This topic is severely under reported and it is becoming a huge problem for the people. It is easy to do the research and expose this terrible lie but the people are blinded by the government. They trust too much in the corporate media that looks to corrupt the minds of innocent people into believing that we are okay. I think I speak for the American people when I say that we would rather know the truth, so we know what we are facing. The media is failing to do it's job, it is failing to inform the American public about something that directly effects them. Just doing a little research I was able to find evidence that the truth is being hidden from us. The American Dream is slipping through our fingers, and we don't even know it. 

The truth about unemployment rates is that there are many ways to measure it. This is also something I believe the government takes advantage of. This is also why I believe the real problem of unemployment to be underreported. The problem is knowledge, people don't know what specifically the criteria is to counting unemployment. This problem can easily be solved by looking at the government definitions of unemployment. The definition given by the website for the Federal Researve of San Francisco states "To be classified as unemployed in the CPS people must satisfy two primary criteria: (i) they must have no job and (ii) they must be actively seeking employment.  Those who do not have jobs and are not actively searching are considered to be out of the labor force." What about those who do not fit these categories such as those who have been unemployed for  two years and can not find a job? Well, technically speaking they do not make the cut. They are not factored in at all. Basically what I am saying is that those who have been unemployed for years are not counted in the new unemployment rates. The ones who have just recently become unemployed and are actively searching for new jobs are. This is all found at Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco website. 

This is a short three minute video questioning if the 'American Dream' is even at all possible to achieve anymore. In this highly capitalistic society we live in today it is hard to do what our grandparents and parents have done. As the generations go on, the 'American Dream' dwindles. What I found to be an interesting statement made in the video is that for the first time since the great depression American men are actually making less then their fathers did. But middle class families are not the only ones suffering. Further on in the video she talks about students with debt and no job to pay it off. Teachers being laid off left and right. The reporter also states that 16 million Americans do not have full time jobs. This video shows that unemployment is a big issue in this country and it contradicts what the government has been leading us to believe. In fact it is so bad that we are losing one thing that makes us America. Our streets are no longer paved with gold and we can no longer help people turn their rags into riches. Our "American Dream" is ceasing to exist.

Because I believe a picture is worth a thousand words I have provided a contrast between now and the great depression. Many may call this an extreme comparison but the numbers say otherwise. Just as the corporate media and government can you statistics to further their own agenda, they can also be used to prove them wrong. They want us to believe everything is okay and we're not in jeopardy. It's simply untrue. 

My last post showed that in January 2011 the unemployment rate was at 22%. Well, at the height of the great depression unemployment was an easy 25% even rising up to 33% at one point. The evidence is clear. We may be in more trouble then we think. 

The American government seems to be having a problem with discovering the difference between providing the country with security and lying. It is great that the government wants us to believe that the economy is looking up. However, it isn't. unemployment is still high and has been that way for years now. So this is hurting us, not helping. I think many would agree with me when I say that I'd rather know the truth. Being lied to is just wrong, the public has the right to know the truth.

Enough with the belly-aching, lets get down to the facts. The projected censored website refers to the unemployment rates that the media gives us as a "statistical lie" This is an incredibly accurate term for what is going on. Allow me to explain. The corporate media phrases their statistical news like this, " the unemployment rate is down to 9% from 9.4%." Aside from this information being incorrect, it is specifically worded this way to show progress. But is their really progress?... No there isn't. It is also stated in the article on project censored that "according to shadowstats.com, the real unemployment rate in January 2011 was 22.2%." Now thats a big difference. 

The topic I chose was # 10 on the Project Censored website which is, " Real Unemployment: One Out of Five in US." I chose this article because it directly relates to me in the fact that my mother is unemployed at the moment. She has been job searching for about a year now and may have finally gotten lucky, however it is disconcerting to learn that the government is lying to us about unemployment rates. It gives the country a feeling of false stability and hope. My family has not been greatly affected by my moms loss of income but I am lucky, others are not so fortunate. To learn the truth about how the government covers up the real unemployment rates is disappointing.

Unemployment Rates