme Court ruling which stated that Obamacare is a tax, a very big tax. However, most commentary has focused on the individual mandate as being the primary taxation, much too simplistically.

Yesterday the Citizen Wells article indicated that future taxes to pay for Obamacare and out of control Obama deficit spending will be the spectre dreaded most. This will be explained below. Perhaps the biggest impact of Obamacare so far has been the influence on business decisions in regard to hiring and expansion. This is the hidden story, not being reported in the monthly unemployment and labor force participation numbers. Businesses have delayed making decisions and will continue to do so for some time. Even with the recent Supreme Court ruling it is anticipated that most or all of Obamacare will be repealed.

From Townhall June 29, 2012.

“The Coming ObamaTax Bomb”

“By now you know what the Supreme Court verdict is: ObamaCare is a tax. So what does that mean in terms of actual dollar amounts for Americans and businesses who will pay this new tax? The Heritage Foundation and Americans for Tax Reform have released a series of summaries, tables and charts to help families understand what this means for their wallet.

Heritage:

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA)[1] imposes numerous tax hikes that transfer more than $500 billion over 10 years—and more in the future—from hardworking American families and businesses to Congress for spending on new entitlements and subsidies. In addition, higher tax rates on working and investing will discourage economic growth both now and in the future, further lowering the standard of living.”

1. Excise Tax on Charitable Hospitals (Min$/immediate): $50,000 per hospital if they fail to meet new “community health assessment needs,” “financial assistance,” and “billing and collection” rules set by HHS. Bill: PPACA; Page: 1,961-1,971

2. Codification of the “economic substance doctrine” (Tax hike of $4.5 billion).  This provision allows the IRS to disallow completely-legal tax deductions and other legal tax-minimizing plans just because the IRS deems that the action lacks “substance” and is merely intended to reduce taxes owed. Bill: Reconciliation Act; Page: 108-113

3. “Black liquor” tax hike (Tax hike of $23.6 billion).  This is a tax increase on a type of bio-fuel. Bill: Reconciliation Act; Page: 105

4. Tax on Innovator Drug Companies ($22.2 bil/Jan 2010): $2.3 billion annual tax on the industry imposed relative to share of sales made that year. Bill: PPACA; Page: 1,971-1,980

5. Blue Cross/Blue Shield Tax Hike ($0.4 bil/Jan 2010): The special tax deduction in current law for Blue Cross/Blue Shield companies would only be allowed if 85 percent or more of premium revenues are spent on clinical services. Bill: PPACA; Page: 2,004

6. Tax on Indoor Tanning Services ($2.7 billion/July 1, 2010): New 10 percent excise tax on Americans using indoor tanning salons. Bill: PPACA; Page: 2,397-2,399

Taxes that took effect in 2011

7. Medicine Cabinet Tax ($5 bil/Jan 2011): Americans no longer able to use health savings account (HSA), flexible spending account (FSA), or health reimbursement (HRA) pre-tax dollars to purchase non-prescription, over-the-counter medicines (except insulin). Bill: PPACA; Page: 1,957-1,959

8. HSA Withdrawal Tax Hike ($1.4 bil/Jan 2011): Increases additional tax on non-medical early withdrawals from an HSA from 10 to 20 percent, disadvantaging them relative to IRAs and other tax-advantaged accounts, which remain at 10 percent. Bill: PPACA; Page: 1,959

Tax that took effect in 2012

9. Employer Reporting of Insurance on W-2 (Min$/Jan 2012): Preamble to taxing health benefits on individual tax returns. Bill: PPACA; Page: 1,957

Taxes that take effect in 2013

10. Surtax on Investment Income ($123 billion/Jan. 2013):  Creation of a new, 3.8 percent surtax on investment income earned in households making at least $250,000 ($200,000 single).  This would result in the following top tax rates on investment income: Bill: Reconciliation Act; Page: 87-93
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*Other unearned income includes (for surtax purposes) gross income from interest, annuities, royalties, net rents, and passive income in partnerships and Subchapter-S corporations.  It does not include municipal bond interest or life insurance proceeds, since those do not add to gross income.  It does not include active trade or business income, fair market value sales of ownership in pass-through entities, or distributions from retirement plans.  The 3.8% surtax does not apply to non-resident aliens.
11. Hike in Medicare Payroll Tax ($86.8 bil/Jan 2013): Current law and changes:
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12. Tax on Medical Device Manufacturers ($20 bil/Jan 2013): Medical device manufacturers employ 360,000 people in 6000 plants across the country. This law imposes a new 2.3% excise tax.  Exempts items retailing for <$100. Bill: PPACA; Page: 1,980-1,986

