So, I begin my daily rounds on the Internet to see what is going on, and the first item I see is this: Bush Utters Taunt About Militants: 'Bring 'Em On'. Two quotes from this article. First, the pResident:

"There are some who feel that the conditions are such that they can attack us there," Bush said. Extending his right hand for emphasis, he added: "My answer is: Bring 'em on. We've got the force necessary to deal with the security situation." He promised to "deal with them harshly" if attacks continue.

Second, from someone who actually served their complete time in the military:

Though Congress is in recess, some Democrats criticized Bush's "bring 'em on" statement. "I am shaking my head in disbelief," said Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.). "When I served in the Army in Europe during World War II, I never heard any military commander -- let alone the commander in chief -- invite enemies to attack U.S. troops." Lautenberg's statement said Bush's words were "tantamount to inciting and inviting more attacks against U.S. forces."

The next item I see is this: Jobless rate up to 6.4%. You have to read these paragraphs:

"I think it's important to take a look behind the numbers," Chao told CNNfn Thursday. "As the economy gains steam and people gain confidence about their job prospects they will declare themselves back in the job market and the unemployment rate may increase. That's I think what we're seeing today."

But Anthony Chan, chief economist of Banc One Investment Advisors, said that the return of people to the job market, while a reason behind the increase in unemployment rate, is not necessarily good news.

"The good news is that if so many people are entering the labor force it must mean that they are perceiving an improvement in the economy's prospects," Chan said. "The bad news, however, is that if too many people become optimistic about their job prospects, then the unemployment rate will continue to push higher. And the higher unemployment rate does have a damaging impact on consumers. They see it and they think, 'I shouldn't be spending money.' That's one of reason the unemployment rate is so important. It's the one that drives what happens on main street."

Boy, statistics are funny things! What does the 'unemployment rate' count? To me, this says that the unemployment rate counts the people who are currently collecting benefits and are actively looking for jobs. It does not count those who have quit looking altogether. If you read the second to last paragraph, you see this:

However, the government report also showed there were 2.0 million unemployed people who had been looking for work for 27 weeks or longer, an increase of 410,000 over the year. They represented 21.4 percent of the total unemployed, up from 18.8 percent a year earlier. Chan said the percentage of unemployed people who have exhausted unemployment benefits is now near an all-time hire(sic).

From this, I get that the number being reported is not the actual percentage of people who are unemployed. If you quit looking, you are not counted anymore. Just something to think about. If anyone can help me clarify this further, let me know and I will post the info. So what does this tell us? Once again I am not an expert in this area, but even going behind the numbers, I do not think this is good news. But I guess we will have to wait and see.

Looks like Rummy is starting to get some heat. Rumsfeld's Rules is an interesting article with links. Also, Peace 101: Welcome to Rumsfeld U.

A word on the tax cut: ''Millionaires' welfare''.

Looks like they're 'Bringin' Em On', Eight US soldiers wounded as Iraqi violence continues unabated.

Here is a little different spin on the WMD issue, Weapons of Mass Destruction Found in Iraq.

A little humor. Tom Tomorrow, This Modern World: Play it as it Lies. One from The Onion, Bush asks Congress for $30 Billion To Help Fight War on Criticism.

I haven't devoted any time to this but here is an editorial on the proposed overtime changes, Picking Workers' Pockets.
- posted by Mom/Dad @ 7:30 AM