Why Unemployment Benefits Should Be Extended
I have been unemployed for more than one year. As time went on and I wasn’t able to find a job, despite sending tons of resumes and going on interviews (interviewers say there are apprx. 150 applicants for each job). My health has taken a beating (from worry) and I have developed an arrythmia from stress. I am not lazy — I have a master’s degree in mass communication and have worked since I was 16 years old.
I was so happy when I bought my new house. Now all I do is wonder how I will make ends meet and whether/when I will need to foreclose on my house. Being unemployed can ruin your life and everything you have built for yourself. Until you’ve been there, you can’t understand how bad it gets. I’ve known friends who have become suicidal.
I am no longer a Republican because I believe the party is elitist and cannot empathize with the average joe. Take a look at Sen. Thune and today’s blockage of the unemployment extension. He wants to add an amendment to the bill — this is just one of many holdups caused by the Republicans. It would seem they cannot relate to the plight of the unemployed.
My benefits are about to be exhausted. I’m not sure the bill will pass within the week I have left. I’m tired and very discouraged. My Mom used to talk about the Great Depression and I never understood her feelings. Now I know.
Each day the Republicans stall the unemployment extension, more than 200,000 of the unemployed lose their benefits. This is a sad time for the U.S., but the Republicans just don’t get it. They continue to play games with people’s lives.
Ann D.
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