Recently the news has been covering a lot of the status of unemployment in the U.S., and folks should recall that back when the rate was still beneath 6.5%, the media, and politicians all told American workers it was going to get better. But, it didn't get better, because now the unemployment rate has been set to 7.2%, a 16 year high. The American workforce cannot turn to their superiors because there is simply no dialogue going to occur when they get laid off, thus their only recourse is the unemployment line. So the American people who've lost their jobs can only turn to our political leaders, who are showing signs of shunning those who work an honest job.
In an attempt to alleviate some of the financial pressures of unemployment, President-elect Obama pushed for his own plan for economic stimulus. The Senate's response to his plan was that of resistance, and is beginning to show signs of placing obstacles in the path of rescuing those who are financially falling out of the bottom. Now, when Congress was confronted with the task of approving $750 billion dollar bailout plan for failing financial institutions, the Congressional leaders swiftly ran to their podiums to cast their votes, and get Henry Paulson, and the Bush administration money to ensure that corporate America could survive. Now, that the American people need a "bailout" in some words, the Senate is expressing concern over a growing deficit. This was not a concern when the corporate "fat cats" wanted more money to save them from their semi-corrupt business practices, practices which resulted in degrading the integrity of the U.S. monetary system.
If people need to ask themselves where the money is, and what the reason is that there is no necessity to give a helping hand to the economic players at the bottom, then the answer lies in the failure of our political leaders' concern for America's welfare, because America's well-being in their mind is at the top. This top includes corrupt governors, like Eliot Spitzer, Rod Blagojevich and Bill Richardson, swindling corporations like Enron and those involved in doing questionable business with elected officials. It also includes Wall Street gurus who robbed people blind, simply because they took advantage of deregulation, and made profits off of common trust, like Bernard Madoff. American people can find their money in the pockets of those corporate executives who gained bonuses for outsourcing American jobs overseas. The money is also deeply embedded in companies that reaped huge profits from the Iraq war, like Haliburton/KBR and Blackwater, a war that sucked the American purse dry in under 4 years, and still hasn't shown the American people any positive proof that Iraq was absolutely necessary for the benefit of the American population. What did it do, other than cost taxpayers more and more money?
Even the U.S. government as a whole has neglected its books, by placing the U.S. on a threatening ledge of debt (also known as government I.O.U.'s), in having placed trillions of dollars of debt in the hands of the Chinese treasury to keep our nation afloat. The same leadership that has placed us in global debt, is that which is asking Americans to tighten their belts, and simultaneously squandering our national purse on soft imperialism, and deficit buffers. The government can keep drawing from all sides of the money well, but eventually there will be nothing to draw.
Trickle-down economy does not work! Nor does any other kind of economy that does not wholly support its base. It especially does not work when somewhere along that money waterfall, CEO's are diverting the flow of money somewhere near the top of the trickle. And that is what is happening now. If U.S. leaders fail to understand this, then they simply do not have the best interests of the American people in mind, and therefore should not be in public office.
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