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March 28, 2024

99er’s Exhausting Unemployment Benefits, No One To Blame But Themselves

Job openings still seem to be there.

Job openings still seem to be there.

The Current Job Situation In America

A funny thing has been happening in the United States. President Barack Obama and Congress have worked for the last two years to get as many jobs available to Americans as they can.

For nearly a year, every month has seen a notable growth in job creation. However, the unemployment rate has remained stagnant.

When the rate fell from 9.6% to 9.4% last month, the reason was not that more jobs were taken, but that citizens exhausted their benefits and simply were no longer counted due to no longer searching for work.

And THAT is the problem with the unemployment situation in the United States.

The jobs are there. Over one million jobs have been added in the last year in various industries in the United States. Jobs have been created from high-level corporate jobs to working for minimum wage and in factories. Regardless of education level, there is a job out there that would accept you if you’re smart about it.

For every American that has taken advantage of the opportunities created by President Obama and Congress, there are a few who have just sat at home and waited on the unemployment benefit checks to come in the mail.

The System Is Fine

The system should not be knocked, as it is as good as it can be. It’s unreasonable to demand that every single person on unemployment be thoroughly inspected often enough and closely enough to make sure they are not abusing the system. The unfortunate fact is that while some are truly thankful for the assistance from the government and are using it as an opportunity to get back in the workforce, there are those who realized they could just sit at home, reduce their standard of living a little bit, and just collect a check.

The truth of the matter is that jobs are out there and they are abundant. At the end of 2010, areas like the San Francisco Bay Area, Washington DC, Baltimore, San Jose, Cleveland, Boston, Seattle, Austin, Denver, Charlotte, Atlanta, and other big cities had around 100 job listings for every 1,000 people in the area. San Jose topped the list with 162 job openings for every 1,000 people. Other cities like New York, Chicago, and Pittsburgh had just under 50 job openings for every 1,000 people. (See job map.)

How can people possibly claim that there simply are no jobs for them when over one million jobs were created in the last year on top of the job openings that were already there? Especially the 99ers who have already collected 99 weeks of unemployment and recently held a candlelight vigil because they didn’t get an additional 13 months. Boohoo! Fix up your resumes, improve your skillset, read some books, learn proper punctuation and get a job like everyone else.

If the 99ers want to continue collecting money for over 99 weeks, guess what? It’s no longer called unemployment. It’s called welfare.

How Hard Are 99ers Really Trying?

The truth of the matter is while it is reasonable that in smaller cities and less populated areas, jobs are scarce and the need for unemployment benefits are really there. But for most of the men and women collecting unemployment benefits, there’s a good chance they’re abusing the system.

A reasonable amount of unemployment time is understandable but where do these brash 99ers get off feeling a sense of entitlement that everyone should pool their tax dollars and just hand them to a 99er while they sit at home feeling sorry for themselves while making little effort to improve their own situation.

Now, maybe someone who used to make $200,000 a year can’t find a job paying quite as much, but at a time of true desperation, what’s stopping that person from working at the local mall or restaurant?

Then there are those who are simply going about things wrong.

Mistakes The Unemployed Make

One common mistake is sending the wrong message with a poorly constructed resume. Many 99er’s are aiming for jobs and turning in resumes with spelling and grammar errors (yes I’ve talked to many 99ers and about 99% of them don’t know how to spell or use proper punctuation).  This brings up the question, “would you hire someone like that?”  And better yet “how much do you really want this job if you won’t even go over your resume?

Other issues include people sending out generic resumes and not targeting their resume towards the company they are applying for. This is common sense and all part of trying to present yourself in the best possible light to get a job. Some people also choose to lie on their resumes and are simply unprofessional by being informal and not being punctual.

In short, many who are currently collecting unemployment benefits and are complaining that they can’t find a job are the ones to blame.

There are simply too many 99er’s who are either abusing the system or just doing a bad job of applying for jobs.

One year ago it was understandable that it was difficult to find a job, but over the course of 99 weeks, which is just under two years, how can one explain not being able to find a job?

While some of the 99er’s may have legitimate reasons, for most, can they honestly say that after almost two years of government assistance during which they did not work that they honestly need another 13 months because they truly cannot land one of the over one million jobs out there?

Industry Employment Trends via indeed.com. Wow job growth!
Chart research displays jobs exist... amazing!

