[Edited on July 13, 2010 at 11:07 PM. Reason : .ldld]

7/13/2010 11:05:12 PM

I know, 99 weeks is such a pittance

7/13/2010 11:22:12 PM

Zoidberg: All 6,000 hulls have been breached!

[Fry falls to his knees.]

Fry: Oh, the fools! If only they'd built it with 6,001 hulls! When will they learn?

7/13/2010 11:27:29 PM

I wasn't aware that John McCain was worth 26 million dollars...

I suspect he's written a book or two, but 26 million still doesn't add up...

How do these guys get so rich? I thought you had to be industrious and innovative to get rich.

7/13/2010 11:58:53 PM

McCain's wife maybe?

7/14/2010 12:19:57 AM

make that his second wife

he left his first one after she became crippled and then put on the pounds

7/14/2010 12:21:53 AM

This might be part of it

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cindy_mccain

Quote :

"She was born and raised in Phoenix, Arizona as the daughter of wealthy beer distributor Jim Hensley. Upon her father's death in 2000, she inherited majority control and became chair of Hensley & Co., one of the largest Anheuser-Busch beer distributors in the United States. She participated in both of her husband's presidential campaigns and in 2008 drew both positive and negative scrutiny for her appearance, demeanor, wealth, spending habits, and financial obligations."

I remember something about like 7 houses, having trouble remembering how many houses they owned, and seeing anti-mccain bumper stickers saying "ask me how many homes I own?"

But yeah, marrying rich probably helped (after cheating on his first wife, source below):
http://www.factcheck.org/askfactcheck/did_john_mccain_cheat_on_his_first.html

Quote :

"Meanwhile, Shepp had been severely injured in an automobile accident. When McCain returned from Vietnam, both he and Shepp underwent physical therapy simultaneously. Their marriage lasted seven more years. According to a 2007 profile of McCain in the Arizona Republic, "Their marriage began disintegrating," and "McCain has admitted to having extramarital affairs.""

Quote :

"Then, in 1979, McCain met a young former cheerleader named Cindy Hensley at a military reception in Hawaii. As he described it later in his 2002 book "Worth Fighting For": "She was lovely, intelligent and charming, 17 years my junior but poised and confident." He added, "I monopolized her attention the entire time, taking care to prevent anyone else from intruding on our conversation. When it came time to leave the party, I persuaded her to join me for drinks at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel. By the evening's end, I was in love.""

Quote :

"He requested a divorce from Shepp on Feb. 19, 1980, claiming their marital bond was “irretrievably broken.” He then acquired an Arizona marriage certificate on March 6, 1980, and, according to public records obtained by the Los Angeles Times, the divorce was finalized the following month – five weeks before McCain and Hensley's marriage ceremony. "

7/14/2010 12:25:34 AM

^Holy shit. I forgot all about that stuff.

7/14/2010 12:57:00 AM

McCain's first wife was a stripper, if I recall correctly.

What the hell is the use of a crippled stripper? Sounds like he did good for himself trading her in for a wealthy young cheerleader.

7/14/2010 1:16:08 AM

I thout she was a model, not a stripper

and the "use" is to be loved and respected as a person...part of the whole idea of "marriage" is not leaving just because your partner turns out less-than-ideal

[Edited on July 14, 2010 at 2:05 AM. Reason : and a man's wife is not his property, pig

7/14/2010 2:03:49 AM

I'm for the blocking and against the blocking of the unemployment benefits.


On one hand, if you stop paying the unemployed free money, they'll get off their ass and find a job.

on the other hand, there are people that really need the help.


At 10% unemployment, which should be hovering around 4%, I think blocking unemployed benefits is smart for getting people motivated to find a job. I have heard way too many people as my customers say they are going to ride on the free government money until the end, because they can and they know they can easily find a job afterward.

[Edited on July 14, 2010 at 3:46 AM. Reason : .]

[Edited on July 14, 2010 at 3:46 AM. Reason : .]

7/14/2010 3:45:35 AM

OK, OK, someone has to say it...

People who become remotely successful politicians are douchebags when it comes to sex. Politics attracts a certain type of personality that is rarely satisfied with fucking who they're supposed to fuck. Is McCain an asshole for what he did? Certainly. But so is pretty much everybody who wants to boss other people around.

