Mr. President, I want a job

[LiberalEsto]

And so do millions of other Americans.
I want you to do something about creating more jobs in this country.
We need a new, New Deal. Another Works Progress Administration.

There are too damn many people out of work.

My daughter just decided to give up her education major after this semester. She's looking for some kind of trade school that can get her up and working as soon as possible. Originally she wanted to teach 5th grade math. But she found out that our school district is laying off 500 teachers, even though it's one of the wealthier school districts in the country. She figured that, with another 2 1/2 years of college before she can apply for certification, she will be out of luck when she starts hunting for a teaching job.

I've been out of work since October, 2008, and even then I was only working part time. I didn't sign up for unemployment benefits, because I thought the public relations company would have some new assignments for me in a short time.

I'm 58, female, and have a background in journalism. No paper's going to hire me, because they're too busy laying people off. Plus, they'd have to pay me at the top of the Newspaper Guild salary scale because of my years of experience, and a paper could probably hire two or more newbies for that price. And I just don't have the physical stamina for a fast-paced full time job any more. I figure if you help create full time work for others, someone might need me part time.

When I get an interview, which is seldom, the employers always have the same look on their faces when they see me. They see someone who's older than anyone in the office. They see someone whose computer skills are likely to be inadequate. They see someone who might not be willing to take a lot of crap about long, unpaid hours, like the terrified young workers they end up hiring and working half to death. They also see someone who will probably use a lot of health benefits and cause the company's insurance provider to raise rates.

Please, Mr. Obama, I need a job. An awful lot of people need a job. Jobs aren't going to appear by magic.

Corporations aren't going to hire more people if they can keep on squeezing unpaid extra hours out of the people they've still got. Maybe the government should enforce 40 hour work weeks and ban unpaid overtime.

Corporations aren't going to hire more Americans if they can keep getting those cheap foreign tech workers in on H1-B visas. Maybe we need to cancel those visas until the jobs crises is over.

The government can't continue to ignore us. Our numbers are growing, even though this might not be evident in the numbers of people collecting unemployment. There are a lot of invisible unemployed people like me.

Mr. President, you've got to help us.

[Dappleganger]

1. +10000

Well said!

[OhioChick]

2. Agreed and Well Said. n/t

[Blue Owl]

3. Big K&R

Hope you sent this to the WH.

[ncteechur]

4. Yes, but the federal government can only create a limited number of jobs.

Did you apply for a Census job. There was a poster the other day who turned one down. There may be a job out there for you but I don't know if it is the job you want.

[Bluenorthwest]

5. You mean a part time, temporary census gig

That is not a job. It is a stop gap.

[here_is_to_hope]

6. But its better than nothing...

I am driving a delivery truck. 9 years in radio, 11 years in print media/press.
Its what I could find.
Better than living under a bridge starving.

[Berry Cool]

8. Guess what. The poster the other day who turned that job down changed her mind

and accepted it.

Why? Because she got harangued at DU for obviously being a lazy SOB who didn't want to work, a snob for so much as having hoped she'd get a better offer, a princess who thought she was "too good to walk among the plebes," an idiot for thinking it would screw up her unemployment benefits, and a fool for not realizing "money is money" and "a job is a job." So she decided what the heck, let's try it and see what happens. Luckily, it was not too late.

But it really and truly is a stopgap job. I figure if I make a total of $2,000 from it, that'll be good. I know, money is money and a job is a job. But I still don't understand why so many of us are having to take jobs like this and be grateful for the work when we have so much else to offer.

[Peacetrain]

7. You are going to have to reup you skills just like the rest of us..

The Print media has been hemorrhaging market share for the last 10 years. No magic is going to bring it back either.

That census job, might be just the stop gap you need while you reassess.. Or maybe write a book with the skills you have attained.

Good luck.. its a tough market for everyone

[hayu_lol]

9. The works program worked very well during the last...

depression. Particularly for artists, writers, and the like. The material is a goldmine of info for those who have access to it.

It fed families. Kept them housed.

