Those 700,000 jobs and how we compare

When Jim Michaels was editor of Forbes magazine, he instilled in his editors and writers that this incisive, imperative question be answered in every story: “Compared to what?”

It did little good to report to readers, for instance, that a company's profits may have increased 10% in a year. It did much more good to show how that increase compared to that company's peers. Context.

That Jim Michaels admonition came to mind recently after digesting the three-part series produced by a joint effort of the Tampa Bay Times and Miami Herald on Florida Gov. Rick's Scott job-creation efforts.

Surely you remember that when Scott ran for office in 2010, he made his 7-7-7 campaign promise: 700,000 new jobs in seven years via a seven-step plan.