Orlando-area suicides rising

While suicides need to be looked at in hard times, we cannot forget about other health problems. Less than a week after my brother lost his job in October 2008, he died of a massive heart attack. He was 56. The stress of losing his job was just too much for him. He wasn't feeling well, popped a few "pills" of his nitroglycerine but refused to go to the hospital. He told my sister-in-law there was no point because they would just keep him in the hospital for observation then send him home, but he had a job interview for the next day. She went to take a shower and by the time she came back down the stairs, he was gone.

Some companies offer help for people they have to let go simply because they understand that these are not just jobs involved, but in many cases, a sense of identity, security, or a life's work. I think they all should do the same. Then there are suicide cases that also need to be looked at so that someone can step up and set up some kind of support to help people through extremely troubled times.

Orlando-area suicides rising
As financial woes mount, more deaths can be expected, an expert predicts
By Rene Stutzman

Sentinel Staff Writer

August 7, 2009
In 1933, during the toughest year of the Great Depression, America's suicide rate spiked. Now, public health officials are watching to see whether suicide rates climb as more and more people lose their jobs and homes. Last year was a difficult one for the economy in Central Florida, and 567 people killed themselves, a 13 percent jump over the year before, according to state and county death records.

If the unemployment rate continues to climb and hard times linger, there's a strong likelihood even more people will take their own lives, according to Steven John Stack, a professor of sociology and suicide expert at Wayne State University in Detroit.

"The evidence is that as the unemployment rate increases, there's an uptick in the suicide rate over time," Stack said.

Central Florida's unemployment rate last month rose to 10.8 percent, more than double what it was two years ago, according to state labor statistics.

On May 6, a Maitland woman jumped from the top floor of the Orange County Courthouse parking lot, falling 76 feet to her death.

Why Siu Fong Ng, 50, killed herself and why she chose such a public place are not clear. She left no note.
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Orlando-area suicides rising

Detroit family dead after ‘glitch’ led to power shut-off

Detroit family dead after ‘glitch’ led to power shut-off

By Daniel Tencer



Falling behind in your bills can be deadly, as the tragic story of a Detroit family shows.

A 46-year-old father and this three children are dead from carbon monoxide poisoning after their local energy company cut off their power, prompting the family to use a generator that poisoned them with carbon monoxide.

And the family’s power company says a bureaucratic “glitch” caused them to shut the power off when it shouldn’t have been.

Vaughn Reed, 46, and his three children, Markeisha, 17, DeMarco, 12, and DeMarte, six, died in the early morning hours of Friday from carbon monoxide emitted by a generator in the basement of the family’s two-story home on Detroit’s west side.
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Detroit family dead after glitch led to power shut-off
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Jobless rate at 11.2% for veterans of Iraq, Afghanistan

Jobless rate at 11.2% for veterans of Iraq, Afghanistan


By Gregg Zoroya, USA TODAY
WASHINGTON — The economic downturn is hitting Iraq and Afghanistan veterans harder than other workers — one in nine are now out of work — and may be encouraging some troops to remain in the service, according to Labor Department records and military officials.
The 11.2% jobless rate for veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan and who are 18 and older rose 4 percentage points in the past year. That's significantly higher than the corresponding 8.8% rate for non-veterans in the same age group, says Labor Department economist Jim Walker.

Army records show the service has hit 152% of its re-enlistment goal this year. "Obviously the economy plays a big role in people's decisions," says Lt. Col. Christopher Garver, an Army spokesman.

Some soldiers are re-enlisting specifically because of the poor civilian job market, says Sgt. 1st Class Julius Kelley, a career counselor at Fort Campbell, Ky. "It's job security (in the Army), and I try to sell that all the time," he says. "You don't have to worry about getting laid off in the Army."

