"WASHINGTON – The number of people filing new claims for unemployment benefits unexpectedly rose last week by the largest amount in three months. The big surge was a setback to hopes that layoffs were declining.
The Labor Department says that applications for unemployment benefits rose to 471,000 last week, up by 25,000 from the previous week. It was the first increase in five weeks and the biggest jump since a gain of 40,000 in February."


The above is from the despicable Associated Press, as linked on the equally despicable Yahoo "News". Now for the Rest of the Story (to quote Paul Harvey).


This weekly report of new unemployment claims comes out every Thursday. For six months, and more, I have CORRECTLY informed you that this weekly number has been a record of FAILURE of the Obama Administration. That is not because the number has gotten worse. It is because the number has NOT IMPROVED. While the Obama Administration, and Democrats in Congress, have bankrupted us--Obama supposedly, although there is no evidence of it,"focusing like a laser beam on jobs"--the labor market has remained STUCK in a BAD PLACE.


It gets wore. For six months I have reported the weekly numbers, and shown you that those numbers--although bouncing around week by week--have NOT IMPROVED. The weekly average in December was 455,000. The average for the past four weeks is 453,000 (and likely to go up, unless next week's numbers declines at least the same 25,000 that this week's number increased). The four week average has remained over 450,000 the ENTIRE TIME since December. Around Easter, the number spiked up to 490,000--one week,, not the average. That was "explained" as because of Easter. Then the number gradually went back to the same level at which it has been for six months (NO IMPROVEMENT). I correctly told you the whole time that the weekly numbers meant little each week, but that the numbers over time showed NO IMPROVEMENT in the labor market--a labor market that remained just as sick now as it was last November. The weekly number had been as low as 435,000 5-6 months ago, and the four week average almost as low as 440,000 ("predicted"--lol--by economists for this week's one week number).


What have the LIARS at the despicable AP--and Yahoo "News"--been telling you for these same six months? Well, they have LIED--repeatedly. See my article last week, and the week before than, and the week before that, and so on for about six months. The "storyline" (Big Lie) from the CORRUPT LIARS at the Associated Press has been that the jobless claims numbers showed a "slow, steady improvement" in the job market--an absolute, objective LIE. The numbers would bounce up. Then they would bounce down. But there has been NO--none, zilch, nada--TREND of improvement. The labor market has remained the same: bad. No, as I have correctly told you, it has not gotten worse, in terms of this weekly number even if it has not gotten better. However, it HAS gotten worse in the sense that we have mortgaged our future for NOTHING--for no improvement. We would be in a much better place, even with the same numbers, had we done NOTHING. Need I remind you that the overall unemployment number is still right at 10%--right at its HIGH fro the Obama Presidency, and HIGHER than any unemployment number for the Bush Presidency. This 9.9% number is HIGHER than it was last July-August (when it DROPPED from 9.5% to 9.4% in one of those supposed "signs" of an improvement turnaround in jobs). This is important, because it shows the FAILURE of Obama to improve the job market, while bankrupting the country, is now approaching ONE YEAR after the job market had stabilized (albeit in a bad place) last summer.


What did the LIARS at the AP say last week? Read last week's article, where I have again been PROVEN correct. The AP lied last week that there was a "slow, steady" improvement in the job market based on a ONE WEEK supposed decline of 4,000 in layoffs. That is to be compared to a 25,000 RISE in this week's reported number. Worse (for the LIARS at the AP), last week's number was REVISED (for the second week in a row) UPWARD to show basically NO CHANGE. That was the second week in a row that the number had stayed essentially unchanged, after revision. The LIARS at the AP, meanwhile, reported last week that there had been "four straight weeks" of decline, proving this--fictional--slow, steady" improvement in the labor market. Actually, of course, there has been NO IMPROVEMENT since November-December, and the weekly numbers have been anything but "steady". They have only been "steady" in the sense of being consistently between 4440,000 and 490,000, with no evidence of either any improvement or any significant worsening.


Now if the LIARS at the AP were honest liars, they would say this week that the labor market has gotten WORSE. But the AP is composed of CORRUPT LIARS, and not merely honestly stupid liars. Thus, this week's number is merely a "setback" in "hopes" (you can just fee the DEPRESSION of the AP liars at being unable to "spin"). Yes, the AP has reverted to something approaching accuracy, because that fits their agenda. This week's number, in fact, does NOT indicate the labor market is getting worse, because it never got better. We are still "bumping along the bottom"--as I have correctly told you for six months while the mainstream media has lied to you. We are not getting significantly worse, but neither are we getting any better.


Now if the weekly number were to go above 500,000 in the next week or two, we would be IN TROUBLE. As it is, this measure of layoffs is merely showing that we remain in the (bad) status quo. But what if the weekly number DECLINES next week, as it will be expected to do--if we are merely "bumping along the bottom", rather than getting worse? Well, we know what will happen, because it has already happened repeatedly for the last six months. The LIARS--corrupt, dishonest liars--at the despicable AP will again start saying that such decline shows a TREND of "slow, steady" improvement in the labor market. They will say that even though it is obviously a LIE. We know that, because they have done that very same thing repeatedly since December. Weekly increases are reported somewhat factually, although often with an "explanation" of "special factors". But weekly declines (merely offsetting the increases--no net improvement) are then reported as "evidence" of a steady improvement in the labor market. You just don't get any more CORRUPT than the LIARS at the Associated Press.


What about those "economists" who "predicted" a DECLINE of the weekly number to 440,000--only off 31,000, failing to predict either the direction or magnitude of the largest increase in three months? Again, I have been proven right. I have been correctly calling these perpetually "surprised" economists, along with the rest of Wall Street and the financial community, The Stupidest People on Earth. Rarely has anyone been proven so right as I have been. Sometimes, I am asked if it is difficult to live in a world where envy from lesser creatures keeps me from receiving the credit I deserve. I am asked whether it is frustrating to never be wrong, and yet not be listened to. Well, it is not so much that I have to face the fact that the rest of the world is not as smart as I am. I faced that long ago. What is hard is to suffer the continuing existence of LIARS like the Associated Press, who aer constantly wrong and never acknowledge it. It is frustrating to see those people LIE week in and week out, as if they can prove Lincoln wrong and fool all of the people all of the time. That is a bigger annoyance than constantly being proven superior to mere economists, who no one expects to be right. I know. no one really expects the mainstream media to be either honest or right either, but they "use ink by the barrel". That makes them ANNOYING--since you can't get away from them.


Note that this week's reported 471,000 new unemployment claims is close to the six month HIGH of 490,000 or so. That shows how narrow the range has been, and how little change there has been in six months. You should be insulted as to how dumb the mainstream media thinks you are to fail to notice their DISHONESTY about these numbers week after week. Stay tuned to see if we keep "bumping along the bottom", as we have done for these last six months (really since last summer), or whether the weekly number deteriorates above 500,000. If THAT were to happen, all bets are off and we will be facing a DETERIORATING labor market (instead of merely one not improving).