Thomas Jefferson fucked slaves. Alexander Hamilton fucked a woman who was blackmailing him. George Washington probably would've fucked a bunch of people except he was probably impotent. FDR fucked his secretary. Eisenhower fucked his chauffeur. Kennedy and Clinton fucked everybody. Dubya had a girl get an abortion and before everything's done I'll bet reasonable money that we find out that Barack fucked somebody other than Michelle (a pity, really, because she's pretty banging, especially when you add in the bonus points for being first lady).

At this point, unless a politician actually rapes somebody, I can't even bother paying attention.

Likewise, I'm used to really successful politicians being rich. Am I happy? No. But I realize it takes a lot of money to run for President and if you're just operating on your congressional salary you're probably SOL.

My point is that McCain is a douchebag and so is everybody else. McCain gets extra douchebag points, however, for being so painfully two-faced and idiotic in the last election. But focusing on infidelity and his having money is inane if you support any other major politician.

At this point, LoneSnark or d35tr0yer will come in and explain how this means we should abandon democracy in favor of some sort of free-market-ocracy.

7/14/2010 3:51:03 AM

being unemployed for over a year i can honestly says after the first few months there wasn't anything cool about it. boredom set in and i'd prob even say border line depression. although i did have co-workers who were completely content with drawing unemployment as long as possible. on the flip side i'd say having the benefits made me feel like i could be extra picky about jobs . and i'd say my biggest mistake was looking at every job that paid less than the last job as a step backwards. w/o the weekly benefits i would have wasted no time. Not to mention after working for a year i probably would have been close to making what i was making before. so it is a sticky situation. i think extensions should be granted based on your financial obligations to basic needs i.e. car, home, child support etc. people who don't have anything to lose should have no reason to not just take a job . me personally i'd rather struggle for a while than take a hand out.

7/14/2010 5:52:33 AM

I am sorry but 99 weeks should be more than enough time to find a new job.

I can already here some of the Bridget types responding.

buttttt HUR times are tough, no jobs are avaliable, THINK OF THE CHILDREN

My response is that one should be looking for work even if it is a non-ideal underpaying job such as working on the Best Buy Geek Squad. This though will at least "help" pay the bills until you find your next 80K/yr tech job or [insert profession here].

Plus during the 99 weeks one should be positioning their financial situation such that they are prepared for the possibility that they may end up being long-term unemployeed. Such as downgrading cable plans, selling off expensive car payments, etc.

7/14/2010 8:24:09 AM

Quote :

"I know, 99 weeks is such a pittance"

[Edited on July 14, 2010 at 8:28 AM. Reason : one more]

7/14/2010 8:27:20 AM

i think you have to cut the cord somewhere. 99 weeks is pretty ridiculous. many who are unemployed are because they are waiting for a better job to open up instead of taking something they consider 'beneath' them. there are some who legitimately cannot find work, but its time people lower their expectations and since of entitlement and take a job.

7/14/2010 9:15:18 AM

Quote :

"People who become remotely successful politicians are douchebags when it comes to sex. Politics attracts a certain type of personality that is rarely satisfied with fucking who they're supposed to fuck. Is McCain an asshole for what he did? Certainly. But so is pretty much everybody who wants to boss other people around."

I agree. Most politicians are fucking someone else, it's just all about who gets caught and who doesn't.

Choosing between politicians is damn near just choosing the lessor of two evils.

7/14/2010 9:17:56 AM

Quote :

"How do these guys get so rich? I thought you had to be industrious and innovative to get rich."

I think the best way to describe it is to call it "insider trading." The Senators and Representatives know who is going to get the big contracts and buy stock accordingly, etc. That, coupled with fundraising and kickbacks, lead to big pocketbooks.

7/14/2010 10:46:47 AM

^ It is more overt than that. Politicians distribute trillions of dollars a year in free money, so people are eager to be friends with them and as a result donate vast sums of money to create massive foundations for the politicians to run as their own personal fiefdoms.

This is because it is illegal to give the politicians money directly, that would be a bribe. But if you give them the money in the form of a high paying job where they get to do whatever they want, either never show up or send troops to harass old ladies into voting, that is perfectly legal.

7/14/2010 11:06:16 AM

"These people vote"

Ed is correct. What happens when the majority of voters depend mainly on the gov't for their subsistence? Are they going to vote for the candidate who promises independence, personal responsibility and hard work?