50 Comments on 99er’s Exhausting Unemployment Benefits, No One To Blame But Themselves

  1. Oh I am sure there is a welfare comment board somewhere in cyberspace.

    But, you two write but a lot. The first part of your sentence is the truth, everything after but is bul***** boys.

    I have a job. Do you read as badly as you write?

  2. There isn’t one. Maybe a few over on HP whine when benefits are cut, but you only hear from them for a day or 2. I do this for a living…I know.

    You people aren’t the only ones that I go after. Welfare people are content taking what they get.

    We are harming your side, but in the end even you will benefit because once the govt withdraws the teet for good you’ll go on about lives and hopefully make something of them. Living off the govt is like drug addiction. If it goes on too long you will likely never get off of it.

  3. Oh there are always a few that stick around…for the most part they DO move on and thats my reason for being out here. What it really comes down to, is can the ones that can’t take care of themselves and don’t have any money really compete with someone that they know is right. Whiners have no heart and give up easily…just like what happens over at ue friendless.

  4. Generalization of millions of people isn’t healthy, you are not healthy.

    Why don’t you run for office and do something about it rather than a pitiful posting on some random website and actually DO something about what you preach? You are more useless than those you are espousing to be.

    Contrary to what you believe, you are NOT doing something for ‘our side’. You just continue to make an ass of yourself but are way too obnoxious and egotistical to notice.

    But…….there it is again.

    Do you know what insurance is? Do you have insurance? Do you use insurance?

  5. You have no reason to be ‘out there’ other than to satisfy your sick reasoning and bully tactics to make your own self feel better.

    Again, if you think that you will go through life unscathed, think again.

  6. I’ve had my share of ups and downs. The difference is I did something about it and didn’t wait for someone to take care of me..especially the govt. I was always smart enough to know that would get me nowhere. Thats the difference between me and them. I have a plan, their plan is failing. Yes I have insurance, all types. But after a year and certainly after 2 years of not working it becomes a handout and thats what these people are expecting. So you would be shameless also in defending them.

  7. Apparently you haven’t had enough of the down’s to realize that what you are doing is horrible.

    People are angry and concerned Sebastian, not whining.

    BUT! Stop using but. If people are not offered jobs then they need additional assistance to get by. It is not welfare and they are not getting handouts.

    Why don’t you run for office Sebastian or create jobs for these so called people you are bashing. Do something positive rather than be a s***.

  8. I realize that your minds are made up, the only thing that will change them is to experience what you are crapping on.

  9. There are a lot of ue that aren’t on the internet playing around comparing their pity-me stories. They’re are taking care of their business and aren’t interested in other people’s miserable lives. Those are the ones that deserve the respect of what their going through…not the ones that have to tell you about every little detail of their insignificant lives. You are not on TMZ. The real world does not care. Your excuses are your own. Probems with CPS..who the f cares. You have no money…so what. People deal with these issues all the time, and they keep it private. If you have to comment on it then you’re fair game. In a way I need you to keep spweing your stories, it confirms that some Americans are weak and aren’t able to stand on their own these people need to be exposed. Most lie to get attention anyway. UE friendless encourages that.
    But for the ones that can’t get it figured out there is a lot room out on the streets if follow me.

  10. They are not entitled to all the assistance they want until they get a job. Just because they have a utility bill or rent payment doesn’t qualify them for free money. Some get it yes and thats part of you people’s problem you think your entitled because others get it. I’m here to tell you the world isn’t fair because obviously too many don’t know this or choose to ignore it. The subject of this article was: no one to blame but themselves. And it still goes.

  11. The whiners over at ue friendless are not only failures at taking care of themselves, they are failures at relationships. They can’t get along with anyone and I suspect they had this problem long before they lost their job. Losing their job was just another step down in their digression in the way they’ve lived their lives.

    Some people that joined that site told me they went there in the beginning to get information, but noticed real quick that the ones there just want to drag you down into their depression and desperation. Thats pitiful.

  12. 15 million people losing their jobs. I guess they were lazy bums, most of them in their 50’s having working most all their lives only to be let go because of the economic
    consequences of the leaders of our banking system that went crazy with greed through credit swaps that went bad but were made whole again through corporate welfare tarp money provided by the taxes of the people that lost their jobs because of what happened to the economy from their actions.

