-Caveat Lector- Jobless, and Stunned
January 9, 2003 By BOB HERBERT Left behind by the great Republican raid on the national Treasury are folks like Karelia Escobar and Joe Bergmann, middle-aged New Yorkers who have worked most of their lives but now find themselves traveling the anxious paths of the long-term unemployed. With bills mounting and each day bringing a heightened sense of dread, they could use a little help. But the jobless are at the bottom of the economic heap, and the Bush administration's help seems always to go to the top. Ms. Escobar is 43 and single, and lives in a small apartment in Queens. She has worked for a number of airlines over the past several years, most recently as a ticket agent for T.W.A. That job vanished with the World Trade Center. "We were laid off Oct. 14, 2001," she said. "I haven't been able to find work since then. I've applied everywhere. I've gone back to school to improve my computer skills. I've learned another language. I feel very bad because I want to work so I can pay my bills. I've always worked. But now I can't find a job." That plaintive comment is echoing from coast to coast. Unemployment is rising. And as the millions of jobless Americans (including many in the middle class) exhaust their benefits and run through their savings, they are finding themselves face to face with the horror of destitution. In his speech in Chicago on Tuesday President Bush said, "I worry about people who are out of work. They need our help." But the hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of "help" that he proposed would go overwhelmingly to the princes of the new American plutocracy, not to the likes of Karelia Escobar. Or Joe Bergmann. Mr. Bergmann, who lives in Midtown Manhattan, was a creative director for a firm that did interactive advertising. He was laid off Oct. 2, 2001, and, to his amazement, has been out of work ever since. When I asked if he ever imagined it would be so hard to find a job, he said, "Not at all. There's no way." Mr. Bergmann, 54, is married and has two daughters. His wife works, but her employment outlook, even in the short term, is uncertain. The family has had the benefit of some savings and a bonus Mr. Bergmann earned at a previous job. But he does not know what will happen if he doesn't get another job soon. Mr. Bergmann believes that many of the layoffs by large corporations could have been avoided. He said, "Companies have been living from quarter to quarter for so long they've lost their long-distance planning - their vision of what the company is going to be like in five years. When there's a downturn, they just get rid of people. "I don't know if we can change the heart of C.E.O.'s into thinking, `Well, you know, I'm getting $30 million, but I can save some jobs if I give back $15 million and live on just $15 million this year.' They never think like that. And until they begin to think like that, we'll be at their mercy." Unemployment benefits for Ms. Escobar and Mr. Bergmann ran out last July. The extension signed by President Bush yesterday does not apply to them. Ms. Escobar's situation is extremely precarious. Her savings are gone. She received help from a local charity when her electric service was about to be discontinued. "I cannot even pay my car insurance," she said. "I have an old car but they've canceled the insurance." "So you can't drive," I said. "I can't drive. I'm afraid I'll hit somebody and then I'll end up with no money, no job, and in jail. I don't want that." Her biggest concern is February's rent. "I don't have it," she said. The centerpiece of the economic plan proposed by Mr. Bush on Tuesday is the elimination of taxes on stock dividends, an unconscionable giveaway to the rich at a time when so many working Americans are struggling merely to survive. The plan contained no job creation program, no investment in the nation's critical infrastructure needs, and no assistance for the many states sinking in the quicksand of mammoth budget deficits. Ms. Escobar has taken the president's policies somewhat personally. "I'm a Republican and I'm not ashamed to say it," she said. "But I'm very upset that they have done nothing for us." I asked if she had voted for Mr. Bush. "I sure did," she said, then added, "I feel very betrayed." http://www.nytimes.com/2003/01/09/opinion/09HERB.html?ex=1043401413&ei=1&en=4f082bf00eb2911c <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/";>www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance�not soap-boxing�please! 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