The Recession is Over? Who are These Clowns?

The recent headlines and most major news outlets reported from a panel of "experts" recently that the recession in this nation is now over. Strange, but from our neck of the woods it's the exact opposite. Who are these clowns trying to get one over on? From these "experts", our President, and others in Washington, we are to believe that the tough times are almost over and sunny days are just ahead. But from the view of ordinary Americans struggling to find a job and to earn a decent living, things have gone from bad to really bad. Jobs are continually being cut, wages and hours are being cut, and it is increasingly harder to put food on the table, gas in the tank, and shoes on our feet. A relative of mine recently had to postpone a much needed trip to the doctor due to being short of cash. Carrying on as well as is humanly possible for a majority of Americans has become so unnerving that some are resorting to suicide! The anger level for those who are hurting economically has reached epidemic proportions. You can bet that we will hear more horror stories of suicides and rages associated with job-loss as time progresses.
Another symptom of this economic nightmare is the rise in thefts. Now we won't likely hear of this in our media, but I have heard of it going on locally. Who of you are like me and have gotten totally fed up with watching these fabricated news reports on how well we are doing? I am totally done with watching the phony news reports, I am to the point where I will rarely watch the news. The economy is doing great for those who are not hurting, for those who have a job, for the fat cats in Washington and on Wal-street. It's always been this way. In the midst of hard working Americans who are struggling to survive, we hear of the first Lady's lavish trip to Spain which was rumored to be between $250,000 to $375,000! The anger has only started folks. We've seen a lot but we haven't seen anything yet! We have been duped by the bail-out, our current President, our previous President, and our Congress as well. I am coming to believe that those in power in our government are all working for the big banks and for those who will line their pockets once they get in office. People try to do the right thing by earning a decent living, keeping the lights on, and feeding their children. What do you think the end result will be when those decent people constantly look around and see all of the pillaging and shenanigans going on in our nation? It won't end well. There is a destruction of our Nation on the horizon and it's been a long time in the making. We are told in the Bible about those who are called the "Kings of the Earth". These are the very ones who pull the strings, they are enormously wealthy and they will never suffer lack like us common folk. These are the very ones who want to destroy our Nation and other Nations for their own profit.

We can read more about these "Kings of the Earth" in James 5:1:

1 Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you.
2 Your riches are corrupted , and your garments are moth-eaten.
3 Your gold and silver is cankered ; and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days.
4 Behold , the hire of the laborers who have reaped down your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud , crieth : and the cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of sabaoth.
5 Ye have lived in pleasure on the earth, and been wanton ; ye have nourished your hearts, as in a day of slaughter.
6 Ye have condemned and killed the just; and he doth not resist you.

These rich of the earth care nothing of their neighbor. They could care less for others. They only care about riches and their own well-being. Truth is, we are seeing more of this in our Nation than at any other time in history. It is a joke to tell someone who is losing everything to just "hold on", which is essentially what those in our Government have been spouting for the past year. Rest assured that someday those who could care less about those suffering and struggling in our jobless recovery will suffer loss but until then, things will carry on as usual. We will get more news reports on how "well" we all are doing. We will hear about how many new "government" jobs have been filled. Meanwhile, I go to my local Wal-Mart and for the past month I have noticed a real change there folks. There are very few shopping. The cashiers are up toward the front standing around wringing their hands and looking for something to do. This whole recession stuff will get worse. The only question is how much worse?

Unemployed Are Lazy? Think Again

Checking out my local message board, I ran across plenty of comments on unemployment numbers and the topic of extending unemployment benefits. It saddened me to run across many
on that board who were calling those who receive Unemployment benefits "lazy". Those getting benefits are NOT lazy people who are sucking money out of our system. I've read so many comments of those who say they believe that if a person has been on unemployment benefits for over 40 weeks, they would have surely found a job by now had they really wanted to work.

Those who say such things only prove to me that their time of hardship is coming. Their pink slip is right around the corner. Isn't it easy for those of 
us still working to judge those who are not? My friends, these ideas are wrong. The Bible teaches
us that we should take care lest at any time we should fall from our own steadfastness. At the
precise time we are so sure that our income could never stop flowing in and our ability to put food on the table is
not in jeopardy is the same time out of left field WE will find ourselves in the unemployment line.
It only serves to show me the stupidity of those who trust it will never happen to them. Folks, this
has or will happen to all of us at one time or another. And those of us who are blessed to have a job now should 
spend some time praying for and helping those who are less fortunate. But instead what do we do? We have a tendency to bash them and to
judge them. I am truly sorry for the millions who are in dire straights because their benefits are about to run out. Those who
are going to have to move in with family long term because they cannot make the rent or house payment anymore. 
Those who must decide what to do for dinner tonight are many and those who cannot afford to put gas in the tank are growing every
single day.