    Almost every city and state across this country is in financial ruin because of the economic situation our country is experiencing. Telling people to just go out there and “Take” a job is just moronic. There are so few jobs to be found that it’s criminal. By acting as is there are plenty of jobs out there is giving people the false impression that things are fine and only the lazy are unemployed and that there is no such thing as age discrimination or race discrimination or the pure fact that since there are really no or very few jobs out there these unemployed 99ers have no way of providing food and shelter basics for themselves or their family members when they have no means of making money unless you believe
    that all they have to do is snap their fingers and presto chango there is a hundred dollar bill.

    I guess the question is as a nation do we want to help our own people when we have a crisis like this financial crisis we are in now, or do we want to just turn our heads
    when a crisis hits our nation and say well it didn’t hurt me so i don’t care about the suffering of everybody else, it’s their problem that they were not in the right place at the right time. When 9-11 happened I guess us non New Yorkers should have just ignored that whole thing right, or when Pearl Harbor happened the people of the USA should have done nothing.

  13. I find it very comical that “DON” thinks “HE” paid into the FICA insurance fund. And he calls us stupid. Interesting. I’ve posted this numerous times and here goes just one more time to set the record straight. YOU DID NOT EVER PAY INTO THE INSURANCE FUND. NOT ONE DAY, NOT ONE PAY PERIOD NOT ONE YEAR EVER IN YOUR LIFETIME OF WORKING.

    YOUR EMPLOYER IS REQUIRED BY LAW TO PAY INTO THE FUND PER YEAR MAXIMUM OF $56.00 PER EMPLOYEE UP TO $7000.00 PER YEAR GROSS INCOME AND NOTHING BEYOND.

    Now that I got that out of the way, here goes some real information obviously “DON” is unaware of. This may be part of the reason “DON” is no longer employed.

    The Federal Unemployment Tax Act (FUTA), with state unemployment systems, provides for payments of unemployment compensation to workers who have lost their jobs. Most EMPLOYERS (Except in Washington State where the Employee pays a small percentage) pay both a Federal and a state unemployment tax. A list of state unemployment tax agencies, including addresses and phone numbers, is available in Publication 926, Household Employer’s Tax Guide. Only the employer pays FUTA tax; it is not deducted from the employee’s wages. For more information, refer to the Instructions for Form 940 (PDF)

    Federal Tax Rate

    The federal unemployment tax is part of the federal and state program under the Federal Unemployment Tax Act (FUTA) that pays unemployment compensation to workers who lose their jobs. You report and pay FUTA tax separately from Social Security and Medicare taxes and withheld income tax. You pay FUTA tax only from your own funds. Employees do not pay this tax or have it withheld from their pay. Employers (Your Boss) pays for this tax.

    Report FUTA taxes on Form 940, Employer’s Annual Federal Unemployment (FUTA) Tax Return.
    The FUTA tax rate is 6.2% of taxable wages. The taxable wage base is the first $7,000 paid in wages to each employee during a calendar year. Employers who pay the state unemployment tax, on a timely basis, will receive an offset credit of up to 5.4% regardless of the rate of tax they pay the state. Therefore, the net FUTA tax rate is generally 0.8% (6.2% – 5.4%), for a maximum FUTA tax of $56.00 per employee, per year (.008 X $7,000. = $56.00). State law determines individual state unemployment insurance tax rates.

    FUTA tax is filed annually using Form 940. The total amound due can’t exceed over $500 or else IRS will assess a penalty and interest charges. If the amount due is more than $500, the business is required to submit deposit payments in advance. Most accountants will help you process this form as it is part of the payroll taxes.

    Oh and for those out there that say this…. ” I paid into that fund, they owe it to me”. WRONG! You couldn’t be more wrong.

    You don’t pay into it. But let’s just say you did.(this part is straight hypothetical)

    You pay into it at a maximum of $56.00 per year regardless of how much you make over and above $7,000. So, you claimed you worked ten years. Wow, you paid in $560.00 in ten years of employment. (again, hypothetically speaking of course) Worked 20 years? Double that number, or 30 yrs just triple it. So in 30 years of working you never paid in more than $1,680.00. But now that we have the figures correct. YOU NEVER PAID INTO THAT FUND! Your Employer did! Once per year at the rate of $56.00 MAX! On your behalf.

    So, how much does the government owe you again? In a lot of the stats you are going to draw far move in Unemployment for ONE MONTH than was paid into that insurance in your 30 years of working. (again Hypothetically speaking) SINCE YOU NEVER PAID IT IN.

