US Unemployment Checks - Two Million Say Good Bye

Today two million unemployed Americans say goodbye to their unemployment checks.

I have never been good at saying goodbye. For the purposes of this post that really does not matter.

I have never received unemployment benefits. So I will not be one of the two million US citizens who will have to say goodbye to their unemployment checks today.


These folks have been collecting free money from the US Government for at least 99 weeks. That is about two years for all you math gurus.

Many democrats are disappointed. They wanted to extend unemployment further. They felt that we should keep on paying folks who have been out of work for two years.

hmmmm...

Personally I think that logic is nuts. I think two years is nuts. I think our policy makers must be ignorant to the fact that a HUGE portion of the folks who collect unemployment are milking the system for a free ride. I know I was clueless until about 4 or 5 years ago when I I was of the age and maturity to have friends and acquaintances who were unemployed.

I must confess that I do not know a whole lot of folks who make less than 40,000 especially if you don't include those whom are students.

Just the same I have estimated that I know of about 8-12 people on unemployment. Nine of those folks (in my humble opinion) are working the system over. They are not working because they are getting paid not to work. Many of them would look at you stupid if you asked why they don't want to go get a job while they are collecting unemployment. Maybe they are right.

Life is all about incentive and very little else if anything else.

So why is it that someone whom collects a pay check whether they clock in for 8 hours doing something they would most likely rather not do or if they do as they would if on an extended weekend.

I am not sure one can argue with that logic.

There is pride... but that is "hit" once your on unemployment, so why not milk it.

There is principle... but those folks never apply for unemployment.

Frankly, I think anything over two or three months of "free money" is plenty. Sure maybe in many situations those folks should still get some sort of aid from their government. But the shape and form of that assistance should not be a blind check week after week.

If nothing else we should at least put them to work and get some kind of value for the tax payers buck.

I would not be surprised if some of you are growling as you read this post. but let's just take a second and step back.

Every week 2,000,000 checks go out. These checks are going to folks who under normal conditions would have been dropped from unemployment due to the normal expiration of a citizens right to unemployment. However we extended them. So these people whom have already maxed out the system were given an additional 100 pay checks. The working man paid for an additional two million salaries every week for two years. Don't forget these are just the folks whom were extended the extra 99 week duration. By this I am implying that there are way more then two million collecting unemployment.

Given the above considerations, if we do the math at just a 100 dollars a week then we come up with about 20 billion dollars. That is about the amount that all online advertisers spend over 3 to 5 months total. That accounts for at least a decade of porn revenue. Now our figure we just calculated is wrong. People get more then 100 a week.

I don't want to take part in a more realistic calculation. It is to scary.

So... as I stated earlier, two million unemployed Americans will have to say good bye to their unemployment checks.

GOOD!

How much you want to bet we see a spike in employment numbers with in 25 - 35 days.

I am calling it.

Obama Suggests Two Year Pay Freeze for Federal Employees

Obama has proposed an idea to aid in America's effort to cut back on spending and to try and tackle this enormous budget deficit.


Obama has suggested a two year pay freeze for all civilian federal employees or civil servants.

I want to be clear to communicate that the pay freeze will not effect the military. So if you are in the armed forces and are expecting a raise, or something of the like, than you can rest assured this fiscal action will not effect you.

Also, because many of my readers are not financial gurus. I want to make clear that a pay freeze does not mean these federal employees will not be paid for the next two years. This simply means that they will not get a raise.

The proposed plan will cut the deficit by almost 30 billion dollars over the next five years.

The average salary for a civil servant that deposits a federal pay check on a regular basis makes around $125,000  dollars. This is about twice the salary of the average American.

I am personally OK with this measure as I don't really think the government needs to be increasing salaries. This move seems obvious. Kinda like eliminating the Bush Tax Cuts.

Republicans seem receptive to this idea from Obama.

I recently posted on the Bush tax cuts and the conflict thriving amidst it's looming expiration.  I have something to add...

I was going to put it right here but I think I will go ahead and just create a new post for it.

Find the new post on some of my additional thoughts on the Bush Tax Cuts and Republican Shame.

Looking Back at Cash For Clunkers - Obama Plan

August 2009

Cash for Clunker - Obama Stimulus Program

The phrase "Cash For Clunkers" has been all over the media as of late and for good reason. Cash For Clunkers is thus far the most successful economic stimulus program, this notion is impressive by any measure but is even more impressive when you take in the fact that it makes up less then 1% of the stimulus budget. Not to mention that this figure was increased three fold from the original 1 billion dollar budget to 3 billion which was passed by congress due to the overwhelming success.