Larry Summers, Obama's top assistant for economic policy, co-authored a paper in 1995 with a MIT member where they concluded that "Unemployment insurance lengthens unemployment spells."

The democrats face a two-edged sword. By extending unemployment benefits, they will be also be keeping the unemployment rate higher. Either way, it's looking bad for them in November.

7/14/2010 11:28:53 AM

Quote :

"At this point, LoneSnark or d35tr0yer will come in and explain how this means we should abandon democracy in favor of some sort of free-market-ocracy."

You're a hateful bastard, to the point of it being funny, but also a little pathetic.a

If you pay people to not work, there are people that will milk the system for as long as possible. I got unemployment for about a month and a half before finding a new job, and it sucked. It's not really enough money to get by, and while having nothing to do is fun for a little while, it gets old fast.

The minimum wage needs to be lowered. Of course, I'd say we need to repeal minimum wage altogether, but lowering it to 3-4 dollars an hour would be more than enough to get the desired effect. You would begin to see unemployment go down drastically. I can hear the cries already: "but everyone is entitled to a living wage! We can legislate a high standard of living!" I'm sure there's more than a chunk of unemployed people that would be willing to work for 5 dollars an hour or less. Too bad it's illegal.

Other than that, the United States is no longer a competitive place to run a business. High taxes and government regulations continue to make that situation worse. Until the government gets out of the way and allows the market to function, we'll continue down this downward spiral.

7/14/2010 11:53:55 AM

^^I heard that the extensions to unemployment benefits are causing the U3 rate to be at most 1.5% higher than it otherwise would be

and also that each week of extended benefits extends the average length of unemployment by a day

7/14/2010 1:13:53 PM

Quote :

"The minimum wage needs to be lowered."

Why? Average wages are increasing. Any impact that changes to the minium wage by raising it or lowering it would have a small effect on the economy positively or negatively.

Quote :

"Until the government gets out of the way and allows the market to function, we'll continue down this downward spiral."

Then why were we able to get out of a much larger spiral during record levels of government intervention?

7/14/2010 1:30:06 PM

Quote :

"You're a hateful bastard, to the point of it being funny, but also a little pathetic"

Just a few hours after my prediction LoneSnark came in and bashed democracy and you came in and said we should replace government with market. I predicted the motherfucking future and this is the response I get? I guess there's no pleasing some people...

7/14/2010 1:32:11 PM

^ Hey! I did no such thing. Democracy rules in my opinion. We just need to make a few marginal changes to the rules. It would still be a constitutional democracy if I had my way, I would just enshrine a few key rights, such as the right to engage in your chosen legal trade and the right to engage in political speech. Done. America would then be perfect

Although, I would like to run a temporary experiment in allowing states with super-majorities to nullify federal statutes within their borders.

7/14/2010 1:44:00 PM

I'll grant that you didn't advocate abolishing the thing but you did, as I said, bash it. It was even a fairly reasonable bashing in that it targeted an issue with democracy that exists and is completely and forever unavoidable.

Quote :

"Although, I would like to run a temporary experiment in allowing states with super-majorities to nullify federal statutes within their borders."

So when South Carolina legalizes slavery ten seconds later will I be able to bring my slaves back to NC or would they immediately become free upon crossing the border?

I kid, I kid.

7/14/2010 1:52:39 PM

cut. the. cord.

if 99 weeks is not enough, where do we draw the line? 104 weeks = TWO FULL YEARS. i understand that, in the current economic climate, two years of unemployment is not uncommon. jobs are scarce. i get it. but people who have been drawing these funds from the government for this long are no longer in the realm of unemployment insurance, they are in the realm of welfare. it is most efficient for economic support to these individuals to be treated as such. there needs to be a deadline at which one is no longer "between jobs". using the economic downturn as an excuse for extending unemployment benefits is contrary to sound logic. a temporary blip, expected to be followed by large employment gains, ok - unemployment insurance is less disruptive in that time scale. that doesn't work in this case. all estimates show a long, slow recovery over many years, even decades.

[Edited on July 14, 2010 at 2:15 PM. Reason : ]

7/14/2010 2:14:51 PM

Quote :

"I think blocking unemployed benefits is smart for getting people motivated to find a job. I have heard way too many people as my customers say they are going to ride on the free government money until the end, because they can and they know they can easily find a job afterward."

