Massive 43% Jump in U.S. Emergency Unemployment Benefits, Government Manipulating Data?

• We don’t really need to be a genius to see that the Feds economic statistics are largely fiction. A better source is www.shadowstats.com. Governments do not create wealth. It is private investment and the private sector that create wealth. Government stimulus is simply taking money from the people (who is better able to decide what to spend their money on) and spending it on wasteful programs. I am not saying that all governments are as profligate as the American government. But the current record of wasteful western government spending speaks for itself. Less government, more liberty, return the money to the people and let them decide how they want to spend the money, is needed. A minimalistic government is far better than an invasive corporate government. Mish Shedlock writes :
   
  I was intrigued by a post by Zero Hedge asking Is The Government Misrepresenting Unemployment By 32%? 
   
  “…government spent a record $14.7 billion on Unemployment Insurance Benefits as of December 30, a 24% jump sequentially from the $11.8 billion in November. Yet the DOL has disclosed a mere 1.7% increase in those to whom insurance benefits are paid: from 9.4 million to just under 9.6 million. To put the $14.7 billion number in perspective, in December the Federal Government paid a total of $14 billion ($700 million less) in Federal Salaries! And some more perspective: in calendar 2009 the government has paid $140 billion in Unemployment Insurance Benefits. This is yet another economic stimulus that nobody in the administration discusses, yet which undoubtedly has the biggest impact on the economy, as all those millions unemployed can moderate their pain courtesy of a passable weekly check from the government which should just about cover the rent and beer…..”
   
  I figured the explanation would show up in charts somewhere and I asked Chris Puplava at Financial Sense for a chart of Emergency Unemployment Compensation (EUC) Benefits as well as an update on other charts he has graciously provided on request. From Chris Puplava …
   
  My answer would be a MASSIVE jump in the Emergency Unemployment Compensation (EUC) benefits, which jumped from 3,594,253 (11/07/09) to 5,143,410 (12/19/09), up 43% in just over a month! The increase in EUC more than offset the decline in continuing claims and we are now at a new record when combining all measures of unemployment benefits. Economists were pointing out that continuing claims and initial claims were falling as a bullish sign, however what was happening was that those benefits were exhausting for people who used up that benefit, leading to the decline in the numbers which is proved by a record (52.24%) exhaustion rate.
   
  However, these people were not finding employment which is why the House passed a bill in December to extend benefits, thus leading to a massive 43% jump in the aptly named “EMERGENCY” Unemployment Compensation program. The jump was so large that now the EUC numbers surpass continuing claims! The data I have from Moody’s comes with a lag, so the data in the charts below is only updated through 12/19/09, but the combined unemployment claims numbers just broke out to a new record!

Does this look like a real jobs recovery to you? Private sector jobs lost are not coming back. Soon Americans will all be working for Uncle Sam!

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