South Florida is ground zero in a converging set of economic crisises by SunshineUnderground

Not my job!

I came to Florida with the promise of a secure job, one that would pay enough so I could write without worrying about whether I got paid, but as the sub-prime recession coverages with the health care crisis, small businesses and firms are being pinched, and once profitable operations are pounding the sand, looking for answers where there are none. There was no warning when the announcement came at my job's last general staff meeting, but I can't say I was completely surprised either - business has been down, management said, and the cost of providing insurance has gone up. Solution: eliminate everyone's health insurance. Layoffs may be next.

The owners told us that it could change, that this was a temporary measure that would be revoked as soon as possible. As they talked, and explained, they seemed to want to hear something in reply, but as we went around the table, no one said anything, because there was nothing to say, at least not until it was the turn of the man sitting at the far end. "I'm sorry, but I have more to loose than most," he said through tears. He has a chronic condition, one that requires medication, and without the insurance, he'll have to pay $4,000 a month to get the drugs he needs to stay healthy and alive.

He's been around for a while, and knows how the business works. He told us that he saw this coming, that for a year now he hasn't used paper clips to save costs, and has somehow found a way to take care of the office cat litter without using plastic bags. He asked everyone to try and do more.

That hit us all in the gut. One manager winced. Another tried to say something about not wanting to do this, and he kept his face straight, but his voice broke off into a whimper as he finished.

I got out of newspapers to avoid meetings like this, I thought, but the recession followed me.

The math has been cruel for small employers for sometime now, and I would guess that many now find themselves in the same position as the company I work for - already unaffordable insurance rates have become impossible to manage as revenue heads down. Credit is tight, no one knows how long this will last, so cuts have to be made. With the way insurance rates have been rising, this was perfectly predictable years ago, but we all know how much of a priority health care has been under the Bush administration.

You have to wonder, at a moment like this, when South Florida is ground zero in a converging set of economic crisises, will that the old politics still cut it? Will it be enough to run on name recognition and against Fidel Castro in the middle of an economic meltdown? Joe Gracia, the candidate taking on Republican stalwart Mario Diaz-Balart, hopes that the game has changed, and the latest polls show he has a strong chance.

It will take a solid ground operation, and he appears to recognize that, as he's pulled together a large volunteer base that is hitting the streets every week. It's to him I'll turn in my next post, tomorrow, as he talked to me about a week ago about his candidacy.

Check out his web page in the meantime, I' know I'll go out on one of his walks this week. There is a lot of work to be done, and for me, politics just got personal again. I only need to look a few office doors over to remember why.