I'm curious who these customers are and just how much they are getting per week. Do they seem like high or low paid workers?

Quote :

"My response is that one should be looking for work even if it is a non-ideal underpaying job such as working on the Best Buy Geek Squad. This though will at least "help" pay the bills until you find your next 80K/yr tech job or [insert profession here]."

I doubt seriously...very seriously...that those folks that are paid in that range are the ones that are passing over many opportunities, in say, the 40-50k range to hold out for a better job. The reality is there is a shit ton more to their decision than just the pay. Taking a new job in a new location is a complete game changer. Kids have to move, houses have to be sold, spouses have to change jobs. Meanwhile, highly educated folks are most certainly vastly better off brushing up on certs and skillsets than they are working a min-wage job. I'm fairly certain I hosed myself on a job interview last year when part of my reply to "what do you do to keep yourself busy" was "try not to lose money in the stock market". Even though I mentioned other stuff I was doing to keep my skills up, I have a feeling the hiring manager focused on this comment.

Quote :

"Plus during the 99 weeks one should be positioning their financial situation such that they are prepared for the possibility that they may end up being long-term unemployeed. Such as downgrading cable plans, selling off expensive car payments, etc."

We don't know to what extent these people are or are not doing it. As mentioned, these types of bills don't mean shit next to a home that is vastly underwater or even one that isn't that must be sold.

Quote :

"i think you have to cut the cord somewhere. 99 weeks is pretty ridiculous. many who are unemployed are because they are waiting for a better job to open up instead of taking something they consider 'beneath' them. there are some who legitimately cannot find work, but its time people lower their expectations and since of entitlement and take a job"

Fantastic conjecture. Anything other than your conservative biases that has led you to this conclusion no matter how off base it likely is?

Quote :

"What happens when the majority of voters depend mainly on the gov't for their subsistence? Are they going to vote for the candidate who promises independence, personal responsibility and hard work? "

Hmm, lets see, I'll vote for the candidate who will promise me just enough to keep me from freezing or starving or the other guy...damn, this is a tough choice.

Quote :

"and while having nothing to do is fun for a little while, it gets old fast."

Weird, so of the two people mentioning unemployment in this thread, both claimed it sucked and were glad to get off it. I was on it myself and can echo these sentiments. So from this we can certainly draw the conclusion that there are vast millions out there just loving not doing shit for the loads of dough Uncle Sam is shoveling at them.

Quote :

"if 99 weeks is not enough, where do we draw the line? 104 weeks = TWO FULL YEARS."

Oddly enough, I don't know that I've ever heard a conservative complain about the TAA programs targeted at folks that had their jobs displaced due to foreign competition

http://www.doleta.gov/tradeact/benefits.cfm#2

Up to 2 years of unemployment + relocation benefits + training benefits + Cobra credits.

The reality is, the cost of unemployment is pennies compared to what has been shoveled at automakers, homebuilders, and banks via tax credits, outright cash infusions, and more hidden forms of support (purchase of MBS via FNM FRE for example).

I'd be all for shorter lengths provided that the rich elites didn't get their "unemployment extensions" (which pay a shit ton more than any of the rest of us get) as part of this whole managed economy.

7/14/2010 5:04:48 PM

Quote :

"Fantastic conjecture. Anything other than your conservative biases that has led you to this conclusion no matter how off base it likely is? "

personal experience. I was laid off and passed up several jobs that I considered "beneath" my education and career experience because I had the crutch of unemployment. I have several friends in the construction industry in the same boat.

I then 'settled' on starting my own business after looking for 2 months and have taken a major pay cut in the process because I couldnt stand suckling from the teat.

what is your frame of reference ms. partisan pants? how has it anything to do with being conservative or liberal? are you saying that people do not pass up jobs because they are secure in the unemployment wage? dont be dense. you can collect $500/week in unemployment if you made the "maximum." why would you take a job for $400/weeks? stop being so silly.

[Edited on July 14, 2010 at 5:55 PM. Reason : .]

7/14/2010 5:54:58 PM

Quote :

"I was laid off and passed up several jobs that I considered "beneath" my education and career experience because I had the crutch of unemployment"

So a handful of anecdotes is reason enough to just say 99 weeks is more than enough, or that folks are on average staying on the dole longer than they want to be.

