As I was reading today...

So I'm reading the new Paul Krugman book. And I was thinking about economic data, and how you really can't run around it. You either address it--which is what the reality based community would do. Or you evade it, which is what Conservatives do. And I thought to myself,you know

the numbers don't lie... but there are people who will lie about the numbers.

[of coarse that is a bit of hyperbole... even though the numbers don't lie, there are a very small number of people who understand the numbers--some of whom lie about them, and then a really large group of people who don't understand the numbers and so when they talk about them and are wrong...they aren't lying persay. They are just exposing poor computational skills. The really hard part is understanding the numbers, the really really hard part is explaining the numbers to the rest of us... I don't know if there is anyone in the really really hard part arena. I have my presupmtions...]