I live in Jacksonville, FL. That's #15 on the list. There is a shanty town where those displaced are living, and without friends and family, we'd be there too.
Horrifyingly, we are upstanding American citizens with educations and skills who want desperately to work and pay our bills honorably. We aren't illegal immigrants who can't speak English. They get help from the government, but if you're a WASP, you're not going to see one hand reaching out to help you.
If you have silver in your hair, you may as well use your last few dollars to go buy a big bottle of Excedrin PM and off yourself, because you won't find work. You're too old. Oh, they'll phrase their discrimination carefully-- "We're concerned your experience is out of date" or, "You're over-qualified." (If I have experience and want to work there, doesn't this still make me a better candidate than a guy who has no experience and doesn't know how to pull his pants up?)
And here's the biggest kicker-- The mayor of Jacksonville wants to raise the property taxes of the few property owners left who are barely scraping by. Oh, yeah, that's going to help. Let's just foreclose on all the marginal properties now, you and your real estate entrepreneur friends, okay Your Honor? Why don't you just institute a .25% sales tax on all purchases made in the county? That would tax everyone equally, rich and poor. Sure, some folks would go over the border to neighboring counties, but let's face it. We (the middle class you love to tax) can't afford the gas. Oh, wait. How silly of me. That would affect your rich friends, wouldn't it?
Excuse me. I have to go pack my household goods now. We're moving soon. Our home is being foreclosed upon.
Lena Austin
http://depravedduchess.blogspot.com
2 comments:
Lena, I'm so sorry to hear you've been caught up in the housing madness. It's insanity out there and I hope it settles sooner rather than later.
While small, I do have a tiny measure of hope left. If DH could simply find work, we can afford a home somewhere. We are that marginal. We have DH's military pension, Dante's income, and my income right now. Just about $1000 more a month, less than DH's usual income as a factory assembler and forklift driver, would allow us to keep our home.
It's hell getting old.
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