America Part 2
I want a Good Job!
I want a Good Job!
What's wrong with America. On the surface not much. No Huns are at the gate, cities are not in riot, the leadership has been elected in a fair and open election. There is no great food shortage, there is no hordes of armed thugs that are attacking officials in the street.
So whats the problem and what can be done to fix it?
One problem is Jobs. For one thing they are hard to find. If you happen to find one they don't pay very well and odds are they don't have many benefits. There are now cries for the Government to get involved. However that isn't very likely. Because the funny thing is that is not the government's problem.
America is a capitalist state. Employment outside of government work is not in the purview of the state. Sure there are few laws dealing with minimum wage, overtime, and workplace safety. There is this thing called the department of labor. But all of that was born out of the labor movements of the past. All of which have come and gone. Just the minimum nothing to crushing to the employer.
Hell its one of the reasons that America had the Cold War going on for so long. Free people means free enterprise or something to that affect. Many like to point out that America 'won' the cold war, so that proves that the state should have nothing to do the economy. Why It is the end of history. We have found the 'best' system and that system is capitalism. The freer the better.
That's the story and America is sticking to it.
America is a capitalist state. Employment outside of government work is not in the purview of the state. Sure there are few laws dealing with minimum wage, overtime, and workplace safety. There is this thing called the department of labor. But all of that was born out of the labor movements of the past. All of which have come and gone. Just the minimum nothing to crushing to the employer.
Hell its one of the reasons that America had the Cold War going on for so long. Free people means free enterprise or something to that affect. Many like to point out that America 'won' the cold war, so that proves that the state should have nothing to do the economy. Why It is the end of history. We have found the 'best' system and that system is capitalism. The freer the better.
That's the story and America is sticking to it.
No one with any real power in this nation questions it. None in the media actively question the system. Any dissent is fringe at best and why should anyone question it? Before the downturn everything was rosy anyone could get rich if they just tried. Just look at the stock market. While your house value just kept going up more and more. Even with the downturn taken into account. It all does seem very successful. America still has the world's biggest economy after all. Plus more than its far share of millionaires. It seems like just about every major company is based in America.
If America has a state religion it is Capitalism. Besides what else is there?
But you still can't find a good job. Well did you go to school? To quote the article only "55.7 percent of last year's (2011) graduates have jobs." That is just the numbers for Columbia a 2nd rate ivy league school. Education doesn't seem to help in fact it seems to hurt. College isn't free and those student loans don't pay for themselves.
It makes sense too. Everyone is effected by the downturn. Jobs aren't easy to come by and employers can be very picky. What chance does a college grad fresh out school have when they are trying for same job as a person with a family, a mortgage to pay, and years of experience in the field. If you were or are an employer what seems like a better hire a 20 something or a 40 something?
The heart of the matter of why people cannot get good jobs goes back to heart of the problem with capitalism. The employer can only look out for itself. It is not nice or fair but it is the system. Its not that I am trying to defend the employers. I am simply pointing out that they are out for themselves. In times like these they can fire people as they please. At the same time they can hire people at whatever wage the person is willing to take.
Big companies are run by numbers, namely profit. Do what it takes to get profit up.
The system is cold. If you are not lucky enough to be rich then you have to take whatever you can get. Employers know this and act accordingly. No one should expect the government to get involved. The people in government aren't affect much by the downturn. Even if they get voted out of office they tend to find nice jobs in the private sector.
So what is the average person to do?
The simply fact there is very little that they can do. You can try to start you own business but if you lack the talent or the money. It will very likely fail or never get off the ground.
A good amount of a persons dignity comes form their labor. It is work that defines us and how we judge others. So when one cannot find a 'good' job a person loses dignity.
In order to give people 'good' jobs a balance needs to be found between capitalism and the worker. The role of the government in this is not undermined capitalism or the will of the free market but to ensure that those that are not the owners are taken advantage of. Workers need the labor in order to function in our society. While employers need workers to function.
Part 3 will explain how the Government should do this.
If America has a state religion it is Capitalism. Besides what else is there?
But you still can't find a good job. Well did you go to school? To quote the article only "55.7 percent of last year's (2011) graduates have jobs." That is just the numbers for Columbia a 2nd rate ivy league school. Education doesn't seem to help in fact it seems to hurt. College isn't free and those student loans don't pay for themselves.
It makes sense too. Everyone is effected by the downturn. Jobs aren't easy to come by and employers can be very picky. What chance does a college grad fresh out school have when they are trying for same job as a person with a family, a mortgage to pay, and years of experience in the field. If you were or are an employer what seems like a better hire a 20 something or a 40 something?
The heart of the matter of why people cannot get good jobs goes back to heart of the problem with capitalism. The employer can only look out for itself. It is not nice or fair but it is the system. Its not that I am trying to defend the employers. I am simply pointing out that they are out for themselves. In times like these they can fire people as they please. At the same time they can hire people at whatever wage the person is willing to take.
Big companies are run by numbers, namely profit. Do what it takes to get profit up.
The system is cold. If you are not lucky enough to be rich then you have to take whatever you can get. Employers know this and act accordingly. No one should expect the government to get involved. The people in government aren't affect much by the downturn. Even if they get voted out of office they tend to find nice jobs in the private sector.
So what is the average person to do?
The simply fact there is very little that they can do. You can try to start you own business but if you lack the talent or the money. It will very likely fail or never get off the ground.
A good amount of a persons dignity comes form their labor. It is work that defines us and how we judge others. So when one cannot find a 'good' job a person loses dignity.
In order to give people 'good' jobs a balance needs to be found between capitalism and the worker. The role of the government in this is not undermined capitalism or the will of the free market but to ensure that those that are not the owners are taken advantage of. Workers need the labor in order to function in our society. While employers need workers to function.
Part 3 will explain how the Government should do this.
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