Here are only a few examples of the negatively charged posts on one particular board:

"Like this is a big shocker! There ARE jobs out there along with a lot of folks who just don't want to work! I see hiring signs all around the city. I so agree with putting them to work for the State. Let them earn the unemployment checks! It would be a Win Win for all involved".

"You just said what the problem is. Some people stay on unemployment because they get more money on unemployment than if they went out and got a job! That is exactly what is wrong with the system. I do not care what kind of a job they had before. Things change. Many of the old jobs are never coming back. They need to go get a job. Any job and take responsibility for themselves. There are statistics that show that when peoples benefits are ready to run out they get a job either the week before or within one week after. So extending the unemployment benefits just extends unemployment. How long are the taxpayers going to have to support these people? And it is the taxpayers if they are on the extended benefits. Nobody owes these unemployed a check for life. There is also a thought out there that after the first benefits run out the extended benefits should have to be paid back. I like that idea. Why shouldn't they have to pay it back"?


I found an excellent example of Christian encouragement on these boards in reply to "unwanted's" post:

unwanted wrote: 
""I am so glad your optimistic but I guess your not receiving UI. I was laid off and I have a MA and 20 years behind of field experience and I have not been able to get a job for the past ten months. UI was the only thing I had to avoid bankruptcy. If the bill is not passed this Monday, I would have to sell my furniture to pay the rent and file bankruptcy. I am already $40k behind bills, not including student loans which are never forgiven due to the recession. I would even accept a state job at a pay of 30K if they would take me, but their are no jobs and most of the university students are used as interns so employers do not have to hire someone or pay an intern"".

reply below:
 
"Hang in there hon, things will get better. It's tough I know but believe me when I say there are a lot of people who feel your pain, myself included, and we are praying for all of those on unemployment who really do want jobs. Even people like yourself who have a decent education can't even get a job so what should that tell people!! Good luck w/ everything and keep your head up, lean on God and he will pull you through this".

Now this is how we are supposed to encourage and support those who are struggling with tough economic times.


Now look at the desperate actions some have taken in order to make money in this struggling economy:

"are we all insane...........................
there are millions of us here without a job
we all can not be that bad that we can not find work. 
It is amazing that my friend that is 50 years old, chemist, is now selling porn online.
amazing, every night he lies to his wife and children
another friend has sold her body just to pay bills......and she was a general mgr of a all clothing company.
the problem I see is getting everyone together ...most people just will not respond any longer.

Unheard of for a person to sell their body to make a living? No. This will quickly become the norm if drastic measures are not taken quickly by our government and each and every one of us to help out the unemployed. A thought came to me a week or so ago about starting a food and clothing pantry out of my home. I have no idea if I would need a license to do this or not. I could never undertake something like this on my own but would ask all of my friends and family to help donate if possible. I feel as though this is what God would have me to do instead of doing nothing. It is said in the bible that it is not enough for us to tell a hungry person to depart, be warm and fed, etc. Telling them this without supplying what we can to those in need is hypocritical and is of no value. God help us, because what is coming is going to be far worse than what we have witnessed so far.

More Mortgage Re-Sets Through 2012

Today I stumbled upon a troubling article from Karl Denninger. I had heard that the ARM *adjustable rate mortgage* mess was not over yet no matter how rosy a picture those on CNBC try to paint for us. The fact is; we are not out of the woods yet in relation to the mortgage meltdown we've been dealing with since 2007. The Alt-A, but more incredibly, the Option ARMs mortgage payments are going to be resetting (jacked-up) starting this year and if we think the Sub-prime was bad, we haven't seen anything yet.

Just think of it this way: Your mortgage payment you took on 5 years ago has been $900.00 a month UNTIL May 2010. Starting at that date your mortgage payment will now be $1900.00! It's been verified that on average the rise in these mortgage payments will reflect an eye-popping $1000.00 more a month!

