Janet Hill – 7/22/10

This page was last updated on July 22, 2010.

Corbett out of touch on unemployment; Janet Hill; Beaver County Times; July 22, 2010.

According to Beaver County Blue, Ms. Hill is a member of “USW [United Steelworkers] staff and also a PDA [Progressive Democrats of America] member.”

Below is a detailed critique of the subject letter.

“Tom Corbett is not only ignoring reality when it comes to schools (Friday’s editorial). He is ignoring reality when it comes to unemployment, too.

“He seems to think that unemployed men and women would rather get half, at best, of what they used to make from unemployment and not work.”

[RWC] According to The Philadelphia Inquirer, “At a campaign stop July 9 in Lancaster County, [Mr. Corbett] said that several employers had told him that people were saying they wouldn’t seek work until their unemployment-benefit checks ran out. ‘The jobs are there,’ he said in part, ‘but if we keep extending unemployment, people are just going to sit there.’ … Corbett later said he misspoke and knew that most unemployed people wanted to work.”

“Most people on unemployment struggle to pay their bills. The number of homes in Pennsylvania entering foreclosure rose 20 percent over the last 12 months. The jobless are standing in long lines for jobs.

“When you lose your job, you wonder how you are going to pay your rent or mortgage, make your car payment or feed your kids. And that’s if you even qualify for unemployment.

“There are five people looking for jobs for each job offered. The jobless rate in the building and construction industry is approaching 30 percent in some areas.

“Suicide hot lines are experiencing a surge in calls. Domestic violence is increasing. We need unemployment extended and a program to create jobs - and we need someone who understands that we are falling behind.”

[RWC] The above is simply a list of worn out labor union management talking points.

Whether we want to admit it publicly or not, unemployment compensation subsidizes unemployment and when you subsidize something you get more of it. Lefties seem to recognize this since it’s always cited by them to support subsidies for everything from cars to houses.