Pointless Banter?

I feel pretty good today, although my eyes are giving me a fit (sinuses). So staring a this screen is a bit of a pain today. Still, as with a lot of stuff happening to my body, such as it is. A few days ago I caught wind of the Trenton, NJ Mayor Cory Booker's attempt at living on foodstamps for a few days. I'm not clear on the reasons (plight of the working poor),(making smart decisions with SNAP monies), or (simply political gain), all I know is he's doing it and struggling some. 

First and foremost, I give props to him for it. It is nice to see a politician learning what's it's like for the working poor. I guess the thing I draw form all this is that hopefully Mayor Booker takes away a real sense of what it is like to be in the new middle class.

I grew up a child of the sixties and seventies, I graduated from high school right after the recession of the mid to late seventies in 1980. During my childhood I grew up in a comfortable suburban neighborhood. My father, like many others around us, had a steady job at a local factory. A union man, before that became a cuss word to many, he made a good enough wage to support a family of five, own two cars, and pay for a small suburban tract house like the rest of our neighbors; with a mom who could stay at home. 

My family was lucky, my dad was well established at his job and the house was paid for before things got worst as I grew older. By the time I graduated, none of the old factories were hiring and the end of having a career of 10, 20 years at one job was ending. (It's worth noting, I went to a job interview at the local power company during this time, and they rejected me due to having worked too many jobs.) 

During my 30 or so years in the workforce I seen good times and bad times in the American economy. But the one thing that stands out the most is the creation of the working poor and them becoming the new middle class. 

Now I could go on about how, what, where, and why this happened. But I guess that is pointless since it's here and doesn't appear to be going away. I guess the thing is, it's time to quit posturing and pointing fingers at each other, both left and right. And begin to empathize with what's going on in the country and in the world. That at the current rate, even with the creation of new jobs, will those jobs keep up with the cost of living in the future? 

Just some fuel for thought. As we look at one politician appearing to understand what millions of Americans already know. That it ain't getting any easier to be middle class. Just some pointless banter from someone in South Georgia.