I can't seem to get a contract or a job anywhere. The good news is that you are fortunate to be on the systems programming side of the house. My guess is that medium and long term demand for systems programming specialities will remain strong. The bad news is that there are several trends working against you at the moment. From where I sit, contracting never picked up as expected after the end of Y2K. Contractors have taken as much or more of the layoffs as permanent employees.
Contracts are much more tenuous.
The chances that a contract will go through the entire term is significantly less. With requisitions harder to get and the hiring process being more selective, hiring managers that I have talked to are very wary of hiring a long-standing contractor for a permanent position without the professional having a very good reason for leaving contracting. Hiring managers are wary of contractors who are seeking safe haven in a permanent position until the contracting market picks up. If you would want to accept a permanent position and stay there for the foreseeable future, you must make sure that your intention is clearly communicated to the potential employer. You might also want to modify your objective on your resume to make it very clear.