I’ve been a liberal all my life. I have not been encouraged to be a liberal all my life. I was raised in a conservative family. My father was a Baptist preacher. Everyone around me was conservative. They hated gays. They hated government assistance, even when half of them were on it. They hated pregnant teens, single mothers, and divorced parents. I don’t keep in contact with … [Read More...]
In Other Words
Why Bad Dates Are Important
Hi, I’m Izzy, and a back injury put me out of commission for about a year and a half. Over my entire 24th year of life, I didn’t fuck, didn’t even think about fucking, and maybe went on two first dates; both that went nowhere. I was mostly just in pain and tired. While my back still isn’t 100%, I’ve definitely gotten back in the game over the past … [Read More...]
Featured Post
Oppression Is Metaphysical
One night a few weeks ago at the bar I work at, I got hit on by a guy named Jake. This happens a fair amount, and I’m pretty sure they’re all aspiring screenwriters named Jake. I don’t have a uniform, and when I’m standing by the bar waiting to carry drinks to customers, I look like a girl who is alone in a bar. Cue drunk dudes assuming I do not value my solitude or personal space. Jake … [Read more...]
Underemployment Around the Globe
Is Melbourne Really The World’s Most Liveable City?
Every time I flick on the tv, which admittedly is not often at all, I always hear the news reporter announce the weather forecast or other such trivial local news by referring to Melbourne as “The world’s most liveable city”. “The weather forecast this week in the world’s most liveable city” Being originally from … [Read More...]
Other Post
Millennials And Supportive Parents: Should We Feel Guilty?
A common narrative about artists is that they have it really hard. They’ve chosen a career without upward mobility, much money, or social clout, unless they somehow break into the stratosphere. There are scores of stories about artists who had to fight for their right to pursue their art as a career. Parents and friends and teachers and societies that collectively told these people: no, … [Read More...]
Politics Corner
Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un: Two Peas In A Pod?
I feel very far removed from life in the US right now. Physically, it’s because I’m living in Japan for the next year. Mentally, not as much news crosses my path as it used to; with the exception of one colleague asking me what Trump meant when he called Kim Jong Un (KJU hereafter) a “smart cookie.” My language skills weren’t advanced enough to explain to him that the … [Read More...]
Underemployment In The Media
Capitalism May Be The Real Thing, But It Might Need To Evolve
Even the most ardent supporters of capitalism would have to admit it isn't a perfect system. Inequality is built into it. In a capitalist system there are naturally going to be winners and losers. Not all winners won fairly, and not all losers lost because they didn't play well enough. The clip we chose for this week discusses possible ways capitalism as we know it may end or at least evolve. … [Read More...]
More Featured Posts
TFW(That Feeling When) We Share Ourselves On Social Media: Can We Be Authentic?
Last Monday, I was so depressed I didn’t leave my bed until noon. After eating breakfast and spending an hour staring into space, I pulled it together enough to go to the gym. I walked in, took in the smell of the lobby, and then immediately turned around to go back to my car. I listened to NPR drone on until the tsunami of feeling subsided and I felt like I could drive. When I’m … [Read More...]
More Politics Corner
I’m A Liberal In A Red State
I live in a small town in Kentucky. When I say small, I mean a population of around 1000 people. The city limits aren’t much over three miles from one end to the other. It’s one of those places where everyone knows everyone. Several of my high school teachers taught my parents, and very rarely can I pass someone on the street or in the store without them not only knowing my name, but my parents, … [Read More...]
More Underemployment In The Media
Underemployment In Australia: Not Much To Celebrate
Yesterday, we published a well researched article on underemployment in Australia and the United States. It's fascinating how the two countries differ in their acknowledgment of the problem. The United States doesn't officially track the number of underemployed in their employment data. Australia does, and continues to look for ways to curtail the problems that massive … [Read More...]
Featured Interview
Yale Strom On His New Documentary, American Socialist: The Life and Times of Eugene Victor Debs
Yale Strom is an accomplished writer, violinist, composer, writer, and more. He is also the director of five award winning documentaries. His newest documentary, American Socialist: The Life and Times of Eugene Victor Debs, is now playing at select theaters across the … [Read More...]
More Underemployment Around The Globe
Australia, The United States, And Underemployment: There’s Nothing Funny About It
While it’s a bummer to have no paying work— re: being unemployed— the notion of having some paying work, yet not enough, shouldn’t just be written off as a First World problem. In fact, the data shows that the rate of underemployment in America (14 percent) is dramatically higher than that of unemployment (4.4 percent). And it turns out … [Read More...]
License
The Underemployed Life by J. Parks is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.