America seems to have entered (or better yet, stumbled) into
a crisis mostly of its own making. We've
endured a pandemic which, though the government denies it, appears to have
originated in China, from a Chinese lab known to be used by the Chinese
military for some dubious (to say the least) research. Some will add (perhaps
correctly) that the ultimate origins of the virus, may have, in fact, been
created or modified here in the U.S.
On the surface, COVID-19 appears to be a flu virus which has
been genetically modified to produce a slightly more potent form of the flu
virus which appears to affect mainly those with weakened immune systems. In
addition, the virus has the nasty little habit of continually morphing, which
makes it difficult for immunologists to get ahead of the virus and produce a
long term effective vaccine.
The Government's response to the virus was haphazard to put
it mildly. Nevertheless, vaccines were developed and approved in record time
(almost "as if" they were waiting...hum). But they're seen as suspect
according to a growing number of doctors and pseudo-experts.
The result is another manufactured divide between those
willing to be vaccinated and those who question the validity of the vaccines
for various reasons, and have decided not to get vaccinated, at least for the
time being. Frankly, if one follows common sense thinking, who's to really
blame them? There are ample enough inconsistencies in the research,
development, and approval process by the CDC and various labs to warrant
holding off, and that's where things have gone off the rails.
The result has been governments attempting to
"mandate" or, defacto "order" people to "get the
jab" as the expression goes. Employers have jumped on the bandwagon
(especially those with government contracts) and demanded that their current
and potential employees must either get vaccinated or show proof of
vaccination.
This has resulted in many believing that a "vaccine
passport" is in the works, similar to the Nazi Era "KennKarte"
or identification cards, which, by the way, the Soviets also required along
with practically every modern era totalitarian regime. Perhaps implants are in
the future?
Some go as far to claim that the vaccine itself is a ruse,
and that it actually contains a magnetic tracking devise needed to bring about a
diabolical one world government. Others insist that it's in reality a slow
poison design to "thin out the herd", which allegedly has long been a
secret goal of various elitist secret societies like the Bilderbergers or
Trilateral Commission.
Nevertheless, the whole issue of "to vaxx or not to
vaxx" has further divided an already deeply divided America, and it has
affected others elsewhere in the world.
Worse yet, it's causing a ripple effect that I don't think many
economists (and certainly not the majority of politicians) expected.
Key to this has been the vast numbers of "help
wanted" signs everywhere. It seems that nearly everyone with a business is
in desperate need of employees. Some are offering unheard of starting salaries,
sign on bonuses, and all sorts of other perks and gimmicks to win over new
employees.
For smaller
businesses, they are unable to match what the megastores can offer. The result
is hardly unexpected. Closure. Bankruptcy. Meanwhile, for the rest of us,
prices will go up to offset the higher costs to attract employees. Of course,
their employment is contingent on them providing proof of vaccination. No
proof. No job.
Meanwhile, companies are operating understaffed, forcing
those who show up to work, to work more and longer; often doing the job that
previously two or even three people did. Some businesses are doing the opposite
by cutting back on hours or days they're open.
How many of us have gone into a store to either find empty
shelves or having to sidestep pallets of boxes parked in the middle of floor?
The reason is that those few willing (and able) to work, are able to chose
their hours. That means stockers, who used to work mostly at night, are now
working days, meaning that something we're looking for may not be there now,
but could be an 30 minutes later!
In addition, we're seeing a number of production facilities
slow down, reduce hours, or periodically shut down. This reduces availability,
which in turn drives up prices. Oil and
gas companies are doing this, which is forcing up gas prices, as well as
heating oil with winter fast approaching.
Simultaneously, there are hundreds of ships waiting offshore
to be unloaded. Each full of twenty foot containers filled with merchandise,
including food in some instances; food with very specific expiration dates. The
result is, again, less product available which leads to higher prices.
As for the other merchandise, including orders from
overseas, consumers are unable to get what they want and producers are unable
to sell product and get paid. The result is that orders get cancelled and
consumers find substitutes to spend their money on, and so the vicious cycles
goes round and round. But that's not the entirety of the problem.
As with other employers, they are requiring proof of
vaccination. The longshoreman and dockworkers are severely shorthanded, not
because solely of the virus, but because there was already a shortage. The
equipment is both outdated and in short supply. Manufactures are demanding that
outbound product get priority while inbound products are put in hold; often
regulated to skeleton crews or no crews at all some days.
Once product is finally off loaded, sorted, palletized, and
made ready for shipment, we face a shortage of truckers, pilots, and railroad
personnel for the same reasons cited above. In addition, these jobs, while
usually paying well and offering great benefits, are hard on the individual and
their family.
The owner/operator
truck driver has been all but put out of business by government regulation and
big companies, not mention incidentals like the cost of gas and insurance. Pilots are making more flights, flying older
model planes, and having less time for detailed maintenance (which brings up
another point---few maintenance personnel for all the reasons previously
mentioned).
The third leg of our tripod transportation system is the
availability of freight trains and experienced engineers to drive them. Our
rail system is, frankly, horribly outdated. The rail system itself is in need
of updating. Even the rail yards are overcrowded.
There are shortages
of cars and engines, not to mention maintenance staff, who, like everybody
else, has to show proof of vaccination, and like everyone else, some will and
will report to work while others won't and will stay home.
