OCTOBER 6, 2008 11:52PM
A Dear John Letter for Senator McCain
Rate: 11
Dear Senator McCain,
I need your help. You see, I’m a voter who’s desperate for change, but with both you and Senator Obama promising it, how can I know which of you truly means it?
It might be helpful for you if I told you a bit about myself and how the last eight years have treated my family and me. Then you can see where I’m coming from.
In the year 2000, my family was doing well. We’d just moved into a new home and had welcomed a new baby into our family. While we weren’t rich by any means, we were able to meet our monthly expenses and have a small amount left over for saving. We were able to put some in an interest-bearing savings account earning roughly 5% and the rest in the stock market. Life was comfortable.
My husband, who owns a small home remodeling business, had a fleet of 7 vehicles, a crew of 5 employess, and generated almost $700,000 a year in sales. There was often more work than he could manage and many times he was forced to tell the customer that he couldn’t bid the job. He was simply too busy.
Our business provided us with health care insurance for which we paid around $500 per month. The coverage offered manageable co-pays and comprehensive benefits.
The area in which we live was thriving. New communities were being built and businesses were flourishing. In fact, if you wanted to go out to dinner, you would have to wait 30-45 minutes simply to get seated.
Fast forward to 2008. We are struggling to pay our bills. The high cost of gas and home heating oil has eaten away at any surplus of money that used to remain at the end of the month. The increased cost of job materials and fuel for our business and the high cost of food and other goods for our family has necessitated the use of credit cards to get us through to the end of the month. We are in greater debt than we were eight years ago as a result. We’re unable to earn any money on our investments. Savings accounts only pay .25% interest these days and the stock market is volatile and unstable. We’ve lost much of the money we’ve put into it.
Over the past 3 years, we have sold off all but two of our vehicles and have let go all of our employees. Our sales have dropped to around $200,000 per year. We nearly went out of business in 2006 but took a second mortgage against our home in 2007 to keep our business afloat. Now that property values have fallen, we are left with negative equity.
Our health insurance costs have escalated to $1400 per month for a family of five, yet we’re receiving less coverage with higher co-pays than we had in 2000. We are on the verge of going out of business again but this time, we have no other avenues from which to borrow. If we go out of business, we lose our jobs. If we lose our jobs, we will lose our home. Senator McCain, you’ve taken care of Wall Street. Do you have a bail-out plan for us?
Our oldest child, who just graduated from high school, can only afford to attend our local community college because college funding in our state has dried up and his college fund was used long ago to pay the two mortgages.
What’s even worse is that my husband and I are actually making LESS money than we did in 2001 even though all of our expenses have increased dramatically since then. By all accounts, we are going backwards each day that we work. We’re not alone, though. Several businesses in our area have closed, including most of the local restaurants. No worries about standing in line for a table now.
We keep hearing from you and George W. Bush that the fundamentals of our economy are strong, but unfortunately, we’re not seeing it.
In this election year, you and your running mate, Governor Sarah Palin, are promising “REAL CHANGE”. Does that mean that you will create economic growth again? Will our earnings be able to increase to keep pace with inflation, or will we continue to slide backward even faster? Will you do something to control the exorbitant costs of heating our homes and fueling our cars? Or will greedy corporate giants continue to inflate prices for their own record-breaking profits? Will you strive to ensure that jobs remain in this country, or will you continue to allow the tax breaks that tempt them overseas? Will you work on ending the wars, which are draining our financial resources and causing countless human casualties, or will you allow them to go on without end in your quest to be called “victorious”? Will you reform health care so that it is comprehensive and affordable for working families, or will you continue to side with the insurance companies? It seems to me that paying for health insurance each month should not cost more than making a mortgage payment.
Senator McCain, it’s been a long and difficult eight years for us, and I know that we are not the only ones struggling. What will you do differently from what that other “maverick” in Washington, George W. Bush, has done? He’s always been so proud of his straight talk and unapologetic for his defiance in the face of the Americans he’s supposed to represent. He's a true maverick, right? He’s thumbed his nose at the United Nations and our allies around the world so I shouldn’t be surprised that he’s not listening to me. Still, I’m haunted by fears that the word “maverick”, which you’re so fond of using, might just be another way of saying “more of the same”.
Comments
Where was your fave restaurant to hang out? I noticed the Woodside closed a while back, but they were struggling for a while. Since the '40s, it seemed like.... (Wry humor.) The most recent owners were nice, though. I'd hoped they could make a go of it.
Hang in there, Lisa. I say that for both of us.
Thanks so much for stopping by, reading, and commenting. I truly appreciate it.
Hope things go better for you in the next eight years.
rated and appreciated
I just read your post about your own adventures in money learning. I'm glad to hear that you're at least in a better place now!
Thanks for stopping by.
Wonderfully written; deep and to the point; I wish more than anything for those changes that would help to bring about a more affluent society; one wherein the hard work of those of us who keep the show on the road; is richly rewarded.
All the best with your choices.....
Natasha - You sure did sum it all up beautifully. Thanks for your kind words and compliments.
ConnieMack - This is going to sound overly idealistic but I really do think things WILL turn around also. I think that we had to hit bottom, and for the rich and powerful to be affected, before any real change could be made. People will keep doing what they've always done if there's nothing to make them do things differently. Will all of us be able to hang in there before the change actually happens? Who knows. All we can do is try. Thank you for the compassion.