Are There No Prisons? Are There No Workhouses?

Date: Monday, January 13, 2003 3:30 PM

H-1B and JOB DESTRUCTION NEWSLETTER

www.ZaZona.com

http://www.sierratimes.com/03/01/10/edgj011003.htm

Are There No Prisons? Are There No Workhouses?
By Glenn R. Jackson
Published 01. 9. 03 at 17:06 Sierra Time

“Praise be…the tax cuts are here, the tax cuts are here!” Or some such
similar exaltation seems to be the White House’s expectation of the reaction
of Americans to the President’s announced economic stimulus plan. That we
are only talking tax cuts versus real tax reform, just an economic stimulus
in 2003 versus the promised stimulus in 2002, and a Wall Street friendly tax
package to help “create” jobs versus a needed Main Street friendly
elimination of immigration programs that steal American jobs makes you
wonder who is flying this plane?
Wonder no longer, Wall Street and the Stock Markets are at the controls and
the “investor class”, a new term intended to rally the 401K crowd to the
White House’s side, are the intended beneficiaries. The conventional wisdom
seems to be that the majority of American’s are now deeply committed to the
health of the stock markets. “What’s good for the Dow is good for America”
is the mantra. (Let’s chant together now) Unfortunately that is just wrong.
What Americans are most deeply committed to are their JOBS, and record
numbers are now unemployed or, just as bad, are underemployed.

While the White House and every conservative Talking Head will be saying how
job creation is spurred by the President’s economic plan, what will not be
touched on at all is the President’s and Congress’ ongoing job elimination
plan. That’s right, while still up in the air are the types of jobs to be
created by the stimulus plan, a known fact are the types of jobs being
eliminated by H-1B visa, L-1 visa, and “off-shoring”.

With unemployment over 6%, and underemployed American’s having lost good
paying jobs for bad, the American Worker Replacement Program welcomes
increasing numbers of foreign “guest” workers to work American jobs. High
Tech positions in Information Technology, Engineering, Healthcare,
Education, and the Media are being taken from Americans by H-1B visa holders
(supposedly limited to 195,000 per year), L-1 visa holders (unlimited per
year), and by “off-shoring” of technical jobs.

The reason for this American jobs giveaway? The same reasons that drive
businesses to relocate American factories to 3rd world countries (including
China), and that keep open the U.S. southern border to a flood of “guest”
workers… cheap labor. Cheap labor begets better profit margins, better
profit margins begets better earnings, better earnings begets better stock
valuations, better stock valuations begets a better Dow, a better Dow begets
reelected politicians, and reelected politicians begets happy Americans…
right?

Wrong, if you are in the unemployment line or are underemployed. at a
fraction of your past earnings and with no hope in sight. And that is
exactly the situation for hundreds of thousands of your fellow Americans
today.

In discussing the President’s stimulus plan on Wednesday January 8, 2003
Jack Welch (former GE CEO), interviewed on CNBC’s “Squawk Box”, made an
interesting comment. Essentially Mr. Welch said that it was a myth that
American jobs were created by American small business. Instead Mr. Welch
said that American big business created the “jobs” by “outsourcing “
business that they (big business) had created but chose not to run directly.
You should interpret that to mean that real job creation, the professed aim
of the Bush plan, will not happen due to tax cuts to Americans. It is
American big business that once on its feet will be creating the jobs.

Interesting thought, and with more than a kernel of truth. Big business is
indeed outsourcing jobs, but those jobs are not going to Americans in record
numbers. Instead formerly high paying American technical jobs of all
descriptions, jobs that perhaps your college-aged child is working hard to
attain upon graduation, those jobs are going to foreign “guest” workers.

What possible result could we expect from hundreds of thousands of our
fellow Americans thrown out of jobs that had paid them an American wage for
all of their adult lives, only now to find that an American wage is “too
much” to be paid in today’s business climate?

Well given the President’s economic stimulus plan he expects our fellow
American’s to invest their new meager earnings in stocks that provide a
tax-free dividend payment. That should provide them with enough extra money
to make up for their lost income from their lost high tech American job. And
if that should prove not to be enough for them to make it on? Well having
just gone through the Christmas season perhaps a word from Charles Dickens
and “A Christmas Carol”:

“Are there no Prisons?” asked Scrooge. “Plenty of prisons” said the
gentleman. “And the Union Workhouses” demanded Scrooge “Are they still in
operation?” “They are still,” returned the gentleman.

Are there no American jobs for American workers Mr. President? Plenty of
jobs, over a million jobs, only they are not going to Americans.

Glenn Jackson, Chairman
American Reformation Project
404-731-5094

Published by permission of the author. Original publication here.

© 2002 SierraTimes.com (unless otherwise noted)

Help to Keep ZaZona.com Online

Donate to the Cause at
http://www.zazona.com/Donations.htm
To Subscribe or Unsubcribe send an email to

Back to archives