Washington Babylon — May 14, 2010, 9:36 am
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A real tearjerker from the St. Petersburg Times, about the difficulties faced by the unemployed.
As Gov. Charlie Crist switched from Republican to independent in the race for U.S. Senate, Eric Eikenberg had a quiet announcement of his own. He was quitting. Today is Eikenberg’s last day on the Crist payroll. Thirty-four years old, a father of three and unemployed for the first time since college. “It’s an anxious feeling,” he said. “I have great respect for the many Floridians today who are seeking work…”
Like other unemployed Floridians, Eikenberg faces the pangs of uncertainty, the nagging question “Will anyone want me?” and ordinary worries of providing for his family.
Except unlike most unemployed Floridians, Eikenberg was being paid $15,000 a month. And after getting laid off, he “loaded the clan into their Chevy Suburban and drove to Atlanta to see the Braves take on the Houston Astros.”
Read it and weep.
More from Ken Silverstein:
Commentary — July 25, 2012, 2:20 pm
Washington Babylon — September 29, 2010, 11:37 am
Years of consideration preceding the inclusion of the word “phat” in Random House’s 1996 Compact Unabridged Dictionary:
Scientists created crash helmets that stink when cracked and fruit flies to whom blue light smells delicious.
In Belize, a construction company bulldozed a 2,300-year-old Mayan temple to make road fill.
“This is the heart of the magic factory, the place where medicine is infused with the miracles of science, and I’ve come to see how it’s done.”