13. Raise “Haircut” for Medical Itemized Deduction from 7.5% to 10% of AGI ($15.2 bil/Jan 2013): Currently, those facing high medical expenses are allowed a deduction for medical expenses to the extent that those expenses exceed 7.5 percent of adjusted gross income (AGI).  The new provision imposes a threshold of 10 percent of AGI. Waived for 65+ taxpayers in 2013-2016 only. Bill: PPACA; Page: 1,994-1,995

14. Flexible Spending Account Cap – aka “Special Needs Kids Tax” ($13 bil/Jan 2013): Imposes cap on FSAs of $2500 (now unlimited).  Indexed to inflation after 2013. There is one group of FSA owners for whom this new cap will be particularly cruel and onerous: parents of special needs children.  There are thousands of families with special needs children in the United States, and many of them use FSAs to pay for special needs education.  Tuition rates at one leading school that teaches special needs children in Washington, D.C. (National Child Research Center) can easily exceed $14,000 per year. Under tax rules, FSA dollars can be used to pay for this type of special needs education. Bill: PPACA; Page: 2,388-2,389

15. Elimination of tax deduction for employer-provided retirement Rx drug coverage in coordination with Medicare Part D ($4.5 bil/Jan 2013) Bill: PPACA; Page: 1,994

16. $500,000 Annual Executive Compensation Limit for Health Insurance Executives($0.6 bil/Jan 2013). Bill: PPACA; Page: 1,995-2,000

Taxes that take effect in 2014

17. Individual Mandate Excise Tax (Jan 2014): Starting in 2014, anyone not buying “qualifying” health insurance must pay an income surtax according to the higher of the following

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Exemptions for religious objectors, undocumented immigrants, prisoners, those earning less than the poverty line, members of Indian tribes, and hardship cases (determined by HHS). Bill: PPACA; Page: 317-337

18. Employer Mandate Tax (Jan 2014):  If an employer does not offer health coverage, and at least one employee qualifies for a health tax credit, the employer must pay an additional non-deductible tax of $2000 for all full-time employees.  Applies to all employers with 50 or more employees. If any employee actually receives coverage through the exchange, the penalty on the employer for that employee rises to $3000. If the employer requires a waiting period to enroll in coverage of 30-60 days, there is a $400 tax per employee ($600 if the period is 60 days or longer). Bill: PPACA; Page: 345-346

Combined score of individual and employer mandate tax penalty: $65 billion/10 years

19. Tax on Health Insurers ($60.1 bil/Jan 2014): Annual tax on the industry imposed relative to health insurance premiums collected that year.  Phases in gradually until 2018.  Fully-imposed on firms with $50 million in profits. Bill: PPACA; Page: 1,986-1,993

Taxes that take effect in 2018

20. Excise Tax on Comprehensive Health Insurance Plans ($32 bil/Jan 2018): Starting in 2018, new 40 percent excise tax on “Cadillac” health insurance plans ($10,200 single/$27,500 family).  Higher threshold ($11,500 single/$29,450 family) for early retirees and high-risk professions.  CPI +1 percentage point indexed. Bill: PPACA; Page: 1,941-1,956

Also, ATR is warning Americans of Taxmageddon, which will happen on January 1, 2013. This will be the largest tax hike in American history and will come in three waves.

