In the United States, federal long-term unemployment benefit that was instigated by president Bush is to be stopped this Saturday. It is a generous welfare benefit and stopping it will severely affect about 1.3 million Americans initially. The numbers will climb. In California alone half-million people will lose payments by June.
When I read what the people in receipt of this unemployment payment are saying it makes me think of cats and dogs. People are talking about having to move home and pawn possessions etc. to get by. For some people this is a very big deal. We know that keeping a cat properly is not cheap. It all adds up.
We also know that the cost of keeping a cat and moving home are two of the most common reasons for relinquishing a cat.
Add up all these factors and there would appear to be the sad prospect of a lot more cat reliquishments over the forthcoming months.
About 46% of Americans keep a cat. That means that almost 600,000 of the people who are about to lose benefits have a cat. If just 10% relinquish their cat there will 60,000 more cats in shelters.
I just wanted to make the point, speak out on behalf of the cat that this federal government policy, amongst other things, will probably indirectly result in cats being PTS.
The difficulty is that the federal government can’t afford to keep running this welfare scheme to support the long term unemployed, plus the crisis is meant to almost over.
Babz has been just plain robbed!
Where are John’s contributions?
Does anyone have an answer?
I wish every politician would have to live like we are made to live.
I do secretly cry for her at times Dee and no it’s not fair at all, she missed out on widow’s pension by 2 years and now has to work to 65 and 1/2 and keep paying in contributions too and where did her John’s pension contributions go?
Her age group has been discriminated against in many ways and although we’ve campaigned and we still are, the government don’t care about women born in the 1950s. Our only hope is labour getting into power in 2015 because they were against the accelerated pension age rise but outvoted by the Conservative and Lib Dem coalition. But it’s a vain hope.
OMG!
How horrible! The choices she’s had to make…
I don’t think 3 months is any time at all for her to lose him. She had to put all on hold. That sort of thing can really take a toll on our physical and emotional health.
I could just cry for her.
It’s not fair.