The market is tough outside the Army. Unemployment among the youngest of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans, those ages 20 to 24, reached 15% in February, records show.
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http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2009-03-19-jobless-veterans_N.htm

Desperate Japanese head to 'suicide forest'

Desperate Japanese head to 'suicide forest'
Story Highlights
Forest with stunning views of Mount Fuji is also known as place to die

Counselors now roam Aokigahara Forest, hoping to help the desperate

Suicides in Japan were 15 percent higher in January than a year earlier

Officials fear more people will kill themselves amid the tough economy

By Kyung Lah
CNN

AOKIGAHARA FOREST, Japan (CNN) -- Aokigahara Forest is known for two things in Japan: breathtaking views of Mount Fuji and suicides. Also called the Sea of Trees, this destination for the desperate is a place where the suicidal disappear, often never to be found in the dense forest.


Japan's Aokigahara Forest is known as the "suicide forest" because people often go there to take their own lives.

Taro, a 46-year-old man fired from his job at an iron manufacturing company, hoped to fade into the blackness. "My will to live disappeared," said Taro. "I'd lost my identity, so I didn't want to live on this earth. That's why I went there."

Taro, who did not want to be identified fully, was swimming in debt and had been evicted from his company apartment. He lost financial control, which he believes to be the foundation of any stable life, he said. "You need money to survive. If you have a girlfriend, you need money. If you want to get married, you need it for your life. Money is always necessary for your life."

Taro bought a one-way ticket to the forest, west of Tokyo, Japan. When he got there, he slashed his wrists, though the cut wasn't enough to kill him quickly.

He started to wander, he said. He collapsed after days and lay in the bushes, nearly dead from dehydration, starvation and frostbite. He would lose his toes on his right foot from the frostbite. But he didn't lose his life, because a hiker stumbled upon his nearly dead body and raised the alarm. Watch report on "suicide forest" »

Taro's story is just one of hundreds logged at Aokigahara Forest every year, a place known throughout Japan as the "suicide forest." The area is home to the highest number of suicides in the entire country.

Japan's suicide rate, already one of the world's highest, has increased with the recent economic downturn.

There were 2,645 suicides recorded in January 2009, a 15 percent increase from the 2,305 for January 2008, according to the Japanese government.

The Japanese government said suicide rates are a priority and pledged to cut the number of suicides by more than 20 percent by 2016. It plans to improve suicide awareness in schools and workplaces. But officials fear the toll will rise with unemployment and bankruptcies, matching suicide spikes in earlier tough economic times.
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Domestic violence rises as recession frays families

Shelters across Central Florida struggle to provide for rising numbers of victims


Domestic violence rises as recession frays families
Kate Santich Sentinel Staff Writer
March 4, 2009


When Monica Stamm sought refuge at an Orange County domestic-violence shelter last fall, she vowed to find a job and move out within a month, taking her two children with her.

"I wanted to give them that home, sweet home," she said.

Nearly six months later, she is still at the shelter. Despite searching almost daily for jobs, she has yet to find work to support herself and her family — a scenario all too familiar to shelters throughout the state.

In fact, a recent single-day snapshot of domestic-violence programs from Miami to Pensacola shows many are virtually bursting at the seams. The survey, conducted by the National Network to End Domestic Violence, found 209 victims who were not able to get help, including 40 who had to be turned away from shelters for lack of space.
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Tough choices for America's hungry

Tough choices for America's hungry
It's hard to look for a job when your stomach is rumbling. Walter Thomas started skipping meals when his savings were running out and his cabinets were almost empty. He didn't want to turn to food stamps, but eventually applied for aid. With the economy in meltdown, Thomas is not alone.

In October, more than one in 10 people -- about 31 million -- were using food stamps, according to the government. full story

Therapists seeing more 'collateral damage' from economy

As most of my readers know, I lost my job a year ago. No unemployment for me because I worked for a church that did not have to pay into the system. As of today, I have part time work starting to come in. (More on this later) It is very stressful to see your job and paycheck go when you did nothing wrong. It was so stressful for my brother that less than a week after he lost his job, he had a massive heart attack and died. He was only 56!
When it comes to stress, having something happen that is out of your control or has nothing to do with you, it leaves you doubting everything. We question right and wrong. We question what's wrong with us that we lost our job but people we know did not. More and more layoffs are coming. More and more businesses are closing their doors. There will be a lot more people needing help but without insurance and without incomes to pay for therapy, how will they get the help they need to recover?