First Wave: Expiration of 2001 and 2003 Tax Relief

In 2001 and 2003, the GOP Congress enacted several tax cuts for small business owners, families, and investors (later re-upped by President Obama and Democrat Congress in 2010).  The following tax hikes will occur on January 1, 2013:

Personal income tax rates will rise on January 1, 2013.  The top income tax rate will rise from 35 to 39.6 percent (this is also the rate at which the majority of small business profits are taxed).  The lowest rate will rise from 10 to 15 percent.  All the rates in between will also rise.  Itemized deductions and personal exemptions will again phase out, which has the same mathematical effect as higher marginal tax rates.  The full list of marginal rate hikes is below:

– The 10% bracket rises to a new and expanded 15%

– The 25% bracket rises to 28%

– The 28% bracket rises to 31%

– The 33% bracket rises to 36%

– The 35% bracket rises to 39.6%

Higher taxes on marriage and family coming on January 1, 2013.  The “marriage penalty” (narrower tax brackets for married couples) will return from the first dollar of taxable income.  The child tax credit will be cut in half from $1000 to $500 per child.  The standard deduction will no longer be doubled for married couples relative to the single level.

Middle Class Death Tax returns on January 1, 2013.  The death tax is currently 35% with an exemption of $5 million ($10 million for married couples).  For those dying on or after January 1 2013, there is a 55 percent top death tax rate on estates over $1 million.  A person leaving behind two homes and a retirement account could easily pass along a death tax bill to their loved ones.

Higher tax rates on savers and investors on January 1, 2013.  The capital gains tax will rise from 15 percent this year to 23.8 percent in 2013.  The top dividends tax will rise from 15 percent this year to 43.4 percent in 2013.  This is because of scheduled rate hikes plus Obamacare’s investment surtax.

Second Wave: Obamacare Tax Hikes

There are twenty new or higher taxes in Obamacare.  Some have already gone into effect (the tanning tax, the medicine cabinet tax, the HSA withdrawal tax, W-2 health insurance reporting, and the “economic substance doctrine”).  Several more will go into effect on January 1, 2013.  They include:

Medicare Payroll Tax Hike takes effect on January 1, 2013.  The Medicare payroll tax is currently 2.9 percent on all wages and self-employment profits.  Starting in 2013, wages and profits exceeding $200,000 ($250,000 in the case of married couples) will face a 3.8 percent rate.

“Special Needs Kids Tax” comes online on January 1, 2013  Imposes a cap on FSAs of $2500 (now unlimited).  Indexed to inflation after 2013. There is one group of FSA owners for whom this new cap will be particularly cruel and onerous: parents of special needs children.  There are thousands of families with special needs children in the United States, and many of them use FSAs to pay for special needs education.  Tuition rates at one leading school that teaches special needs children in Washington, D.C. (National Child Research Center) can easily exceed $14,000 per year. Under tax rules, FSA dollars can be used to pay for this type of special needs education.  This Obamacare cap harms these families.

Medical Device Tax begins to be assessed on January 1, 2013.  Medical device manufacturers employ 360,000 people in 6000 plants across the country. This law imposes a new 2.3% excise tax.  Exempts items retailing for <$100.

“Haircut” for Medical Itemized Deductions goes into force on January 1, 2013.  Currently, those facing high medical expenses are allowed a deduction for medical expenses to the extent that those expenses exceed 7.5 percent of adjusted gross income (AGI).  The new provision imposes a threshold of 10 percent of AGI. Waived for 65+ taxpayers in 2013-2016 only.

Third Wave: The Alternative Minimum Tax and Employer Tax Hikes

When Americans prepare to file their tax returns in January of 2013, they’ll be in for a nasty surprise—the AMT won’t be held harmless, and many tax relief provisions will have expired.  These tax increases will be in force for BOTH 2012 and 2013.  The major items include:

The AMT will ensnare over 31 million families, up from 4 million last year.  According to the left-leaning Tax Policy Center, Congress’ failure to index the AMT will lead to an explosion of AMT taxpaying families—rising from 4 million last year to 31 million.  These families will have to calculate their tax burdens twice, and pay taxes at the higher level.  The AMT was created in 1969 to ensnare a handful of taxpayers.

Full business expensing will disappear.  In 2011, businesses can expense half of their purchases of equipment.  Starting on 2013 tax returns, all of it will have to be “depreciated” (slowly deducted over many years).

