Things are getting better, they say. Well, everything is relative. Sure, things are better than then they were in 2006, but that was 8 long years ago. Eight years is a long time for families and small businesses struggling to stay afloat.
Let's look at a few numbers: Florida has only regained 900,000 of the 2.3 million construction jobs lost in the recession.
Foreclosure filings in Florida were up 10% this January compared to January 2014. Bank repos in Florida were the 12th highest in the country. Thirty-nine months in a row, national Food Stamp beneficiaries exceeded 46,000,000. And according to IHS a company that provides global trend data, from 2020-2034, Hispanics will occupy more than 75% of new jobs in the United States.
For the first time in my memory, the future doesn't feel bright. I don't celebrate the opportunities available for my grandchildren. I'm sickened by the prospect that attaining even a modest lower middle class life may not be possible. Frankly, if you are a white, working class citizen, your future is bleak. So, the government and its media lackeys can try to put lipstick on a pig, but our economy is still a pig.
Verna Rock
