More Frustration and/or Desperation ahead!

The new unemployment figures came out yesterday and they were not pretty. Overall the total loss was over 90 thousand lost with more coming from government job losses but also slower growth in the private sector. What does that mean to the unemployed (including me). More of the same that there are not enough jobs out there to hire everybody willing to work. And if there are then the competition is so fierce that wages are being kept down due to it. But the employers are enjoying a boom with higher quality educated and experienced employees even in places where you need only a simple bachelor’s degree.

You can blame uncertainty of the mid terms elections and the expiring bush tax cuts for it but even with that this economic mess that we are in will last for a few years (not months not withstanding whatever the economists and stock market says otherwise). We have entered a phase where there is a mismatch of the skills required and the skills that people have now (mentioned earlier in one of my posts). Apart from this the continued outsourcing of jobs and the world wide recession and the high costs of hiring even one employee and there you have a classic case of more frustration in job search and finding jobs for the unemployed.

When your child becomes sick

We always see kids that are sick or have an accident and we feel sorry for them but have you ever think about how it feels for the parents and families that go through the ordeal. Recently I had that experience when my daughter had an accident at school and she broke her arm. Although we rushed her to the emergency room where the attendant made her feel a little bit better but advised us to go to the specialist. We just routinely went there thinking that it would be minor case. But we had the shock of our lives when the doctor told her that she would have to go a minor surgery in which she would be under the general anesthesia.

This news was so shocking to me that I cried, that is how it feels when your own child becomes sick. Although my daughter cried initially in pain but was brave enough to face the procedure (surgery) but we as parents were agonizing for the whole 45-50 minutes the surgery went on and were relieved after we saw our daughter. It is really painful to see your child in such a pain and although for the doctor it is a routine matter but when it is your own flesh and blood then you feel the sickening pain and torture that you have to go through.

The surge in Food Stamps in America

Due to this recession, the number of families getting food stamp is getting worse. Although some people want to restrict this kind of so called “Welfare” but the stories you read says otherwise. It is not that people are in the habit of getting the food stamp, it is just the present situation of economic distress that people are unable to find jobs and thus unable to feed their families, thus the increase in food stamp recipients. I recently read an article stating how the families stay at midnight when their accounts are replenished by food stamp on the first day of the month and then they go to 24 hour super stores to get their monthly food quota from the stores. If you hear their stories, they really want to work, any work for them will do, but they are unable to find work due to various reasons.

To these people food stamps are a lifeline until they get a job (which is by the way getting harder to come back for less educated people). That is why I keep on emphasizing that charity begins at home and we should take care of our folks before we go on having unnecessary adventures abroad. I know we have obligations to other nations in times of calamity, but still if we can just reduce our unnecessary expenses and behave like a financially responsible nation, we may be able to support our less fortunate families here in the United States.

Teaching as a Profession

There was an article recently stating that a new status symbol has emerged which has nothing to do with money. It is called teaching and increasing number of lawyers, and other accomplished people of the industry are trying to be adjunct professors of schools. I was really surprised but most of all happy that these people are not in for the money but for the prestige and honor and status of teaching their trade and knowledge to the new generation.

I am all for teaching as I have also taught some undergraduate and graduate courses in economics and accounting and believe me that is the most satisfying and the most engaging and up-to-date profession out there. You really learn by teaching others and I found out this way by teaching that the things that I learnt by listening to professors and could not understand at that time would make it clear while teaching to other students. Other thing is that you really have to keep yourself up to date in matters pertaining to your teaching each and every day in order to answer questions of your students and in this sense you never are behind on anything of knowledge. The respect and the awe you get from students and other people in your circle really make it clear that why teaching as a profession (especially to university and college students) is such a hot profession.