Unemployment - 8 month high!!

Here's today's Hope and Change .... they can't say more people are dumpster diving, so they say there's " ... a loss of momentum in job creation."   That's hysterical.  No matter how you dress it up, this economy is not making job.  Why?  Any opinion?  If we're emptying the treasury and it's not moving the needle in the right direction, what happens when the money runs out?   Hey, Uncle Fred always said to me "First thing you do when you're in a hole - stop digging."  

What a load these people in Washington.  What say you?  Blog .......

On Thursday May 5, 2011, 11:00 am EDT

By Lucia Mutikani
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The number of Americans filing for jobless aid rose to an eight-month high last week and productivity growth slowed in the first quarter, clouding the outlook for an economy that is struggling to gain speed.
While the surprise jump in initial claims for unemployment benefits was attributed to factors ranging from spring break layoffs to the introduction of an emergency benefits program, economists said it corroborated reports this week indicating a loss of momentum in job creation. // what a load of bullspit.  Oh!  The Easter Bunny forgot to bring the basket. //
New claims for state jobless benefits rose 43,000 to a seasonally adjusted 474,000, the highest since mid-August, the Labor Department said on Thursday. Economists had expected claims to fall to 410,000.
A second report from the department showed nonfarm productivity increased at a 1.6 percent annual rate, braking from a 2.9 percent pace in the fourth quarter. The growth pace was above economists' expectations for 1 percent.
"We do not think that the entire rise in claims over the last month can be explained by special factors alone," said Harm Bandholz, chief U.S. economist at UniCredit Research in New York. "It seems instead as if ... WAIT.  HERE COMES ANOTHER ONE  ... the improvement in the labor market slowed a bit."
Reports this week showed weaker employment growth in the manufacturing and services sectors in April. Data from payrolls processing firm ADP Employer Services also showed a step back in private hiring last month.
The claims data falls outside the survey period for the government's closely watched employment report for April, which will be released on Friday. Nonfarm payrolls increased 186,000 last month, according to a Reuters survey, after rising by 216,000 in March -- which was the most in 10 months.
But the odds are high for an even lower number. The anticipated slowdown in hiring is mostly blamed on high food and gasoline prices, which clipped economic growth in the first quarter. Still, the unemployment rate is expected to have held at a two-year low of 8.8 percent.
U.S. stocks opened lower on the claims report, while government debt prices rose for a sixth straight session. The dollar gained against the euro after the European Central Bank offered few clues on the timing of the future interest rate increases.