This is not a joke. There is no punchline. The situation is too serious to ignore. The vast majority of Americans are treating unemployment the same way they are treating the longest war in our history. It’s happening. It’s unfortunate for those caught up in either disaster. But, hey, “I have my job, I’m about as secure as one can be these days. And, the war - well, thankfully, no member of my family volunteered, and no one I know is in Iraq, or Afghanistan.”

No doubt there were some who managed to escape the draft in WWII and otherwise avoided Vietnam, and/or the Korean debacle - in fact, never wore a uniform of the military, sea, or air services - and were fortunate enough to have a family that had no direct concerns during those trying days. Similarly, the unemployment that ravaged the country in the thirties touched so many families that it seemed that the country was on the way to total collapse, with little hope of recovery., but not everyone was unemployed, the majority of the country continued working, and unemployment was largely the unfortunate scenes of bread lines, apple sellers, shanty towns for the dispossessed, and other detritus of too many who found themselves ‘out in the street’.

The point is, if you’re still with ViewPoint, is that the conditions described above are real.The country at large, seemingly, isn't involved! And, those responsible for these conditions, continue to mouth dismay or fail to ameliorate conditions that might lead to true recovery from the recession allowing for a return to previous levels of employment - and/or, unequivocally put an end to the longest war in our history. Speech plus verbosity cannot make things happen that are needed to accomplish results so urgently sought by so many.

In a TV interview of recent vintage, the Secretary of the Treasury said that solving the unemployment situation is largely a private matter. By that he explained, if and when, companies, large and small, begin to hire staff to function as part of their team, the increase in jobs will become apparent - and along with that will come optimism that can only lead to other employers staffing up, if for no other reason, to stay equal or ahead of the competition. What a daydream! Is he unaware that businesses, large and small, are insecure in their outlook as long as government relies on the private sector to turn things around. Is there a sense of deep concern about the unemployment situation when the government hesitates to extend unemployment benefits? Has a single plan surfaced which focuses on the individual? Just as the financial world was about to go down in flames the government assumed the role of Fire Department extraordinaire, and began dousing those flames with tons of dollars.

ViewPoint does not presume to have the answers - but we recognize the absurdity of the same Treasury executive who had the audacity to note that it was encouraging that American families were saving more as the recession turns around - then, in the same interview states that the recovery will suffer until, and unless, consumers return to the shopping malls and start spending some of the money they are now accumulating. Then, as a flourish of complete nonsense, reference was made indicating that the wealthiest in the country might resume spending to jump start the consumers who can make the difference between recession and prosperity!

It would take too much for one column to give equal time and space to the haphazard way our administration has pronounced plans to end the Iraq occupation, and the Afghanistan war. Let us end this column by asking the numbers gurus in Washington how effective might it be vis-a-vis the deficit and/or, the budget, if the above were to end ‘overnight’, freeing up that expense in one fell swoop? How many factories might be restarted, how many small businesses might be able to employ one or two staff members, how many hundreds of thousand job seekers might find openings to suit them, if the economy was given the same assist the financial world received?

Clearly, the rising tide theory, would work for all America as unemployment dwindles down to a prewar level - and at the same time, an end to war would be a constructive move destined to free up dollars, lives, and allow the government the opportunity to do what so many Americans want from our representatives in the Congress - all their time and attention to improving life in the USA - with common goals and support from their constituents back home!

Richard Carlton

August 1, 2010

Issue No.15