Therapists seeing more 'collateral damage' from economy
Story Highlights
Psychologists say referrals are up during this economically turbulent time

Therapy helps to "bear witness" to the troubles people are having, doctor says

Tips for therapy seekers: Check out that therapist is licensed, negotiate fee



By John Bonifield
CNN Medical Producer

(CNN) -- Stacey Rosenberg, a former marketing manger in Boston, knows the catastrophic feeling of a layoff. She has lost her job twice in the midst of the recession.


"When I first got laid off, I sort of had a mission. I wanted to get a new job as quickly as possible, and when it became apparent that that was not going to happen very quickly, it was very upsetting for me," Rosenberg says.

Unemployed for months, Rosenberg started retreating from friends and family, spending more time by herself. Since early summer, she's sought help inside a psychotherapist's office.

"I had to figure out how to deal with it the second time around, because I did so poorly the first time around," she says.

No formal data exist on the number of Americans who are turning to therapy during the recession, but most clinical psychologists say that referrals are up.

"This is really unprecedented," says Nancy Molitor, a clinical psychologist in Chicago, Illinois. "I've been practicing for 20 years, and I'm seeing just an unprecedented amount of anxiety, as are most of my colleagues."


Rick Weinberg, a clinical psychologist in Tampa, Florida, says that in one recent week 80 percent of his patients were discussing the pain inflicted on them in the economy. His patients included a small business owner who was forced to lay off longtime staff, a family of four evicted from their home and moving into a rental, and a family with two teenagers that was down to a one-parent income and experiencing frequent spending arguments and acting out by the teens.
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Family's house saved because of Internet strangers

Internet strangers save family's home

Saved by the click 1:51
Photojournalist Oliver Janney introduces us to a couple giving thanks for people's generosity over the Internet.
• Focus On Giving

Guilty and stressed, layoff survivors suffer, too

Guilty and stressed, layoff survivors suffer, too
Employees who remain face extra work, uncertainty — and no sympathy
By JoNel Aleccia
Health writer
msnbc.com
updated 8:19 a.m. ET, Mon., Dec. 15, 2008

For nearly a year, Suzanne Beckstrom watched warily as employee after employee was laid off in her office at a small Southern California housing development. One by one, she said goodbye to construction workers, sales staff, administrative help — even the marketing manager who oversaw Beckstrom’s work.

Each time, the 60-year-old Carlsbad, Calif., real estate agent and housing options coordinator expected to be next. And each time, she got a reprieve, leaving her with mixed emotions of relief, uncertainty — and guilt.

“You felt like you were lucky to be one of the people who remained, but so sad for the people who left,” said Beckstrom. “And it was extremely stressful wondering what was going to happen next.”

Across the United States, layoffs have stripped jobs from more than 2 million workers this year, including some 533,000 who lost jobs in November alone, according to the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics. The cuts have had devastating effects on the suddenly unemployed, but they’ve also had a powerful impact on a less obvious population: the co-workers left behind.

Typically ignored in the drama of downsizing, layoff refugees get to keep their jobs, only to face rising workloads, sinking morale, ongoing anxiety — and the uncomfortable feeling that they ought to be grateful for it all.

“If I hear ‘At least you have a job’ one more time, I’m going to physically injure someone,” said a 45-year-old software engineer at a Northern California firm who didn't want to be named for fear of further jeopardizing her job. “Yes, you still have a paycheck coming in, but sometimes I wonder if it’s worth the stress.”
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Bad economy good for soul?

I wonder what these people were doing when the economy was good? Are they looking for redemption, miracles, or are they looking for someone to believe in?

When we are hurting financially, there are two choices. A type of crossroads we all come to. We can keep fighting to find the same kind of job, doing the same kind of work, or we can look inside of ourselves at where our hearts are being tugged.

