How to Fix the Jobs Problem - Fast

[Waiting For Everyman]

First, make it a crime to outsource/offshore any local, state, or federal government job. Next publicly-regulated utilities, which would include internet or tv of course. Public transportation too. Then include any job in any company which receives any government grants or contracts. At the same time, go ahead and do single payer (retraining could focus on people who still couldn't find jobs after both changes, which would probably be fewer this way).

Give businesses time to comply based on their size, maybe the smallest within 3 months for instance, but all within one year max. Any companies that don't like that can get 100% private financing.

Watch the flood of hiring that would take place.

We have to stop our tax money going to support anything but our own jobs. THAT is our problem. We are paying to hire OTHERS. Why should we?

Sure the free traders would scream, but so what, they had their chance and screwed this up royally. Our tax money should go only to hiring us. Nothing else is moral OR logical... how 'bout if we require our law to be both of those adjectives for a change, instead of expecting real life to match itself to our bullshit laws as they are now? After that then, let the chips fall where they may, let the "winners and losers" be whoever they are, and retrain from there if necessary.

As long as we pay others to do jobs that we lose, nothing will work. At least we could stop that much of the bloodletting. If other countries want to do the same, fine with me, I think they should.

[Sadie5]

1. In total agreement

This can be fixed fast if only our Congress would act.

[moez]

2. Gee, Spanky!

maybe we could even put on a show to earn money for everybody!

[Waiting For Everyman]

3. So you think

I should pay somebody else to do my job (because that's the microcosm of what this system is, you do realize that I suppose)? Brilliant, Alfalfa.

[progressoid]

4. Good idea

Too bad most of it won't happen.

[endless october]

5. my plan :

require any corporation that wants to sell its goods in the US to adopt OSHA, pollution controls, and US minimum wage. that way everyone has to play by the rules. want to build stuff in the third world? cool. play by the rules or lose your access to the biggest discretionary spending market in the world.

how would we enforce it?

we send inspectors to every factory that is making goods for our market. and we send them there often.

[Waiting For Everyman]

6. I agree.

Our domestic market is the trump card and we are throwing it away. Once it's lost, nobody will benefit from it, so what does that accomplish for anyone?

Besides, those inspectors would be doing jobs that we need which don't exist now. We could use more of them here too.

[unblock]

7. more ideas: give poor people money to spend

and set up a government-sponsored entity with a clean balance sheet to lend to small businesses.

pretty soon businesses will be popping up all over the country, hiring people along the way, dedicated to finding a way to extract that money from all the poor people.

hey, it's the american way! trickle-down is a theory, and a false one at that. trickle-up is a self-evident fact.

[Waiting For Everyman]

12. There's lots of pent-up demand at the bottom,

that's for sure. If single-payer was done, the minimum wage could be raised significantly without hurting employers too. It's way too low compared to what basic subsistence costs today. Also, what about micro-lending here? If it's a good idea in third world countries, why don't we have the same thing?

[BeFree]

8. Emergency!!

We are in a crisis situation and so at this time your plan should become law.

What we have is an economic 9/11 type situation. Only this time millions and millions of us are being hurt. Time to take drastic measures.

[Waiting For Everyman]

11. Obama could give Congress time to do it, and if they don't then

do it by executive order under national emergency. I agree with you - this is an economic 9/11.

(I also think the financial terrorists who did this to millions of people need to be identified and prosecuted for it... just as vigorously as our response to 9/11 was.)

[DCKit]

13. "... just as vigorously as our response to 9/11 was.)"

But, more accurately this time. By BushCo logic, this mess would be best fixed by nuking Mars, killing penguins or some other stupid shit.

By the way, we know who did this to U.S. (and the rest of the world): The fat, smirking bastards who show up weekly to testify before Congress about how nothing they've done is really their fault.

As long as they keep writing checks, Congress isn't going to do shit.

[Wednesdays]

9. Sounds good to me. However, there are 535 men and women

hanging around a marble building in Washington D.C. you need to convince, too. Good luck with that. :banghead:

[Wednesdays]

10. Kicked and rec'd

:kick: