Tampa Bay Still Low on Jobs...

... which is no surprise to those of us living in this town.
If you are an hourly worker here in Tampa, then you know how rough it is trying to find even a temp job, much less a permanent one.
So how bad is it here?
Florida's unemployment rate was 11.9 percent for January, tying a high which was set almost 35 years ago, while Tampa was even higher at 13.1 percent.

A group of state economists recently predicted unemployment in Florida would top out at 12.3 percent by this fall before a slow crawl back toward the single digits.
"Unfortunately, we caught the brunt of this recession," said University of Central Florida economist Sean Snaith. "I think we're in the last phases of the labor market's worsening."

I've been fortunate enough to find a somewhat steady job through a day labor temp service, but that job is subject to end at any time without notice. Many down here in Tampa are not that lucky and are etching out an existence on only a few hours of work per week. Some good news may be forthcoming though.

The St. Petersburg Times reported last week that Florida had lined up 900 projects that could result in nearly 10,600 short-term jobs but was held up waiting for federal approval. Under the Back to Work program, stimulus funds would pay for up to 95 percent of salary and training costs for new hires if employers agree to keep those jobs until at least September.
Some of the most stunning statistics out Wednesday were on the local level, with the Tampa Bay area posting the highest rate among major metropolitan areas.

The last time state unemployment was at 11.9 percent was May 1975, the highest point since the state started tracking such data in 1970. Comparable figures for national jobless rates during the Depression era are not available but were believed to be about 25 percent.
Florida's unemployment rate remains substantially higher than the national average, which was 9.7 percent in February and appears to be near a peak.

http://www.tampabay.com/news/business/workinglife/article1078706.ece

Government Waste: Many S.S.I. Checks...

... and before the reader starts out with "S.S.I. checks aren't waste," let me state that I do not think that all of these checks are the result of government waste. Many people receive these checks, and rightfully so, as they have true needs for the little money that they get from the government.
I am referring to those individuals who get these checks who have no real disability. Their problem is that they have gotten to damned lazy to get off of their asses and work. Those are the alcoholics and crack-heads of the world in most cases.
Some of you probably know a few of these kinds of people who have applied for S.S.I. (Supplemental Security Income) while claiming some kind of disability, either physical or mental.
What I have discovered,based on personal observation, is that many people are just looking for an easy way out of working and of being responsible for their own self/lively-hood. Many of these people lay around the home ( if they have one ) drinking "Natural Ice" beer all day or either popping pills or smoking crack, or all of the above. At the same time, they blame everyone but themselves for their self-created problems.
So how do certain people manage to get S.S.I. checks? Lets take a look at one individual who shall remain nameless.
The woman is 55 years of age and an alcoholic. She has been a drinker for at least 30years. She is on medication to sleep at night and she also takes meds for high blood pressure and some Prozac because she's been diagnosed as being bipolar. The woman is totally functional in her day to day activities until she starts on the drinking. After that, she ain't worth to much when it comes to doing anything of consequence.
When sober, she can do anything that she sets her mind to doing. She could hold down a job if she so desires, but she doesn't wish to do that. I guess that that would interfere with all of that drinking time, so how does she support the beer habit? From bumming of off her fellow beer drinkers, none of who work either, or by selling off some of her food stamps.
At this point in time, I will stop this article because the woman in question has had an accident on Tuesday. She was hit by an automobile while crossing the street, and, she was in a crosswalk. I'll follow up on this in my next post, but it seems that even though she was in the crosswalk, she still was not in the right.

UPDATE:
The victom in this case is doing just fine in light of what happened to her. She has gone through two surgeries after having had one of her feet broken in 9 places and a sprained ankle. She is now recovering an one of Tampa's rehab centers.
I'll continue with the posting that I had started on dealing with S.S.I. recipients who really have no disabilities other than laziness, in a few days.