I heard a career advisor on the radio saying she advises her clients to find what they are passionate about. In the end, that's what's really important because no one wants to work just for a paycheck you cannot trust will be there next month, or at this rate, next week. I believe we are born with the passion we have inside of us for a reason. We cannot all be doctors or preachers. We need people in every walk of life. Maybe the people seeking answers and hope in the churches are trying to decide what they were put on this earth for.

Now it would really be wonderful if we did what we were supposed to do and God found a way for us to make a living at it, but that doesn't always happen. I know a lot of great, passionate writers that can't make a living off what they do. We read their posts everyday. There are a lot of great reporters out there that never managed to get a break and struggle with freelancing instead of working for a big time newspaper. Then again, the recent reports of layoffs from newspapers doesn't make their odds of landing a good job with them very good.

I really hope the people turning to the churches for answers find them and then maybe, just maybe we can turn this country around to the way things used to be and the only people in it for themselves were regarded as leaches and not admired.

Bad Times Draw Bigger Crowds to Churches
By PAUL VITELLO
The sudden crush of worshipers packing the small evangelical Shelter Rock Church in Manhasset, N.Y. — a Long Island hamlet of yacht clubs and hedge fund managers — forced the pastor to set up an overflow room with closed-circuit TV and 100 folding chairs, which have been filled for six Sundays straight.

In Seattle, the Mars Hill Church, one of the fastest-growing evangelical churches in the country, grew to 7,000 members this fall, up 1,000 in a year. At the Life Christian Church in West Orange, N.J., prayer requests have doubled — almost all of them aimed at getting or keeping jobs.

Like evangelical churches around the country, the three churches have enjoyed steady growth over the last decade. But since September, pastors nationwide say they have seen such a burst of new interest that they find themselves contending with powerful conflicting emotions — deep empathy and quiet excitement — as they re-encounter an old piece of religious lore:

Bad times are good for evangelical churches.

“It’s a wonderful time, a great evangelistic opportunity for us,” said the Rev. A. R. Bernard, founder and senior pastor of the Christian Cultural Center in Brooklyn, New York’s largest evangelical congregation, where regulars are arriving earlier to get a seat. “When people are shaken to the core, it can open doors.”

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Then add this to it

Stunning turnaroundfor St. John's Seminary
Enrollment at St. John's Seminary has doubled over the last two years, a stunning turnabout for an institution that seemed to be spiraling toward closure in the wake of the clergy sexual abuse crisis. (By Michael Paulson, Globe Staff)

New homeless: families in bind

New homeless: families in bind
By Cristina Silva, Times Staff Writer
Tuesday, December 2, 2008


ST. PETERSBURG — Ethan Hite sits on the twin bed he shares with his 2-year-old brother and cuts coupons for PlayStation games.

"Can I have these two games for Christmas?" the 7-year-old calls to his mother. "This one is $10 and this one is $7."

Mary Hite, her husband and their three children live in an efficiency apartment in a homeless shelter. Neither parent has a full-time job.

But Mary Hite doesn't tell her oldest any of that. She tucks the coupons into her pocket and embraces him.

The Hites are among the Tampa Bay area's fastest-growing homeless population: parents and children.

Area shelter directors, homeless advocates, government officials and child welfare agencies say the rising unemployment rate, the sluggish housing market and the spiraling economy have forced an unprecedented number of families out of their homes.

And these officials aren't sure what to do about it. Limited social service funding, a dearth of affordable housing and a homeless assistance system designed for single men — the largest homeless demographic — make catering to families difficult.

"It has emerged as the next crisis in terms of housing," Pinellas County Commissioner Ken Welch said.

Numbers are hard to come by, but the overwhelming anecdotal evidence has pushed advocates for the homeless into action.
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http://www.tampabay.com/news/humaninterest/article922647.ece

Demand up for mental health care

Demand up for mental health care
Denver Post - Denver,CO,USA
Although no one can say for sure, anecdotal evidence lays blame on economic stress.
By Kevin Simpson
The Denver Post

They come in for counseling related to a DUI, but it turns out the alcohol was meant to kill the depression of a lost job, a lost house, a lost spouse — or maybe all three.

