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Unemployment: to infinity…and beyond!

Posted 07 Dec 2010 in Barack Obama, class warfare, economy, unemployment

I was happy to hear that President Obama compromised yesterday on the Republican priority of extending the Bush tax cuts for all Americans. And the temporary payroll tax reduction was another good idea that might help businesses in the short term. But my smile was quickly diminished when I heard the rest of his speech, as our Commander-In-Chief biterly parroted the term “wealthiest Americans” over and over in an attempt to console his base and agitate more envy amongst the middle class. Whenever Obama mentioned tax cuts, he continually portrayed them as though they were coming out of the government’s pocket rather than recognizing that IT’S NOT HIS MONEY. The government takes what we earn; tax cuts simply allow workers to keep more of what they’ve earned. And spend or invest as they see fit.

(News flash for Democrats: budget deficits don’t occur because the government didn’t seize enough money from high achievers, they occur when the government spends too much.)

Obuzza_LightyearIn addition to ratcheting up the divisive class warfare rhetoric, President Obama then attempted to portray himself as the savior of all the unemployed by extending to them an additional 13 weeks of paid benefits.

Just how long does the president hope to subsidize the unemployed in America? I know that sounds like a rhetorical question, given that the Democrat party seems content to be the party of perpetual dependence on government. But I’m genuinely asking, how long should the federal government continue to pay unemployment?

We currently give 99 weeks of paid benefits to the jobless. That’s nearly two years to find a job: 26 weeks of state-paid benefits and then up to 73 additional weeks of federally-funded unemployment. Now the American taxpayers are being asked to pay an additional 13 months on top of that? Puh-leeze. Half our states have unemployment funds that are either bankrupt or nearing insolvency. Increasing that obligation to 155 weeks of unemployment payments is not the answer. People need to find a job. ANY job. In this economy, folks have to learn not to look to the government for a handout, they need to take whatever job they can get.

If I sound unsympathetic, it’s because I’m speaking from experience.

I have over 20 years in my career, and after I got laid off in 2007 I had to learn to make do with less. I had to take whatever jobs I could find. I had to work multiple jobs — often menial jobs — in order to make ends meet. When I found another permanent position in 2008, I was ecstatic. It wasn’t the kind of work I was doing previously, nor at the salary to which I was accustomed. But it was a 40 hour per week job with benefits. And it lasted a whopping four months before I was caught up in another massive layoff.

Today, I’m no longer in management, I’m one of the worker bees. I’ve burned through the meager savings I had put aside my whole life. I’m still driving the same car I had 11 years ago. I’m back to doing the kind of work I was doing in the nineties. I still work several jobs. And I’m still making far less than I am worth. But I have a job. I’m not hanging around at home, watching the Maury show with my hand held out, demanding THREE YEARS OF SAFETY NET from the government.

Sure, there are many people who are genuinely looking for a job every single day. But a large segment of the 99ers have just given up. Because they can. Because they are receiving payment to do so.

Mr. President, why extend unemployment for just another 13 months? Why not 13 years? Rephrased in Democrat parlance, how can you be so heartless to not help the jobless? There will always be sad anecdotes which cry out for additional entitlement spending. Why not make it lifetime unemployment benefits to everyone who decides not to work?

Obviously, such misguided philanthropy with taxpayer funds is unsustainable. But it’s no different than what the President announced yesterday.

The thing is, President Obama and the Democrats in Congress have created such a toxic environment for businesses due to reckless spending, regulations, and hidden taxes on businesses. Employers have been increasingly reluctant to add new workers to their payrolls in such an uncertain economy. And after the class warfare speech given last night by our president, do you really believe they’re breathing a sigh of relief when they know the Bush tax cuts will expire again in another two years? Why should employers hire more workers when their businesses will just get socked with punitive taxation as soon as it’s politically expedient for Democrats to do so? Why struggle to achieve and grow when achievement and growth are demonized and confiscated for redistribution? By perpetuating the ideology of class warfare, the Democrat party is advancing a cyclical path of progressive uncertainty, cynicism, and mediocrity for all Americans.

Clearly, Obama didn’t learn from the repudiation he received at the hands of the American people at the midterm elections. But that’s not surprising, given that he can’t understand basic economics and the psyche behind successful entrepreneurship.

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UPDATE: Ben Howe over at Red State take a more measured approach than I, and gives good reason for his optimism.

“Keeping in mind that I am far from a champion of compromise, I think there is an overriding aspect of this deal that should be kept in mind: We kept the dollars out of the hands of the government. This is much more than a philosophical or ideological victory. It is a principled stand and should be applauded, not nitpicked…

The type of destructive compromise that I and others have warned the GOP about did not happen here. We held the gates on a handful of things that we can get to in less than a month when the new congress is seated, and we didn’t give an inch on anything else. I’d say that falls well within the definition of taking a principled stand.”

Howe focuses more on the tax cuts than on the extension of unemployment benefits, but he still makes many good points. Read the whole thing.

Posted by FullMetalPatriot
12th gen. American, Constitutionalist, Harley-riding Texan, gun owner & NRA member, blogger, illustrator, Florida Gator alumnus. #TCOT

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