Faith Based Jobs Report: Paul Craig Roberts

Excellent piece in counterpunch puncturing the good economy myths accepted as dogma in corporatist news media. According to this article the September jobs report was "diastrous." The cause of the diastrous economic trend in employment? Outsourcing and offshore production. According to Roberts economic reporting is as "deceitful" and "delusional" as the reporting on the Iraq war. Manufacturing and high tech employment continues to lose ground in the US while a chorus of groundless assurances are pandered to the public by a compliant press. The article provides useful talking points for campaigners. Edwards and Kerry cover some of this ground. They ought to hit it harder. It's a credibility issue like the Iraq war not a persuasion issue. According to Roberts, education is not an issue nor the solution, as university technical graduates are not finding the high tech jobs that went overseas.


September Jobs Report
Faith-Based Economics
By PAUL CRAIG ROBERTS

http://www.counterpunch.org/roberts10092004.html

<snip> Of September's 96,000 new jobs, 73% are accounted for by two categories: government jobs and temporary help! There were only 59,000 private sector jobs created in September, and 33,000 of those--56%--are temps!

Manufacturing lost another 18,000 jobs. More Americans are employed in accommodations and food services than as production workers. <snip>

<The US is losing the ability to manufacture a range of advanced technology products and is now dependent on imports of advanced technology goods from China and Japan. Entire high tech occupations are beginning to disappear in America, with computer engineering enrollments in topflight schools such as M.I.T., Georgia Tech, and UC, Berkeley shrinking by 45%.

Last week economist Joseph Stiglitz reported that median US income has fallen by over $1,500 in real terms over the past three and one-half years.<snip>

Calling it "faith-based jobs report" is the perfect way to mock the nonsense that the outsourcers and pigs spew.

The word smithing by Roberts in this article is an excellent contribution to puncturing the myths and make excellent campaign points.