They ask for help with gas money or car repairs so they can make their therapy appointment.

They struggle to make co-payments.

They rush to take advantage of employee assistance programs — sometimes fearful they might lose their job, sometimes trying to grapple with their job loss before employee benefits expire.

Layoffs, corporate cutbacks, a tumbling stock market and the credit crunch have ratcheted stress to new levels, prompting many experts to connect the economic downturn to a recent uptick in requests for mental health services even as some patients can hardly afford them.

Although most say it's too early to pinpoint the precise cause of the jump, anecdotal evidence from both caregivers and consumers suggests the failing economy has pushed more people toward therapeutic relief.

Variations on the theme have emerged all across the country — muted only slightly in Colorado, said George DelGrosso, executive director of the Colorado Behavioral Healthcare Council, a statewide association of community mental health centers.
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Unhappy couples staying together as economy makes divorcing too costly

‘I just want to leave him, but I can’t afford it’
Unhappy couples staying together as economy makes divorcing too costly
By Alex Johnson
Reporter
msnbc.com
updated 7:42 p.m. ET, Sun., Nov. 23, 2008
what pastors, family therapists and matrimonial counselors have long struggled to accomplish: keeping troubled marriages together.

Marriage counselors and divorce lawyers nationwide say more distressed couples are putting off divorce because the cost of splitting up is prohibitive in a time of stagnant salaries, plummeting home values and rising unemployment.

While the stress of economic uncertainty often worsens already shaky unions, it also can make couples more financially dependent on each other, said Pamela Smock, a researcher at the Population Studies Center at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.
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http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27808110/

Attleboro MA:City threatens blind woman over unpaid 1-cent bill

Nov 18, 9:19 AM EST


City threatens blind woman over unpaid 1-cent bill

ATTLEBORO, Mass. (AP) -- A 74-year-old blind woman was shocked when her daughter found a letter from the city saying a lien would be placed on her home unless she paid an overdue water bill.

The amount? 1 cent.

Eileen Wilbur told The Sun Chronicle of Attleboro the letter sent her blood pressure soaring, and pointed out that stamps cost 42 cents.
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Hard times forcing more families to give up pets

Hard times forcing more families to give up pets
The couple brought everything with their two dogs -- beds, food, even favorite toys. "I just felt for these people. They were having a hard time," said Gloria Thomas, director of the West Volusia Humane Society. "You could tell they were devastated they had to give up these two little pets."

By NICOLE SERVICE
Staff Writer
DAYTONA BEACH -- The couple brought everything with their two dogs -- beds, food, even favorite toys.

"I just felt for these people. They were having a hard time," said Gloria Thomas, director of the West Volusia Humane Society. "You could tell they were devastated they had to give up these two little pets."

As Thomas tells the story, the couple didn't have much choice. Their home was being foreclosed on and they were about to lose everything, which now included their beloved pets.

Shelter workers and volunteers throughout Volusia and Flagler counties tell similar stories about people faced with foreclosure, unemployment, or falling wages being forced to surrender their pets.

"You can always tell who they are," said Lynda Mays, a board member with Southeast Volusia Humane Society in New Smyrna Beach. "They are the people who sit and cry in our office for an hour. They feel they are not living up to their responsibility. It is terribly sad."

Bobbi Gibson with the Flagler County Humane Society said that facility has been getting one or two such pets per day -- about five a week -- from people who admit they have to surrender their pets because of financial problems.

Amy Beliman, a board member and volunteer, said the Flagler facility had five such surrenders on Monday alone.

"It is a sign of the times," she said. "Unfortunately, there are people who can't take care of their animals."

She said the influx of abandoned or surrendered pets is putting animal shelters into a financial bind, too.

"We are in dire need of funding," Beliman said. "People are hurting and the economy is tough, but we need to remember that the animals really need the help right now, too."
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Adding to deployment stress for soldiers is the economy

Soldiers going to Iraq worried about economy

By John Milburn - The Associated Press
Posted : Tuesday Sep 30, 2008 18:07:26 EDT

FORT RILEY, Kan. — Soldiers and families who deal with enough stress during 12-month deployment to Iraq now acknowledge they are keeping a little closer eye on their finances.

