All jobs are not created equal

If you watch the news, read the paper, or generally take in any media about business or politics, you'll know that everyone is always talking about jobs. Does this bill kill jobs, or does it create jobs? Are these pollution standards going to kill jobs? We can't afford to do this for our country and the world because it will kill jobs. Jobs, jobs, jobs.

However, it is rarely discussed that not all jobs are created equal. A job working at McDonalds is not as valuable to our economy as a chef that prepares healthy food for our kids. A coal miner is not as valuable as a solar panel engineer. A hot dog vendor is not as valuable as a doctor. The cumulative effect of all of these jobs, in terms of how it impacts the health and stability of the entire country, is overlooked. Instead it is just jobs at all costs.

For a member of congress, creating a job is simply a reduction in the unemployment rate. But a job to each individual is so much more. It is their identity, their sense of self, their stability, and their pride. It can support them in so many ways, providing meaning in their life, and helping them achieve their dreams. Or it can be something that causes significant stress, is demeaning, and takes the individual away from their true self. 

The jobs that we are creating should support the whole individual, not only from a monetary standpoint, but from an emotional and spiritual one as well. A job description should state "to work here, you must strive with all you have to reach the fullest expression of yourself in the world."

Lets make Jobs with an uppercase J. Not little jobs, ones where people can survive, but that is about it. Lets make significant Jobs, happy Jobs, and fruitful Jobs. Jobs that are contributing to the progress of our society, not preventing it.