Editor,
With the complications of outsourced work to other parts of the world and the issue of so many undocumented migrant workers, a new generation has been created - the neo-sandwich generation.
Just like the so-called "sandwich generation" has been forced to care for their children and parents, the neo-sandwich generation is stuck between highly skilled jobs heading overseas and lower paying jobs being dominated by immigrants.
According to a poll by Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research and Public Opinion Strategies for National Public Radio, the threat of globalization taking American jobs is the top concern of American citizens. Such a thing is understandable and expected when companies like Delphi, a large parts supplier for General Motors, announce that they are planning to eliminate union contracts and dissolve more than 28,000 employees in order to shut down the majority of its United States plants.
It appears that business development in America is noncompetitive to the growing demand of cheap employment overseas.
On top of cheaper labor costs abroad, the attitude in emerging corporations is that the proficiency of overseas work is better in every aspect, which draws a direct parallel to the localized issue of migrant workers that possess a strong work ethic. This clearly demonstrates the poor work ethic plaguing the modern American generation.
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If people want to make it through these issues, they need to learn how to adapt and respond to what is actually happening, which might mean living out their nightmares of taking a pay cut.
While it might be easy to attack Bush's competitive agenda plan or Clinton's signing of the North American Free Trade Agreement, such complaints aren't the solution. This is not a single party issue that can be overcome within one administration's term.
The policies set in place by previous presidents, along with global economic competition, have contributed to our underlying issues, but it will be the responsibilities of forthcoming presidents in cohesion with this new generation to change or adapt for the better for a long time to come.
Tyler Brown
UNM student