Taxes will be raised on all types of businesses.  There are literally scores of tax hikes on business that will take place.  The biggest is the loss of the “research and experimentation tax credit,” but there are many, many others.  Combining high marginal tax rates with the loss of this tax relief will cost jobs.

Tax Benefits for Education and Teaching Reduced.  The deduction for tuition and fees will not be available.  Tax credits for education will be limited.  Teachers will no longer be able to deduct classroom expenses.  Coverdell Education Savings Accounts will be cut.  Employer-provided educational assistance is curtailed.  The student loan interest deduction will be disallowed for hundreds of thousands of families.

Charitable Contributions from IRAs no longer allowed.  Under current law, a retired person with an IRA can contribute up to $100,000 per year directly to a charity from their IRA.  This contribution also counts toward an annual “required minimum distribution.”  This ability will no longer be there.

Read more:
http://townhall.com/tipsheet/katiepavlich/2012/06/29/the_coming_obamatax_bomb

Remember, and this is important:

Businesses do not pay taxes.

Consumers do!

Make certain that those in your sphere of influence understand this. That includes your congressmen.

Obama lies, Glenn Beck reviews three plus years of Obama lies, Obamacare biggest lie? and tax, Taxes of Christmas future most frightening

Obama lies, Glenn Beck reviews three plus years of Obama lies, Obamacare biggest lie? and tax, Taxes of Christmas future most frightening

“Nobody who makes under $200,000 a year will see their taxes go up as long as I’m president.”…Barack Obama

“I absolutely reject that notion [mandate is a tax].”…Barack Obama

“But, the Supreme Court never ventured into the issues of redistribution of wealth, and of more basic issues such as political and economic justice in society. To that extent, as radical as I think people try to characterize the Warren Court, it wasn’t that radical. It didn’t break free from the essential constraints that were placed by the Founding Fathers in the Constitution, at least as it’s been interpreted, and the Warren Court interpreted in the same way, that generally the Constitution is a charter of negative liberties. Says what the states can’t do to you. Says what the federal government can’t do to you, but doesn’t say what the federal government or state government must do on your behalf.”…2001 Obama interview on Chicago public radio .

From The Blaze June 29, 2012.

“BECK REVIEWS OBAMA’S THREE-PLUS ‘YEARS OF LIES’”

“On his Friday morning radio broadcast, troubled by the recent Supreme Court ruling to uphold Obamacare, Glenn Beck reviewed the president’s three-and-half “years of lies,” beginning with his failed vow to close Guantanamo Bay detention center.

Obama promised the American people he would rid the halls of Washington of lobbyists, yet appointed several to high-ranking positions within his own administration, he also promised to half the deficit in his first term — another declaration that went unfulfilled.

“This is not about bashing Obama, but about presenting facts to the American people,” Beck stated plainly.

Of course the most egregious instance of a broken promise came when Obama promised he would not raise taxes on the middle class, yet his Obamacare “mandate,“ now ruled a ”tax” by the highest court in the land, results in the the most “massive tax increase in U.S. history” and directly affects the middle class.

“The IRS is now the most powerful arm of the federal government,” Beck said.”

Watch Glenn Beck here:

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/beck-reviews-obamas-three-plus-years-of-lies/

Glenn Beck has presented the frightening spectre of Christmas past created by Obama. But as in Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol”  it is the Ghost of Christmas Future that frightens me. The impact of Obamacare on our health care system and the combined impact of Obamacare and record deficit spending on our economy. The taxes of Christmas future to pay for Obama’s actions.

However, the weakening of the US Constitution by Obama, et al may be what frightens me most.

US Supreme Court declares Obama a liar, Obamacare is a tax, Obama lied about tax increases, Obama fraud and taxes have devastated economy and job market

US Supreme Court declares Obama a liar, Obamacare is a tax, Obama lied about tax increases, Obama fraud and taxes have devastated economy and job market

“But, the Supreme Court never ventured into the issues of redistribution of wealth, and of more basic issues such as political and economic justice in society. To that extent, as radical as I think people try to characterize the Warren Court, it wasn’t that radical. It didn’t break free from the essential constraints that were placed by the Founding Fathers in the Constitution, at least as it’s been interpreted, and the Warren Court interpreted in the same way, that generally the Constitution is a charter of negative liberties. Says what the states can’t do to you. Says what the federal government can’t do to you, but doesn’t say what the federal government or state government must do on your behalf.”…2001 Obama interview on Chicago public radio .

