Dohiyi Mir
In Which NTodd Says His Peace
Fun With Fuzzy Math!
The Economic Report of the President (PDF, p.94):
Nonfarm payroll employment fell an average of 50,000 workers per month in the first seven months of 2003, before increasing 35,000 in August, 99,000 in September, and an average of 48,000 per month in the fourth quarter.
Amazing how the administration loves to use averages, on average, when it covers up ugly numbers. Use the averages for the ugly first 7 months of the year, then crow about 2 specific numbers that show growth, then revert back to averages the last 3 months of the year. Why? Because October's increase was 100k (revised down from 126k), November's was 43k (revised down from 57k), and December's was a measely 1k (this was actually revised up to 16k and not taken into account for the ERP). Why use specifics when averages can cover up a downward trend?
ntodd
