It's STILL the Economy, Stupids...

On Mon, 22 Dec 2003 17:40:55 +0000, NOYB wrote:

 >
 > "Gene Kearns" <ewkearns.TakeThisOut@triad.rr.nospam.com> wrote in message
 >
  >> Average Unemployment for the US 6%
  >> Average Unemployment for Democratic States 5.463% Average Unemployment
  >> for Republican States 5.085%
 >
 > That statistic presents a pretty strong argument to support my statement.
 > However, since both Democrat and Republican-controlled states *both* have
 > unemployment rates under 6%, and the *average* for the nation is higher
 > than each party's average, that means that the states in which the
 > legislature is split must be *significantly* higher than 6%. If that's
 > the case, it makes a pretty strong argument that a two-party system seems
 > to more of a hindrance than a help when it comes to creating jobs.


I guess it's a good thing you didn't become an engineer Hint: think
population.<!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->

"Harry Krause" <piedtypecase.RemoveThis@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:bs5k7j$8utra$1@ID-21096.news.uni-berlin.de...
 > Jim Kelly wrote:
 >
  > > Unfortunately for Mr. Sells, his plight is not the result of the economy
or
  > > politics. If it were, he could expect that his situation might be
  > > temporary.
  > >
  > > In the eighties CTP , or computer to plate technology, was in it's
infancy.
  > > At that time, there was still doubts about it's viability. By the early
  > > nineties, the system had proven itself and the larger printers were
adopting
  > > it. Technology improved rapidly and, with accompanying price
reductions,
  > > mid sized printers such as Tempo Graphics in Carol Stream came to
realize
  > > that, in order to remain competitive, they would also have to make the
  > > transition. This of course meant that job opportunities for individuals
  > > with Mr. Sells' skills would become more and more scarce. This is the
  > > entirely the result of technological advancement and it is an ongoing
  > > problem for the displaced worker with the wrong set of skills. Mr.
Sells
  > > could probably find another job in prepress but it would likely be with
a
  > > smaller printer who could not match his previous level of compensation.
It
  > > may also involve relocation. Extending unemployment benefits while he
waits
  > > it out will not resolve his problem, but simply postpone the inevitable.
  > >
  > > The moral of the story is that a persons skills are only valuable when
there
  > > is a market for those skills. As technology changes, people must adapt
and
  > > acquire the new skills to compete in the job market. After all, the CTP
  > > revolution did not catch anyone in the graphic arts industry by
surprise, it
  > > has been steadily growing for at least ten years.
  > >
  > > Harry Krause wrote:
  > >
   > >> Out of work and full of worry
   > >> Call for renewed federal aid not likely to be heard
   > >>
   > >>
   > >> By Imran Vittachi
   > >> Chicago Tribune staff reporter
   > >>
   > >> December 20, 2003
   > >>
   > >> Cecil Sells considers himself one of the "luckier" ones, even though
   > >> he's been jobless since September, laid off from his $50,000-a-year job
   > >> as a pre-press operator in Carol Stream.
   > >>
   > >> *Others have had it tougher for a lot longer. In November, the
long-term
   > >> unemployed were out of work for an average of more than 20 weeks, the
   > >> highest it has been since January 1984, according to the Bureau of
Labor
   > >> Statistics.*
   > >>
   > >> Sells, 45, of Sycamore, said he is not encouraged by the Bush
   > >> administration's claims that the economy is improving.
   > >>
   > >> "Maybe that's happening in some never-never land," said Sells. "But if
I
   > >> don't find a job by March, I may have to sell my house or find other
   > >> measures to feed my family."
   > >>
   > >> In March, his weekly state unemployment check of $331, which goes
toward
   > >> supporting him and his wife and helps pay on his son's college loans,
   > >> will run out.
   > >>
   > >> Sells was among a small group of unemployed Illinois residents who
   > >> joined leaders of anti-poverty organizations and Rep. Jan Schakowsky
   > >> (D-Ill.), to call on the Bush administration and the
   > >> Republican-controlled Congress to renew federal benefits. A lifeline
   > >> lasting 13 weeks, the benefits kick in after state support runs out,
but
   > >> the package is set to expire Sunday.
   > >>
   > >> "The Grinch is back [this Christmas]," Schakowsky said at the Friday
   > >> press conference, which was sponsored by the local chapter of the
   > >> AFL-CIO at a church in the Loop.
   > >>
   > >> She said President Bush, together with House Speaker Dennis Hastert and
   > >> their fellow Republicans, were now "toasting each other for this
   > >> supposed economic recovery."
   > >>
   > >> *"They're ignoring the 8.7 million unemployed workers and those who are
   > >> about to lose their benefits," Schakowsky said.*
   > >>
   > >> Last Christmas, Bush extended benefits into the new year. But this time
   > >> that appears unlikely; Congress has adjourned for the holidays.
   > >>
   > >> "There seems to be more resistance from the Republican Congress than
   > >> last year," said Ross Eisenbrey, vice president of the Economic Policy
   > >> Center, a Washington think tank. "Without presidential intervention,
   > >> this time Congress won't renew it."
   > >>
   > >> Despite encouraging reports from the Department of Labor that the
   > >> national economy may be pulling out of its morass, and that the
   > >> nationwide unemployment rate is finally dipping, the outlook for
   > >> recovery in Illinois isn't so bright.
   > >>
   > >> While nationwide unemployment fell in November to 5.9 percent, it stood
   > >> at 6.7 percent in Illinois. In some pockets Downstate, the rate ranges
   > >> between 7 percent and 10 percent, said Margaret Blackshere, head of the
   > >> Chicago AFL-CIO.
   > >>
   > >> Eisenbrey and others say this is no time to terminate the benefits,
   > >> known as Temporary Extended Unemployment Compensation. November's
   > >> long-term unemployment rate eclipsed the average of 15.4 weeks set in
   > >> March 2002, when the benefits took hold.
   > >>
   > >> "The notion that the economy is turning around and that this is no
   > >> longer needed is just wrong," said Eisenbrey. He pointed to long-term
   > >> unemployment indicators, which in November were higher than in March
   > >> 2002, when the federal benefits were introduced. "It should at least be
   > >> extended for another six months."
   > >>
   > >> The White House, and the offices of Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist
   > >> (R-Tenn.) and House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Texas), did not
respond
   > >> Friday to requests for comment.
   > >> --
   > >> Email sent to piedtypecase.RemoveThis@yahoo.com is never read.
  > >
 >
 >
 > No, the moral of this story should be that when a worker's skills are
 > obsolete, that worker is helped, with a combination of unemployment and
 > training, to learn enough to do a new job that maintains his standard of
 > living.
 >
 > As they do in more progressive countries. Like Norway, Sweden, Finland,
 > for example.

Norway's unemployment is 4.6%, Sweden's is 5.5%, and Finland's is 8.9%. I
think that this shows that there's no common denominator between
unemployment rate, and the job retraining systems that each of those
countries employs.<!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->