Zeta Woof

The dead tree version of the WSJ arrives about noon in my (real, metal, rural) mailbox. The articles in it were written, at the latest, twelve hours before. And so, on page C1, Spencer Jakob had optimistically written about

...the release of May nonfarm payrolls, seen rising by 158,000 after last month's disapponiting gain of just 115,000.

By the time I read those words he'd already eaten them — the number was in fact 69,000, the worst in a year. The official unemployment rate ticked up a tenth, to 8.2 percent.

And so here we are, six months away from the general election, and the unemployment rate is rising.

As much as I hate wishing on bad luck, if it takes bad luck to drive out worse, then I wish Mr. Obama the very worst luck in the world. So far, it seems, he's getting it.

"Will Romney be better?" my wife asks.

He can't be worse.