Oh yeah, it’s a nightmare alright

I have one thing to say about this below — Welcome to my world.

The Story:

Close your eyes and picture the scariest thing you can think of. Maybe it’s a giant spider or a giant Stay Puft marshmallow man or something that’s not even giant at all. Well, whatever it is, I guarantee it’s not nearly as scary as the real scariest thing in the world. That’s long-term unemployment.

There are two labor markets nowadays. There’s the market for people who have been out of work for less than six months, and the market for people who have been out of work longer. The former is working pretty normally, and the latter is horribly dysfunctional. That was the conclusion of recent research I highlighted a few months ago by Rand Ghayad, a visiting scholar at the Boston Fed and a PhD candidate in economics at Northeastern University, and William Dickens, a professor of economics at Northeastern University, that looked at Beveridge curves for different ages, industries, and education levels to see who the recovery is leaving behind.

via The Terrifying Reality of Long-Term Unemployment – Matthew O’Brien – The Atlantic.

I have been unemployed for 8 solid years. Now, some of that, is my fault. I got into some of that HERE, when I wrote about my job hunting. But, some of it; is simply the bad economy here in Michigan and as of 2008; the entire Country.

One part that I quibble with on this piece, is this here:

It’s time for the government to start hiring the long-term unemployed. Or, at the least, start giving employers tax incentives to hire the long-term unemployed. The worst possible outcome for all of us is if the long-term unemployed become unemployable. That would permanently reduce our productive capacity.

We can do better, and we need to start doing so now. We can’t afford long-term thinking in either the short or the long-term.

Okay, let me break this down here:

Our Government is broke. They hardly can afford the people that they have now! They are having to cut hours and staff to stay afloat. So, that is out.
As for the tax incentives; I just do not think that incentives would even remotely work. What the employers would do, is hire the people; declare it on their taxes and then turn around and let the people or fire them for silly reasons.

What will work is a strongly worded piece of legislation that would make it illegal for employers to discriminate against those, who have been unemployed longer than six months and make damned sure the law is enforced to the hilt. With fines and loss of business license being the penalties for the infraction.

Let me clear here; I am not in favor of big Government statism at all; however, there are times, when, because of the actions of crony capitalists, Government has to take action to protect the American people, namely long-term unemployed Americans, like me — from being discriminated against, for the simple crime of not being able to find a job. My reasons for not being able to get a job in the field that I trained in are explained here. Yes, I whacked a pole, trying to make a turn out of a parking lot; that was in 2003. I should have been able to find work with a trucking company locally or at least regionally. I have not, why? Because no one locally or regionally is hiring, outside a big company around here, which is notorious for screwing its employees.

Again, I agree with what this man is saying is this article; I simply just do not believe his solutions are the right ones.

The Working Class under Obama: Screwed, as always

This comes via InstaPundit, who snarks:

HOW’S THAT HOPEY-CHANGEY STUFF WORKIN’ OUT FOR YA?

Gallows humor, I like it. Hee hee

Reason Magazine reports the following:

If the labor participation rate had remained where it was in 2008, points out Investors Business Daily, unemployment would have recently risen to 11.1 percent.

By the way, I am one of those people, who basically left the job market, because there simply are not any jobs around here.

Some more lovely news, via Investors Business Daily:

Small businesses, who employ the bulk of American workers, don’t plan to hire additional staff, in another sign the job market is deteriorating again.

The National Federation of Independent Business said Tuesday that confidence among small firms dropped, with its index dipping to 89.5 in March from 90.8 in February.

The share of firms planning to grow employment minus the share planning to shrink it fell to a net 0%, the lowest in a year, from 4% in the prior month.

The survey also found business owners were no more pessimistic on the economy, but the balance of sales expectations swung to -4% from 1%. Small firms also were more inclined to shrink inventories and less inclined to think now is a good time to expand.