    So, my wicked relative who never looks for work, has been drawing 300.00 per week since September 2008. And still is currently drawing. He only worked a few odd jobs here and there resulting in about a total of 6 weeks work in over 2 years. Anyway, calculate that. 2+ years at $300.00 per week. = OVER $30,000.00 in Unemployment insurance collected this time around. Guess what, prior to that he only worked 6 years. He was on Unemployment for almost 15 months prior to that layoff. And he wasn’t laid off either. He was fired. They just didn’t fight his claim. He really shouldn’t have qualified.

    So his employer paid in $56.00 per year for his FUTA tax for a little over five years. Giving him $280.00 paid in so that he can draw over 30 Grand. Such a horrible country I tell ya.! GET A JOB!

    And I think since all these UNEMPLOYED cry babies are sadly misinformed that well heck they have all thought all along they were paying into the system. I say RAISE THE FUTA tax and start taxing the EMPLOYEES. Yes, that means myself too. I don’t think the employers should be taxed a FUTA tax in the first place.

    It’s too bad that we have to spell it out for people such as “DON” who does not know a damn thing about the “FUTA” tax. Hey Don let me guess next you will say your income was not what it should have been to offset what the employer pays in to the UI plan. Right! Better do that math again. haha

    GET A JOB

  14. Check out this ue freeloader comment, it sounds like cyber panhandling.

    ” don’t even know where the money for this months rent is coming from so you can see that I am sincere.”

    Here’s what you can do: buck up and get a job. See what living off of the govt does to you…it reduces you to begging.

  15. And for those of you that think because your employer was taxed the “FUTA” tax and your owed what is rightfully yours….. We can do the math there to. Such as car insurance. Do you realize that YOU do pay your own car insurance and YOU are entitled to compensation if something were to happen to your wheels provided you have FULL COVERAGE INSURANCE. Liability does nothing for you if YOU are at fault. Okay, so here is what I get from that statement in comparison. YOU PAY out of your own pocket for automobile insurance FULL COVERAGE and you total your car. Your insurance company pays you what your vehicle Blue Books at and if there is an offset due to your Loan company they get theirs first. Otherwise you get the Blue Book Value of that vehicle. Great, now….. Your Employer Paid your F.U.T.A tax. You were entitled to 26 weeks of Unemployment Insurance. It was then given extension after extension. Til you reached 99 weeks. Those were not ENTITLEMENTS those were handouts from the government. The Handouts ARE OVER! You received what you were entitled to. And nothing more. So, back to the automobile insurance. So, you take your entitlement of xxx amount of dollars that the car was worth, YOU BLOW THAT MONEY…. are you due more money because you had insurance for xxx amount of years? NO NO NO. You got what was rightfully yours and nothing more. Same goes with Life insurance. Home owners insurance and just about any other insurance you can think of.

    Face it, your handout days are over. Or numbered if you are creeping up on your 99th week. The government gave you what they were expected to give you. It’s no longer “NO FAULT OF YOUR OWN”. Now it has a new title “ENTIRELY YOUR FAULT YOUR STILL UNEMPLOYED”.

    GET A JOB

  16. A lot of those losers are becoming the chief whiner. And they seem to love the attention and self loathing. I don’t even think ue friendless pays any attention to these whiners.

  17. People DO NOT need assistance to get by! I read something yesterday that this person was paying 1100.00 per month in RENT. Are you serious? And paid out 150. per month on FUEL and was UNEMPLOYED. Okay, that didn’t include the utilities, food, medical, etc…. Resulting in a balance due of over $400 per month that they couldn’t pay. MOVE!!!! When you are paying that kind of rent on Unemployment something is seriously wrong with YOU! You are living above your means still. You haven’t learned anything either. This is a huge problem with the “Unemployed”. They need to learn to live within their means and stop complaining. There are “CHEAPER” places to live. I have had to move when times got tough. What makes the UNEMPLOYED any better? It is NOT anyone’s problem but your own when you are not minimizing DEBT!

    And to make this Rant even worse, $150.00 per month on fuel? BULL****. I am EMPLOYED, I drive 25 miles each way to work EVERYDAY. I spend $160.00 per month on Fuel. Let me repeat I HAVE A JOB!!!! So this persons Rant was Meaningless! MINIMIZE DEBT and QUIT COMPLAINING.

