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Macroman wrote: No one detests President Obama more than I, but I must point out two overstatements in this column. 1. "...employment in 2012 is roughly the same as it was back in 2001...Obama has compressed a lost decade into just three years." Labor force participation has been declining since 2000, not just 2008. That seems a partial reversal of the increase that occurred since about 1965. Obama had little to do with any of it. -Polls, Pump, No Friend to Obama Dear Comrade Macroman, Yes, labor force participation rates have been going down since 2000. But to pretend that...

Day before yesterday I heard on the news that the National Average Labor Participation Rate hit a record low of 63.2%. I checked it on the Dept of Labor site this morning and that report was unavailable - even though it was a Google search result, indicating at one time it WAS available. Again, Obama cleans up his ugly mess.

(CNSNews.com) - The average annual labor force participation rate hit a 35-year-low of 63.2 percent in the United States in 2013, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The last time the average annual labor force participation rate was that low was in in 1978, when it was also 63.2 percent. Jimmy Carter was president then. The BLS bases its employment statistics on the civilian noninstitutional population, which consists of all people in the United States 16 or older who are not on active duty in the military or in an institution such as a prison, nursing...

The percentage of American civilians 16 or older who have a job or are actively seeking one dropped to a 35-year low in October, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In September, the labor force participation rate was 63.2 percent, but in October it dropped to 62.8 percent—the lowest it has been since February 1978, when Jimmy Carter was president. The labor force, according to BLS, is that part of the civilian noninstitutional population that either has a job or has actively sought one in the last four weeks. The civilian noninstitutional population consists of people 16 or older,

According to OECD, teen unemployment rates (under 25) in Europe continue to escalate, particularly in Greece and Spain. eurounemploy That is scary looking! It reminds me of The Who’s song “Teenage Wasteland.” But, the US is no slouch when it comes to teen unemployment. The 16-19 cohort is seeing an unemployment rate of 22.60% while to 20-24 cohort is experiencing 12.80% unemployment. For the sake of comparison, I also included Germany teenage (under 25) unemployment which is 7.70%. unemployteenusgerm For the entire population, here is a chart of labor force participation in Germany, Spain, USA and Mexico. lfp103113 Even beleaguered...

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 148,000 in September, and the unemployment rate was little changed at 7.2 percent. The bad news? Economists were predicting 180,000 increase in employment. Even worse, the increase in PRIVATE payrolls was only 126,000. empdata102213 U6 unemployment fell to 13.6% while labor force participation remained the same. u6lfp102213 Where were the jobs created? Transportation and Warehousing: + 23K Government: +22K Retail Trade: +21K Temp Help: +20K NOT in labor force increased by 136,000. So, the labor force dropouts exceed private jobs created. Charming. These numbers are not...

There are clear headwinds for economic growth in the United States. Here is one chart that combines several economic indicators that are decelerating. decelnation First, the M1 Money Multiplier (white line). It was over 3.0 back during the Reagan Recovery in the 1980s, but it has been all downhill since then. It is currently below 1.0 at 0.721. Second, the M2 Money Velocity (red dashed line). It peaked in 1997 during the Clinton Recovery and has been pretty much downhill ever since (with the exception of 2003-2006). Third, labor force participation (green dotted line). It peaked in March 2000 and...

As we know from Friday’s disappointing jobs report, labor force participation fell again. It now stands at 63.2% indicating that 36.8% of the labor force are NOT participating. And the decline in labor force participation is correlated with a similar decline in M2 Money Velocity, a disturbing sign. lfpm2v The usual explanation for the decline in labor force participation is the aging of the population, retirements, etc. “It was expected.” Hmm. But if we look at Australia and Germany, two other developed nations with aging populations, we see a different picture. While the US Labor Force Participation has been declining...

It’s hard to criticize Earth Day. It’s a day when literally ______ people get out there and celebrate Mother Nature. Yes, I said ______ people because we have no idea how many people actually attended. Why? Because none of the top media outlets bothered to ask. That spin has Earth Day supporters filling in the blanks with lots of touchy-feely stories and no numbers while the media had the tea parties down for the count despite claims of around 1 million attendees. The New York Times showed just how to avoid such an uncomfortable topic with its day-after story highlighting...

This new web video produced by the RNC again hits on Obama's ties to unrepentent domestic terrorist Bill Ayers. It describes Ayers as a terrorist in the 1960s and 1970s and makes the point that a total of 7 people were killed by terrorists in the Weather Underground group. It also goes into a little more detail about Obama & Ayers' 8-year relationship as colleagues.

