It's perfectly clear: GOP will ruin millions of Americans' lives

[prolesunited]

in hopes of regaining power, and some Dems in the Senate are perfectly willing to help them.

Do they have any idea what not funding unemployment will do to the small gains that have happened in the economy?

Well, of course, they do. More suffering, more misery just in time for the fall elections and the GOP will happily pin it on the Dems.

The fact is that thousands ARE willing to take any kind of job. But, if you look at labor statistics, the thousands of jobs will do nothing to help the MILLIONS of people who are unemployed.

I read so many stories of people who got the education, who worked hard, who were responsible, did everything right and they have just been tossed aside as if their lives and efforts over the years are mean absolutely nothing.

And no one seems to give a damn and our elected leaders view our lives, our hopes, our dreams, our families as nothing more than political pawns.

[CurtEastPoint]

1. Bravo. I'm calling my 2 asshole GA Repub senators tomorrow. Out of work for one year now.

And my benefits just ended. I have been looking, trust me. There is SHIT out there.
These 2 rich SOB's (Chambliss and Isakson) are worthless pricks.

For whatever good it will do, I'm still calling.

[sendero]

2. And the Democrats..

....will let them. Cry me a river.

[Name removed]

3. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[shraby]

4. Republicans getting in power would be totally disastrous

to the unemployed, to the Gulf, to the homeless. They are absolutely heartless ba**ards.

[indepat]

17. "And the Democrats will let them do it

cry me a river." Democrats water down every important piece of legislation in an effort to placate Republicans who then vote in lockstep against. So cry me another river. :P

[prolesunited]

5. I'm calling B.S. on this

I'm not very happy with some Dems right now, but there sure is a BIG difference between the two parties.

For example, take Barton's apology to BP. Do you think if the GOP was in charge that there would be a multibillion-dollar escrow account set up right now?

[Turbineguy]

8. Oddly enough

the escrow account works in BP's favor. It short circuits hordes of personal injury lawyers out for their 40% of a pound of flesh. It gets money to those in need earlier. Of course repubs would never see that benefit as they lack the vision to do so.

[relayerbob]

12. Sure there would ...

the top execs would have to ensure their nest eggs were well lined when BP fails

[RainDog]

6. thank you for posting these threads about this issue

this, combined with the knowledge that the wealthy have recouped and are gaining EVEN MORE UNEARNED WEALTH by betting in the stock market while people who work for a living are losing everything is BEYOND DISGUSTING.

Our govt. needs to wake the fuck up and realize that pandering to the stale reaganomics bullshit of the right is the path to serfdom.

we need policies that do not reward idiotic financial instruments that produce nothing while they bankrupt the rest of the nation.

[Historic NY]

7. Will ruin, they already have!

[RobbNYC]

9. Rachel Maddow's segment tonite...

...on the Republicans and the unemployment insurance funding was fantastic... try to see it...

[Leftist Agitator]

21. Welcome to DU!

:hi:

[William Z. Foster]

10. corporations

Corporations will ruin millions of Americans' lives in hopes of retaining their almost absolute power over us, and for all practical purposes all politicians from both parties are perfectly willing to help them.

[Cresent City Kid]

13. I agree about corporations, but the people who run them are the villans

In theory, a corporation could create jobs and ensure safety at those jobs, pay a decent wage, dispose of waste responsibly and pay their fair share of taxes. It sounds like a pipe dream, but it is a choice, one that is rarely if ever made. It is people who make the choices, and to them the choice is between rich and super-rich.

[William Z. Foster]

15. not really

Since the worst behavior is rewarded, all are forced to cut corners and act in anti-social ways in order to succeed. this ethic permeates the society and dictates who does and who does not have control. It is now spinning out of control and threatening our survival.

Even if 99 out of 100 CEO's decided to "do the right thing," it would not matter because the unscrupulous few will not make that choice and so will have an enormous competitive advantage, the stock of their corporation will go up, and they will prevail and the "good guys" will be out of business. It will always be a race to the bottom in terms of social responsibility - it is the nature of the system and no other outcome is possible. Wall Street does not ask how you made the profit, only that you do, and Wall Street has a stranglehold on access to capital and therefore a stranglehold on business, and therefore a stranglehold on all of us.

There is no supportable theory that says Wall Street will suddenly and universally put something ahead of profits. It cannot happen. The whole point of Wall Street is to pursue profits and only profits, at whatever cost band no matter what it takes. How much of the world needs to be destroyed before people will snap out of denial about this simple and self-evident truth. No successful people on Wall Street think otherwise and they make no secret about how the system works.

[Bitwit1234]

11. It is a shame that we don't know the names of all the republicans

in our state. We could then start a mailing campaign and tell them, if they are unemployed who is holding back the checks for them.
Since the media won't publish or tell the people this, we could start our own mail campaign. Newspapers won't publish out letters either. There has to be a way we can get this to the public. Right here in Minnesota, I know it, but there is nothing, nothing at all on TV or in the newspapers about it. See this is why the republicans keep it up. All the public knows is that congress didn't pass the bill. AND since the Democrats are in the majority they think it is their fault. Most people don't know the rules of the senate and the 60 cloture vote.

[prolesunited]

14. I've noticed the media blackout as well

Hundreds of thousands already have lost their benefits. You get to finish out whatever tier you were on, but can't move on. If you are in one of the high unemployment states, extended benefits have ended. So, where the jobs situation is the worst, you no longer get any help.

I'm sure many other families have had to cancel their health insurance as well with no COBRA subsidies.

Peoples' lives are being destroyed, many in professional classes or workers with 20+ years on the job. These aren't the people who usually need help or have been in this position before -- the usual suspects society already has cast aside.

But, they are just as invisible. I hardly have heard any media coverage about this -- either about the policy issue or the families this is impacting.

At what point will anyone pay attention?

[GeorgeGist]

16. Lest you forget ...

President Obama is a firm believer in bipartisanship.

[prolesunited]

18. So, exactly what should he be doing?

Are you saying that he wants to cut unemployment and send the economy back into a tailspin?

[HopeHoops]

19. "will"??? That is SO past tense.

Yes, obviously there are millions more to ruin and the GOP won't stop until every non-rich person in the US has been ruined.

[laughingliberal]

20. As one of the tossed aside, thank you for this post. We are truly feeling alone and on our own.

Neither my husband nor me is eligible for UI benefits but this really highlights how there is no real help for any of us whose lives have gone down the drain in this crisis. The loss of benefits for this many people means another dumping of the economy and that much longer before we see any hope again.