The NFIB index comes days after the Labor Department said nonfarm payrolls grew by just 88,000 in March, after averaging gains of more than 200,000 in the earlier five months.

The latest jobs report seems to indicate a pattern of strong winter hiring followed by a spring or summer slump will be repeated this year.

“After another false start, small-business confidence has sputtered and stalled again,” said Bill Dunkelberg, NFIB’s chief economist, in a statement Tuesday. “For the sector that produces half the private GDP and employs half the private sector workforce — the fact that they are not growing, not hiring, not borrowing and not expanding like they should be, is evidence enough that uncertainty is slowing the economy.”

You have to understand, this is what Barack Obama and the Democrats want. They want people like me, the working class; to depend on Government. They do not want people like me working. They would rather I depend on Government and get some sort of Government assistance. Remember, Obama said, “I am interested in those high tech jobs” during the last President debate. The truth is, President Obama does not give two rips about the general labor types or the unskilled workers. The only people that the Democrats care about is:

Union Workers – Actually, he really does not care about them either. He just is obligated to them, because of the legacy of the labor movement of the past. Also too, because there are still some high rolling donors among the labor movement still to this day. So, the Democrats do still have to pay their respects; all the while selling their jobs overseas.
High Tech Jobs – This is because 90% of the tech job workers are immigrants and they. of course, are going to support a President, who gives them what they really want; which is amnesty. The other 10% of them are upper income liberals, who live in cities, like Ann Arbor, Michigan; fresh out of college and filled to the brim with liberal, socialist indoctrination.

This right here, is why I cannot find at least a local dirt hauling job around here. One, because the house construction business around here is basically bust, since the crash of 2008 — Which was caused by the stupidity of the Bill Clinton and the Democrats in the 1990’s. Two, because of what I have pointed out above. You have to have a reason for hauling that dirt around and if the economy is in the condition it is in, no one is going to want to have a house built or anything else for that matter; and companies who provide this service are not going to hire anyone extra, due to the fact that it might cost them in taxes.

This above, is why it looks like I am simply going to have to suck it up, pack up my bags, tell my parents goodbye; and get in a truck for a big company and basically be a slave for 2 years, working for crap wages. Once I get through the refresher, and running with a trainer, I should start making a decent wage; that is, if I actually get the miles. I would love to own my own truck and trailer; and pull loads off of a load board. However, that requires a good deal of capital, or in layman’s terms; a whole shitload of money, which I simply do not have. Oh, and another thing too; I am simply not interested in going into a ton and mean A TON of debt to start a trucking company. Since deregulation, the trucking industry is so stacked against a small time operator, that it simply is not worth the hassle anymore.

In short: I would be better off working for a big company. It is the way it is anymore, here in good ‘ol ‘merica. Sad Rolling Eyes Loser Doh

I know the feeling….

This basically what happened with me. I just gave up on looking, after I saw that I was not going to get hired around here. Same goes for the trucking work. It’s a long story, and not a pretty one.

Video:

The Story:

WASHINGTON – After a full year of fruitless job hunting, Natasha Baebler just gave up. She’d already abandoned hope of getting work in her field, working with the disabled. But she couldn’t land anything else, either — not even a job interview at a telephone call center. Until she feels confident enough to send out resumes again, she’ll get by on food stamps and disability checks from Social Security and live with her parents in St. Louis. “I’m not proud of it,” says Baebler, who is in her mid-30s and is blind. “The only way I’m able to sustain any semblance of self-preservation is to rely on government programs that I have no desire to be on.” Baebler’s frustrating experience has become all too common nearly four years after the Great Recession ended: Many Americans are still so discouraged that they’ve given up on the job market. — Americans discouraged by economic recovery leave labor force | Fox News

It sucks, but it’s my life. Only way that I am going to be able to get a driving job now, as in a class A truck; is go to a big company, take a refresher course and drive with a trainer for a few weeks and then drive for two to five years over the road. I am not looking forward to it. But, if I want my career back, I have to do it. There are other issues however: My parents ages for one, I am an only child and I am all they have. That one weighs on me heavy. Because I would hate to be out across the Country and have one of them have a problem.