“I absolutely reject that notion [mandate is a tax].”…Barack Obama

“And if all others accepted the lie which the Party imposed
–if all records told the same tale–then the lie passed into
history and became truth. “Who controls the past,” ran the
Party slogan, “controls the future: who controls the present
controls the past.”…George Orwell, “1984″

All you need to know about Obama to understand what makes him tick is the following. Obama is a :

Narcissist.

Socialist.

Liar.

When Obama first began trying to force his socialist healthcare agenda upon us, it was clear that he was imposing another tax.

From The Blaze June 28, 2012.

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/flashback-video-absolutely-reject-that-notion-obama-hhs-sec-budget-director-all-say-mandate-not-a-tax/

The US Supreme Court today, June 28, 2012, in their ruling today effectively called Obama a liar.

From Rush Limbaugh June 28, 2012.

“RUSH: Hey, folks, have you seen the economic news today? Have you heard about the unemployment numbers today? (laughing) Gross domestic product, have you heard about any of that? Because I have it here, and it sucks. It’s a disaster. The economy of this country remains a disaster. And we, the American people, have just been deceived in ways that nobody contemplated. And what we now have is the biggest tax increase in the history of the world. What we have been told by the chief justice of the Supreme Court and four liberals on the court: Obamacare is just a massive tax increase. That’s all it is. Obama lied to us about that. The Democrats lied. “It wasn’t a tax. There was no way it was a tax.”

The chief justice was hell-bent to find a way to make this law applicable, so he just decided, you know what, as a tax increase, it works, because there’s no limit on the federal government’s ability to tax. And it’s right there in the preamble of the Constitution, right there, Article 1, Section 8, the general welfare clause, it’s been established Congress can tax whatever, whoever, whenever, how much they want. Even when they don’t ask for it, the Supreme Court is gonna find a way to make what they want to do legal because John Roberts said it’s not our job here to forbid this. It’s not our job to protect people from outcomes. It’s not our job to determine whether it is right or wrong or any of that. We just get to look at it. We can’t forbid this. This is what the elected representatives of the people want.

No, the elected representatives of the people were deceived. Remember yesterday I asked you, if this decision went this way, what was your initial reaction going to be. And how many of you were deflated as you can be because of the way this was reported? The first thing that came down, the mandate, unconstitutional, that was the first thing everybody reported. Mandate unconstitutional, big sigh of relief. And then within moments, wait a minute, wait a minute, we’re reading further. Hold it just a second. The mandate’s unconstitutional, but the court has decided it’s a tax, and therefore it’s okay.

So Obamacare is nothing more than the largest tax increase in the history of the world. And the people who were characterizing it as such were right and were telling the truth. We have the biggest tax increase in the history of the world right in the middle of one of this country’s worst recessions. In fact, as the vice president said yesterday, a depression for millions of Americans. The chief justice of the United States Supreme Court, John Roberts, said, “It is not our job to protect the people from the consequences of their political choices.” Not our job.

Well, what about when we are deceived? The court upheld a law that was not what we were told it would be. What has been upheld here is fraud, and the Internal Revenue Service has just become Barack Obama’s domestic army. That is what we face now. We were deceived. Obamacare was a lie. It was a stealth tax on all Americans, and nobody knew it until today. Not officially. Obama told George Stephanopoulos it wasn’t a tax. And Stephanopoulos was trouble-making for trying to suggest otherwise.

Let’s go to the audio sound bites. September 20th, 2009, on This Week with George Stephanopoulos, interviewing President Obama, discussion about the health care reform bill, Stephanopoulos said, “Under this mandate, the government is forcing people to spend money and fining them if they don’t. How is that not a tax increase?”

