Observations of schools and the economies of various countries and regions (including the Eastern and Western Europe, Scandinavia, and the United States) suggest that the following generally accepted principles may be called hoaxes: (1) great numbers of new emerging jobs of the future will require much higher skill levels for workers; (2) increasing educational levels and training will create jobs; and (3) university research is generally of high quality and important. The reality is that, throughout the world (including in Wisconsin), the biggest areas of job growth are in the service and sales sectors. Most of these jobs require short-term or moderate-length training or experience rather than long-term training. Furthermore, there is no evidence that increasing educational levels or training can create jobs. Upgrading education and increasing people's educational levels are beneficial. The problem is on the demand side (creating living wage jobs) rather than on the supply side (education and training of workers). The ultimate paradox in education in the United States is that while some school reformers are calling for changes in secondary schools to follow European models, the European countries are enacting major reforms to make their schools more similar to U.S. schools. (MN)