As I was stuck in traffic on the 405 and feeling grumpy, I saw the signs touting that the construction is a project of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
Sure, I thought cynically, putting Americans back to work -- at minimum wage. Just how does that help me? Even the trickle-down economics of the Reagan era made more sense to me, and that made NO sense. I keep hearing that the recession is over and the job market is improving, and I do see an uptick in the number of job listings on the job boards. I just don't see an uptick in my own results.
Later, still stuck in traffic, I heard a report on NPR that while unemployment overall is down, unemployment among women is increasing. So it's not just me, a small comfort. This sent my mood-o-meter back into the yellow zone, a zone I'm trying to avoid. Some days I win the battle for a good attitude, some days not so much. Guess which kind of day this is.
I'm interested in knowing how others in my boat are coping. It's become clear that The American Dream that I grew up with is obsolete, but there isn't a switch I can throw to turn off my expectations. I know life isn't fair, but that doesn't stop me from wanting it to be. What I want most of all is Opportunity, and it seems to be in short supply. I feel like a plant that doesn't get enough sun to thrive. I am alive, but my limbs are spindly and fragile. If I could just find myself a place in the sun, I know I'd be ok. Unfortunately, the weather report predicts continued clouds.
It's cloudy here in Minneapolis, also, especially for creatives. One artist friend has lost his house and another is about to, a former ad exec finds himself clerking at a grocery store, and many more of us are looking at premature forced retirement. People line up to apply for jobs at MacDonalds. Somehow, with a college degree and 30 years of increasingly responsible corporate and entrepreneurial experience, I never imagined having to ask, "You want fries with that?" Some recovery.
ReplyDeleteI know that the 405 construction is going to put many thousands of commuters in the yellow zone for many months. As for you, I am sure your recovery will be soon.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if the American dream you and I grew up with is obsolete, but it's definitely on hiatus and may not return in time for people in our generation to fully enjoy it as we expected we would. My own simple view is that in a fashion similar to weeds overtaking an otherwise thriving garden, intrusive government has choked out the fruit of entrepreneurial America. It's fine to have a heart and want to help those less fortunate, but that notion applies to people, not the U.S. government. Last week Obama said, "It's time for American business to 'step up' and start hiring again." Such a statement betrays an unbelievable naivete concerning what makes businesses tick. Businesses don't hire people because they think it's their civic duty. They hire people because sales are so brisk that they need help to manage the growth. Look around. There's not much growth and as an entrepreneur I can tell you my experience. There is so much economic uncertainty right now that my company isn't hiring anyone. We don't know how much health insurance is going to cost, we don't know how much higher taxes are going and we don't know how we can afford all the new regulations being handed down by hundreds of federal agencies who all need to justify their existence. Meanwhile, as a nation, the U.S. is borrowing forty cents of every dollar it spends on Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, wars in Afghanistan, Libya and Iraq and that's just at the federal level. Government needs to back off and let the American people do their stuff.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful writing about a not-so-lovely reality. Did all the jobs go overseas along with the manufacturing? Some trends point to a reversal of that supply chain back to our, sunnier, shores. Let's hope that those clouds lift soon in more places.
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