What is the Cash For Clunkers Program?

The Cash For Clunkers Program is a Consumer spending and automotive industry stimulus program that awards consumers with a substantial rebate in the amount of 3,500-4,500 dollars for meeting the following:

The consumer must trade in a "clunker" which is a term to describe a older automobile that gets poor gas mileage. Clunkers get 18 or less miles to the gallon.

The consumer must then purchase a new car that is fuel efficient and at least 4 miles to the gallon more efficient then the clunker traded in. The Incentive or amount of the rebate awarded is much higher for a car that is 10 miles to the gallon more efficient then the clunker traded in.

• 3500 dollars is awarded for a four mile improvement.
• 4500 dollars is awarded for a 10 mile improvement.                  

As mentioned in the beginning of this article the Cash For Clunkers Program performed much better then expected which was the catalyst behind congress's decision to triple the budget. Taking a look at the financial numbers describing the economic activity makes the popularity of the Obama stimulus program quite evident.

Resulting Economic Activity of the Cash For Clunkers Program

• Approximately 700,000 - 750,000 Transactions or new car purchases
• Approximately 20 billion dollars in sales

Benefits of the Cash For Clunkers Program

Economic Activity surged and more importantly then how much is where. Consumer spending as well as the automobile sales were two of the most troubled aspects of the recession and these were the beneficiaries of Obama's Cash For Clunkers Program.

Consumer Value

The Cash For Clunkers Program allowed the consumer participants to obtain substantial value per dollar.

Environmental Implications

This program will obviously help the environment because of the programs focus on fuel efficiency.

Gas Prices

The cost of fuel or gas will inherit downward pressure because of the quarter million clunkers that have been taken off the road and replaced with a more fuel efficient counter part.

Jobs and employment

This program will obviously help improve the employment numbers given the increased consumer spending.

Credit and Lending Activity

These new automobile purchases gave an upward push to lending activity, as consumers took on secured debt to finance these purchases.

Stabilizing The Housing Market – How America Did It

The mortgage loan and housing crisis created tremendous economic anxiety and directed the American economy towards a black hole of financial hardship.

Though the US economy is not out of the recession or perhaps depression, things have appeared to settle down a bit.

It looks as if the housing market may be stabilizing. This sis a article exploring the steps and actions that were taken to stabilize the US housing market.

Key Actions of Housing Recovery

• The FHA's Efforts and Powerful Initiative

• Their efforts to spend capital on mortgage assets and securities when private capital was no where to be found.

• Political backing of their efforts to reform the financial markets and particularly the practices and operations involving debt and risk management.

• Obama’s Making Home Affordable Plan

• HAMP Modifications have helped 1.2 million homeowners obtain a loan modification

• HARP Refinance

• Lender Incentives

• Freddie Mae as acting agent for the MHA-C or the compliance assurance operations

• The Plans overall flexibility and agility to structure and restructure programs as they are needed.

• The Marketing and Advertising – aka the out reach efforts of the Making Home Affordable Plan

• The Hardest Hit Fund – Foreclosure Relief

• Home Buyer Tax Credit
• The home buyer tax credit added a great incentive for first time home buyers.

• The Nearly 25 Billion Dollars Given to US Housing Agencies
• US Housing Agencies were able to keep lending while other private lenders were saddle bagging cash out of fear and financial panic.

• 1.4 Trillion dollars of Purchases by the FED and Treasury to Keep Credit Markets from Choking
• Thank God. We would be Russian otherwise.

• Financial Support for Fannie and Freddie

All of these actions taken by our collective American government has really helped stabilize the US housing market.

Sex Sells - Republicans Reverting to What Works - Watch Out Palin - Nikki Haley is Turning Heads

 Republicans Sporting Old Fashioned Sex Appeal

Republicans and the rest of the political world are still not quite sure what they uncovered when they brought Sarah Palin to the presidential race. I say the republican party is really on to something here.


Sarah Palin is an icon to many, and a bloggers wet dream.

How can you resist a gun stroking brunette in a red, white, and blue bikini.

She has stars and stripes in all the right places.

The idea of Sarah Palin having anything to do with the type of decision making, authority, or fiscal responsibility that comes with the oval office is scary.

