"How Much a Gallon!?"

The American worker has a great history. He (or she) has been here since the Revolutionary War. At first, he was a farm hand, or a blacksmith. As our nation developed into metropolitan cities, he became factory workers, warehouse workers and railroad builders.

He moved across the nation to work on oil rigs and cattle ranches. He moved south to work in furniture factories and coal mines. Wherever the opportunity for work presented itself, the American worker showed up. From the meat packing houses of Chicago, to the fish canning plants in San Francisco, Americans report for work. We have a rich history of trying to protect our workers; the foundation of unions and books like "The Jungle" helped the American worker to be the most protected worker in the world. As our industrial community grew, our working class became the most affluent on earth; buying homes, cars, televisions and appliances that were once only limited to the rich.

The American worker has always "stood tall" in times of American need; some stayed home to keep us strong in our military production, others volunteered in droves to bravely face anyone who was a threat to America or her allies. There are no cowards in the rolls of American workers. They suffered through recessions and depressions with little complaint; they are America's backbone! We are facing one of America's most challenging economic futures in her history. The NAFTA agreement caused American jobs to shrink radically, and it appears we have moved from a manufacturing nation to a service oriented nation. Many people have made career changes over the last few years.

Our present economy is fragile, unemployment is still very high, our national fiscal policies are questionable and the average American working person has been put in a precarious position. All one has to do is walk into a grocery store to realize things are definitely not as they once were; prices are climbing higher at a daily rate, and fuel costs are outrageous. Starting wages have fallen to levels of the late 1970s, and the future of the American worker seems dark. Just a year ago, the government tried a "cash for clunkers" program, thus eliminating affordable transportation for the new generation of American workers.

When a new hire is making $350.00 a week, he can't spend $21,000 on a small car, and his opportunity to buy a car worth $4,000 to $6,000 has been eliminated. Most of those workers are driving around in vehicles that eat quite a bit of gas; but they are stuck in a bad situation and relief doesn't look like it is showing up. About a week ago, our President, Barack Obama, said "If people are complaining about gas prices, they should trade in their gas-guzzlers for more fuel efficient vehicles." This statement shows how much concern our President has for your economic woes.

Are you making $8.50 an hour? Get out and buy a new car; YEAH RIGHT! Perhaps, if Mr. Obama had addressed our fuel concerns domestically, we would not be paying $4.00+ a gallon of gas right now. Instead of using our natural resources to alleviate a bad situation, he tells the struggling American worker to go further into debt. I guess Mr. Obama really likes debt, as he has plunged us into such a huge one! Now, Mr. Obama and his minions want to raise our debt ceiling; he will just print more money.

If you think gas prices are high now, wait until your inflated dollar causes your gas to be $10 to $15 a gallon at the pump. American worker, you cannot continue on this path. If we allow these policies to continue, soon we will all be living in cardboard boxes, and eating cornmeal on a daily basis! Workers, please think about what has happened so far under the watch of Barack Obama! ARE YOU BETTER OFF NOW THAN YOU WERE IN 2008? (This is my last blog until the Tuesday after Easter, have a wonderful time with your family and friends. T.P.)