Despite their power, locomotives are, on average, about 30
years old, while the freight cars are about twenty years old. As an aside, the average age of a locomotive
engineer is 46. The upside is that train routing systems are highly automated,
but the human element is still needed for them to function properly.
As for truckers, they face increase demands for quick
turnarounds; dropping off one load and picking up another. Long haul or
"over the road" truckers are often gone for a week at a time. They
have to deal with not only imposed time management issues, but traffic delays
and road work (most use a traffic routing system which helps them avoid delays
which they own or is provided for by their employer))
Roads in the United States are decades past due for
improvement, especially bridges. Unfortunately, most local governments can't afford
the necessary repairs which can run in the millions, and opt for cheap "fixes"
due to their limited budgets. While they work in the short term. they
ultimately just put off what will be a more serious and expensive problem down
the not-too-distant road.
The same goes for states. They're typically in a financial
bind of some sort and put off resolving the problem in exchange for quick fix
"solutions", despite federal money for state as well as local road
use. Naturally, none of this free. It's all paid for with our taxes, and the
worse it gets, the more of our money they'll take.
The COVID virus, of course, didn't cause any of this, but it
did exacerbate existing problems across the board, not to mention creating more
than few new ones. You could call COVID the straw that finally broke the
camel's back. So, what does this mean for the rest of us? What can we expect in
the future?
Employers are essentially mandating their employees be
vaccinated. Can they do this legally? Well, it would appear so. Employers are
using existing federal guidelines calling for safe workplaces as the basis for
their demands as cover. There are exceptions of course, such as for sincere
religious reasons or if there is a potential health concern triggered by the
vaccine (such as complications with a pregnancy, or adverse effect to an
existing condition or current medication).
The result to all this is an artificial shortage of available
employees. There are more than enough skilled and willing individuals to work,
they just have serious doubts about the vaccination's safety, which is a
legitimate concern.
Some employers have worked around this by requiring
unvaccinated employees to be tested weekly. Other employers have shifted
unvaccinated workers away from customer contact as much as possible, while
requiring as mask when in contact with customers.
In the interim, it's a employee's market. Employers are
desperate. However, unless some accommodation acceptable to both sides of the
vaccination question is reached, we'll continue to see "help wanted"
signs and shortages in stores and warehouses. Meanwhile, don't be surprised to
see prices across the board go up to offset higher wages and products shortages.
However, an accommodation will be reached. It has too. Unemployment last only so long; few
Americans have ample savings stashed away, and there's only so much debt you
can carry. The tide will turn, and it
will become a employer job market again, and when it does, watch out!
Because of the shortages, many smaller businesses will fold.
That will reduce a lot of variety in the marketplace. People will be forced to
buy from the Amazons of the world for that unique or hard to find item. A large
number of companies will become automated, reducing the need for human "drones".
Markets will also expand to more potential customers
overseas. That, along with the
continuing influx of illegal and legal immigrants, will drive wages---but not
prices---down, and along with it, benefits. When possible, employers will export
jobs overseas to countries like China, India, and Indonesia.
The end result could potentially be inflation, which results
where prices exceed wages. If that can't be brought under control quickly, it
could be devastating to any country's economy, be it the U.S., France, Mexico,
or China, just as it is currently in Venezuela or was in 1920's Germany.
There could be riots over food shortages and prices, lack of
jobs, gas and heating oil, quality of life, and so forth as one group turns on
the other (something the Oligarchy has been fostering for years). Just the
perfect scenario for martial law. The result could be a neo-fascist police
state like we've been warned about for years (including from yours truly).
We can, however, stop this from happening. Force employers
and the government alike to allow us to make our own health choices. If that
means multiple weekly testing and/or wearing masks and gloves, so be it. That
will get ships unloaded, trucks back on the road and products on the shelves
again. None of this is permanent. It too will pass.
That will get people back to work. Some may choose jobs
different than they had pre-COVID. That's good to. But for some, that old job
will likely be automated, so brush up on your skills, or better yet, your
education by seeking out a trade school or maybe picking up a language like
Spanish, Hindi, or Mandarin Chinese.
Most Americans are in debt; some very serious debt. Those
who've been playing economic chicken will be hurt the most. Don't look for
relief from the government in the form of debt forgiveness or low/no interest
debt consolidation loans. Don't expect prices to go back down. They won't. Same
with taxes. The only thing we can do here is get laws passed requiring voter
approval for all tax, fee, rate, or salary increases for public employees.
With respect to infrastructure, expect to see more joint
government/corporate financing of specific roads, ports, rail lines, etc which
involves corporate use in exchange for increased tax breaks and public access.
There could even be more corporate influence in public education curriculum as
corporations take over the role of creating a "classroom to job"
graduate.
I don't know if the COVID virus was an act of Nature or Man.
But from what I've seen, my money is on the latter. It hit just as things were
winding down in Afghanistan and we were involved in yet another divisive
election. It has provided another (manufactured) division. It has rid the
economy of much of the remaining small businesses. It has created an artificial
worker shortage, along with possible inflation thanks to rising prices and stagnant
or falling wages. That will eventually mean fewer jobs. We can stop it. But we
have to act now, and we have to act together.
Want to know more? Check out our reference sites below.
The impact of COVID-19 on employment and jobs
The future of work after COVID-19
What You Should Know About COVID-19 and the ADA, theRehabilitation Act, and Other EEO Laws
Can Employers Force Pregnant Women to Get Vaccinated?
