How much is $17 trillion? Visualized for reference.

[realcoray]

Originally Posted by Tony_SS

But who's facts, the governments? Is 8.2% unemployment a "fact"?

I don't think anyone would disagree in terms of 'underemployment', ie people who took part time work or just gave up completely, being much higher than 8.2%, but wasn't that also the case back when unemployment was reported at 5%, chances are some people had to take part time jobs when they would have preferred full time, etc.

It's a number that is not shrouded in secrecy in regards to how it's calculated, just like the inflation values thrown around here. It's common knowledge that it excludes some things, things which actually have a real effect on everyday people. We all notice food and gas prices going up or down, we're less likely to notice the price of paper going up as you point out.

A business owner might but even then, myopia can influence things. If I work at a business that uses a lot of paper, ink and cotton, and they all go up 10%, of course inflation would seem high, but what if I worked at a plant that used natural gas to manufacture things, where the price of it has dropped significantly, wouldn't I have a different view?