    Unemployment and the extra handouts were long enough to enable the unemployed to find somewhere cheaper to live. And if you were truly a “SMART” person you would know how to manage your finances and stay within your budget. FORGET the Cobra, you cannot afford it. Forget the Mortgage payments, you cannot afford that either. And forget SMOKING! You damn sure can’t afford that! Stop drinking! Stop getting your hair and nails done. Stop going gambling. Stop impulse spending. Stop Unnecessary spending. Get a grip on reality. You are on what could be compared to welfare. Except where compared to welfare they don’t get weekly checks and they don’t get cash assistance near equal to UI benefits per month.

    Start learning to live off the land. It’s not hard. Get out of the forums and off of the blogs and start hitting the books. Read something that will be worth your time! Your gonna need it!

  18. Heres another loser that hasn’t worked in 3 years and look at his age. And just decided to start back in April. Unreal.

    Posts: 3460
    Join date: 2010-03-29
    Age: 36
    Location: New York
    UE Status: After 156 weeks, 2 years of school,I start work in April

  19. We do get noticed there, Read Below

    by bth13 Today at 4:43 pm

    X1000.. These guys are horrible. They don’t even generalize anymore. They have attacked at least a dozen members of this site by name over the last two days. I know the policy is to ignore these guys but I tried .

    ———————————-

    Re: How Are You Feeling Today?
    by RamenNoodles Today at 4:22 pm

    ((Here is more PROOF they never leave their homes, just blog all day, post post post, non sense ****))

    Today I made about 6 phone calls to try to get energy assistance. Every one said funding was unavailable. ONE said that funding was already gone for February. I said, “Really? This is only the morning of the 2nd” the woman replied ‘yes’.

    GOOD GOD in heaven when do the people of the united states get needed help? Why aren’t there rock concerts like “Farm Aid” or food drives or campaigns t help people with their utilities/rent????????????? MANY people such as myself don’t have a family to fall back on and certainly don’t qualify for a Welfare program.

  20. Hey, Sebastian, Mark, Sarah T. ……I am very insulted. You didn’t mention me or any of my posts on UF! Pay attention – get back there an lurk some more. Why not? I lurk on Tea Party sites and other right wing conservative sites. It’s fun to trash a bunch of morons there. Got banned from a TP site though when I post Jared Laughner’s FB page stating he loved Sarah Palin.

    Stop in at UF anytime – we love company and playing with ignorant trolls. Look forward to seeing you there. I’ll wave to you~

  21. I hear them say all the time that they scare off trolls. Well I’m not a troll and can’t be scared. You losers are getting self conscience over there. You keep lying and we know you’re lying. Its all about the attention you want from each…well your getting attention but its not the kind you want. Oh btw I was digging the little tier5 lie that got your panties bunched. Get used to it there is going to be more.

  22. I noticed that you losers took off your in post and location information. How about you just shut down the whole creepy site. How many times do you freeloaders have to hear no to more handouts. Well I can say it just as many times as you want to ask it.

  23. Well after a long day today, I’ve decided not to post anymore. I’ve spoken my mind. It is considered freedom of speech. And I really have nothing left to say. I am bored. It doesn’t matter what I say or about what is happening. The United States Government will do as it pleases. I am not happy with all the Extensions for the One that Barbara Lee is imposing. But who am I to say. Kicking them when they are down is not my objective here. It was getting my voice heard on how I object to the whole “one extension after another” and of course the Tier 5. Reason? Because, if you couldn’t get it done in two years, how is fourteen more weeks going to help? It will just give you enough time to start rallying for a Ter 6,7 and 8. My point was put out there. I’ve been heard. You may not have liked what I had to say but I said it anyway. Just as others don’t like what you have to say, you say it anyway. Doesn’t make it wrong, or right.

    I’m done. With coming here, and to the UF forum. This isn’t really fun. Just as you all got angry so did I, and I don’t like that feeling.

    Take Care Everyone

    I just hope Sebastian does the same. AND I AM NOT HIM. FYI

  24. @Mark Scared you off, huh? I told you, we are not stupid. We also know who the others are. lol

  25. Hey “Brian”… if you’re wondering why your latest comments aren’t being auto-posted like they used to it’s because you keep changing names to “pretend” like you are other people.

