Initial jobless claims increased to 372,000 in the week ended December 29, 2012. This weekly report has consistently run between 350,000 and 425,000 newly unemployed people every week for the past few years. You'd never know this was bad news by watching the talking heads on TV who tout the stock market. They do everything but sing "Happy days are here again" because the economy added 215,000 private sector jobs in the month of December.
Let's see, four weeks of newly unemployed at about 350,000 per week is about 1,400,000. That's 215,000 new jobs for about 1,400,000 newly unemployed. There hasn't been such joyous news since the Roosevelt administration outlawed owning gold during the great depression. Maybe a sign of the times is the new TV commercial offering genuine, new $2 bills for only $10. Who says the deficit can't be fixed?
On a serious note, this may be a preview of things to come. Every time the Fed prints money, our currency is worth less. And by the way, does anyone believe that phony 7.8% unemployment number they've been talking about since just before the election? Counting those who have quit looking for work or may be drawing unemployment compensation, working for cash and paying no taxes, I'd bet the real number of unemployed is more than 25%.
©Bane-Clene® Corporation 2012 Reprinting or electronically publishing this article is strictly prohibited without permission from Bane-Clene Corp.
I'd like to hear your comments on this article.
Please e-mail me at wfbane@baneclene.com.