This is the stuff that I am wrestling with. Do I or don’t I?

apologies for silence

I just really have not been feeling the need to write anything as of late. My mind has been occupied with other things here as of late. Namely trying to get back into the truck driving business. I applied for a major company and am waiting to hear back. I will be applying for another here tomorrow.

What this means is that I will be most likely on the road for 30 days on end, and home for a few days and then off again. A refresher course will be needed, it is mainly for the insurance companies; which I happen to think that reform is highly overdue, especially with the trucking industry, it should fall under labor department rules and regulations. Trucking is exempt from those rules and regulations; for better….or worse. 🙁

What this also means that my internet access and my ability to write will be limited, while I am refreshing myself to the art of driving a semi-truck and until I am able to afford a smart phone. I am hoping against hope, that my truck will have some sort of internet with the Qualcomm system in it. But, I will not hold my breath.

It just really pisses me the hell off that I have been out of truck for 10 years now. In 2003, I went to school to get my CDL-A and instead of being smart and getting with a good company and going over the road for two good years and actually learning to drive a fucking truck; like you are supposed to — stupid me, goes out and gets with some small time operator, because I want to stay near home. Anyhow, I ended up with a person who was a bigger idiot than me; and I promptly get into a fucking accident with my truck. Luckily, no one died and I really did not damage anything, except for an errant light pole that happened to be in my way.

The good thing, the idiot truck owner; who was really a moron, lost his authority to pull loads and is no longer in business. The bad part is this; All of this happened back in 2003-2004. I have not drove a truck since then. To any and all trucking companies, I am basically considered a high risk and would not be hired. Insurance companies would not insure me at all. So this means, I have to go with a company, like Swift Transport, or one that has a trucking school to go to a class to teach me something that I already know how to do —- drive a truck. 🙄

After this, then I have to ride with someone, who is considered a trainer, for as long as the company thinks that I need to do it; all the while paying me chicken feed, while the trucking company keeps the profit. It is called legalized slave labor and it does piss me off a great deal. 😡 Not to mention that fact, that I might end up with some AIDS infested faggot or some cowboy, who thinks going down mountains at 90 MPH is a cool thing to do. Now as for the faggot comment. A bit of person revelation here: When I was 9-year-old, someone tried to molest me; basically a kid in Jr. High, caught me in the bathroom at school and wanted me to give him a BJ. I reported it, and he was expelled. Ever since then, I have been leery about being around men in close quarters, like sleeping.

Either way, it is the route that I have to go; because I really, outside of a miracle, do not have any other choice at this point. That is if I even can get hired by a company at all.

So, as you can see, my mind is in other places at the moment. I will try to keep everyone informed about what is going on. This writing is not paying anything anymore; and I have to get out from under my parents. Living here is not easy anymore. I’ll just put it like that.

Pray for me — much, please.

Update: I almost forgot to add this following: Add to all this above, that I have two 60-something year old parents. 68 and 65 and I am an only child. I am all they have. When something bad goes down. I am the only thing they have to be there for them. 🙁

Video: Why I am not a big fan of Sean Hannity or Eric Bolling

Because of crap like this here: (H/T MMFA)

I mean, it is one thing to report the news and say that job numbers are horrible. Great, fine, they are; I agree with it. But to sit and actually accuse the President of the United States of “cooking the books” on the job numbers is just asinine. Also, let me also say this; if Obama is doing it, then George W. Bush did it too.

The truth is, the Government can never really know actually how many people are out of work. The only way that the United States Government could really know how many people are really out of work, would be to do some sort special survey to every citizen. This would cause every Constitutionalist Republican, Conservative and civil libertarian to lose their minds and holler, “Invasion of Privacy!” So, no, that will never happen.

