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Jobs Created by the Stroke of a Pen
by Bill Tatro  
November 10, 2011 

When it comes to jobs, it all comes down to this:  For years, we all thought it was small business that was the heart and soul of the U.S. economy. 

Most people understood that it was the private sector that created the real jobs – sustainable jobs that were the building blocks for people’s lives, and consequently, the foundation for our country’s solid future. 

Then, along comes Barack Obama, who firmly, and I am ardently convinced, believes the public sector is the real job creator. 

Everything from shovel ready to green energy has been tried by this administration in order to change the path of rising unemployment, to no avail. 

Now, however, the truth can be told. 

The real job creator is neither the public nor the private sector. 

Rather, the real job creator is a single bean-counter who works in a small room with a green eyeshade pulled over his head at the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). 

He’s the person who overlays the Birth/Death (B/D) statistics on all monthly jobs reports.  Most people think the B/D is simply a measurement of how many workers lived or died during the month. 

In reality, the B/D is the approximate number of new businesses created with new employees netted against the businesses that closed and the people who lost their jobs.  This statistic is overlaid against the actual number of workers either hired or fired.  During prior administrations, this B/D number was plus-or-minus a few thousand. 

The Obama administration has taken the B/D to an entirely new art form, with the plus-or-minus becoming hundreds of thousands. 

It seems they thought nobody would notice, and guess what? 

They were right. 

The latest monthly jobs report shows 80,000 new jobs created. 

The Birth/Death overlay was plus 103,000, which means the country actually lost 23,000 jobs. 

But have no fear, with a phantom jobs report nobody really noticed, least of all the mainstream media. 

Thus, when books are written about this chapter in American history, recognition for job creation will not be given to the small or large business entrepreneurs, nor the President or his political cronies. 

Rather, all the praise will be given to that diligent, ever-present bureaucrat, who, with a wave of his magic pencil created 42% of all jobs reported in 2011. 

Hallelujah! 

Thank goodness for the BLS and the Birth/Death model. 

It may not be real, but it sure looks good on paper and it certainly sounds great on the nightly news. 

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