One Way to Reduce The Unemployment Rate

The administration is crowing about today's reduction in the unemployment rate to 8.3%. Most of you outside Washington probably know that a fraction has both a numerator and a denominator. In the case of calculating the unemployment rate, you divide the number of unemployed by those who are actually seeking work. The unemployment rate can fall if more people find jobs. That would be a good thing. Or it can fall if more people give up and drop out of the workforce. In the latest report 1.2 million people dropped out of the labor force in one month! The civilian labor force has now dropped to a 30 year low. Apparently the current administration is counting on the fact that much of the country never learned how fractions are calculated. Maybe that's one reason why they're not able to find work?