Arkansas HVACR NewsMagazine September 2020

$300 per week level through the end of the year. Now lets look at that result. Employed Income Reg Benefit CARES Add On Total Hrly Wkly $10 $400 $198 $300 $498 $11 $440 $218 $300 $518 $12 $480 $238 $300 $538 $13 $520 $258 $300 $558 $14 $560 $277 $300 $577 $15 $600 $297 $300 $597 Even at the reduced “ Add On ” level, a person making $10/hrly before the Coronavirus is making the equivalent of $12 per hour with the regular unemployment and the CARES money. So the question is, “ Would you take a $2.00/hr. cut in income so you could go back to work? Or if you were at $15 pre- Coronavirus, would you go back to work so you can make an extra $3 per week? Our country has run up close to $3.1 trillion in debt in since March and the Democrats want another $4 trillion while the Republicans only want another $1 trillion. Can ’ t believe I just said, “ Only ” . I am grateful that our country was financially able to create that first round of debt to help Americans out of work. Without that money, we would have had soup lines greater than those of the Great Depression. As we move forward, we have to be careful, equally helpful but less political. Is it right and can we afford to pay someone more on unemployment than they made employed. Can we expect the unemployed to return to work when

their family enjoys a better life style when Mom and Dad are unemployed? The national debt has broken through the wildest nightmarish expectations. Beginning February 2020, the debt was 23.4 Trillion. At the end of July, it hit 26.5 — a 3.1 Trillion increase.

Trillion $ National Debt

26.4 26.5

25.7

24.9

23.4 23.6

FEB MARCH APRIL MAY

JUNE JULY

Want to see something scary? Click on the link to the real time National Debt Clock. https://www.usdebtclock.org/ My point in this is, (1) thank goodness our country was able to help millions without work and (2) is it right and can we afford to pay more in unemployment than a person makes working? All this will come to an end someday and when it does, what will be the unintended long term consequences of having paid an overly generous “ Add On ” to unemployment. I know that some think this question is heartless. We all have heard politicians rail against those that ask these questions. But do they really care about the unemployed or are they trying to buy votes. How much more debt shall we put on our children and grandchildren to appear generous or to buy votes today.