Quote :

"why would you take a job for $400/weeks?"

You wouldn't and for societies sake I'd hope the folks that were making enough to make out unemployment don't take jobs that would result in a degradation of their skills. For every job you are overqualified to take there is someone else that is right qualified for it.

Quote :

"I then 'settled' on starting my own business after looking for 2 months and have taken a major pay cut in the process because I couldnt stand suckling from the teat. "

No, you started your own business because you think you can make more money than you are making off unemployment. Only a moron would pass up free money.

7/14/2010 6:31:16 PM

Quote :

"Only a moron would pass up free money."

the liberal mindset, folks.

Quote :

"You wouldn't and for societies sake I'd hope the folks that were making enough to make out unemployment don't take jobs that would result in a degradation of their skills."

Jesus. for society's sake they need to swallow their pride, get a job and realize the past is gone. just because you think you should make something doesnt mean you will. SIMPLE SUPPLY AND DEMAND.

Quote :

"No, you started your own business because you think you can make more money than you are making off unemployment. "

I started my own business because there were no jobs. I had no choice. No construction companies are hiring PMs. It was either that or change careers.

7/14/2010 6:45:47 PM

Quote :

"the liberal mindset, folks. "

That makes no sense whatsoever.

Quote :

"for society's sake they need to swallow their pride, get a job and realize the past is gone."

Also makes no sense.

Quote :

"just because you think you should make something doesnt mean you will."

Hmm, candidate A has been doing his patriotic part to get off the public dole (of which his employer and tax monies paid into) by working a low end job while candidate B has been taking summer courses and working on side projects directly related to his career. Surely those capitalist employers will do what is in their shareholders best interest and hire the principled candidate A?

Quote :

"No construction companies are hiring PMs"

You said it best

Quote :

"SIMPLE SUPPLY AND DEMAND"

I guess if you're going to be stubborn you better be tough.

7/14/2010 10:21:24 PM

1. it should be the 'irresponsible' liberal mindset (because I know not all liberals believe this) = there endless pot of government money for the public to siphon from at their leisure, regardless of the current fiscal situation of the country

2. see #1

3. taking summer courses? working side projects? you really dont understand how unemployment works. you are supposed to actively seek work...at all times. it isnt a grant to go back to school. education is encouraged, but the intent is not for you to forsake work for going to ITT tech. you have to actively be applying for work and prove that you are doing so. the most "side" money you can earn without your unemployment being docked is $200/week. spare me. you are ignorant.

4. yeah they are not hiring. meaning i could either suckle from the taxpayer tit or go find my own money. the thing that responsible people are trying to do. the rest bleed unemployment for all its worth.

7/14/2010 10:56:47 PM

death to america

7/14/2010 11:14:03 PM

Quote :

"the most "side" money you can earn without your unemployment being docked is $200/week."

I didn't claim working on project for money you ape. You know, a programmer might working on...gasp...programs from home. A mech e might brush up on SolidWorks, etc.

Quote :

"you are supposed to actively seek work...at all times. "

Even when you're asleep? Dude, get a grip. There is plenty of time in the day to look for employment in between the coursework.

Quote :

"there endless pot of government money for the public to siphon from at their leisure"

Sorry friend, the average number of weeks on unemployment is like 31 or something. I suppose thats the conservative half of the country going back to work at...-30 weeks and all the liberals staying on the dole until it runs out at 99, right (I hope you can understand that math)?

Quote :

"meaning i could either suckle from the taxpayer tit or go find my own money"

Hey, let me know when Wendys starts accepting "principles" as a form of payment. Dude, I know, open up a business where you take that as payment. All conservatives who gave up UI to make a point can pay you in that currency. You'll be so fucking principled you won't know what to do with yourself.

7/15/2010 7:20:45 AM

are you going to school when you sleep? are you that obtuse?

I am not against a reasonable amount of time for UI. the one year open claim period that was in place before the left started politicizing this mess was a lot, but reasonable. I myself was a beneficiary of the program. I am against the seemingly unending amount of time that the left want to jam through Congress. 99 weeks is re god damn diculous.

are you so naive that you do not think people take advantage? your liberal blinders prevent you from seeing any reality at all. UI is supposed to bridge the gap. not let you sit back and wait for the perfect job. additionally, the government should do a much better job of holding people accountable for actually looking for work...instead of the empty threats of audits that are in place now.

what is your solution? how many weeks? show your true colors. offer a solution. until then spare me the tears of your bleeding heart.

