Tuesday, February 21, 2006

And if you had a working outlet, we STILL wouldn't want you watching soap operas.

According to the CNN 360 degree blog, New Orleans city councilman Oliver Thomas wants to require that only people with jobs return to the city.

Thomas says he doesn't want people to "sit around watching soap operas." He also says he hasn't gotten any negative reaction to his comments.

Leaving aside that there is no electricity in the ruined houses in much of the city, so I'm not sure where many of those forced to leave would be watching said soap operas (proving that this is rhetorical from the outset), councilman Thomas obviously can't do much math. More than half of the jobs in the city at the time of Katrina have ceased to exist. And for those which do exist, people with poor job skills will be at the bottom of the list. No matter who gets jobs, if there are more people than jobs, some of the people will be unemployed. That is math, nothing more.

Many conservatives will undoubtedly refrain with 'give 'em hell, Oliver,' or some such statement. It is easier to demogogue, or praise a demogogue, than deal with the large number of people who have nothing to return to, and no jobs.

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