Now I don't have a mortgage but that doesn't keep me from telling you what I would do if I did have one and was up against such a dower prospect. I would WALK AWAY! Yes folks, I would walk away and not fret about the situation nor look back. I would rent because that is all I suspect I would be able to do after having stopped paying my mortgage payments. Well, I would hope so at least. I hear of many sad stories of previous home owners walking away from their homes only to be turned away from renting due to poor credit that was directly attributed to the former.
How many can say they would be able to pay that large of an increase on their house payment? Not many I suspect, especially with so many in our nation out of work.
My heart goes out to all of my readers who have struggled to make ends meet. Many are those who have done without basic necessities in order to put food on the table and gas in the tank. Countless hours have been spent at the job you really don't like because you knew that it was the only way to keep your head above water and your family off of food stamps. Dealing with unappreciative employers, low wages, lack of insurance, and not enough vacation days. If this describes you, a prayer in my heart and a thank you on my lips goes out for you. You have sacrificed much and you love much and now you are facing the worst time of your life dealing with layoffs and possibly losing your home and even much, much more. In these times you cannot go wrong if you turn it all over to God and expect him to come to your rescue.

As for this recent continuation of the mortgage mess? What else can I say but this is just another spoke in the wheel of our recent economic nightmare that at one time was our American dream.

Unemployed Benefits in Jeopardy: Thanks Senator Bunning!

Good morning friends. I have been watching C-Span again and have come across something that I felt I should comment on. 

It seems that Senator Jim Bunning of Kentucky has been playing a game of keep-away with the nations unemployment benefits. Many of our unemployed Americans were due for their benefits to run out the last day of February 2010 and Bunning was not in favor of extending them, folks he was the sole objector! It seems sad and ridiculous that one person in the Senate can stop the extensions of benefits for millions but sadly this is the case. I hear that he cannot continue this for long though, he is just stalling the inevitable. But here's the real story here: Bunning's stall game  is the unemployed workers worse nightmare. Those workers as well as their employers both paid toward future need of drawing out those benefits so it is certainly not like they are unworthy to collect them. Surely Bunning feels he has nothing to lose by doing this to the American citizens as he is not up for re-election. Unemployment benefits are hardly ever equal to a regular pay check and are only enough to keep a family's head above water so why on earth would one man in the Senate object to doing the right thing? There is only one answer to this question and it is that Senator Bunning has a cold heart and cannot relate to the needs of average working Americans. Tell me what else it could be? I know all about Paygo, etc. But there was certainly enough money for an unjust war with Iraq wasn't there? There was certainly enough money when Bush and Bunning and the others were pushing tax cuts for the rich wasn't there? Sure there was.. and now that the common men and women of America are in need of unemployment extensions this scoundrel is going to object? Give me a break.

Bunning no doubt receives a salary upwards of 200,000. He is not worried about having health-care and surely does not worry about retirement. Contrast that with the average American worker who is laid off and has lost their health-care, hopes of retirement and a weekly paycheck!

Why do we have our Senate set up like this where one person can object to extending benefits? It is utterly obscene that one person can cause the pain and suffering for so many. Surely this morning those in the Senate will continue their wrangling and silliness but I don't think anything they do will end up in favor of extending the benefits for another week or so. One or two weeks of late unemployment checks can totally devastate a family. Mark my words, there will be long drawn out repercussions of Bunnings actions upon the laid-off citizens of our country. Now they are speaking about Medicare payments being in jeopardy because of their recent actions.

You can read more at the Huffington Post: Here are related articles and I find the comments from readers interesting to say the least.

Jim Bunning Impasse Puts Federal Employees Out Of Work

Bunning Objects to Extending Unemployment Benefits...Again (Video)

