Any Surprises?

1. Gaming the Rankings (NYT): Is anyone surprised that colleges and universities may attempt to game the US News & World Report rankings? Indicators driving behavior? In education?
2. Newt Gingrich Campaign Pays…Newt Gingrich (Politico): “Newt Gingrich’s campaign paid him $47,000 for a list of supporters and paid one of his companies another $67,000 for web hosting.” In this economy, even consulting historians search for new sources of profit.
3. Despite Newt Gingrich’s Disdain for the MSM, the MSM is his Greatest Champion. As Dana Milbank  (WaPo) informs Newt: “You’re the only thing saving us from a long spring of despair, the only person who can, by extending the presidential race, drive up our audience and bring us the revenues we so desperately need.”
4. The Unemployment Rate is Worse Than Reported. As the CBO notes (via Zerohedge): “Had that portion of the decline in the labor force participation rate since 2007 that is attributable to neither the aging of the baby boomers nor the downturn in the business cycle (on the basis of the experience in previous downturns) not occurred, the unemployment rate in the fourth quarter of 2011 would have been about 1¼ percentage points higher than the actual rate of 8.7 percent.”