Again, this is why I avoid partisan shows like Hannity on Fox and anything over on MSNBC. They are just too damned partisan for my liking. I do, however, like to watch Bill O’Reilly. You would never hear that sort of tripe come out of O’Reilly’s mouth, ever. He just would not say that sort of thing.

Again, I am not saying that the entire Fox News channel network is partisan; there are some who are not, but the ones who do choose to engage in that sort of partisanship do bring a bad reputation to the network itself. Rupert should put a stop to it. But, he won’t because Roger Ailes loves that sort of a thing and believes it brings them ratings.

Answering Digby

Just thought I’d answer a progressive blogger.

Digby who runs Hullabaloo, which is a left-wing blogger, reacting to this story here, asks the following:

I have to say that while Scott Walker is clearly the meanest of all the GOP wingut Governors (and Jan Brewer is clearly the dumbest) Rick Scott has got to be the weirdest. And that is saying something.

Florida, what were you thinking?

via Hullabaloo.

The same darned thing that you progressives and the rest of the rube idiots were thinking, when you elected and reelected that flipping dishonest, wall street brought and paid for, Marxist asshole in the White House — that’s what! The man campaigned on hope and change and what’d we get? More of the same. More of the same polices of George W. Bush. More drone strikes of American Citizens, More of “F*** the big three!” More of this President being interested in so-called “High tech jobs” and not low tech, general labor jobs.

So, the next time you want to lash out at the right there Digby. Remember, try looking in your own backyard for a change. (Hope Change?) Because your man is not really much of a prize either. In case you have not figured it out; I was not, am not, and never will be a fan of this President. Not because of his skin color; but because of what he is. Malcolm X summed him up very nicely — there are two kinds of blacks — Field and House; and Obama is a House. I have friends who are Field, and they are the best people ever. Most of the House kind are on Fox News and now are in the White House.

Now only this; and this comes from a personal standpoint; namely mine. He promised these jobs would come springing out of the woodwork. Just where the hell are all of these jobs at? I am unemployed, have been since 2005. Well, except for blogging, which really does not count as a job; because for one, I love doing it and for two, it really does not pay that great. But, where are these “Shovel-Ready” projects that this idiot actually had the stones to say would come popping out of woodwork? Now, you cannot blame the Republicans! You all had a majority in the Congress and the House for the first two years. Not to mention now, you basically have a majority in both houses, with a bunch of candy ass Republicans in both houses. So, where are the jobs at, that your “Hope and Change” savior promised?

The truth is, he could not create jobs! You knew it, Obama knew it; and the Democratic Party knew it! But, they instead chose to LIE to the uneducated idiot voters and they bought that damned lie and proceeded to elected and reelected the man. I knew what Obama was about, long ago. Which is why I broke away from that Party! Yeah, the Republicans are for the rich people. I get that; but at least they do not blow smoke up people’s butts and promise them stuff that they cannot deliver on. I give them that credit. Which is a heck of a bunch more than I can say about Obama and the Democrats now.

My detractors always tell me, “get a job!” My response is, “find me one, and I will!”

Of course, when you are a housewife out in Santa Monica and not actually in the real world, trying to find a job; one can only expect so much. I am just saying.

The best darned thing written so far about Detroit, The Labor Movement, and “Right to Work”

This is very good:

To understand why the impending transformation of Michigan into a right-to-work state is so mortifying to labor and its supporters—far worse, even, than what happened in Wisconsin and Ohio—one must consider the totemic status of the United Auto Workers (UAW). Although there are, despite all you have heard, many good reasons for public-sector workers to have the right to unionize, nobody ever made a movie or wrote a song about a public-sector worker; public-sector organizing campaigns are pretty tame affairs. But if someone were to write a book titled (with apologies to Vivian Gornick), The Romance of 20th Century American Unionism, it would likely be a dual case study. One story would be about the United Farm Workers of the 1960s and 1970s, courageously built from the grape and lettuce fields by migrant Latino laborers in California.