After the Cash Runs Out: Part 1

Let me present a scenario to my readers :
You've lost your job and cannot find another.
If you had a savings, you have already used it up. Your numerous job searches have exhausted you and proven unfruitful. You figure that you have 2 more weeks to draw on unemployment and that is it.
Rent, bills and putting food on the table never stops. There is medicine to buy, kids to clothe, and a gas tank on empty. How do you choose which bill to cover and which to let go? Some bills are non-negotiable. Your options are to turn your back on the life you have known and move in with family members which NONE of us want to do OR load everything up (the bare necessities) and set off for-----God knows where. What a predicament.
Unfortunately, this is the very scenario thousands of Americans are facing today. I can't believe I'm addressing this but I feel compelled to. With this in mind, is it any wonder why thousands of tent cities are cropping up all over our nation today? The nationwide health-care debate should be placed on the back burner until we address the serious job loss in this nation. It is so serious in fact that many are struggling like never before because of cut hours at work not to mention those recently handed pink slips. I admit that I have led a somewhat sheltered life. Yes, I am a hard worker, but for the past 10 years or more I have not found myself struggling with the above scenario.
Sure, I have had times when my children were small when I REALLY had to skimp by and be contented with the little we had in the fridge. Sometimes pickings were REALLY slim for us. Making ends meet is really tough even WITH a full time job when you have children. Let's all agree that when it comes to losing our jobs we have the idea that WE won't have to know what it's like - it's always the next door neighbor it happens to until the unimaginable becomes our reality. Now if you own property that is the best position to be in. Even if it's undeveloped, you own it and nobody can kick you off it as long as you pay your property taxes. I suggest if you have spare cash you buy a small piece of land. If possible, go rural, this is the absolute best investment you will ever make. Even if it's a small lot-- whatever. If you have land in your possession you have a place you can go and not have to worry about getting booted off of it. No home on it? Live in a lean-to or tent for now. Sure you must have shelter, but before that you must have ground under your feet that you own- thus my rant on buying a cheap piece of land.

Now if you are not in this position, then it is a given that you must live with family members who are willing to take you in OR live in your car on the side of the road or parking lot OR find a homeless shelter. Shelters are now overflowing. Churches should have their doors open to the new homeless who have lost their jobs and are in need of a helping hand. I have a feeling that many jobs that have been lost will NOT be coming back. Who has any money anymore? The middle class in this country is under attack. I can see in the near future that our malls are going to be a very lonely place. What am I talking about in the near future--- many already are a lonely place. How pray tell are people going to be spending when they are out of work? They simply won't be spending anymore. More businesses are closing every day. This may be the time that many of you are hunkering down and saying to yourself, "That's it, my family and no more". Understandable until you put yourself in anothers shoes. This is not the time to be drawing back and taking care of only ourselves. Jesus would have us STILL help those who are in need. He would have us take pity on those who are down on their luck and in need of a help up and not a hand out.

Job Loss and Lifestyles

It's been many months since I last posted on my blog. I have been at a loss for words about the situation with our economy and the way it is hurting so many precious people out there.

A bit of perspective about job loss:
When we lose our job we might draw unemployment benefits but they do run out and then stark reality sets in. There are NOT a lot of jobs out there and anyone who says there is has not been beating the pavement looking for one lately. The most important thing we can do while looking for a new job is to make DRASTIC changes in our lifestyles. Do without and live within your means in other words. Cut the cable, drop your cell phone if at all possible, eat differently, take this time getting in shape as much as possible because what else is there to do when you are out of work? Take this time you now have on your hands to get yourself "spiritually" fit as well. Make peace with God and yourself and anyone else you need to. Take a walk, think on how much better you have things than the next person because I can promise you that no matter how bad you feel, there is ALWAYS someone else you can look to who has things worse than you. I'm sure you have taken an inventory of all the bills you have to pay and how to adjust and juggle them accordingly. Get odd jobs. Go visit your neighbors and ask if they have anything you can help them get done. In doing this you are NOT asking for a handout. You are merely helping that person out and yourself as well. Remember that if you don't ask, you will never know. It is surprising how losing our jobs will humble us. Remember this, most of our lives are spent earning the almighty dollar, often times we rarely take time to REALLY live because our career consumes so much of our time. But along with a pink slip comes the time you need to get down to basics and reflect on the people and things which are truly most important to you. No matter what job you turn up with, chances are you are going to have to reorder your life and cut back to the bare necessities but this is the good part of losing your job. We don't have to have a cell phone, it is only a form of communication but by no means the only one. Get a land line, after all, we were able to do well with that in the past. Sell that other vehicle. You can only drive one car at a time.

Stop eating out and make simple and less costly meals at home. Buy fresh vegetables instead of those tasty boxed foods we all think we cannot do without.
My friends, I'm not suggesting things that I do not put into practice myself. All these things I have mentioned I have been doing for the past few years. In the months to come, I plan on passing along some tips that I hope will allow you to stretch your dollar further as well.