But just the same, I think the republicans are on to something with this new trend of campaigning with a few good looking policy makers.

There are now two of these brunettes running loose amidst the political right.

Introducing Nikki Haley

Nikki Haley of North Carolina has won the support and backing of Sarah Palin and all her facebook.com friends.

But I don't really care about the endorsement, I care about the ratings that this new one could represent for politics as a whole. Perhaps this political publicity boost is what America needs.

Perhaps this is what the people need to start looking, to start caring, and to finally give a damn.

True, there may be some danger in just looking for a pretty face. Maybe sticking her in a skimpy outfit and placing her on a vanity fair cover for all the boys and girls to see is arguably inappropriate.

But hey sex sells.

I guess what we all have to ask ourselves is what the hell this new gal is all about?

Does she have a real agenda?

Can this one actually be a politician?

Will she shorten her life from stressing over what is wrong with this country?

Will she step in political harms way to address issues that are going to make a difference like President Obama has as a democrat?

I hope so.

This country needs to put political hype to use towards getting the average 26 year old blogger, construction worker, college freshmen, 16 year old cheerleader, and those poor home schooled kids that are just plain weird to pay attention to politics. What are we going to do as a country when all the voters die? They are a dieing breed.

We all need to pay attention and care about the issues that are country has to deal with. If not our country may diminish into the bunch of commission breathing, interest serving, numskulls that we truly are.






Related Articles

Financial Reform Passes With 3 Republican Votes

Diaz - Sexy Block Buster Performance - Knight and Day Review

Facebook - Bending Over the Porn Industry

The Fox Hole - Strippers Protest Church Member Harassment

Reform or Refrain - What Will Become of the Push to Reform the Financial Markets

It is no secret that the financial markets have not performed at there best. The free market by default will always be on the move, sometimes up, and sometimes down.

The last few years has been a bit skewed if we go by the history of the financial markets. We have not seen performance this low since the Great Depression.

Should the government reform the financial markets and current regulatory practices?


The federal government has already stepped in and bailed out or contributed to the financial stability of most of the large financial institutions and banks who are in large part the reason for the economic down turn of the economy. Just as the the government has reasoned that they needed to step in and aid the financial institutions so to do they believe that they need to step in and take a bigger presence as a government regulatory force in the broader financial markets and financial services industry. However as one might imagine there has been some negative feedback from the financial institutions and from many politicians.

Shouldn't the government step in and play a larger role given the fact that they already have stepped in the form of financial aid to these very same institutions? Many say yes. However just the many say no. The argument and rebuttal to this proposal is that regulators and the government will have a negative impact on the markets as they will increase artificial constraints and will increase the degree of uncertainty for investors.

This seems a fair argument as regulatory bodies will make mistakes as they are only human in the end. plus there is also room for the unseen and unintended consequences that seem to always pop up when Uncle Sam gets in the way and these blunders are not easily changed if they don't work. Plus it is arguable to say that the regulatory bodies have done a mediocre job thus far in enforcing the current line up of rules and regulations that are already in place for financial markets and the business world.

On the other hand there does seem to be a obvious problem with the markets at this given point and time. Also to be fair to the regulatory bodies such as the FED and the FDIC there are some loop holes that need to be fixed so that these guys can have the control they need over non bank deposit financial institutions whom leverage up to obscene levels and add systemic risk to the downside for everybody. Such institutions are not subject to the same liquidity or capitol levels that the typical savings and loan bank is held to. Thus these guys potentially can take things to far and as of now it seems as if they have.

Given these above notions I would like to hear what people think. Should there be added regulation to the world of finance?

If yes what do you think should be done?

Ben Bernanke to serve another term as the Chairmen of the Federal Reserve

August 2009

President Obama interrupted his vacation this late August to publicly announce that he is appointing Ben Bernanke to serve another term as the Chairmen of the Federal Reserve.


Obama did not shy from elaborating on his reasoning or feeling towards Ben Bernanke's work, He had more then enough praise for the current and future Chairmen of the Federal Reserve to hold a few press conferences. Obama was sure to lay claim to the fact that it was bernanke's extraordinary effort, quick and innovative thinking and problem solving that prevented the American Economy from spiraling down into a second great depression.

Congratulations to Ben Bernanke on his appointment to serve a second term as the Chairmen of the Federal Reserve. Let us all support his efforts to steer us back on the road to financial prosperity and away from that horrible world of foreclosure and mortgage default.