The other would span from the mid-1930s until about 1970 and tell the story of the United Auto Workers, the union that the Prospect’s Harold Meyerson correctly called the other day the “best” American union. Mass industrial workers, whom many believed were impossible to organize, spawned the UAW. These workers, the immigrant laborers of their time, shocked the nation with the imaginative militancy of their factory-floor sit-downs and “flying picket” lines at the legendary Flint, Michigan, strike in 1937. The union’s brilliant, incorruptible president, Walter Reuther—himself beaten and bloodied in organizing campaigns—sought, with the power of his union and his ideas, to leverage the United States into something resembling the social democracies of Western Europe. He had to settle for millions of working-class people ascending into the middle class in the 25 years following World War II, benefiting directly from UAW collective-bargaining agreements, or seeing their own wages and benefits tied to those of the UAW (and Steelworker’s union) standard.

Reuther, furthermore, supported both the nascent civil-rights movement (and fought hard to cleanse his own union of racism), the New Left, and even supported the beginning of modern environmentalism. The Port Huron statement—the founding, now canonical, document of Students for a Democratic Society—was written in 1962 at a UAW-owned campground for use by its members. You can see Reuther standing behind Dr. Martin Luther King during the “I Have a Dream” speech on the Mall in 1963, while George Meany’s AFL-CIO, from a mixture of racism and red baiting, shied away.

The UAW had enormous political clout, too. It couldn’t change the political economy of the country, but it was a powerful member of the Democratic Party coalition. Reuther had the ear, and vice versa, of every Democratic president and candidate of the postwar era. During this era, the presidential election campaign would begin for the Democratic candidate in—where else?—Cadillac Square in Detroit before a throng of union, mostly UAW, members. One can measure the changes in the Democratic Party, Michigan, and the country from, for example, reading the text of JFK’s 1960 Cadillac Square speech.

When Reuther died in a private plane crash in 1970, every auto plant in the country stopped its assembly lines for one minute in silent tribute—thus the “Big Three” car companies honored their remarkable adversary and the formidable institution he and his members built.

via This Is Not Wisconsin. It’s Worse – RICH YESELSON – American Prospect

I could not have worded it better myself. This isn’t about “right to work”, this piece of legislation is simply about destroying the labor movement in Detroit. Which is what the Republicans in Michigan and in Washington DC have wanted to do for ages. If the labor movement is smart, they will stand up to the weasel Snyder and not let this stand. Hopefully, they have the guts to do it.

Governor Rick Snyder starts to feel the heat for his idiocy

I find this to be very encouraging, perhaps Governor Snyder did not realize what he was getting into, or maybe he did.

The Story via Greg Sargent at Washington Post:

The “right to work” battle in Michigan may not be over quite yet.

Top Democrats in the Michigan Congressional delegation just wrapped up their meeting with Governor Rick Snyder, during which they urged him in no uncertain terms: If you go forward with “right to work” legislation, you’ll be consigning the state to years of discord and division. They urged him to consider vetoing the legislation or postponing it until the next session — or even agreeing to subject it to referendum.

According to Dems who were on the call, Snyder told them he would “seriously” take into account their objections — which they took as a genuine indication of possible willingness, for now, to reconsider.

“The Governor listened, and he told us he would seriously consider our concerns,” Senator Carl Levin said on a conference call with reporters.

The tenor of the meeting, which participants described as urgent and intense, underscores the gravity of the situation — not just for Democrats, but for the state itself. Dems told Snyder that forging ahead with “right to work” legislation risked undermining the progress in labor-management relations in the state and could create a situation similar to Wisconsin, where an ongoing battle over collective bargaining tore the state apart for over a year.

I do not trust the weasel myself, and here is why; This comes via Deadline Detroit, which I had some choice words for once, and which I retract those words too — granted, I have not always liked what I have seen there, but I was a bit harsh on them, they have the right to publish what they wish, just like I do…:

Signing right-to-work legislation will have serious, even dire consequences on the state, congressional Democrats told Gov. Rick Snyder this morning, according to Kathleen Gray in the Free Press.

