I read today about a bill being passed around Washington that would extend unemployment benefits by 3 months, or 13 weeks, on top of the benefits already received by jobless Americans. The full article can be read Here.

It is a bill that received a two-thirds vote needed to overcome a promised presidential veto, but the senate has also not voted on the bill yet, and it is doubtful that they will keep it alive. Many politicians are speaking about now about the need for such a bill, and the effectiveness of this bill to meet those needs.

It leaves me with some questions though. One of the main points of opposition on the bill is the fact that it offers the extended benefits to all states, even those with below average unemployment rates. That seems to be the sole reason that the bill will not pass, actually. But I see it going a step further than just restricting it to certain states based on their number of residents who are unemployed.

In this country, it’s no secret that people will abuse whatever system is in place to help the needy. They justify it by saying they are one of the needy when in fact they are just lazy and choose to be needy because of its ease. So why are we trying to pass a bill that would further alleviate them of their responsibility to be tax-paying citizens? This bill should include stipulations that determine need on an individual basis, not on a state-by-state basis.

The benefit of a 13-week extension should be extended to every American that suffers from a layoff; the economy is providing enough of those to make it concern. The bill should take into account those who file for unemployment on a regular basis every year. It should determine adequate need for the extension of benefits on a case-by-case basis.

This bill should not be attached to war spending bill as the Democrats have proposed it may be. Instead, it should be attached to another bill, one that would do even more to help struggling American families. That is the purpose of this bill after all, to help people who are having a difficult time in today’s waning economy.

There are roughly eight million unemployed Americans right now, and the number is rising slightly, though the 5.5% unemployment rate is far below what it has been at times in the last decade or two. Meanwhile, the rest of the country is working every day and still struggling to get by thanks to high fuel prices and its affect on prices throughout the market.

We need a bill that addresses those people, like myself and anyone else that I know, that is not a one time check in the form of a stimulus payment. That didn’t even help the economy; it just helped people pay their bills.

Some kind of help needs to be extended to the working American public. Perhaps tax relief, or maybe a change in income requirements for food stamp programs so that any family that does need them can get them. Right now, there are single mothers making $9.00 an hour at full time job that do not qualify for food stamps. There are families with two incomes just above minimum wage that need food stamps to feed their children, and they don’t qualify. It’s all because the incomes restrictions to qualify for the program are set based on earnings from a decade ago, and they don’t account for the dramatically increased cost of living.

With the prices of food nowadays, our “all-caring” government should be giving us some help. I remember a few years ago when a dozen eggs cost 72 cents, and just the other day I bought a carton for $1.42. That is double the price of what it was just a few years ago. That has been happening a lot more lately, of course the main item we remember is gas for under a dollar a gallon in 2002.

Politicians are all scrambling to get ahead in the election this year by trying to seem empathetic, but all they are doing is adding bills and programs that aren’t needed every where. They aren’t spending our tax dollars to help America, just about 8 million Americans. I think they could be doing a better job and I think Americans can help motivate them. The people are the strongest part of our government, and it’s time we remember that and use it to evoke real action on their part.