The Open Boat

[My December - and last - op-ed for Modern Republic. The title is an allusion to the short story of the same name by Stephen Crane. The opening lines:

None of them knew the color of the sky. Their eyes glanced level, and were fastened upon the waves that swept toward them.]

The Open Boat

Stock markets around the world continue to fall, and not just a day here or there. The New York Stock Exchange composite index dropped from about 10,000 down to about 4,000 in the last twelve months. Other markets dropped likewise. In California, 1.5 million people are out of work; in San Diego, unemployment is as bad as it's been in thirteen years.

In an article on Bloomberg.com (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=agcSNwaOYvxE&refer=home), U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson is quoted as saying, “The economy is turning down pretty dramatically. It's very important that lending continue to be available.” The article details the problems in the U.S. economy, problems that are worsening and widening. The recently announced plans of Citigroup to layoff approximately 53,000 employees could be a symbol of the combination of the credit crisis and the resulting employment problems.

The other side of the trouble, and highlighting the seriousness of the situation, involves the U.S. government's efforts to mitigate the damage. The government is paying billions of dollars – that it has to borrow in its own turn – to slow the crash. It has propped up Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and there is talk of doing so with Citigroup. It has issued a tax refund to a wide swath of American taxpayers – a refund now long ago spent and absorbed into the overall economy. These actions, and more to come, say “Disaster!” to those listening.

Much of the focus is on the United States situation, for various reasons, but the trouble is not confined to the US. AFP reported that the Chinese economy, too, is experiencing a slowdown in growth not seen in almost twenty years (http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5iAc8Ke4N1KDRdm5tLnSdKkwz370w). And as in the U.S., the efforts worldwide to stem the tide tell as much as do the problems themselves. So the article above starts out saying that “Leaders from Asia and the Americas promised on Saturday to push for a global free trade deal and reform international lenders in an effort to keep the world from sliding into a deep recession.”

Back in San Diego: I recently relocated here from a small city in Montana (population about 70,000). I lived there for nineteen years. The last eleven I was employed almost uninterruptedly in the IT field. The last two jobs came with significant salary increases. Moving to San Diego had nothing to do with my career, but I saw from online job searching that lots of IT positions were open – companies were hiring.

I have applied for at least thirty positions, most of them for which I have strong and recent experience. The other positions are below my professional level, but I am casting the net widely now. I have not had one call back for an interview, and only one or two replies of any kind of interest in my application. And the net is cast even wider, if that is possible.

The worldwide statistics, on the one hand, and the facts on the ground, on the other hand, say the same thing: Money is disappearing. How will we fix this? Make no mistake, either: It is a “we” situation, rather than a “them” situation. We will have to work together toward recovery, or be together in trouble.