It appears that BOTH parties are sacrificing the jobless "for the benefit of the herd". The jobless have been grouped into the same category as the "cradle-to-the-grave" welfare recipients by the GOP, and the jobless have been only an embarrassment to the DEMS. The unemployed are used as political pawns and as talking points - they are just NUMBERS - that both parties use to score points against one another. The jobless don't have lobbyists pandering for their interests and Bill O'Reilly isn't looking out for them either. They were left to fend for themselves.
Personally, I would like to buy some camping equipment and pitch a tent somewhere before I can no longer pay my rent, but the government won't even allow me to do that. They leave the jobless very few choices left. It's much more difficult to survive as a homeless person today than it was in 1933. Back then they had "hoovervilles" (shantytowns) all across America, and panhandling was a profession. Try sleeping on the street today, and the police will tell you to move along. Job creation can't even keep up with natural population growth - so what are the other 15 million jobless people supposed to do? And these jobs will never come back...just ask Vice President Joe Biden...this is the reality.
And if you've been unemployed over 6 months...forgetaboutit!
Why do the commentators on Fox News (and the authors of the Wall Street Journal) keep emphasizing that the jobless are getting 2 years of unemployment benefits? When ACTUALLY, it's only the people living in States that have an unemployment rate above 8.5% that can qualify for "UP TO" 99 weeks....AND EVEN THEN, not everybody qualifies for the "maximum allowed" of 99 weeks.
It's as though the GOP and Fox News wants the general public to think that for the last 2 years we were all just relaxing by the side of the pool drinking Marquitas!
I live in Las Vegas with a 14.1% unemployment rate, but after working here full-time for 20 years, for some unknown reason, I only received 73 weeks (1 year and 4 months).
But the point that always seems to be missed here is, no matter how long someone collects benefits, there are still 15 million unemployed people and there are NOT 15 million jobs available for them. And even though I am a Republican, it is Fox News and the Republicans who keep saying that "extending unemployment benefits will extend unemployment."
And I say to them, "Show me the damn jobs or STFU!"
The stimulus package was nothing more than waste, fraud, and abuse that was packed chalk-full of cronyism and pork spending. Even according to Joe "Nobody Messes with Joe" Biden (Obama's overseer of this), this relates to about $500,000 per job "created or saved". I know it's the Progressive Left that quadrupled our deficit, and that "greens jobs" are a farce because we don't yet have the technology to make it feasible today. The point I'd like to make is, the GOP isn't helping the jobless by portraying us as lazy and not taking these "mystery" jobs. The bad public perception of the long-term unemployed hurts our chances of garnering public support for extending benefits. That's all I'm saying.
Rather than extend unemployment benefits for the poor, the GOP wants to extend tax cuts for the rich, rationalizing somehow that if the rich pay LESS taxes...the better off we'll all be. Well then, why don't we just declare that the rich pay NO TAXES at all...then all our economic problems will be solved!
Can you wait for the GOP to promote a "business friendly" environment to provide these much needed jobs after the November elections? I can't. I need a Tier Five to hold me over until then....AND FAST!
Am I the only one who gets angry when they hear "news" commentators like Neil Cavuto on FOX keep repeating the same old tired argument, even knowing that people are going homeless and committing suicide: "How are you going to pay for it?" - "How are you going to pay for it?" - "How are you going to pay for it?" - "How are you going to pay for it?"
Am I the only one who wants to crush Neil's ugly head between a vice? Would somebody PLEASE tell that idiot for me: "I paid taxes for 35 damn years...I've ALREADY paid for it you ass!"
I'm tired of being a political ping-pong ball. I say, kick them ALL out of Congress , fire Neil, and let's all start over!
UPDATES at Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Tier-Five-Or-Die/120731691298779
ALSO READ: Karl Dinse and Fox News Wages War on the unemployed
http://acompanyofone.org/post-article-2010-fox-news-and-karl-dinse.html
My other blog posts regarding the unemployment situation:
How a New Jobless Era Will Transform America
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog5.php/2010/04/17/how-a-new-jobless-era-will-transform-ame
America in Crisis - Congress Must Choose: Unemployment Benefits or Homelessness
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog3.php/2010/04/13/america-in-crisis-congress-must-choose-u
Tom Coburn and the Republicans on H.R. 4213 - "NOT!"