Our Trashed Economy: The Chickens Come Home To Roost

Years ago I warned of a significant economic downturn to hit this country with the end result being a devaluation of our currency. Folks, the dollar is going to end up getting trashed.
Call me a doomer if you will but I am by no means the only one. Many have sent out the call for one and all to get their financial affairs
in order and to prepare for the worst. The U.S economy is currently in a downward spiral.
The view from this christian country girl is the following:
We have consumed until we've spent ourselves ragged and into a corner in regards to the credit situation. Our Government has spent billions on an unjust war with Iraq and now the chickens have come home to roost. The mortgage mess is one in which we have yet to see the final outcome. Folks, this is not by any stretch of the imagination over. We've only just begun to see the tragic effects on our country because of it. Credit cards have only gotten us into one big mess. Easy
credit is never the way. Spending on things without using cash will bring us many miseries and this is what many of us have only recently found out. Our governments way out of this nightmare is to throw money at the problem by bailing out major corporations who have only proved that they cannot be trusted. These failing companies are good at throwing parties and dishing out fat bonuses to their CEO's, but fail miserably at taking care of
the meat and potatoes which truly help them the most - their workers. For their employees, they offer pay cuts, lay-offs and early retirements!
Lay-offs are at record highs now and if you want to see something which will knock your socks off and may wake you up to the sorry state of our economy, visit here folks, it is an interactive map which shows the literal vanishing of jobs in our
country since 2006. The projected stimulus package is a joke and is not going to help the common man. Here is a website which discusses our leaders considering cuts to such needed programs such as Head start and food-stamps. I know that many countries are dealing with their own financial mess, it's not just us. But I am a firm believer that as far as finances go, as we go, so goes the rest of the world. What is the New York Stock Exchange? It is the main artery to which the other countries are joined in respect to world finances. It's been the economic capital of the world for some time now. Where are we getting the money for the bail-outs? Where does the TARP (troubled asset recovery program) money come from? My friends the only answer is that we are printing money so fast that our presses
will soon explode. What do I think will happen next?
Our dollar will be DEVALUED. I know it has been coming, I warned of it in my article:
"Economic Collision Just Ahead: The Titanic has nothing on America". Here is another incredible website which lists the layoffs and closings in our nation
every single day: Layoff Daily.
I visit this site and regularly and I have been increasingly disturbed at the enormous number of people who are losing their jobs. My heart goes out to every single one. Why are we not seeing more families homeless? Well, that is coming my
friends. No doubt you have heard of the tent cities springing up all over our nation. What will we do in order to help people who have been affected by job loss and other financial hardships
and how hard will it be to help them when we ourselves may end up the ones who are in need of help?

What is my advice for those who are worried they will lose their income and end up on the streets? If you don't have a job, look for one immediately and once you get one, stay put! If you have recently been laid off, see if you can draw unemployment, although if you are able to do this it won't last forever. So here is what we all must do no matter if we have a job or not, Get back to the basics... In other words, look and see where you can makes cuts. Cancel your cable, cell phone, Internet service, and other bills you have which are NOT necessities.
Also, think of ways to make your dollar go further than it's ever gone before. Stop buying things which are not necessary and if you have only a few feet of earth, plant a small garden. Buy products when they are on sale, take a look at what you are spending and decide that now you will have to do things differently. Don't buy that new car, instead take the cash and lay it down on an older model, who cares if you have a fancy car if you can't afford to eat and have peace of mind? I read only yesterday that states are considering cutting funding for certain medicare services such as home health, etc. This is absolutely astonishing! Counties are
laying off policemen, firefighters and EMT workers! Nurses and schoolteachers are not immune. Once this starts who in this world knows where we will end up. I made up my mind that me and mine would get back to the basics and in fact I am getting pretty good at it. When
I get paid I fill up my tank, get groceries, pay the bills for the week and rat-hole the rest of the money! Always before we may have went out to eat once a week or called in a pizza for delivery- my friends, those days are OVER. Although we can afford to do this, we will not because you never know when that $20.00 we would have spent for pizza could have come in handy on some necessity down the road.
I save my change and cash it in every 3 months at one of those coin counting machines. I plant a garden in the spring and I can, freeze and dehydrate every spare bit of fruit and veggies I can get my hands on. These are the things we must do in order to make a
positive lifestyle change in this horrid economic downturn. More on the sorry state of our economy in upcoming articles.

