Income Growth Reported In State

A recent media report noted that Arkansas experienced growth in average incomes from a year ago. I do wonder how results were calculated- for example did it consider unemployment or just the average income of people who still have jobs? The main thing that stood out for me was where the tiny income gain came from.

The increase came from Military pay, State Workers, and farm income. The last one is a true positive, although not a sign of recovery because people have to eat to live. Military pay and state worker income are no way to build a recovery either. You have the private sector which generates wealth, military and police who should protect it, and government workers whose job is increasingly to redistribute it. You can't have lasting growth when your earnings gain is from increases in protecting and redistributing wealth rather than by creating it.