As in any other playoff, candidate rhetoric let loose during the U.S. presidential race can be tough. We’ve held a front row seat to the 2012 showdown for over a year, with tensions still rising as the general election looms nearer. Some of the barbs launched along the campaign trail have been laughable: Newt Gingrich’s television ad incriminating Mitt Romney for his ability to speak French comes to mind. Others are not. The dialogue surrounding U.S. poverty and inequality, two issues that are hotter than ever during a deep recession that the nation has shown incapable of simply shaking off [...]
Military
Homeless vets in Abilene offered a helping hand
Stand Down for Homeless Veterans offered free flu shots, Goodwill shopping vouchers, health screenings, and contacts with counselors and potential employers at a resource fair in Abilene, Texas. West Texas has an estimated 600 homeless veterans, and many struggle to find employment in the battered job market. (Photo Credit: Victor Cristales, Abilene Reporter-News) »
Washington union local program would train jobless veterans
With veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan facing a 21 percent unemployment rate, an electricians’ union in Kent, Wash., is taking steps to help them re-enter the workplace and civilian life. A new program of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 46 provides veterans with a year’s worth of job training in just... »
Vets, immigrants, and disabled people face higher unemployment rates
The Labor Department says veterans who served in the military since 2001 have a higher unemployment rate than the rest of the population, while the disabled and foreign-born are also more likely to be without jobs. Some 12.6 percent of veterans who returned from Iraq and Afghanistan are unemployed, compared with a national unemployment... »