As someone who works in the unemployment office in my state. . .

[Hamlette]

I almost don't care about the taxes.

I spend 40 plus hours a week listening to the saddest damned stories you have ever heard.

A few days before Obama cut the deal I asked myself: what if its unemployment vs tax cuts? I answered before I finished the full thought: "Damn, its Christmas! How cruel would that be?" And trust me, there was NO stronger voice against tax cuts for the weathly than me. NONE.

Some of you believe we blinked in this game of chicken and the GOP would have awarded UI benefits even if they lost on the tax cuts. I don't believe that. I have not seen one thing in the GOP over the last 10 years that would lead me to believe they would do the right thing. Ever.

And if GOP had extended UI? It would have been for 2 months. You can not imagine how much more work it is for the ppl in my office to stop benefits and start them again. I can't tell you how many late nights we've all worked to make sure benefits get started on time again. To say nothing of the anguish by the recipients. We have the number for the suicide hotline by our phones. The calls would break your heart each time benefits run out while we all wait for Congress to act. And hard as my office has worked I think we'd all say we're happy to do what we can.

And you say "it doesn't matter because the line in the sand was crossed."

lines.

meh

Outweighed by Christmas and I'm an atheist (but a huge lover of chlidren).

[cutlassmama]

1. The rich don't care if the poor commit suidicide. Sociopaths have no

conscious.

[cherokeeprogressive]

14. So the "rich" are all unconscious sociopaths. Got it.

:eyes: :crazy:

[pnwmom]

18. There are plenty of rich Democrats who support higher taxes

on themselves. I don't know about their political affiliations, but Bill Gates and his father, and Warren Buffet, etc. support higher taxes on the wealthy. They are putting most of their money into charitable foundations. Are you calling them sociopaths, too? Are all the Kennedys sociopaths? Is John Kerry a sociopath?

[Taverner]

2. Understood, but agree to disagree

And I am on Unemployment

Just about to be cut off - - in fact if this bill didn't pass I wouldn't have gotten any

DISCLAIMER: of course for the reality factor, I just finished several months of contract work - and am starting a new perm job on 12/17



I can take that, so many couldn't

Just fucking sickening

And if Obama wasn't so fucking spineless, we could have mowed over them

[pnwmom]

19. Congratulations, Taverner, and good luck! n/t

[DonCoquixote]

3. I am angry about the tax cuts

But I am also angry about the bastards in CONGRESS that get to blame Obama for all of it, like miss mary landrieu. I appreciate your courage.

[leftstreet]

4. Why are wealthy politicians even allowed to VOTE on extensions?!

These should be permanent.

LOL I can't wait to see this place melt down in a few years when OMG! THEY ONLY EXTENDED SOCIAL SECURITY FOR 13 MONTHS!?

:banghead:

[pnwmom]

23. Basic unemployment insurance is permanent.

These extensions are Federal money sent to the states during long periods of high unemployment, so that when people run out of normal unemployment benefits, they can qualify for the federal money.

In periods of low unemployment, such long periods of benefits wouldn't be necessary.

[leftstreet]

28. It's not permanent if it 'runs out'

UI should be permanent.

We'd need almost 50 million jobs to have full employment in the US. Not gonna happen

Un-and-under employment is permanent.

Relief must also be permanent

[housewolf]

5. Thanks for your insights and experience

I've often wondered what the past couple years have been like (and continue to be) for the folks who work at the state Unemployment offices. I've only needed to speak to my state's UI folks a couple times and they've been extremely helpful, courteous, non-judgmental and non-critical. I'd say your state is lucky to have you as one of their workers. And thanks for all that you've done to help the unemployed in your state.

[aquart]

6. It matters. BUT...

The only way out is to restart this economy. UI may be the only stimulus in that tainted package of horrors, but it doesn't begin to be enough. It isn't enough to bring those greedy, unpatriotic rich to invest in this country.

That's right. Having pillaged this nation from one end to the other, the investor class feels the economy is too unstable for investment. OUR TREASURY IS AIR AND DEBT. OUR CURRENCY IS BEING PRINTED WITH NOTHING BEHIND IT.

Everything you say is true. But your nightmare can't end until the greedy, unpatriotic rich have a sizable percentage of our national wealth pried from their grasping talons.

If we pass this nightmare of a bill, YOUR job is in jeopardy, too. Because the states will be cutting everywhere they can.

Pass this bill and the nightmare will not end in your lifetime.

