Friday, March 19, 2010

I hate the Jobless.....ness problem in this country

Q: Can you guess when/where these headlines are from?

"INSURANCE FOR JOBLESS BILL INTRODUCED"

"Orders Mortgage Moratorium in Minn. to Stand"

"UNCLE SAM WARNS BANKS TO 'LOOSEN UP' ": Warning that unless they pursued a more liberal credit policy, the government would have to extend it's loaning facilities, Jesse H. Jones, chairman of the Reconstruction Finance corporation, today had called on the nation's bankers to assume a full share in the president's recovery program.



A: The Urbana Daily Courier - Feb 5th & 6th, 1934

Since I've spent the last few weeks posting headlines from the mid-1930's, this is somewhat less of a puzzle. But these approximate concepts could have come just as easily from a current news outlet.

Of course, the financial/employment crises of the 30's brought about comprehensive financial reforms, unemployment and social security programs, the development of labor unions, and the like. Whereas the current (halfhearted) attempts to maintain those programs are met with shrieks of "NAZICOMMUNISM!!!"

This is odd, seeing that in the 30's there were actual Nazis and Communists. Who spent a great deal of time trying to kill one another.

While the Tea Baggers, et. al. don't seem to see what's wrong with fighting tooth and nail against an (incoherently defined) socialist response to the economic crisis, I must admit that that in another respect they've consistently adopted a belief of America's Founding Fathers - Racism:

Tea Party Protesters Shout the N-Word At, Spit on Passing Legislators

It remains to be seen whether their devotion to the 'original' interpretation of the Constitution will extend to re-defining African Americans as 3/5 of a person.

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