OBAMA: No, tha-tha-that’s not true, George. Eh, for us to say that you’ve gotta take a responsibility to get health insurance is absolutely not a tax increase. What it’s saying is is that we’re not gonna have other people carrying your burdens for you, any more than the fact that right now everybody in America, just about, has to get auto insurance. Nobody considers that a tax increase. People say to themselves, “That is a fair way to make sure that if you hit my car, that I’m not covering all the costs.”

RUSH: Stephanopoulos then said, “Well, it may be fair, and it may be good public policy, but for you to say that this isn’t a tax. This just…”

OBAMA: No, no. B-b-but George y-y-y-you can’t just make up that language and decide that that’s called a tax increase.

STEPHANOPOULOS: I don’t think I’m making it up. Merriam-Webster Dictionary: “Tax: A charge, usually of money, imposed by authority —

OBAMA: (snickering)

STEPHANOPOULOS: — on persons or property for public purposes.”

OBAMA: George, the fact that you looked up Miriam’s dictionary (sic), the definition of tax increase indicates to me that you’re stretching a little bit right now. Otherwise you wouldn’ta gone to the dictionary to check on the definition! I mean —

STEPHANOPOULOS: Well, no.

OBAMA: If — if what you’re saying is —

STEPHANOPOULOS: I wanted to check for myself, but your critics say it is a tax increase.

OBAMA: My critics say everything’s a tax increase! My critics say that I’m taking over, uhh, every sector of the economy. You know that! Uh, eh, eh… Look, we can have a legitimate debate about whether or not we’re gonna have an individual mandate or not but —

STEPHANOPOULOS: But you reject that it’s a tax increase?

OBAMA: I absolutely reject that notion.”

Read more:

http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/daily/2012/06/28/the_court_rules_obamacare_is_the_largest_tax_increase_in_the_history_of_the_world

Some are fretting about this decision and the role Chief Justice Roberts played. I am not. Obama, et al have shot themselves in the foot and it is a near certainty that Obamacare will be repealed.

It is Obama’s tax and spend policies that have destroyed the economy and job market.

Now we have the US Supreme Court calling Obamacare what it is.

A big tax increase.

Thanks to commenter Starla, et al.

NC unemployment rate June 15, 2012, May rate 9.4, Dropping rates due to people leaving workforce, Labor force participation rate, Charlotte Observer

NC unemployment rate June 15, 2012, May rate 9.4, Dropping rates due to people leaving workforce, Labor force participation rate, Charlotte Observer

“The United States economy has lost more jobs than it has added since the recovery began over a year ago.”…NY Times Sept. 20, 2010.

“Guilford (Large NC County) appears on it’s way to a third consecutive year with annual jobless rates in double digits. Economists say that likely hasn’t happened since the Great Depression.”…Greensboro News Record December 2, 2011

“the Times of the nineteenth of December had published the official forecasts of the output of various classes of consumption goods in the fourth quarter of 1983, which was also the sixth quarter of the Ninth Three-Year Plan. Today’s issue contained a statement of the actual output, from which it appeared that the forecasts were in every instance grossly wrong. Winston’s job was to rectify the original figures by making them agree with the later ones.”…George Orwell, “1984″

Just in 10:01 AM, the May NC unemployment rate remained at 9.4 %.

The NC unemployment rate for May will be released in a few minutes. The dropping rate in NC and the nation has been largely due to the Labor Force Participation rate falling to historical lows. That is, droves of people leaving the work force.

I was pleased to see the Charlotte Observer reporting the facts from the AP.

From the Charlotte Observer June 15, 2012.

“NC unemployment rate for May to be released”

“RALEIGH, N.C. North Carolina’s unemployment rate is being released.

The state Division of Employment Security is scheduled to release the rate for May on Friday. The rate dropped to 9.4 percent in April, down from 9.7 a month earlier. But the main reason for the drop was the number of people leaving the workforce.

Only 1,400 more people had jobs in April. More than 11,000 people left the labor force in April compared to May, the figures show. More than 21,000 people had joined the North Carolina labor force since April a year ago.

North Carolina’s unemployment was higher than the national rate, which fell slightly to 8.1 percent in April.”

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2012/06/15/3319162/nc-unemployment-rate-for-may-to.html