Why can’t I find a job?
Dear John: I am almost 62, living in my parents’ house, no benefits, no 401(k).
When available, I wash dishes at a local catering hall and help a contractor with home fixes and cement work.
Here’s the thing. I can barely afford my cell phone bill, car insurance and gas. I can’t even pay my parents room and board, or have spending money.
I have 32 years as a senior mainframe programmer analyst. I’ve been out of work since March 2014.
All I hear is people asking why I am out of work so long.
Is my age an issue? Is this the new breed of hiring managers? Maybe too many positions are outsourced.
If I were looking at someone in my situation, I would hire that person in a heartbeat, considering my experience, history, etc.
How can I get back into work? I am even willing to take a huge pay cut to prove myself. Thanks in advance. E.F.
Dear E.F.: I could offer you a pep talk. Or maybe guess at why you aren’t able to find a job.
But I’ll do something better.
Is there anyone out there who is willing to hire a person with loads of experience as a senior mainframe programmer analyst at an attractively low salary? Drop me a line, and I will put you in touch with E.F.
Let’s see if this works.
Dear John: In a recent column you stated that: “Under normal circumstances the Federal Reserve will coax rates higher whenever it wants. But the Fed doesn’t have that luxury these days. If it raises rates, then it will cost the government — the world’s biggest borrower — a lot more money, and our country’s debt will soar.”
The debt is over $20 trillion! It can’t be paid back, yet countries, corporations and individuals keep lending, and the US keeps borrowing and spending.
If the US debt soars as you said, at what point does it become a major crisis? When do lenders lose confidence in the US as a debtor nation? If so, what happens when it finally “hits the fan”? Thank you. M.M.
Dear M.M.: The answer to all those questions is: Nobody knows.
But you are already seeing the effects of our addiction to debt. Congress and the president can’t do anything without taking a page from a housewife on a budget.
And if we decided to take action against, say, the Chinese, they will threaten to stop buying our bonds.
And that — whether the Fed likes it or not — will cause interest rates to rise.
In short, we are putting the independence of our country at stake.
If the rest of the world looks more dangerous to investors than the US does, maybe we will skate by. But are we willing to take that chance?
When your kids are old enough, ask them if they mind. Sometimes when you kick the can, you end up kicking the next generation in the rear.