Hi LiberalEsto...from grinch

[LiberalEsto]

10. Hi Grinch!

That's kind of what I was hoping for - a WPA that created jobs in many different walks of life.

But I really don't see any momentum on the part of Congress or the White House.

:hi:

[LiberalEsto]

11. You're right about that

I don't have any money to take courses at this time.

[truedelphi]

16. The big problem with your statement is this one Peace train...

Just what field do you recommend?

Right now, my landlord's family has two kids in college. Neither one is considering anything related to science in terms of research - the research is now mostly done overseas.

Neither one is considering anything related to journalism, teaching or accounting (Our big corporations often simply send their accounting work to India or Pakisatan.)

SO in the end, the health field is considered lucrative. Problem being, even before the massive collapse of the economy in late 2008, most decent colleges and universities in Calif. offering nursing and MD programs already had waiting lists.

Now that has extended to occupational therapists, physical therapists et al.

And there are only so many people who can plug into the new media and do graphic design.

So Just what lines of work did you have in mind? Considering that 10 percent of all Americans are out of work full time and maybe another two or three are working below their station, what do you suggest?

[OnionPatch]

12. Dear Mr. President

How about doing something to stop the tax breaks that go to companies that ship jobs overseas like you PROMISED. I'm waiting.....we're all still waiting.............................

[HughBeaumont]

13. Shyah, good luck getting the Pentasewer to give up their Bigger Penis Quests.

Don't really know what these occupations were ever about, and they serve no purpose other than draining close to a billion dollars a month from the National coffers to funnel into the pockets of wealthy industrialists.

There's where we would get the money to pay for such a venture.

But like Orwell said, "The war is not meant to be won, it is meant to be continuous. Hierarchical society is only possible on the basis of poverty and ignorance. This new version is the past and no different past can ever have existed. In principle the war effort is always planned to keep society on the brink of starvation. The war is waged by the ruling group against its own subjects and its object is not the victory over either Eurasia or East Asia, but to keep the very structure of society intact."

America seems to have forgotten its responsible notion of the "We" society and is focused far too closely on the "Wealth" society.

America badly needs to modernize and a WPA program would certainly be a stepping stone towards that. The problem is, our steadfast devotion to wealth inequality, bubbles, speculation and eternal occupation is KILLING us.

[bvar22]

14. No, no , NO!

You are going to make The Giant Invisible Hand very angry!

The Giant Invisible Hand says that if we help Poor People, it just makes them lazy!

The Giant Invisible Hand demands more Free Trade and Bonuses for Billionaires.

The Giant Invisible Hand says that if the benevolent RICH have more money, they will create jobs for us.

The Giant Invisible Hand says that the American Working Class MUST compete with 3rd World Slave Labor for their jobs.

The Giant Invisible Hand will save us all!

All Hail The Giant Invisible Hand!



...and people say the Democrats are Anti-Religious.

Its the Free Market.
Look at all the Baseball Players.

[LiberalEsto]

15. The Giant Invisible Hand

The GIH needs to go play with its Giant Invisible Weenie and leave us the !@#$%^ alone, before We The People give it one hell of a manicure! :evilgrin:

[nickinSTL]

17. Jobs NEED to be Obama's focus

dicking around with other crap -

Unemployment is ridiculously high - and if they actually counted real unemployment, rather than those who qualify for benefits, the number is staggering- recession, my ass. It's a depression, IMO.

Anyway, millions are out of work, millions more are working multiple jobs just to get by, jobs are continuing to be cut - and latest hit are teachers and librarians, it seems, as state government funding is hitting a major crisis - and many of those keeping their jobs, like me, are going to be experiencing pay cuts - which will force me to get a second job just to pay the bills.

If Obama does not address the jobs disaster, he DESERVES to be a one-term president, IMO.
(though I concede that any Republican challenger in 2012 will be much worse)

It is thus far his biggest failure, and will remain so as long as he does nothing.

[LiberalEsto]

18. I agree with you

This country is hurting, and he needs to make it his number one priority.