In a private meeting in Detroit between seven members of Congress and Snyder, Sen. Carl Levin told reporters afterward they asked Snyder to either veto the legislation or remove the appropriation attached to the bill, which would allow a statewide vote on the issue.

“The labor environment has dramatically improved in the state,” Levin said. But with right to work, “instead of having a Michigan united, we’re going to have a Michigan divided.”

A couple of hours after meeting with the delegation, Snyder signaled his continuing support of the right-to-work bills when he tweeted, “Freedom to work is all about creating more and better jobs in Michigan.”

So, basically, this guy is nothing more than a lying snake. If I were the labor movement, I would not trust him at all. if anything at all; I would begin to mount a recall effort against this man and get him out of office as soon as they possibly could. Like others have noted, Governor Snyder has proven that he is nothing more than a lying stack of crap and will say and do anything to stay in power — including straight up lie to get elected, like he did to me and every other person who trusted him.

There is two things in this world that I have little or no use for — and that is thieves and liars; and this idiot Snyder is a lying piece of crap, if there ever was one to be behold. As the Detroit Free Press rightly noted, Governor Rick Snyder knowingly lied to the people of Michigan, including disillusioned Democrats like myself, who come from Democratic Party voting families and who happen to care about this State and this Country and do not agree with the far socialist left agenda of President Barack Obama. This does not mean, however, that we think that unions ought be outlawed and busted up.

Again, as I wrote before on here, this was nothing more than a pander to the extremist wing of the Republican Party and by doing this; Governor Snyder will pay a terrible price.

Sorry, but this strikes me as incredibly dumb

Look, I am all for unions fighting for their right to organize; but this, is just plain stupid:

They looked jolly in red scarves and reindeer antler headbands, but the carolers outside of Troy’s Oakland Mall today were actually protestors conveying a serious message: No to right-to-work legislation in Michigan.

And they delivered their feelings about proposed bills and Gov. Rick Snyder through pointed, modified Christmas carols. Think “Frosty the Snowman.”

“Rick-y Snyder knew he couldn’t get his way — so he took the votes from the working folks so the wealthy get our pay,” they sang.

Shalaya Bryant, who works at a nursing home, said the group was trying to send the message that “right to work is not for Michigan.”

via Modified Christmas carols used to protest right-to-work legislation at Oakland Mall | Oakland County | Detroit Free Press

First of all, they are nowhere near the capital building in Lansing. Second of all, what a great way to show that Democrats and Unionists hate traditional Christian values, by butchering Christmas Carols. I mean, the left wants to be accepted by the rest of America; but yet, they pull stuff like this here. This is why the rest of America loathes the labor movement. Because they simply do not respect traditional values of America. Butchering Christmas carols makes the labor movement look selfish.

Thirdly, who told these people they could sing?!?! 😯 Egad. 🙄

Least anyone should think I was kidding

I have updated my header photo to show my feelings about Michigan Governor Snyder’s war on my Father.

In case anyone wonders:

The left photo is the logo for UAW local 22 in Detroit, which is my Father’s local.
The center is a 1950’s Cadillac which was taken in the plant at the Clark street plant in southwest Detroit sometime in the 1950’s.
The left is the UAW logo.

Please, do not get me wrong; I am all for businesses and capitalism. But when Republicans begin to embrace fascism, which is what this little move by Governor Snyder was, that is when I have to sign off.

I still consider myself an Independent voter; and this Indy’s vote is up for grabs come 2014 and 2016.

When the Conservative movement and the Republican Party want to come back to reality; we’ll talk. Till then, they can go jump in the lake.

I am my Father’s son and I will not sit idly by and allow some crony capitalists and corporatist pigs screw him over. Not in this lifetime.

I might not be an Obama fan; But I am not a fool.