The Bizarre, Misleading Editorial From The NY Times
This morning’s New York Times features an editorial that is entirely too casual with statistics. It begins fine:
Searching for solace in bleak unemployment numbers, policy makers and commentators often cite the relatively low joblessness among college graduates, which is currently 5.1 percent compared with 10 percent for high school graduates and an overall jobless rate of 9.8 percent.
They have that right: A college degree is an insurance policy against unemployment. It’s not a guarantee of future riches, but, statistically, every year of education leads to higher wages and lower unemployment. It continues:
A college education is better than no college education and correlates with higher pay.
Yep, so far so good. Then it gets strange:
But as a cure for unemployment or as a way to narrow the chasm between the rich and everyone