Is it just me, or....

Is it just me, or, Not?  Or, are you, also, questioning what is really going on in this world.  Recently, I have had all kinds of thoughts going through my mind about the state of the modern world.  I regularly read the local newspaper, as well as check online news sites and news items, clearly, the information which we are regularly being presented is not only very negative, but suspect.

For example, take the office of the President of this Country.  Our elected, 2nd-term, President is accused of  being akin to a dictator, and not just in Fox news!  Oh, for the days when the wife of a President was, essentially, usually ignored, and not, as now, running for the Office herself!  Unfortunately we already are, even this early, being treated to a rehash of the worst parts of the Bill Clinton years as President!

Just in case you haven't been aware of some of this; currently, President Obama, as well as Michelle, are being charged with various offenses, such as being out of office, (traveling, etc.); going places at great expense, (including how much Michelle's clothes and trips cost).  He, it is claimed, is acting like a dictator, she of interfering with children's nutrition, as well as criticism of her behavior in public, etc. With the 2016 elections ahead, it is only likely to get worse!

Nonetheless, I find it interesting to compare, for example, the complaints about this President's times out of office, playing gulf, etc. with that of his predecessor.  Take, for instance, the amount of time "W", spent in Texas on his ranch, "cutting brush," (more often than in the office ), went without comment in the news.  The tone of reporting about the current office holder, is unprecedented in the news coverage of a sitting president, including President Clinton.  While all Presidents are subject to historical reviews of their time in office, the incivility of the current treatment, in my memory, is unprecedented.

As to world events: there is the news about young American men, and women(!), attempting to, and/or actually accomplishing, leaving this country to join the ISIL/ISIS fighters in the Middle East!  (I have to say, that, I just do not understand these phenomena!)   Along with that, there are also the horrific stories of be-heading's.  These stories are more than disturbing to me!  (Here is a list of recent stories; however, if your reactions are similar to mine, I do not recommend your checking them out!) 

My feelings about them, however, are not shared by all; other personal reactions are possible.  Following is a quote from a reporter who interviewed relatives of victims: "I would expect people would feel very angry and calling for hatred and revenge and attacks, but many of them were very happy. They said their sons and brothers and husbands were martyrs now. They were the sons of Jesus. God had used them to spread knowledge of Christianity, like sacrifices. One of the mothers was laughing all the time and telling jokes."  The full story can be found here.

Meanwhile, here in this country, I think that current unemployment should bring about a major examination of causes and affects around this important, wide-spread condition, some aspects of which follow.

In current news, rather than discussing the lack of employment available, there are stories about Robots: not only are they, supposedly, being created to replace humans in the military, there are, also, according to a recent story, plans afoot to replace home health-care workers, to do personal-end-of-life care for the elderly, (one of the lower-paying and non-exportable jobs around.) 

If there were a real concern about the lack of jobs in this country, one would think it would be a major topic of discussion in  news stories.  Instead we get stories not only about robots, but about foreign workers. In any case, the news stories about foreign workers seem to be more about criticizing the current Administration, than about the real reasons for the major decline in actual jobs.

One of the real problem is, as this headline declares: "Another Tech Giant lays off thousands, wants access to more foreign workers."   The truth, finally, in addition to the regular stories we are fed about undocumented aliens not paying taxes, while using social services and taking jobs away from Americans.

A major aspect of this problem has been the out-sourcing of jobs to other countries.  This has been going on for a long time, (for a history, see here.)  More recently, businesses began exporting less-skilled work to countries which pay low wages compared to this country.  At that time, workers with jobs requiring more skill felt invulnerable.  (Before this extension began, warnings, about those jobs being next, fell on deaf ears.)  Not long after, various businesses began finding ways to export more middle-class jobs to other countries as well.  The advent of the Internet has only exacerbated the problem.

Now, as to some of the non-exportable jobs remaining.  Have you been to a larger store in this country lately, which used to employ many people?  In my experience, at least here in New Mexico, currently, they are devoid of workers to help anyone, including anyone to re-shelve merchandise.  Of those remaining the visible employees are a couple of people to check out the merchandise.

Wake up people!  Not only are businesses, and corporations off-shoring as many jobs as they can manage, (if not, they are substituting foreign workers for domestic), they are reducing their work forces in their still-present facilities to the absolute minimum needed in order to open their doors. 

In the beginnings of industrialization, Henry Ford was reported as stating that you have to pay the workers enough to be able to buy one's products--cars, refrigerators, new homes, etc., etc.  (It seems that this is an urban myth, about which you can read here.)

It seems that this country, and much of the rest of the World, is heading into financial collapse, due to the unvarnished greed of heads of corporations, as well as the one-per-centers, and their actions, including their anti-worker mentality, in order to keep as much as they can of profits.

The lesson we are about to learn is that the, "urban legend" about Henry Ford's philosophy about paying workers was, actually, prophetic.  Economists are now beginning to talk about the fact that the current stagnation of the U.S. economy is, not the loss of jobs, but actually the fallout from so many people saddled with college loans.  These Economists explain that those self-same educated people, are, as a result, now unable to contribute to the round-robin of real economics.  That is, they are unable to afford cars, houses, refrigerators, washing machines, etc. etc., all of which can keep an economy healthy!

I am spending much of my time these days watching it all play out.  Unfortunately, most of us will be here to personally experience the results of human folly and greed!

With that, I end this blog,

Shirley Gallup