I am not eligible for American unemployment because I quit my job. Working in the state government office that makes my state of previous residence such an attraction in terms of home jurisdiction for American companies was soul-destroying and I couldn't figure out how to work slowly enough it wasn't hands-destroying, and living within an easy drive of my parents' house was mental-health-destroying, but those are not relevant factors. I quit; that's all that matters.
I wasn't eligible for American unemployment the time I got fired, either. I might have been after the job in the department store stock room ended, since that was a seasonal job (the year-round employees needed more hands in order to deal with the lead-up to Christmas) and therefore nothing I could have done or refrained from doing would have kept me employed there longer.
Oh, and the states rushing to reopen the economy fastest are the ones that are morally opposed to raising taxes (and also they already made it really legally difficult to raise taxes) and that would go bankrupt fastest if expected to pay out unemployment for a longer lockdown. If someone can't wait tables because the restaurant she works at isn't allowed to open, that's not her fault, so she's eligible for unemployment; if the restaurant is allowed to open, then her choices are go back to work or don't, and in either event she is no longer eligible for unemployment.
no subject
I wasn't eligible for American unemployment the time I got fired, either. I might have been after the job in the department store stock room ended, since that was a seasonal job (the year-round employees needed more hands in order to deal with the lead-up to Christmas) and therefore nothing I could have done or refrained from doing would have kept me employed there longer.
Oh, and the states rushing to reopen the economy fastest are the ones that are morally opposed to raising taxes (and also they already made it really legally difficult to raise taxes) and that would go bankrupt fastest if expected to pay out unemployment for a longer lockdown. If someone can't wait tables because the restaurant she works at isn't allowed to open, that's not her fault, so she's eligible for unemployment; if the restaurant is allowed to open, then her choices are go back to work or don't, and in either event she is no longer eligible for unemployment.
*waves universal-basic-income flag*