“Lies, Damn lies, and Statistics”: Multi-Disciplinary Debate

This is from a conversation with an old friend of mine-trained in the Epistemology of MBA school at McGill and Concordia University while I was being similarly brain-washed in  McGill’s medical school lol. See if you can follow the logic/illogic of it. I am responding here to his assertion that according to “the facts’ the Trump initiatives are not having as much effect on the economy as were predicted.

When I heard this hypothesis, I immediately heard the inner voice saying ”false” lol and started scanning my experiential  world and the first thing that came to mind was Vermont!

Just one example-the effect on Vermont ! I am sure there are many others-like scientists and hard-working federal employees who lost their jobs without justification and hard-working illegal immigrants trying to build a life in America. Much of this may not show up in the official figures. That’s why I don’t believe those figures are ” The Realty” In fact many of those figures are designed to hide reality rather than expose it! 

 

From AI!( verified by yours truly lol)

Yes, Vermont is experiencing a noticeable decline in Canadian visitors, impacting the state’s tourism and economy. This drop is attributed to a combination of factors, including political rhetoric and uncertainty surrounding tariffs. 

 

 

 

Reasons for the Decline:

• Negative Political Climate:

President Trump’s rhetoric and trade disputes with Canada have created a negative perception among some Canadians, leading them to reconsider travel to the U.S. 

 Economic Concerns:

Potential tariffs and trade tensions have made some Canadians hesitant to spend money in the U.S., impacting spending habits and tourism. 

• Shifting Travel Patterns:

Some Canadians are choosing to travel within their own country or to other destinations, rather than visiting Vermont. 

• Reduced Cross-Border Traffic:

Official data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection shows a significant decrease in travelers crossing into Vermont from Canada, especially during peak travel periods. 

Impact on Vermont:

• Tourism Revenue Decline:

Reduced Canadian tourism is hurting businesses, particularly in northern Vermont and towns near the border.

• Reduced Spending:

Canadian credit card spending in Vermont has decreased significantly, impacting local businesses and economies.

• Economic Downturn:

Tourism is a vital part of Vermont’s economy, and the loss of Canadian visitors is having a noticeable effect on the state’s overall economic health. 

That’s why, in my Epistemology, personal experience, anecdotes and even hearsay are much more significant than official figures. Wasn’t it one of our Yiddishe ancestors Benjamin Disraeli who talked of” lies, damn lies and statistics” lol Still relevant 150 years later!

PS I think you could do us all a service by doing a “deep dive”, as they call it, into many of these official economic statistics to see how they are jerrymandered and manipulated- most of them I suspect.

I am by no means an expert (as if that gave someone any credibility nowadays lol) but I remember hearing about how they generate unemployment statistics! They don’t count the underemployed (part-time people or people not working in the area for which they were trained) So a licensed engineer working as a pizza deliverer is considered fully employed?!  As is a part-time Taco Bell employee! And then they also don’t count those who have given up looking for employment-for whatever reason. Thus the statistics becomes very misleading at best.

So if I want to understand what is going on in employment I watch those people around me looking for jobs and see what happens.

Just ran into an old friend who was trained in heating and air-conditioning but was never able to find a job in that area despite being assured by the trade school he attended that there were jobs for ALL graduates. So he worked at slightly above minimum wage at a finance company for years. Then he lost the job and it took him 18 months and numerous applications to finally get a job as a greeter at Walmart! He seemed happy to get anything he could!

Then there was my Sufi student who entered the job market as an IT programmer. Our prime minister was touting the field and saying Quebec needed many more of them. But each time he applied there were 200 other applicants! Not exactly a sellers’ market lol

Where does that show up in the employment statistics?

I would be interested to see what you find if you really look seriously into how these statistics are generated. I think you will discover a lot of surprises-as I did when I first looked into medical studies and listened to others who had done likewise.

Let me complete my thought here. So, if we begin looking at the employment situation, and start with “the facts” lol( which is what we see on mainstream media all the time) we conclude “best employment situation ever! Lowest unemployment rate ever!” But if we look at it from my Epistemology (my experience and the many people I am in touch with) I would conclude “Difficult, perhaps very difficult employment situation”. Who is right lol? Can there be any doubt?! And then you ask : “Why do people not get it?! Because they are being lied to on a daily basis, since birth! It’s the lie of Empiricism. And it needs to be challenged over and over again if we are to break the spell!

 

Happy Trails to you lol, Joel Ibrahim AKA Sufi Ibrahim