WASHINGTON, April 13, 2007 – An alleged al Qaeda leader being held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, denied involvement in bombings in both Indonesia and Singapore, according to a transcript of his hearing released yesterday. Riduan bin Isomuddin, known as “Hambali,” either declined to answer or said he had no involvement with the operations brought forth during his April 4 combatant status review tribunal hearing at the detention facility. The tribunal was an administrative hearing to determine only if the detainee could be designated as an enemy combatant. Hambali said that while he was a member of Jemaah Islamiyah, a...

LJUBLJANA, Slovenia, March 31, 2007 – Slovenia’s deployments to multiple countries for NATO, the United Nations and the European Union drew praise here yesterday from the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Navy Adm. Edmund P. Giambastiani met with Defense Minister Karl Erjavec, Chief of General Staff Lt. Gen. Albin Gutman and Gutman’s deputy, Maj. Gen. Alojz Steiner, at the Defense Ministry of this nation at the crossroads of central Europe, the Mediterranean, and the Balkans. “Slovenia has contributed substantially to a variety of operations across NATO,” the admiral said at a news conference. “Clearly, the most...

by Fr. James Farfaglia Other Articles by Fr. James FarfagliaContact this Author Giving to God in Mass 09/07/06 When it comes to the Catholic Mass we need to get it right. The Mass should unite us, not only with our brothers and sisters in the Faith who are living today, but with the Church through all time. In This Article...Why the Liturgy MattersConscious and Active ParticipationThe Center and Summit Why the Liturgy Matters Here is what Pope Benedict has to say on the subject: I am convinced that the ecclesial crisis in which we find ourselves today depends in great part...

7/12/2006 - SAN ANTONIO (AFPN) -- Political freedom is something the military has defended since the founding of the United States. But, while free to participate in the political process, there are some rules military members need to know. "Our main job is to follow the orders that come down our chain of command, which has an elected official at the top," said Maj. Frank Minogue, chief of civil law for Air Education and Training Command at Randolph Air Force Base, Texas. "It would undermine our whole command structure if it appeared that the Air Force was supporting one side,...

by Stephen Pohl Other Articles by Stephen PohlContact this Author Liturgy, Learning and the Language of the Catholic Faith 05/18/06 In the past decade there has been much written in the field of education about learning styles. Some of us are primarily auditory learners, others visual, tactile or kinetic learners. Great teachers recognize different learning styles and deliver the message in more than one manner. In This Article...Ahead of Its TimeLearning the Catholic LanguageGetting the Message Across Ahead of Its Time This has led to an explosion of “multimedia presentations” in many learning environments, whether it is the traditional school context,...

Even as Latinos in recent weeks have pushed for immigration reform on the streets and over the airwaves, another goal has emerged among a broader immigrant community: Translating street activism into political participation. Latino and Asian civic groups last week reignited voter-registration drives by calling upon the thousands who participated in protests to take their enthusiasm to the ballot box in November. But experts said that if history serves as any guide, short-term gains are likely to be few, while long-term gains will be significant. ‘‘If the next step and what we are seeing in the streets moves toward citizenship,...

WASHINGTON, Dec. 22, 2005 – Increased numbers of capable Iraqi security forces and more Sunni involvement in the electoral process were among the factors that deterred terrorist violence before and during the Dec. 15 voting, a senior U.S. military officer told reporters at a Baghdad news conference today. Unlike the days preceding the Jan. 30 Iraqi election, there was no jump in terrorist activity just before or during the Dec. 15 voting, Army Maj. Gen. Rick Lynch, spokesman for Multinational Force Iraq, said. "There was a significant spike in attacks just preceding the January elections," Lynch said as he...

WASHINGTON (AFP) - More than 122 million Americans, or 60.7 percent of registered voters, cast ballots in the November 2 presidential election, which saw US President George W. Bush win a second four-year term, a new study showed. The showing marked the highest turnout for a US presidential election since 1968. According to the Committee for the Study of the American Electorate, Bush secured some 62 million votes, or 50.8 percent of the ballots -- an increase of 11.5 million over his showing in 2000. His challenger, Democrat John Kerry, garnered more than 59 million votes (48.3 percent), or eight...

Many on the left, most visibly Presidential contender John Kerry, often claim that the "coalition of the willing" is weak and that participation from the international community has been minimal if anything. Opponents of President Bush use such claims in order to discredit the legitimacy of this noble endeavor for freedom. It may not be such a bad idea to look at the state of our coalition, not in an effort to attack President Bush, but rather to conduct a healthy reassessment and critique of the coalition and our allies. Several weeks ago, Michael Rubin returned from the Coalition Provisional...

Once upon a time, as a U.S. Marine, I spent a few months in a combat zone in South Vietnam. I never met anyone, at least anyone who was sane and honest, who wouldn't have rather been home than in a combat zone. However, it is precisely because military men and women throughout this nation's history have been willing to do their part that we can live in a country that is so richly blessed. Politics has been compared to military combat, without the bombs and bullets. If we are all willing to do our part in the process, we...