Honorable President Obama,
Let me introduce my self. I am an under educated 52 year old white male. I have bad knees and vision problems. The most I have ever earned is about $24 thousand per year but have been unemployed for the past two years or so. While I have skills in many areas including Computers, Internet, Television and Radio production, these skills are not enough to compete with automation, outsourcing, H1-B Visas and younger people with higher education.
I do not understand how when some people can make millions and are complaining that they might have to be limited to earning only $500 Thousands per year, why can they object to paying $15 thousand or so for the workers. When what used to be considered an average living in this country costs roughly $60 thousand per year, anybody who is just willing to show up for a job should be able to earn at least twenty to thirty thousand dollars per year. How do we compete with the world economy? How do we compete with greed? When companies can take jobs to other countries allowing them to pay less and get around environmental and labor laws. How do we compete when companies can bring in foreign H1-B Visa workers rather than hire and train Americans? In these times of a larger workforce and higher U.S. cost of living, the few jobs that have not been replaced by Computers, Automation or increased efficiency are now deemed not worth paying a living wage for. We need low or unskilled jobs. Not everyone can be an executive, or highly skilled worker, but we all need to pay for housing, food, transportation and perhaps a small part of what was once the American dream. It is not that I object to being paid a low wage, I just need it cover the cost of living.
While your stimulus package is better than the conservative plan of let the rich have all they want in hope that they might feel generous and help someone along the way. (I know for a fact that this doesn’t work). I question if your plan is still not geared at too high of a level. We still seem to concerned on how much it will cost and are afraid that the conservative viewpoint is not being respected. What is this plan doing to keep jobs from being outsourced? Why are we so afraid of offending other countries by insisting that we buy American products? This is about creating jobs in this country, not about supporting a foreign workforce. We need to bring manufacturing back to this country and the process of rebuilding our infrastructure should be a good way of starting that. This should be about the American worker.
The problem with our auto industry is that people don’t have jobs to pay for the cars. The problem with our housing industry (other than the fact that people think houses are worth more than they should be) is that people don’t have jobs. The reason retail business are failing is because people don’t have money to buy products. The reason Cities and States are in trouble is because people don’t have jobs and are paying taxes. A tax rebate is not going to help me (and thousands like me) because I have no income. Extensions on unemployment compensation will not help me because I have been out of work too long to collect any. You could make housing reforms, to the extreme point of offering a $50 thousand dollar houses with a zero percent interest, no down payment loan and it would do me no good, I have no income. I NEED A JOB! Give me a job with a living wage and I will buy a car, a house, a bit screen TV and start paying taxes.
This country needs a jobs program. Not just construction, but all types of jobs. In the “New Deal” there were jobs for photographers, actors and all sorts of other jobs that helped people get back into the workforce. What I (and others) need is something like regional job centers that will pay a living wage (starting at $30 thousand) for a year while helping me find my highest competitive skills and connecting me with a private employer for ongoing employment in those skills. (Who may get ongoing tax credits for my continued employment) We need to put Americans back to work, and in some form encourage employers to keep us employed at a fair wage in this country.
You should also not put off medical reform. This is part of what is hurting our country. We need charges based on true costs, not what the market will bare. If a company knows they can charge what ever they want and eventually get paid, there is no reason to keep costs down. We also need single payer national health care. Part of the reason prices are so high are the multiples of CEOs getting paid high wages for each medical group, advertising costs for “brand recognition” and everyone wanting a cut of the profits. We should not be building personal fortunes based on the medical needs of our people.
Mr. Obama, I voted for you because you promised change and offered hope. We need major change in a bold fashion. We need to stop putting other countries needs before our own, at times I feel that America is more concerned about everyone other than its own people. It is also difficult to see those who make more in one day than I could in several years (when I was employed) complain about something that might help me (and the other 98% or so of Americans) because it might take something away from them. A society is judged by how it treats the least of its members, and in that we are failing. It is easer to provide training for the younger generation, and to help those of sound body. But, don’t forget the middle aged white men and others like us. I have gone too long without a job and without hope.
Scott Newkirk
