Those "saved" jobs
President Barack Obama's economic recovery program saved 935 jobs at the Southwest Georgia Community Action Council, an impressive success story for the stimulus plan. Trouble is, only 508 people work there.The Georgia nonprofit's inflated job count is among persisting errors in the government's latest effort to measure the effect of the $787 billion stimulus plan despite White House promises last week that the new data would undergo an "extensive review" to root out errors discovered in an earlier report.
About two-thirds of the 14,506 jobs claimed to be saved under one federal office, the Administration for Children and Families at Health and Human Services, actually weren't saved at all, according to a review of the latest data by The Associated Press. Instead, that figure includes more than 9,300 existing employees in hundreds of local agencies who received pay raises and benefits and whose jobs weren't saved.
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Comments (17)
Jonathan Finegold Catalán
Will the margin of people who actually change their vote because of these "discrepancies" actually make a big difference in 2012?
Published: November 5, 2009 9:16 AM
Corey K
It might not change any votes. It does however provide additional clues that most people should always recognize. When you're talking about any estimates provided by Gov't, you should always be wary. The first thing that comes to mind is how much Nationalized Health Care is going to cost us. How many people will be 'helped' by National HC. The press should be tearing these numbers up, instead most outlets just report them as fact. How in the world can you count jobs saved anyway? It seems hard to believe that all these downstream agencies filled these forms out wrong. It just proves what the agenda really is.
Published: November 5, 2009 10:01 AM
T. Ralph Kays
The actual number of jobs "saved" is easy to determine, it is zero. As Bastiat says in "The Broken Window" it is important to look at what is unseen as well as what is seen. The money used to "save" or "create" jobs must come from somewhere. No matter where the government gets that money it must destroy jobs in that area. The government cannot create net jobs, it can only take some peoples jobs away and give them to other people. If you consider the extent of government waste it is highly probable that they destroy two or more jobs for everyone they "create". Just as government can only redistribute wealth not create it, so it is with jobs.
Published: November 5, 2009 10:28 AM
Andras
This reminds me the joke when the politician on the campaign roll speaks to the people and promise them new factories, schools, hospitals... and one man from the crowd end up asking: "and what about the bridge?"... and the politician answer: "we will build a new bridge also"... and the guy said: "but we don't even have a river!"... and the politician continue: "we will build a river too" :) politics is full of bullshit... nothing new there.
Published: November 5, 2009 10:52 AM
Robert Brazil
You cannot have government without lies. Because robbery and murder are the real business of government, and the majority of people would not support such crimes -- directed against others, much less themselves -- the lies are necessary to keep the reality out of sight and out of mind. And the lies are ubiquitous.
I am not religious, but I've always found it interesting that, in the Bible, Satan is described as "a liar and a murderer from the beginning." What a perfect description of every government!
Published: November 5, 2009 11:19 AM
T. Ralph Kays
Much as FDR used the massive government spending during the depression to guarantee his re-election by targeting projects to communities that he could sway to himself at the polls, Obama is "creating" jobs in fields that are predominately occupied by liberal voters. What a great way to buy elections, use government tax and spend powers to destroy those who disagree with you and reward your own followers.
Published: November 5, 2009 11:53 AM
Ribald
I've seen a lot of Austrian economic theory justified by numbers supplied by the government or by the federal reserve. Case in point: the measures of the money supply, supplied by the federal reserve. For some reason, these numbers are considered dependable. Confirmation bias, perhaps.
In my opinion, the "jobs saved" numbers are highly vulnerable to bias and fudging of numbers, but this alone does not prove that all government-supplied data is unreliable. In any case, economists of every stripe should reject unreliable information and re-evaluate judgments based on unreliable data.
Published: November 5, 2009 11:56 AM
T. Ralph Kays
There is a big difference between unreliable data and outright lies, really now, 935 jobs saved in a department that only employs 508 people?
Published: November 5, 2009 1:17 PM
T. Ralph Kays
Maybe this is the Liberal Democrat Churchs version of the parable of the loaves and fishes, another miracle.....
Published: November 5, 2009 2:00 PM
Russ
The numbers I've heard point out that if any jobs were "saved", they were mainly in the education sector. In other words, Obama's buddies in the NEA are getting their payoff.
Published: November 5, 2009 2:28 PM
Dick Fox
I just heard on the news this morning that there were 175 jobs that were reported saved but were actually just pay raises in a children's center. My question is will they see pay cuts next year when there is no stimulus or will Obama continue to stimulate so that the pay raises remain. If these places rely on donations and government money how much will be there next year. Such pay raises certainly seem short-sighted.
Published: November 5, 2009 4:40 PM
Shay
Robert Brazil wrote, "I am not religious, but I've always found it interesting that, in the Bible, Satan is described as "a liar and a murderer from the beginning." What a perfect description of every government!"
Probably because the Bible was describing the dark side of man, and government merely amplifies it (rather than the fantasy that it somehow becomes benevolent and keeps the dark side of citizens in check).
Published: November 5, 2009 5:09 PM
Dave
Taking a step back, why does Southwest Georgia Community Action Council needs over 500 employees?
Published: November 5, 2009 5:26 PM
Caveman
My favorite quote yet is this gem from HHS spokesman, Luis Rosero: "If I give you a raise, it is going to save a portion of your job."
This one (from another of our fearless bureaucrats at the HHS) is pretty good too, "[a cost of living adjustment] may not be viewed traditionally as a job saved, but one could interpret it that, by providing COLA, you're retaining staff."
Published: November 5, 2009 5:58 PM
Caveman
935 jobs saved in a department that only employs 508 people?
It's quite simple. Take the number of employees (508), multiply it by 1.84 (which represents the 1.84% raise each employee received) and voila! 935 jobs saved!
Published: November 5, 2009 6:11 PM
RTB
Everywhere I've heard or read about jobs being "saved" it's been in government (federal, state and local) or in those industries directly owned or supported by government,for example auto companies and infrastructure.
What a joke! When will people wake up!
BTW, T. Ralph Kays rocks.
Published: November 5, 2009 8:05 PM
Becky
There is a great comment that is pointed out in Rocco Leonard Martino's latest book, "Cancel Christmas" He asks, "Do our representatives and senators look upon their elected seat as a personal asset to be continued for the lifetime or for as long as they want, no matter how their constituents may feel about it,." I would have to answer yes.
http://cancelchristmas.us/?page_id=10
Published: November 8, 2009 1:11 AM