The mainstream media is reporting that unemployment rates have risen in 75 percent of metro areas. This is a red herring if every there was one.

Unemployment is a huge problem in this country now. The government is reporting a 9.5 rate, but nearly everyone now knows this number is superfluous to say the least. The real unemployment rate is in the 16.5 percent range when you factor in people who have been unemployed longer than six months and partially employed people trying to make ends meet. 

The economy is currently adding about 100,000 jobs a month. Unfortunately, this is not enough to lower the unemployment numbers. Why? Well, more than 100,000 join the job market each month as they become old enough to work. This may surprise you, but keep in mind we have 305 million people in this country, so a lot of kids are growing up. 

So, what are we to make of the big headline that unemployment rates have risen in 75 percent of metropolitan areas in June? Nothing! Why? One has to consider who makes up this 75 percent. We are not talking about people who have lost their jobs. Instead, we are talking about students who are looking for jobs on their summer breaks. 

I don’t have anything against students working. I certainly did! That being said, the lack of jobs they are finding for summer are a far cry less important than the husband and wife who are losing their home because they both were laid off a year ago. 

The current employment situation is a disaster by most any measure. The last thing we need is the media piling on with headlines like this one. At the very least, one would expect to see them also announce unemployment rates dropped in 75 percent of metros in September when students go back to school full time!

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