Unemployed Workers

In the Oct. 16 presidential debate, Bill Clinton made up my mind who to vote for this year. He said, in essence, that if you were better off in 1992 than you are in 1996, then vote for his opponent, Bob Dole.

I am one of those forgotten aerospace/defense engineers who lost their jobs in 1992 after devoting their careers to winning the Cold War, exploring space and developing technology. We are no longer part of unemployment statistics. So it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know whom to vote for on election day. On the other hand, maybe it does.

IRA ZIMMERMAN

San Juan Capistrano

* I was a professional pilot with a college degree in aviation who had a heart attack. I went back to school at UCLA Extension and obtained certificates in applications programming, systems analysis and systems programming with a 3.75 grade-point average. As a 47-year-old white male with a heart condition trying to start out in a new field and competing against affirmative action in a tight job market, I could not find a job.

I worked hard and long for my education, and I paid for it myself with the help of nobody but my wife. I have not discriminated against anybody or kept them from equal opportunities.

Where was affirmative action for people like me? Why are we discriminated against because of the color of our skin in favor of people who are less qualified or younger? Where is the justice?

RICHARD MILLER

Laguna Hills