Turmoil in the credit and financial markets has members of the 2nd Brigade of the 1st Infantry watching their money closely and planning for emergencies. They know their paychecks are secure, but it’s their investments, however small, that makes them worry.

Command Sgt. Maj. Julia Kelly is not amused with the talk of bailing out Wall Street with $700 billion when taxpayers are expected to pay for their own tough times. Kelly is trying to sell a house in Billings, Mont., knowing that some properties in that area have been on the market for as long as three years.

“I’m feeling that pressure right now with that,” said Kelly, adding that she didn’t want to find a renter because the last one cost her money in repairs.
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http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/09/ap_soldiers_economy_093008/

Liberals and Republicans United on Bailout Bill?

House Narrowly Defeats Bailout Legislation
President Bush Had Urged Quick Approval
By Paul Kane and Lori Montgomery
Washington Post Staff Writers
Monday, September 29, 2008; 2:23 PM

In a narrow vote, the House today rejected the most sweeping government intervention into the nation's financial markets since the Great Depression, refusing to grant the Treasury Department the power to purchase up to $700 billion in the troubled assets that are at the heart of the U.S. financial crisis.


The 228-205 vote amounted to a stinging rebuke to the Bush administration and Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr., and was sure to sow massive anxiety in world markets. Just 11 days ago, Paulson urged congressional leaders to urgently approve the bailout. He warned that inaction would lead to a seizure of credit markets and a virtual halt to the lending that allows Americans to acquire mortgages and other types of loans.

As it became apparent that the measure was heading to defeat, stock markets took a steep dive. The Dow Jones industrial average fell more than 700 points but then rebounded a bit. By 2:20 p.m. the Dow was down 455 points, about 4 percent. The Standard & Poor's 500 stock index was down 5.4 percent and the Nasdaq was off 6 percent.

Leaders met strong resistance from a liberal wing that opposed bailing out Wall Street's corporate executives and a conservative wing that denounced the measure as an abandonment of free-market principles.

Arguing that the country was on a "slippery slope toward socialism," Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas) urged his colleagues to oppose the bill because of the "unintended consequences" to come. "If we lose our ability to fail, we will soon lose our ability to succeed. If we bail out risky behavior, we will soon see even riskier behavior," said Hensarling, the leader of a conservative caucus.

"It's not sustainable and we know it won't solve the underlying problem," said Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.), likening the proposal to the Bush administration's "surge" of troops into the Iraq war last year.

Many lawmakers cast the vote as the equivalent of a war resolution or a presidential impeachment. Their speeches invoked 19th-century Russian novelist Fyodor Dostoyevsky and King Henry.

The House vote had been regarded as the most risky, because restive Republicans balked at the emerging proposal last week at a White House summit with Bush and the presidential candidates, Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Barack Obama (D-Ill.). And Democrats warned that dozens of their members, hailing from poor and liberal districts, would never endorse such a bailout.
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While it is true that something has to be done, this is not the answer. The rules Bush and McCain put into place made sure this kind of thing would happen when they took away with regulations and rules to insure it would not. They just didn't care what would happen. The truth is, they never seem to think about what comes with what they want.

They didn't think about the troops when they pushed to invade Iraq either. Set aside your thoughts on what has been done in Iraq for a second and open your eyes on a fact that is consistently ignored.

They knew there was no need to rush to invade Iraq. This is no longer being disputed. Did they wait until they had everything in place for the sake of those they would send to do it? No. They took no regard for the troops in Afghanistan. They had no regard for the wounded two military campaigns would bring. In 2005, there were less doctors and nurses working for the VA than there were working after the Gulf War. No one in Washington seemed to have been doing anything about it. Plans were not made for them to return home or to be taken care of back home.

