According to the United States Census Bureau with the assistance of Google Data, the total population of Nevada is 2,643,085. This equates to 372,675 jobless Nevadans. The numbers are high but not measured in millions as is the case in many other states.
Perhaps I should rethink my previous opinion that most members of Congress care whether or not they get re-elected. At least on the surface it does not seem that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid cares about re-election. After all, Reid's state is second in the nation for the highest unemployment rate percentage. The 400,000 voters in Nevada who may make their vote based on the unemployment rate can make or break the results of an election and there are at least that many in Nevada who have a close eye on the actions or inaction of the United States Senate Majority Leader on this issue. Or perhaps Reid is catering more to the needs of the persons who did not vote him into office in an effort to gain bi-partisan support of zero votes? Not a wise strategy for anyone seeking re-election.
It is notable and honorable that Senator Reid has continued to support unemployment extensions through his voting record. That is certainly more than half of the other Senators in high unemployment states. But how many thousands are in Nevada right now wondering if the plug will be pulled on them on June 2nd or have already had that plug pulled and are without any income or an opportunity for a job. To those thousands in Nevada alone, Reid is not getting the job done if the only two choices are no jobs and no extended unemployment insurance. Neither of these are choices the jobless have control to change, Senator Reid.
Each and every day the jobless are making it more and more clear to their elected officials and members of the press that they are unemployed and broke - not uneducated and ignorant. These persons are unemployed through no fault of their own and each and every day wake up to find themselves feeling more and more hopeless as they witness inaction from government to extend benefit amounts beyond the current maximum of 99 weeks, very few jobs on the market, and coping with the stress of finding the need to re-invent themselves and make their resume and their appearance more marketable to compete for the few jobs that even exist.
The unemployed in this country cannot fairly compete for these jobs without the much needed continued assistance from unemployment insurance and 99 weeks does not fit the needs for far too many Americans. It was mentioned in one the previous postings that the jobless only recently started to receive the chance to fairly try to compete for jobs. The economy only began to grow jobs in Spring of this year and the jobs that have been created (although admirable) are still far less than what the economy lost from 2007-2009.
How many more times do we need to tell government that if there are not enough jobs for every American, how can anyone say that 99 weeks of benefits is the maximum? Also, why are we basing assistance for unemployed based on percentages? Would it not be more effective if the assistance was based on population of unemployed?
Texans have 8.2% unemployment and the State of Texas is home to twenty five million Americans. That percentage represents nearly two million who are jobless in that state who were left out of the last extension of weeks from Congress. Why are John Cornyn and Kay Huthison not doing more to advocate for their state they are supposed to be representing? The population of jobless in Texas exceeds the number of jobless in New York. What's the deal with all of the "No" votes? Are Texans really this receptive to voting against their interests because their Senator said it was best? It's true the country is broke but if we can find the money for Houston to get the United States to planet Mars, surely the money exists to aid the jobless in America.
One would think that the two Texas Senators would give their reason for voting "No" based on the lack of available assistance for the jobless in their states and not just criticize the national debt that both parties helped create. It would make more sense politically to grandstand on the issue that not enough is being done for the unemployed more so than criticizing this necessary emergency spending.
Republicans are banking on the short term memory of Americans and many not knowing the full story about how the national debt got so high. There are plenty of accurate publications that illustrate how both parties helped to get the nation in this situation. There's a reason why websites such as factcheck.org have harnessed the audiences of so many and that's the simple fact that anyone can present information as a fact and if there are no news stories to counter that so-called "fact", then what gets reported as the known information becomes the fact and it can be perceived by the masses as factual without doubt.
In this digital age of modern information, there is a need to filter each and every report using sites such as factcheck.org. Unless of course the information that you want to hear versus the information that is factual is able to sway your perception and thinking. After all, there are not many pages of fact that present the information with neat swoosh sounds and classy car salesman televangelist-style "reporters" with
No matter what direction the media chooses to go, we (as a country) need to encourage the lodging giants to offer non-stop campaigns to help get tourism going again. If I had to guess on the issue specific to cities like Las Vegas, it's going to take quite a bit of time for enough persons to be able to gather up enough money for trips to Vegas anytime soon. When people can barely make their rent or mortgage payments, taking off and spending thousands (or even hundreds) on a trip to Vegas is the absolute last thing anyone in this painful and slowly regrowing economy can reasonably afford.
Senators Harry Reid and John Ensign represent the State of Nevada. Their contact information is posted for the public at: http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm?State=NV
If you are in the State of Nevada and would like to share resources specific for your state with others who are unemployed in your state, check out: http://unemployed-friends.forumotion.com/nevada-f31/. Staying connected to forums such as this will allow instant and vital information to be shared quickly by persons in your state who can help you with important information you may have.
More states are scheduled to be covered throughout the remainder of the month. The goal of the "Jobless in America" series of articles is to cover all states and expose the number of people who are affected and not just a percentage that may seem high or low at first glance but if population is not considered - the percentages only tell us half of the numbers.
