> These days people are lined up for blocks for work.

There are lines of developers waiting for work?

Please let me know where I can find such lines. I could earn some hefty referral fees from the dozens of hiring managers I know who are desperate to find good developers.

You're right, but all of those people can't be good developers. Good developers are still hard to find. You can have a line of people out the door coming in for an interview, but not a single one of them worth a shit behind a keyboard. If you are provably a good developer with a solid track record, your leverage for getting contracts modified to your liking is substantially higher.