My wife.
She lost her retail job when she was 6 months pregnant with our second son. Lost it in an economy that had shed jobs for nearly 8 years solid at that time. Lost it when there were HUNDREDS of people applying for whatever jobs existed. And she was the one with insurance. We had a crazy scramble to get insured and it still cost us nearly $10,000 to have that baby. A debt that nearly SANK us.
That woman. My wife. She's a scrappy one, she is. Iowa born. She's got that hardcore Iowa work ethic. Started retail at 14 and never stopped. High school valedictorian. College scholarship. Got her Masters degree, all while working part or full time. The whole time.
And when she lost her job...what did she do?
Oh man, she bootstrapped it like a crazy person. She knew there was no chance of FINDING a job. She had to start one. She called everybody she knew, she wrote up a 50 page business plan, she called the most loyal clients of the place that had closed down and told them she was going to start another store and if they invested now they'd get that money back as store credit and would have 20% off for the REST OF THEIR LIVES.
She got her thin start up money. By hook and by crook, she got it. It wasn't a lot. But it was enough to get her into a building. And we built that inside ourselves. Built the wall. Put in carpet. Strung up lights. Put in doors. Painted. All with a newborn in one arm and a 3 year old running around.
Tough. Tough a nails. That woman.
And she did custom work and fixed things the first year and brought in clients, and slowly, slowly brought in merchandise for the shelves and display cases as she had the money to do it.
Sixty, Seventy, Eighty hours a week. And for pay....what? Less than minimum wage the first year. And the second year, slightly above minimum wage. And the third year just slightly more. But now...NOW...today...she employe four people. FOUR PEOPLE.
From NOTHING. She created her own job. And she created jobs for three other people. Like creating work from thin air...
ALL DURING THE WORST RECESSION in SEVENTY YEARS!!!
And then our representatives slash tax credits for families with children. They slash home owner tax credits...the State of Michigan ELIMINATES the state earned income tax credit...all of which helped keep our family afloat during these hard years where it was either sink or swim.
And why?
WHY?
WHY have OUR taxes been increased? People who are just clinging to the edge?
Because Republican leaders want the burden to go to the lower income brackets so that they don't put undue burden on JOB CREATORS!!! "Job Creators" The new euphemism for Rich Guy.
You know what, Republicans?
FUCK YOU.
Do you have ANY IDEA how insulting your new catch phase you use to avoid the word "rich person" is?
Go fuck yourselves.
You wouldn't know bootstrapping if it shit in your eye socket. Half you assholes had your money shoveled over to you by your mommy and daddy, because somebody in your distant past had a CONCEPT of what it was like to try to get by, and they worked their butts off to make ends meet. Not just to be rich. But to SURVIVE. Like most of the people out here working their butts off.
But you have NO CONCEPT of that. No concept of starting from nothing. No concept of working just to get by.
Whenever I hear you say "job creator" in place of "rich person" I want to spit in your face.
Fuck off.
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