Meta Stop debating facts that can be proven "I can't believe I have to stand up here next to this liar for 90 minutes..." Reality hurts sometimes. And when you want something, and the facts don't line up with it, the crazy narratives just write themselves in your head. True story. So, while I realized that Gov. Mitt Romney had either flipped most of his positions or outright lied during the first presidential debate, I didn't start flipping out for a couple of days. The media, or at least the remaining real reporters who do research and present the things they learn , would take care of pointing out the truthiness and reversals. It wasn't until Friday morning, when the Bureau of Labor Statistics released last week's unemployment numbers that my head exploded as conservatives of all types started questioning those numbers under the guise that they'd been manipulated for the sake of the never-ending presidential campaign. Reporters like to make it seem like our jobs are necessarily difficult. The truth is, if you know where to look, who to ask, have the persistence to gather the information and you know how to write a coherent sentence presenting information without an opinion, this job is easy. But, you have to pay attention. The unemployment numbers released by the government are twofold: The number of people who have filed for unemployment benefits that week, and the percentage of the working population  -- based on payroll taxes and new filings  -- that