Joblessness

As someone else pointed out somewhere, it's no longer "morning in America" - it's late afternoon, and we're all a little tired and cranky. Reagan (Ronnie Ray-gun, as we used to call him) announced the morning, but since he and the Bushes led the country, it has gotten much later. Their efforts were hugely successful: the rich are richer than ever, the poor are quite deeply sunk in poverty and (with helpful bankers placing them in homes they can't afford with credit cards they can't resist), unlikely ever to rise out of it. The nation's debt is huge, and while the Chinese don't have a reputation for breaking knees, I'm sure they have some sort of collections program. And the unemployment rate is nearly 10%.

Again today, economists noted that it seems to be a jobless recovery - like the ones "that followed the last two recessions, in 1990-91 and in 2001." The article (http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F2010%2F12%2F24%2Fbusiness%2Feconomy%2F24forecast.html&h=fc91f) goes on to say:

“Historically, unemployment rates come down slowly, so even with 4 percent growth, you would expect to see the unemployment rate come down maybe a percentage point a year, probably less,” said Alan B. Krueger, who was the Treasury Department’s top economist until last month when he returned to Princeton. “Given how high the unemployment rate is, that’s going to seem very slow.”

Well, sure. Now that businesses have learned they can get more work out of fewer people, and impel those people to be more productive through fear of joining the 9.8% unemployed, why on Earth would they hire more people?

So here's an idea: Why not revive the Civilian Conservation Corps (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civilian_Conservation_Corps) and the Works Progress Administration? These Roosevelt-era programs were successful in averting class warfare then; why wouldn't they help now? My granny worked a WPA job to feed her family. And out West, we certainly know the good works of these groups: Mt. Hood Lodge, beautiful murals and stonework on bridges, our elegant Union Station, many more.

There are CCCs in several, but not all states. At the height of the Depression it put 3 million young men to work, and only ended when WWII made it unnecessary, since they could sign up to be killed in Europe instead of improving public lands.

The WPA (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Works_Progress_Administration) included job training as part of its original plan, as well as adult education. Between 1935 and 1943 the WPA provided more than 8 million jobs.

I know these programs would need to be updated for today. I in no way support the "workfare" (no work, no welfare) concept, or any form of forced labor. But I believe that as an opt-in program, this would relieve some of the pressure on families now, allowing them to stay in their homes, feed their children and get job experience that would ultimately lift them out of the debilitating despair of uselessness that is unemployment.

Let's quit solving the wrong problems. The bankers and investors are okay, they don't need more government money; and whatever is going to trickle down isn't going to be enough. Remember that NYTimes piece: " ... see the unemployment rate come down maybe a percentage point a year, probably less.”

If we want to create jobs, let's do it by creating jobs.