[Edited on July 15, 2010 at 9:15 AM. Reason : .]

[Edited on July 15, 2010 at 9:17 AM. Reason : ..]

7/15/2010 9:15:01 AM

199 weeks wont be enough for some. Hell there are still people fighting for more time on benefits/housing for Katrina.

7/15/2010 9:33:00 AM

Quote :

"make that his second wife he left his first one after she became crippled and then put on the pounds"

Yah, he divorced her because she didn't look as nice. Because I'm sure McCain was the only Vietnam POW whose marriage broke up after his return to the states and it had to be for superficial reasons.

This is what always frustrated me in '08. Dems were more than happy to cheerlead McCain when he was pushing against George Bush's agenda, but when his usefulness had expired and he had a serious chance of winning a Presidential election against them it got personal (worse even than the nonsense Bush threw at him 2000).

Oh well. History will remember him better than the partisan hacks that populate this board.

[Edited on July 15, 2010 at 10:17 AM. Reason : ``]

7/15/2010 10:14:21 AM

Quote :

"Weird, so of the two people mentioning unemployment in this thread, both claimed it sucked and were glad to get off it. I was on it myself and can echo these sentiments. So from this we can certainly draw the conclusion that there are vast millions out there just loving not doing shit for the loads of dough Uncle Sam is shoveling at them."

I wouldn't make that conclusion. There are plenty of people that don't want to be on unemployment. There are certainly people that will milk it for as long as they can. There's also the people that think they're going to get their cushy 70k a year jobs back where they didn't do much of anything, and they're unwilling to take a job that pays 35 or 40k. Those people will have to adjust their lifestyles, because the jobs, in many cases, are gone forever.

7/15/2010 11:25:10 AM

^^ Actually McCain was still awesome until he started pandering to the fundamentalist fringe (base) of the right and then sealed the deal by choosing that harpy Sarah Palin as VP.

7/15/2010 11:29:01 AM

I saw the word partisan popping up a lot in this thread and other threads of late. Decided to see how often the word has been getting thrown around in the soap box in the last few months.

April: 11
May: 6
June: 23
First half of July: 24

[Edited on July 15, 2010 at 11:42 AM. Reason : .]

7/15/2010 11:38:13 AM

Quote :

"I wouldn't make that conclusion. There are plenty of people that don't want to be on unemployment. There are certainly people that will milk it for as long as they can. There's also the people that think they're going to get their cushy 70k a year jobs back where they didn't do much of anything, and they're unwilling to take a job that pays 35 or 40k. Those people will have to adjust their lifestyles, because the jobs, in many cases, are gone forever."

well put.

and unemployment sucked because I felt like a loser. it hurt my pride. i would wager that most professional/educated people would feel the same way.

7/15/2010 11:43:08 AM

^^^Thanks. I'm afraid Socks`` briefly lost his mind.

[Edited on July 15, 2010 at 11:57 AM. Reason : ]

7/15/2010 11:49:09 AM

HockeyRoman,

Well, I would argue that the McCain jabs started well before he brought on Palin (who was truly a poor choice) and they have obviously continued well past her selection was politically relevant. And I don't buy the second reason, that it was because pandered to Republicans (he did, i hated it, but they are, you know, his base). All politicians pander. Even the ones you like. And I certainly did not see Dems heaping equal measures of scorn on all politicians (certainly not their own when they pandered).

But I really don't want to discuss it much. I just got hot because I saw the resentment of him being needlessly drug up from 2 years ago. If this wasn't The Soap Box I would probably have just kept it to myself.

Anyways, I made my views known during the election and I think this article sums up my feelings about McCain since he lost.
http://www.slate.com/id/2259936/

The entire experience has only left me even more skeptical of the democratic process. So I will just drop it.

[Edited on July 15, 2010 at 12:11 PM. Reason : ``]

7/15/2010 12:08:59 PM

Quote :

"instead of the empty threats of audits that are in place now."

they aren't [as] empty [anymore]...I was audited last week. and based on the line in the ESC, so were 100 other people plus who knows how many were there before me. Spoke with a friend that has also been unemployed and he was audited a few weeks ago as well.

