No Senator Jackson, a job is not a lolipop

California's job-killing AB5 is hurting young people the most.  Young people are more likely to be part of the gig economy and those that are in the gig economy like their work.  42 percent of Americans between 18 and 34 are freelancers in some form.  This is a higher percentage than for the workforce as a whole.  61 percent of freelancers like their work and freelancing is great source of satisfaction and income to those who do.  

The Democratic party is taking these opportunities away from young people.  Young Americans should be outraged that their freedom to pursue their dreams are being taken away by a party that is controlled by union bosses.

And most galling of all should be the utter condescension that the Democratic party has for Americans that want the opportunities and freedom provided by the gig economy.  Senator Hanna-Beth Jackson is just the latest example.    

Californian independent contractors and freelancers got quite a shock Thursday evening when a state senator compared lost jobs to “lollipops.”

Senator Jackson is doing what Democrats do best--towing the line for their public sector union overbosses.  If that means sacrificing the opportunities of young people in a time of high unemployment so be it.  

Young people should start voting in line with their economic interests and dump the Democrat party.  A good start would be Senator Jackson.  

Harvard Poll: Stressed-Out Gens Y and Z Heavily Favor Biden

New poll from Harvard University's Institute of Politics shows that Americans aged 18-29 are unhappy with the government and favor Biden over Trump by 2-1.  Most young people think that government is not doing what it is supposed to do:

Although fewer than 10% believe the country is working as it should be, a majority of young Americans prefer reform over the replacement of current institutions. When asked whether they believed America’s current institutions were working as needed, only 8% of young Americans agreed. A majority (51%) of them believed reform to present institutions was necessary to address existing problems, and about two in five preferred replacing all institutions and creating an entirely new model.

The problem is that Biden is going to be giving them more of the government that they don't see as working.  A vote for Biden is a vote to keep the deep state in place.  There is a reason that 94 percent of Washington voted for Clinton--because she was going to maintain status quo big government.  And in the fall, likely 94 percent of Washington will vote for Biden (or whomever the Democrats nominate in the end) for the exact same reason.  You don't get change or reform by putting the same people in charge.

Stimulus update

Young people are the ones that are going to bear the economic costs of the response to the coronavirus pandemic.  If the costs were to be levied on the boomers or older generations, I'm sure that Congress would have spent it more judiciously.  :

https://twitter.com/novogratz/status/1253426742326226944

Two Minnesota economists see the costs to young people of the coronavirus shutdown far outweighing the benefits:

From the Star-Tribune.  Author is the Chair of the Economics Department at te University of Minnesota:

Are these benefits of a continued shutdown sufficient to justify the horrific costs it imposes, especially on the young? I believe not, and instead see continuing our current policies for much longer as generational theft.

Preschool children are losing irreplaceable schooling shown to be crucial in cognitive development. K-12 students are losing schooling shown to have huge returns to their future earning abilities. Undergraduate, graduate and professional students are delaying their productive careers.

The currently unemployed are disproportionally young and losing not only paychecks, but extremely valuable on-the-job experience. Further trillions are being added to the national debt, to be paid by future taxpayers, the young.

There's an opportunity here for a great study on the effect on young people when the shutdown is brief versus of longer duration.  All else equal, young people in Colorado, Oklahoma, Georgia and states where the shutdown was brief should have fewer long-terms effects (career, educational attainment) than young people instates where the shutdown was extensive (New York, New Jersey, Michigan).  This should be particularly important for those at important life turning points like college graduation. 

https://www.startribune.com/a-month-into-mass-quarantine-what-now/569933882/?refresh=true

Biden wants to skew spending even more heavily towards the old.

In 2019, Medicare accounted for over one-third of the federal deficit.  That is, spending on Medicare exceeded premiums and taxes by $300 billion.  That gap will be bigger still this year.  Now Biden wants to make the program even more costly.  Elections have consequences.   

https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/04/11/832025550/bidens-health-play-in-a-covid-19-economy-lower-medicares-eligibility-age-to-60