    So far in the last couple hours you’ve tried using “Brian”, “Liz”, “Doug” and “William”; as well as others in past days. I’m not sure why you are trying do that but the system is automatically flagging that as being suspicious.

  26. FYI, “Brian” is not Doug, William or Liz. lol! You better go back for more investigation training!

  27. Paranoid much?? Just an FYI I am not unemployed anymore. I spent 4 months on unemployment went back to school have loans to pay and did 6 months of NON-Paid internship. What have you done today but get an attention fix??

    Anytime you want to meet in the ring in a civil fight let me know.

  28. Ok now this person is back as “Brian”.. there is one person on these comments who originally posted as “Lisa” has now been posting as all the names I mentioned above. No they are not Sebastian or Mark (I can confirm those are two different people.)

    To the real Liz aka 99er and Proud – I wasn’t referring to you. This guy Brian posting above me has tried posting as at least 5 different names (some of which I mentioned above).

    I’m the admin here and can see the IP addresses, which don’t lie. So he changes names and then comes on complaining of censorship. Well its not censorship – when you change your name to pretend to be someone else this many times, most sites flag that as suspicious and don’t auto-post the comment.

    Anyways, I’m done writing, nor am I getting involved in the aggressive commenting. Just pointing out facts of what I see as the admin.

  29. Do you think that millions of people are going to sit on their a** rather than have a job. Unemployment does not pay enough for anyone to make a decent living and for any one to say 99ers have no one to blame but themselves that just made me so angry I know a few 99ers who have been constantly looking for employment and have not been able to find anything. Thousands became homeless and lost everything due to the recession and they are trying to figure out how to get back on their feet. I can’t wait until it’s time for reelection because I will not vote for Obama. I voted for him the first time and I regret it and I will not vote for him again. We need someone in the White House who knows how to run America. We don’t need someone worrying about Michael Vick’s forgiveness. Michael Vick is making millions Obama need to get his priorities.

  30. Sorry admin, I am not the “liz” that is posting here. The other stolen name “william” has never posted anything here. we know who you are so go to do your trolling on UF. Just a reminder, we know who you are and we love baiting trolls. Love it when that black “banned” bar pops up. lmfao!

  31. To you who are so haughtily employed – GIVE ME YOUR JOB! It is a fact that US Corps are sitting on trillions AND NOT HIRING. I have searched daily for jobs – they don’t exist. Worse – companies are putting American candidates through ABSURD PRE EMPLOYMENT TESTS – yes – I have been subjected to GRE-like “Cognitive Deductive Reasoning” tests for LOW LEVEL – and I mean MINIMUM WAGE jobs. Cognitive reasoning, “Work style” tests with catch 22 questions. EXAMPLE: PICK ONE: Do you prefer: 1) working along on projects, 2) In a team; 3) Being goal oriented; 4) Being successful – OK PICK ONE! No matter how you answer you’re SCREWED!!!!!! This is the what corps are putting candidates through…This way they can reject Americans and IMPORT workers for 1/2 the price – or they just sit on their cash saying “we can’t find anyone to hire.” Also – they Price fix salaries – and give Executives exorbitant bonuses – which they spend overseas. It is NOT the fault of the unemployed.

    PS – The US gives Egypt Tyrant Despot Mubarak regime 1.5 BILLION last year – he massacres and represses his people. That same 1.5 Billion could have been spent upgrading US manufacturing technology and Electric car technology to compete internationally – but no – our Congress pays homage to BIG OIL and instead handed 1.5 BILLION dollars to a Dictator in exchange for oil. This is what’s going on – STOP BLAMING the UNEMPLOYED