7/15/2010 12:26:06 PM

^^ I agree. This level of resentment did not exist pre-election. I think most everyone felt that he got the shaft from W. in 2000 so we were in some way and at some level cheering for him. Personally, he lost me when he picked Palin knowing her deplorable environmental stance and that it was merely a gimmick to show they could prop up a political minority too!

7/15/2010 1:20:45 PM

well, that is good to know. i had not heard of many at all and considering the shear number of people collecting, i am sure it is still worth the gamble to many.

can i ask what was it like? what was the procedure?

7/15/2010 1:55:10 PM

First you get a letter (in all caps--stop yelling at me!) that says "be at the ESC on __date__ at __time__ with your work history search report." It's about a week after you get the letter that you have to report. Now, this is the part I don't know about...my appointment was late in the afternoon (3:30--I arrived 2:55 and left the office at 4:15 after standing in line waiting to check in w/ my appointment letter), so at a certain point they stopped bringing people to the back for a one on one interview with an ESC employee to go over your work history search. They stopped taking people back ~5 people ahead of me. I simply handed them my work history report, they were going to review it, key it in, and I was to keep on applying for my weekly certification until/unless I heard anything different.

I had other information with me as well as I've had a side job of nannying while I've been looking for work...so I had a letter from the family. The guy I knew that was audited just before me also took in cleared checks from side jobs he had done.

It was more nerve racking than anything else...the audit itself was pretty painless.

City-data forums offered a lot of help and information from the one-on-one standpoint so that's what I was expecting...standing in line and then not speaking to anyone (and still not knowing my fate) but just handing over my information was not.

[Edited on July 15, 2010 at 3:44 PM. Reason : ]

7/15/2010 3:42:56 PM

DaBird, is it because I am new or because I don't have a cock why you apparently haven't taken the time to comprehend anything I have posted?

Did you also realize you typically make contradictory statements or statements that are opposed to your overarching position? For instance

Quote :

"the one year open claim period that was in place before the left started politicizing this mess was a lot, but reasonable."

So which is it, reasonable or a lot, because those are two different things in my buck? Furthermore, 26 weeks doesn't even come out of the taxpayer dole, and given that the average time on UI is 31 weeks, it certainly isn't far fetched to have it extend well past this to cover those folks who aren't lucky enough to be the prime pick for those few jobs available.

Quote :

"I am against the seemingly unending amount of time that the left want to jam through Congress. 99 weeks is re god damn diculous"

Did you even follow my link to the TAA and ATAA programs? Benefits nicer and more generous than EUC have been on the books for more than a decade. I'm going to guess you didn't complain about those before, why the religion all of a sudden?

Another contradiction:

Quote :

"UI is supposed to bridge the gap. not let you sit back and wait for the perfect job."

Ok, so in the worst crisis in a generation, why the beef about the length of terms for unemployment compensation? You agree that it is to bridge the gap but you apparently are the all knowing on how long this gap should be and it's clearly too long for you? Again, the fact that on average people are on the roles for 31 weeks implies that they aren't sitting back for the perfect job. The reality is the number of jobs available cutting across all sectors is drastically lower and the best folks for those jobs have already filled them, leaving other people to continue looking, waiting on the economy to turn around. Those people can't downgrade jobs/careers because of the exact same thing happening at levels below them. FFS, just look at the unemployed thread on this site for evidence that people would in fact love to be gainfully employed.

Quote :

"additionally, the government should do a much better job of holding people accountable for actually looking for work...instead of the empty threats of audits that are in place now"

Sure thing. Let's hire more workers on the taxpayer dollar to comb through records making sure people are being honest. I mean, the data certainly points to a lazy populace just loving that 20k/yr salary provided by Uncle Sam.

Quote :

"until then spare me the tears of your bleeding heart. "

I voted for Lawson, Munger and myself in the last election. I'm realistic. Trying to get religion about EUC in an environment where trillions have been handed over to corporate elites is about as pigheaded a thing as I can imagine.

7/15/2010 5:08:15 PM

April: 11
May: 6
June: 23
First half of July: 24 26

7/15/2010 10:14:55 PM