Hey friends..
I've been seeing and hearing some pretty
ignorant statements lately. The AFFORDABLE CARE ACT or Obamacare as
it is known is bringing out the worst in some people and I need to
say something instead of just dismissing the ignorance and hoping they'll one day understand.
The title for people who can't afford healthcare
or use food stamps or rely on some other government support IS NOT
“lazy”. Yes, there are those who take advantage of any system,
from the poorest to the very richest. That is the problem we should be
focusing on.. how to prevent and eliminate the cheating, not ending
the support programs for the poor.
Instead of “lazy”, try less
fortunate. Instead of portraying those less fortunate as wildlife
dependent on hand-outs, try showing a little compassion for people
that haven't been able to attain your level of success.
In case
someone has been living in a vacuum, our economy has changed
drastically over the last couple decades. The abundant family-wage
manufacturing jobs of my past are being replaced by low-paying
service jobs. From Kaiser Steel, the middle-class, economical
mainstay of my hometown of Fontana, CA to our Georgia Pacific pulp
mill here in Bellingham, WA, well-paying, unskilled jobs are
disappearing.
I am thankful that I was able to find good paying
jobs and had the entrepreneurial
(had to google the spelling for that) spirit to be
able to enjoy a financially secure work-life and retirement. But
every job I held was one job someone else couldn't and the
competition for all good jobs is getting fierce. I retired as a
tugboat operator 25 years after starting out swabbing decks and
cleaning toilets. Now, many of those Deck Officer jobs are held by
Cadets with a couple years of education. And that same story can be
told throughout America. High paying jobs are being replaced by
computers and technology everywhere.
Fewer and fewer people have
the opportunities that many of us had. The minimum wage is a joke and
even our middle class can be bankrupted by any one of a variety of
medical conditions. I can only imagine the hopelessness of many young
people who are looking at their future possibilities.
Society is changing and we need to be opening our hearts
rather than clutching our wallets. This is not about our politics, it's
about our humanity. As Jesse Jackson says - 'Never look
down on anybody unless you're helping
them up.'
No comments:
Post a Comment