[pnwmom]

8. It isn't the only stimulus. The package also contained a reduction

in the rate that individuals pay for the Social Security payroll tax, and it extended some tax credits (that were in the original stimulus package) that were about to expire.

[aquart]

11. Which will be worthless when the price of everything goes up.

If the tax cuts don't expire, we cannot support our prices for anything. The cuts at the middle class level are a fantasy. They will be eaten up by higher everything, especially local taxes and fees.

[pnwmom]

24. We're in a deflationary economy at the moment. We SHOULD

be taking measures that will stimulate it.

[pnwmom]

7. Thank you, Hamlette, for a view from the trenches. n/t

[uppityperson]

9. k&r

[MisterP]

10. and the other ~4M unemployed?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=433x549204

[Angry Dragon]

12. All the stuff should have never been lumped together

Should have been a vote on each part so we could tell where they all stood

[pnwmom]

16. Congress has never worked that way. Stuff is always lumped together.

That's how compromises get made and bills get passed.

[Angry Dragon]

17. And it works so well

I guess that is why we are in such great shape as a country.

[Hamlette]

22. Line item veto? It is a debate for the ages. We've been fighting it for years.

it won't go away.

And I think the GOP would have let UI expire. That would have broken my heart.

[dkf]

13. You rock.

Thanks for being there for the unemployed and for working hard and going beyond the job requirements.

[Bluerthanblue]

15. hang in there- and thank you

for doing what you do.

And for caring.

And for taking the time to share your experience with us.

:grouphug:

k& a big R

[Vinnie From Indy]

20. These people would not have been left behind

I will offer that the President COULD have made the GOP fight and STILL have come back to this shitty compromise if absolutely necessary. He never made a serious attempt at even trying.

While I appreciate and admire your work, sometimes it is better to fight and risk something than to submit to something worse. Again, Obama could always have come back to this position after giving a good fight. I do not think people would have been so down on him had he showed just a bit of spine.

[Lisa0825]

21. I was an employment counselor in the state emp office for a few years too...

I completely understand how you feel. It is a very difficult job, and the more you care, the more difficult it is... but you keep caring anyway. Hang in there. :pals:

[Tom_Foolery]

25. Thank you for your hard work and thoughtful words!!!

:yourock:

[madrchsod]

26. i do not know how you can go to work knowing what is facing you as soon as the door opens.

so it`s a



for doing a job that few would have the courage and compassion to do.

[Hamlette]

27. Thank ALL of you for your kind words!

I've been at the UI office for 13 plus years. This is my third "recession" there. The last two lasted less about 6 months. When this one came we all said "we can hunker down and ride it out" but it has been 2 years and we'd complain if we weren't so grateful that we have jobs!

I'm surprised at how sympathetic everyone is. You never hear "lazy no good blah blah" in our office even though I'm in a VERY red state and I'm sure many are GOPs. We just do not feel that way. In fact, more often than not we're pissed at employers trying to get out of paying benefits.

And I'm exactly the kind of person you want in my job ;) I'm at the last level of appeal in unemployment claims and whenever I can, I say "turn left". (Works sometimes too but prolly for the wrong reasons.) But honestly, everyone up and down the line (except those in the fraud unit maybe) have worked their hearts out because we do care.

I didn't post this for kudos but it was pretty heartwarming to see them. I posted because ongoing UI benefits are to me more important than taxes. We will all survive but these people have been hurting for a long time and there are no jobs out there. I'm afraid they've been out of work so long some of them will never find work.

I'm no push over. If I think a claimant is scamming the system "off with his head" (sort of) but for the other 99% of them, Merry Christmas!

[Rowdyboy]

29. I worked in Job Service for 25 years helping those same people find work and I hear you....

I share your feelings for your clients. I heard heartbreaking stories-families wiped out by both partners' layoffs, employers scamming roofers out of pay-the worst crap you can imagine. And I agree that 99% of our clients here in Mississippi are deserving people who want to work.

Sorry, though, I've gotta disagree with your conclusion. There is so little money left available for us to borrow (our credit is getting seriously thin)-we can't afford another trillion from the Chinese to give away to needy rich folk. I just can't see it. We need that money for training and education and health and infrastructure. Its just unacceptable-at least to me.

Maybe I've just been away from the job too long and forgotten how much it hurts to look into someone's eyes and tell them "I'm sorry, I don't have anything for you today". Its a brutal job. Thank you for the thread though. I'm proud to have worked in the same field as someone like you.

[lamp_shade]

30. Thank you for your thoughtful post.