Kind of a misery loves company thing when it comes to the August jobs picture. Three states had rates higher than California's 12.2 percent: Rhode Island (12.8 percent), Nevada (13.2 percent), and the grand-daddy of them all, Michigan (15. 2 percent). Perhaps more revealing: 14 states have an unemployment rate in the double digits and 27 states posted increases. By the way, California's 12.2 percent is a postwar high (that's World War II for the youngins'). All these numbers, of course, are only starting points for assessing the true employment picture. Within portions of L.A. County, for instance, unemployment is way higher than the county's 12.3 percent overall. The City of Commerce had the highest unemployment rate in the county, at 22 percent.