  32. Does DC realize we all know what the score is regarding unemployment? Do they realize all the spin is actually quite outdated and ignorant? Yeah, that means you Joe B. When are they going to include ALL unemployed and underemployed in the rate to show the REAL picture? It is obviously politically motivated and to keep the actual rate from panicking the general public, just like when they doled out the bad news during the financial meltdown a bit at a time, back in 2008. Otherwise, the publicized, politicized rate is just for the weak minded. Yeah, again that means you Joe B. To those that say there are those that just sit on the couch collecting a check, do you really think those folks can get by on $200+ (average) per week? Do the math. Generalized statements are worthless. When you become a 99er, you really get a much larger dose of reality. Most positions I apply for have about 150 or more apps, so I am told. I am in construction, so that should explain the number. Just look out your door and see how projects there are being built. DC is the exception (union). Is it because the banks we bailed out don’t lend money — YES. I have had so many opportunities on hold, indefinitely, waiting on funding. The other jobs outside my career, that pay way less, are also out of reach as these folks know, as do I, that when and if the economy returns to a reasonable level where jobs come back, I will have no choice but to leave. Consequently, I am between a rock and a hard spot with no good prognosis for gaining employment. Head hunters (5) are spent, extensive personal / professional network spent, area classifieds (hard copy and internet) have produced nothing, etc.. I am too advanced in my career and too educated to qualify for lower level jobs I have applied for as few to none exist at the level I was at in 2009. For Obama to have wasted the leverage to go to bat for the 99ers in December, certainly, among many other issues, make my vote NEA in 2012. Additionally, suspend all further “gimmes” to governments overseas that spend our gifts (that have to be borrowed), as if it was a personal salary or check book for the corrupt at the top, that somehow never gets accounted for or makes it to the people. That’s just a start.

  33. Thats a whine and half there homey. Its not like that for everyone. The world is not fair and we thinned the herd…move on.

  34. To: Posted by 99r and Proud to be a survivor

    Nope, not scared. Just bored with the 99ers pathetic me me me same ole stories.

    And you have NO clue who we are. Keep speculating. And, NO I don’t get the banned banner when I go to UF forum. HA! Try again! And the only people Bullying anyone on the net are the Unemployed, 99ers and underemployed. Check the posts by such, and check ours. We don’t curse or threaten bodily harm or say anything derogatory to anyone. We speak our mind, that’s FREEDOM OF SPEECH! Such a wonderful World. 🙂

  35. Wow Mr. Johnson, you are brilliant. You really busted us! How did you know we 99ers have secret meetings on the internet every Tuesday? How did you know we recently voted (all 5+ million of us) to NOT go back to work and enjoy our abundant leisure time. I think only a handful of the “99ers Club” voted against our resolution to never work again.

    You are a genius Mr. Johnson. Keep up the fine reporting as evidenced in this remarkable article.

  36. To Mark: We do know who you are, believe me. Also know you are sending in all your friends right now. Please don’t underestimate us. You are very easy to spot.

  37. I think the ue rate will tick down tomorrow..but who knows. It will be good news for all of us if it does. America is getting back to work, but understand there is a new normal. You may not be able to keep up, so you might want to start preparing for your next or at least a new life…whatever that may be.

  38. Mark –
    What makes you think I am unemployed? I am working but I feel extreme sadness for the unemployed of our nation. There is so much hate and venom on these posts; it is disheartening. I do believe there are some people who are taking advantage of the system but those numbers are few. And even when there isn’t such a bad economic outlook there will always be people taking advantage of the system in some way regardless of the situation. Calling people who are unemployed ‘lazy’ is just ignorance. Do you think people are able to live the same lifestyle that they were living when the were working? And bashing people and saying 99% of the unemployed can’t spell, are stupid, etc. is just the epitome of ignorance. Why kick people when they are down? People pour their hearts out on these posts and the fact that time is taken to bash them makes me sick. Have some compassion for your fellow man! Our economy is in a terrible situation right now and we need to help one another and care for one another. The abundance of ignorance from the people who spew such hate just solidifies the fact that my fellow working man doesn’t have any more right to the jobs they are in than those who are unemployed. Show some class people; you never know if the people whom you are bashing will be your boss someday and have your fate in their hands.

  39. The stigma that living off the govt is bad has to be brought back. Its so convenient to whine and think everything will go your way…you know like every kid gets a trophy for participating. I am a younger guy but I know the value of competitiveness and somehow people today really believe they are entitled to what others have without doing much. I grew up with this mentality all around me. Its a culture that has to be reversed. Slowly it will change back, but in the mean time you people are going to have to seriously change your way of thinking. If you don’t it will only end up bad and you think you’re disappointed now. I don’t think you’re up to that.

  40. Sebastian (The Crab) –
    Whining and convenience don’t go hand in hand the last time I checked. I would not consider the vast majority of the unemployed to snivel or complain in a peevish, self-pitying way. The fact that you assume that the unemployed citizens of our great nation think everything will go their way is mind boggling. If that was the case don’t you think everyone would have jobs? I mean isn’t that the ultimate ‘trophy’? I suppose you consider your job a trophy since you participate every day, right?

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