Sympathy for the unemployed is understandable, but this is too much
Published: August 9, 2009
Updated: August 9, 2009
Did you see the recent story of the misfortunes of a family out in the Midwest? The Washington Post felt it deserved front page attention and devoted about half of the front page to it and then continued on for two more full pages.
The story attempted to lead the reader through the plight of a relatively young family consisting of the father, mother, teenage son and toddling daughter.
While I may feel empathy for the fact that this young man has lost his job, apparently due to the downturn in the economy, the story of his family’s plight left me feeling that a good deal of their problem was of his making.
It seems that he has been unemployed for about 11 months and his wife lost her job shortly after he did.
They have been existing on unemployment benefits and gradually drifting toward being unable to pay their bills as they are reaching the end of those benefits.
The story, as recounted in the Washington Post, tells us that he has gained 40 pounds since losing his job and then gives us an accounting of his visit to an ATM because his unemployment check ($390) and his wife’s check ($268) are automatically deposited to their bank (I’m guessing that unemployment checks are weekly?).
At the ATM he withdraws $700 and then deposits $500 to pay their rent (that is what the story said). At this point it appears that he has $200 in hand so he buys a soft drink, four packs of cigarettes, and $20 in gas, pays his electric bill, buys brake pads for his car and pays the monthly insurance premium for his children which leaves him with $12.
Now it is admirable that he has met his obligations first although I’d quibble with spending money on cigarettes (and yes I know the difficulties of quitting the smoking habit as I did it 40 years ago) but what follows in the story is unsettling in several ways.
The young man then proceeds, just before noon, to a neighborhood bar to pick up his winnings of $100 from a betting pool he has won.
Shouldn’t gambling be a no-no when you are stretched for money?
And the story becomes more disturbing as the young man spends the afternoon at the bar and consumes, according to the story, eight beers in less than four hours and then gets in his car to drive home (being very careful so that he doesn’t get a ticket).
This visit to the bar does not seem to be an unusual occurrence.
It was at this point that I could no longer sympathize with the plight of this family.
Eight beers, when he is strapped for cash to meet his obligations, and then driving a car to boot is unacceptable behavior.
In a different vein I read where the Department of Energy has awarded contracts to 16 different companies in a total amount of $80 billion in a program to reduce energy use in federal buildings.
This is the same song repeated over and over again. I served in an executive position with the federal government for a number of years and we went through this same exercise time and again.
The only effect such expenditures had, and will have, is to keep a large number of people employed pushing numbers around.
Meaningful measurable results will not be forthcoming.
Remember folks it is your tax dollars being spent on these exercises.
It will only end when we are all wearing barrels.
Bayne’s column runs every Sunday on the editorial page.
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Reader Reactions
He bought cigarettes? Well, that puts him right down there with the “unemployed” couple in Fredericksburg who uses their unemployment check to buy prepared meals that are heat and eat. That story left a bad taste in my mouth too.
Words are powerful and can be taken and replaced with others that are more dramatic or sensationalized. The media can spend four hours interviewing you for an article that might take five minutes to read. I learned quickly that words can be twisted and even turned around to spark the reader’s attention and emotions. At times I would ask if I could please proof the articles written about me before they were published and was always told “no”. The period of time that passes between the interview and print can be a mere day or up to several weeks. This doesn’t happen just in newspapers but in magazines, online and even television. Who knows exactly what was said or what happens behind closed doors but when you put yourself out there in the public eye there is always the possibly of either helping others that can relate or educate those who don’t have a clue but also, that your story can change to fit a specific need or view point of the writer.
I read the article. I can’t believe it covered half the front page. The Post just doesn’t do that. First of all, I think the guy and his family deserve a lot of credit for allowing a major newspaper reporter to chronicle a pretty painful time in their lives. Sure he shouldn’t have been drinking and smoking cigarettes, but that is not why they had to move in with his wife’s mother.
But there are millions more like this family. Should they have been more cautious and saved more money? Sure but don’t most of us live beyond our means assuming that the good times will continue?
You have to remember that this began a year ago when things were not as dire as they are today.
So Jim, what would you recommend to these folks today? That would be a lot more helpful than just criticizing them for their lack of foresight.
I was glad for the Post and this family to give us an insight into what unemployment is like instead of just relying on statistics that don’t tell much of a story.
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