When they made the decision to remove the regulations on corporate activities was made, they didn't think about what would come either. Bush now just expected to borrow his way out of the mess after the rich got richer, greed took control and they went off on their merry way leaving behind a wreckage for the American people. Now they expect the American people who have suffered for all of what they did bail them out because they thought they could scare the daylights out of us? I don't think so. No one can cause us to be even more fearful than we have been all these years because of their actions. The only difference now is that their rich powerful friends are in trouble and now they pay attention to them. Much like the contractors they favored above the troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. kc

Bush finally acts after the wolf eats Wall Street

What took all of them so long to figure this one out?

Bush finally acts after the wolf eats Wall StreetThe wolf is no longer at the door of Wall Street. The wolf has eaten Wall Street. Read More

Obama, McCain agree it's a recession
WASHINGTON, Sept. 21 (UPI) -- Democrat Barack Obama and his presidential rival, Republican John McCain, both say the United States is in a recession.

Both candidates expressed their assessment of the U.S. economy in a segment of CBS's "60 Minutes" broadcast Sunday. For the special 40th edition of the program, Obama was interviewed Wednesday in Nevada and McCain was interviewed Thursday in Wisconsin.
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Bad economy sends illegal immigrants back to Mexico

With jobs scarce, sales of one-way tickets to Mexico are up
By Saundra Amrhein, Times Staff Writer
In print: Sunday, August 31, 2008


PLANT CITY — On a Wednesday afternoon, in the gravel lot of El Expreso bus depot, Benito Ramos waits with his life packed in several plastic tubs.

After eight years in the United States, he is going home to Hidalgo, Mexico, to his mother and a small concrete block house built with the money earned clearing tables in Tampa restaurants.

"You can't survive like before," said Ramos, 28, standing in front of the clapboard depot building with its low-slung porch filled with passengers and suitcases.

When times were good, Ramos worked 16 hours a day at two restaurants, five days a week. His weekly check was $520. But for months, bosses have slashed his schedule. He was lucky to work six hours a day for two or three days, bringing in just $117 a week.

"It got to the point where you can't pay rent, you can't pay the bills," he said.

A few weeks ago, Ramos bought a bus ticket and joined legions — perhaps thousands — of illegal immigrants going back home.
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http://www.tampabay.com/news/humaninterest/article791045.ece

Ouch! Hurting in the Hamptons

The only good thing about a report like this is, it hits the rich or really well off. That's a good thing because in this country, no one wants to let the wealthy suffer. It's almost as if legislators think they deserve better and will come up with ways to fix the mortgage mess. While it would have been great they did something because so many of the middle and lower end earners were suffering, at least they may do something now.

TROUBLE IN LI PARADISE
FORECLOSURES LOOMING FOR THE HAMPTONS' POSHEST PADS
By SELIM ALGAR
May 12, 2008 -- Homeowners in the some of the toniest ZIP codes in the Hamptons are facing a frightening reality - they can't afford to foot the bill for their high-priced homes, The Post has learned.

In the first three months of this year, banks have launched preliminary foreclosure actions - known as lis pendens proceedings - against a record 120 borrowers in East Hampton and Southampton towns.

Twenty percent of those borrowers live in homes that are worth more than $1 million, according to figures from the Suffolk County clerk.

And the list gets longer every week.

"This problem didn't even exist before," said John Brady, a broker with Coldwell Banker in East Hampton. "They used to pop up once in a while, and you wouldn't even pay attention. Now you expect to see new ones every week."

Some of the Hampton high rollers feeling the pinch are:
* Janice Becker, a regular on the Southampton village social circuit, is facing foreclosure on her multimillion-dollar Wyandanch Lane property.
* Advertising veteran Ransel Potter is defaulting on a $1.8 million mortgage on an Amagansett parcel.
* Real-estate honcho John Conroy is in lis pendens for a $3.5 million mortgage on a Bridgehampton spread on West Pond Drive.
* Former UBS executive Marc Warren is in lis pendens on a $1 million mortgage for a Mitchells Lane pad in Bridgehampton.
* Investor Roger Thanhauser is trying to sell a home on Main Street in East Hampton village to avoid foreclosure.
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