America: Who will buy her goods?

American workers are feeling bitterly betrayed.

Due to outsourcing, buyouts, wage cuts and massive layoffs, the left out workers of today have no money to buy the goods that America has to offer.

The past few times I have walked in my nearest grocery store I noticed barely any customers there. I thought it strange the first time it happened but my last visit was much the same. This started me thinking. Rising gas prices along with those who have recently joined the growing ranks of the unemployed, have joined together to create a murkiness of the financial waters that will prove to be fatal for those who sell their goods in the U.S.A.

Those who sell in America will come to see that the average consumer will be too broke for them to sell their wares to.

Here is a scenario for you to contemplate:

A man has worked at the same company for 20 years or more.

He is laid-off or is forced to take a buy-out deal or a significant wage cut.

This man has a mortgage, utility bills, grocery bills, ever increasing abuse at the gas pumps, a wife, 2 children and upkeep for the kids alone breaks the bank.

How is a man put in this no win situation supposed to keep up with these financial demands?
This scenario has been played out in truth throughout America in recent years. Many are not getting extensions on their unemployment benefits and are ultimately losing their shirts in this sorry excuse for a robust economy.

In an online news item, "Buyout Feels to Them Like Being Sold Out" a man shares his predicament:
"We were promised a future with these companies. We've spent our lives at these factories. So have our parents, and so are our children," said Shotwell, 55, a machine operator at Delphi's fuel-injector plant in Coopersville, Mich. "We have to fight, any way we can."

Multiply this scenario by thousands and you will understand where our economy is headed. I believe that many are soon to feel the full effects of this.

Gas gouge

What are we supposed to do to battle this gas gouge that seems to be worsening? The answer seems to be for some to buy motorcycles and sell off their cars. Sounds like pretty drastic measures for an American citizen to take but you never know what we may have to resort to.

I don't believe we've seen the worst yet. Read my article "The Titanic Has Nothing On America".

Might as well face it we're Addicted to Oil?

Our President tells us we are "Addicted to Oil".

Yes, we are addicted/dependent upon oil, but those who are hooked the worst on it is those who have ties to it in our administration, Cheney, Bush Sr. and Bush Jr, Rice, etc.

They are addicted to the profits the oil industry generates.

Doing more for less in the declining American Economy

A changing of the lifestyles is in order for one and all, here and now.

Americans will have to learn the hard way that they are going to have to live on less of everything.. Less money, less groceries, less entertainment, and less gasoline.

The days of living beyond our means are finally drawing to a close. Who cares about keeping up with the Jones's when one cannot even keep gas in the tank or food in the fridge? Always before it was important for many to drive the newest S.U.V or the raciest sports car.

Now many are trying to sell off those luxury items that at one time were so dear to them in order to make their next mortgage payment so they can keep foreclosure at bay.

For those "high maintenance types" that have had their desires met in years past by charging their credit cards to the max,they are going to be in for the reality check of a lifetime. These people's lives will be dismal for a very long time to come. People feel they need things they don't. Their "needs" are only their "desires" and are NOT the necessities of life.

Rising unemployment + rising prices = empty aisles

Any way you look at it, the increasing numbers of the unemployed, combined with rising prices in all areas will equal empty aisles. But hey, those stock futures look a lot better ever since thousands of faithful workers got the axe. These companies are laying off workers and never does it cross their minds that the very ones they are getting rid of are the ones who will not be able to buy their products! Who is that company going to find to buy their products since the average American consumer cannot afford them due to job loss?

I have said repeatedly that our currency is going to lose out in the end. It is the stumbling block that will prove to be our downfall.

Unemployed in America

Millions are out of work, yet what impact does job loss truly have? One loses a job and if able, finds another- Simple. My friends, this is not the case anymore. Now those who would have had no trouble finding employment only a few short years ago are mailing off hundreds of resumes- all to no avail. The jobs have dried up. The job market in America is now drier than the Sahara.

