Unemployment - A Crisis In Waiting

We all know that one of the serious economic problems facing the country is the high unemployment rate. When the current recession began the national unemployment rate soared up and is hovering around 10%. That number does not include the "underemployed" (those people unable to find full time employment that have been forced to accept part time jobs and or jobs that pay minimum wage or are below their job skills and abilities). When these people are factored in the real number of underemployed and unemployed goes as high as 20% . That means that, in many parts of the country, 1 out of every 5 Americans is unemployed or underemployed!

It does not take a rocket scientist to know that the economy can not recover until people are back to work and earning descent wages. The Administration knows this. The President and all of Congress have been giving this issue lip-service for over a year. The Administration has passed 2 stimulus packages and lord knows how many bail out packages to stabilize the country and to "create or save jobs". Their efforts have thus far been a dismal failure. The only sector where there has been a descent increase in hiring has been with the Federal Government!

Most good quality jobs are created by private business and that has not been happening. Why? Because of the threat of ever increasing taxes and the cost of having to comply with ever stiffening regulations on manufacturing and production. Our conservationists and environmental protectionists (our left wing extremists) have passed regulation after regulation and tax after tax on our businesses in the name of protecting the environment. These things cost our businesses money, lots of money. Businesses are forced to pass the increases along to the consumer. That makes American made goods more expensive and causes inflation. That also means there is less money for the business to use to hire more people -and less need to hire more because they can not sell their products and services in a market dominated by foreign businesses which are not burdened by those same regulations and taxes.

All of this is background for the crisis which is waiting just around the corner. All those unemployed people have to eat and live. Most are receiving unemployment compensation to help keep them going until they can find a job. The problem is that this unemployment compensation is only temporary. In most states this is only intended to last 6 months or so, while the individuals find other ways of earning money.

In the current crisis many people have been unable to find jobs for a year or more! The Federal Government has given the states money to extend unemployment for these people several times now. That simply can not go on forever. At some point that has to stop and that point is getting ever closer. What is going to happen when the government can no longer sustain that effort?

In the Inland Empire area of California alone there are 100,000 to 130,000 people receiving unemployment compensation. There are 14.9 million people receiving it nationally. What is going to happen when the Administration tells 14.9 million people they will not have a check coming every 2 weeks to pay for food and housing?

Another very real part of that crisis is the simple fact that most of those unemployed people are not dead-beats. They do not want to live their lives on this small hand-out from the government. They want to get back to work. They want to earn a living and better themselves. They are still part of the American dream and they are very willing to work and do their part for it. These people are becoming frustrated and angry. These people are not stupid. They know that their jobs have gone to India and China. They know their prosperity has been given away in the name of protecting the environment and increasing the size of the federal government. This is a group of Americans that are reaching the end of their patience. We are already seeing signs of it. Many extremist groups have seen a dramatic increase in size the past year. Some militant militia groups have grown 200% and more! Extremists from many causes are taking advantage of the situation and are striking out against "The Establishment". Anger expresses itself in many ways and those 14.9 million Americans are not going to sit and allow themselves to become welfare dependent indefinitely. Riots would break out right now, today, if the federal government failed to extend the unemployment benefits. What do you thing will happen 6 months are a year from now when we reach that point? How many of these Americans in their frustration will have turned to extremist groups trying to find a way to force change?

The Administration has many issues that demand attention. They must contend with problems ranging from immigration reform to conducting 2 on-going wars. The problem of unemployment and underemployment has never been far from their minds but it has taken a backseat to these other issues. This has to change. The Administration has to change its priorities and start protecting jobs before protecting the environment. Feeding Americans is far more important that protecting the smelt in the Sacramento Delta!

Creating jobs is not hard - all they have to do is let American businessmen do what they do best! Take the shackles of tax and environmental restrictions off and let the American entrepreneurial spirit rise to the challenge. This country was the leader of the entire world in production, manufacturing, and innovation. We are loosing that place because of those taxes and those restrictions. Lift, or at least lessen, those burdens for a few short years and watch what happens! Get rid of the things holding back those Americans and watch them take them take the lead again! But, continue to hold them back - allow this cauldron of frustration and anger boil over and the consequences are easy to predict and too terrible to consider!