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog3.php/2010/04/11/tom-coburn-and-the-republicans-on-h-r-42
Latest Unemployment Numbers and Links from the Bureau of Labor and Statistics
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog3.php/2010/04/09/latest-unemployment-numbers-links-from-t
50 Years Old and Unemployed? You're a Dead Man Walking
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog3.php/2010/04/19/50-years-old-and-unemployed-you-re-a-dea
Critics of the Jobless - Why Benefits Should Be Extended
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog3.php/2010/04/09/critics-of-the-jobless-why-benefits-shou
Extended Federal Unemployment Benefits - Tier V - UPDATES
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog3.php/2010/02/16/extended-unemployment-benefits-in-2010
Fox News: "Are U.S. Veterans also Lazy?"
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog3.php/2010/04/27/fox-news-are-u-s-veterans-also-lazy
A Tribute to Another Unemployed 99er
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog3.php/2010/04/24/a-tribute-to-another-unemployed-99er
99ers Tossed to the Curb like Old Beer Cans
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog3.php/2010/04/24/99ers-tossed-to-the-curb-like-old-beer-c
Unemployment: Bottom of the List for Obama (UPDATES)
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog3.php/2010/04/05/unemployment-bottom-of-the-list-for-obam
Senator Kyl (R) Wisely backtracks - Calls for Extending Benefits
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog3.php/2010/04/04/senator-kyl-wisely-backtracks-calls-for
They're not Lazy! They Can't Find A Job You Idiot!
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog3.php/2010/03/28/they-re-not-lazy-they-can-t-find-a-job-y
Senator John Ensign and the GOP - "Let the Jobless Eat Cake"
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog3.php/2010/03/27/john-ensign-and-gop-let-the-jobless-eat
The Jobless Have Been Lost in Debate Over Healthcare
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog3.php/2010/03/27/the-jobless-lost-in-debate-over-healthca
Like the last Great Depression, Unemployment and Foreclosures, Might See Rise in Suicides
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog1.php/2010/03/10/unemployment-foreclosures-might-see-rise
The New Poor - Millions of Unemployed Face Years Without Jobs
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog1.php/2010/02/21/the-new-poor-millions-of-unemployed-face
Government Jobs (Bigger Government) Drive Employment Numbers
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog1.php/2010/03/01/government-jobs-bigger-government-drive
Actual Unemployment in 2010 - Recession Worse than Reported
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog1.php/2010/02/04/actual-unemployment-in-january-2010-rece
Deep Recession Shows No Sign of Letting Up - Maybe Getting Worse
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog1.php/2010/02/24/deep-recession-shows-no-sign-of-letting
Largest U.S. Labor Union: AFL-CIO says Jobs Won't Return
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog1.php/2010/01/07/largest-u-s-labor-union-afl-cio-says-job
More Bad News for the Unemployed in 2010 - and Beyond
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog1.php/2010/02/23/more-bad-news-for-the-unemployed-in-2010
Almost 1 out of 5 People are Out of Work in the U.S.A.
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog1.php/2009/12/31/unemployment-december-2009-new-release
FOX News Wages War on Unemployed - Thinks They're Lazy
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog1.php/2010/03/02/real-reason-why-extended-unemployment-be
Tea Party, Fox News, and Conservatives Attack the Unemployed
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog3.php/2010/03/04/tea-party-gets-in-wrong-on-unemployment
Obama-Care © Verses Unemployment and Suicide in 2010
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog3.php/2010/03/07/out-of-work-buy-a-shotgun
27 Million of 154 Million in Workforce w/o Jobs
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog3.php/2010/03/15/27-million-of-154-million-in-workforce-w
Fox News Continues to Insult Unemployed
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog3.php/2010/03/13/fox-news-continues-bashing-the-jobless
"Diversity" and Illegal Hiring Practices
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog2.php/2010/03/12/mgm-mirage-illegal-hiring-practices
No, Unemployment Benefits is not an Inalienable Right
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog3.php/2010/03/15/no-unemployment-benefits-is-not-inaliena
Too Old for the Workforce in 2010 - Unemployed Because of Age
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog3.php/2010/03/06/too-old-for-the-workforce-in-2010-unempl
What they're NOT Saying about Jobless Numbers
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog3.php/2010/04/08/what-nobody-s-saying-about-jobless-numbe
When Strip Bars in Las Vegas are Going Broke, You Know it's Bad!
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog5.php/2010/04/14/when-strip-bars-are-going-broke-you-know
The Jobless and Suicides in 2010
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog3.php/2010/03/07/out-of-work-buy-a-shotgun
The Great Depression: Then and Now - Is There a Difference?
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog1.php/2010/03/08/the-great-depression-then-and-now-is-the
Unemployed 99ers - Running on Empty
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog3.php/2010/04/17/unemployed-99ers-running-on-empty-do-not
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