If you go to Unemployedworkers.org , you can read the stories of Americans caught in the cycle of unemployment. You can read for yourself what tolls these people's recent job losses are taking on their personal lives. These people are in desperate straights, yet all we hear from our current Administration is how glorious this economic recovery has become!
It does not trouble me to say that this recovery is a jobless farce! Sure, Wall Street may be gaining momentum, but the job markets are not. Corporate America seems only concerned with the power they yield to outsource American jobs. While we hear of terms used by the those in the current Administration and Greenspan such as "competitive job markets" and "sustained growth", these terms mean nothing when people are going without food to eat and a roof over their heads. Those who are turning a blind eye fail to realize that the jobless in America are in the worst kind of mire and sinking deeper in it as each jobless day passes.

After observing the blindness of those in power in the United States, one must raise the hard questions to those in power. Do they realize the extent of the problem? Do they know but are openly unconcerned? Honestly I feel as though they could care less.

Looking after their own profit is number one to these people.

Big tax cuts for the wealthiest of Americans is now more important than keeping the jobless Americans out of homeless shelters. It's not right, nor is it Godly.

God speaks to us through his word over and over again about the poor.

Remember what Jesus said? "To those in that day I shall say, When you've done it to the least of these, my brethren, you've done it unto me".

So let's take a look at how our own Government, those in charge of our rules and laws, are caring for the poor, and those who have lost their jobs through no fault of their own.

1. The rapid outsourcing of American jobs overseas.

In order for big business and corporations to pay less wages to their workers, they are now moving entire factories overseas where workers there will do the jobs for a fraction of what American workers got before.

Friends, those in our current administration could do something about this outsourcing if they had a mind to. Those in power cater to those who lobby them for what is in their own best interests. Make no mistake, Who controls the House, Senate and Congress?

2. Tax cuts for the Wealthy

Our President says this strategy will help "boost our economy". What it all boils down to (our president points out) is that the (wealthiest of Americans) will have more of their money to invest, and that these investments will result in creating more small businesses, big businesses, etc. So just what are they investing in? See number 1 above because I can assure you that the majority of big business is only catering to their own interests! Sure, they are rich enough to keep these jobs here in the States, but the way they see it, (from their greedy point of view) why not make MORE PROFIT at the expense of the American worker!

It doesn't help boost the job market here, it doesn't help create jobs here!

3. The latest unemployment benefits extension

Yes, I watched this myself. A Republican Senator of Oklahoma attempted to oppose the extensions to those receiving unemployment benefits. But Senator Ted Kennedy of Mass debated in favor of giving the extensions.

I heard Kennedy say that this money was money that the workers had paid in and they were entitled to it ( I agree) but the Republican Senator from Oklahoma responded no. His reasoning?

But of course, "The economy is growing and there is no need".

The Rich and Their Disregard for the needs of others

The financial miseries coming upon many we can read about in the scriptures:

In James 5, chapters 1-6 we read of a judgment decreed upon greedy rich men.

1. Go to now, you rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you.

2. Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are motheaten.

3. Your gold and silver is cankered, and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. you have heaped treasure together for the last days.

4. Behold, the hire of the labourers who have reaped down your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of saboath.

5. Ye have lived in pleasure on the earth, and been wanton; ye have nourished your hearts, as in a day of slaughter.

6. Ye have condemned and killed the just; and he does not resist you.

What to do?

What will it take before laws are passed to stop this insanity and blatant disregard for the rights of workers in America? It seems as if those who are in charge of passing laws and regulations here in America are not going to change things unless they experience the hardship of unemployment themselves. The very hardships they are helping to further heap on the backs of American citizens.

Workers rights have never been so completely stripped away.

I will always say that prayer is the single most important thing you can do. Pray that the Lord would give justice to those who are in need and find themselves at the mercy of a very dry job market.

Compassion is so rare in these days we live in. It is a very sad thing to wake up one day and find that you have no job. You have a family to support, medical bills, food is scarce and you don't know where to turn.

There is one thing I can tell you for sure, and this comes from experience. Know your source in these last days. Who is your source?

God should be your number one source. It is he who can take care of you when men have utterly failed you.

When they care less about you, he cares more about you. He sees the struggles and turmoil, worries of all of those who have lost their jobs and have no place to turn and are wondering if they will have a place to lay their head by the end of the day.

I would advise all of you to pay attention to what your State Reps are up to. Even if you are not given to observing political goings on, try to catch C-Span debates occasionally.

Find out what your elected Reps stand for. Are they standing up for and passing laws for the people or for political agendas that serve their party?

And please, keep praying for everyone. Ask God to forgive this Nation of it's disregard for the poor, greed and pride.