Jobs Contract 21th Straight Month; Unemployment Rate Hits 9.8%

" Sorry folks, I was one month early. In January I forecast the unemployment rate would hit 9.8% by August. Meanwhile, even though it was clear the Fed was wildly off base in its adverse scenario, the Fed upped it total to a mere 9.2% to 9.6% for the year as noted on May 21, 2009 in Fed's Economic Forecast Worsens; Still Ridiculously Optimistic."