Quote for today…

Integrity is the most valuable and respected quality of leadership. Always keep your word. – Brian Tracy

Welcome to “Thursday Numbers!” If you are a first-time visitor, this is the weekly column where I look at the numbers in the news (in descending order) and provide commentary sometimes sprinkled with sarcasm and humor.

This week’s topics include the lottery jackpot, COVID numbers, unemployment, TWW poll results, longest-serving flight attendant, Montana Army National Guard, Biden approval numbers, gas prices, and more!

400,000,000

That’s the jackpot for Friday’s Mega Millions lottery. (Source)

You can’t win if you don’t play…

13,170,000

Former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson’s testimony before the Jan. 6 committee was a big hit with television viewers, easily reaching a larger live audience than any of the four other daytime hearings. Hutchinson’s riveting testimony about former President Donald Trump’s temper as plans to overturn the 2020 election fell apart was seen by 13.17 million people last week, the Nielsen company said. (AP)

Very compelling and damning testimony…

1,019,083

That is how many people have died in the United States from coronavirus, according to the latest data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. There have been 88,263,520 cases across the country so far. The first death in the USA was reported on February 29, 2020. (Johns Hopkins)

Last week, the death total was 1,017,468.

235,000

In the week ending July 2, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial unemployment claims was 235,000, an increase of 4,000 from the previous week’s unrevised level of 231,000. The 4-week moving average was 232,500, an increase of 750 from the previous week’s unrevised average of 231,750. (DOL)

Note: On Thursdays, this column is published right after 6:30 a.m. (Montana time), so I can post the latest unemployment numbers.

93

This week’s poll question asked, “Did you set off fireworks on the Fourth of July?” Here are the results:

• NO: 93%
• YES: 7%

Thanks for participating!

86

An 86-year-old woman who has been flying regularly for nearly 65 years was named the world’s longest-serving flight attendant by Guinness World Records. (FOX5NY)

The first successful airplane flight was on December 17, 1903, in case you were wondering…

50

After missing a June 30 deadline to get vaccinated against COVID-19 or start the exemption process, about 50 members of the Montana Army National Guard could face penalties including eventual removal from service. (Helena IR)

It’s time to get rid of them…

39

According to FiveThirtyEight.com, that is President Joe Biden’s current approval rating. (Source)

Last week, Biden’s approval rating was 39%.

3

Gas prices have fallen for three consecutive weeks, providing a small measure of relief for motorists hammered by a record price surge during this year’s inflation crisis. (NY Post)

This should worry the MAGA folks…

0.084 – 11.45

That is the average price per gallon of gas around the world as of July 4, 2022. (Source)

In the USA, the average price on July 4 was $5.01. The week before (June 27), the average price in the USA was $5.19.

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