OS is up to his keister in projects with deadlines, bills to pay, and hoping that next week's schedule doesn't get blown to Kingdom Come by another volcanic outburst, cuz' he's expecting someone from London to get some work done that he spent weeks getting scheduled. He also just had a conversation with an apologetic FedEx agent who explained that service to the UK is still intermittent, and no he can't say when tomorrow's package of documents will actually arrive in England's Green And Pleasant Land.
Can't control volcanoes, so nothing to do but keep a sense of humor and think of Plan B.
Other stuff, humans do control. Great parts of the past two days have been spent with various Apple products, supposedly the Latest and Greatest, that simply will not function as advertised. Everything is very elegant, stylish, 'cool', etc. It just that, upon following all the instructions, not much works well.
He's an old middle-aged guy, admittedly, but he has one thing to say before trying to actually get some work done: Computers and software are tools. Think of hammers, screwdrivers, picks, shovels.
Tools.
We use tools to get stuff done. We don't care how elegant they are. All we care about is 'Hammer drives nail straight into beam.', 'Pick moves dirt, to be removed by shovel.' When the tool works, then it does what we paid for it to do. When it doesn't, we're not in the mood to be told by a 22-year-old kid with tats and piercings that 'We just don't get it'.
On the contrary, we do get 'it'. This hammer won't drive the nail, and we paid for both.
These things are tools. Before adding elegance, think function. Hammers drive nails.
Please.
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Food-Stamp Nation
Mish Shedlock, as always, knows how to paint the picture accurately from both the macro to micro level. He understands that the economy is not about numbers, but about people, culture, behavior, ethics. Look to your right on this page, and allow him to enlighten you.
This post is especially telling.
Quoting below:
[begin copy]
Food stamp usage is up again except the program is now called SNAP Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
Inquiring minds are looking at a SNAP Participation Table that shows a record 39,430,724 receive SNAP benefits, a 22.4% increase from a year ago.
Biggest State Increases
Arizona - 32.9%
Colorado - 32.9%
Florida - 38.6%
Idaho - 45.7%
Nevada - 46.9%
Rhode Island - 42.4%
South Dakota - 32.6%
Utah - 37.3%
Wisconsin - 38.9%
Wyoming - 40.0%
Those numbers are as of January 2010
Households
Household SNAP participants increased from 12,728,981 in Fiscal Year 2008 to 15,232,105 in fiscal year 2009, a 16.4% increase. For comparison purposes, watch the growth in household participation.
SNAP Household Participation
FY 2005 - 11,197,377
FY 2006 - 11,734,491
FY 2007 - 11,789,594
FY 2008 - 12,728,981
FY 2009 - 15,232,105
Cost of SNAP Program
FY 2005 - $31.07 Billion
FY 2006 - $32.91 Billion
FY 2007 - $33.19 Billion
FY 2008 - $37.66 Billion
FY 2009 - $53.63 Billion
Household and cost numbers are as of March 30, 2010.
Clearly the recession took its toll, and will continue to do so until there is a dramatic decrease in the unemployment rate.
[end copy]
Since Uncle Sam spent far less in the aggregate of the years cited on keeping people fed than on keeping firms like Freddie, Fannie, AIG, GMAC, Chrysler and GM on life support in 2008 and 2009, (and let's not forget the banks), let's not quibble about numbers. People in large groups who don't have enough to eat or feed their children do desperate and unpleasant things, and listen to people who advocate desperate and unpleasant things. Ask Marie Antoinette...
Still, we have constructed a culture that begins to look a bit like Louis XVI: Massive wealth and luxury flowing to fewer and fewer people connected to the court in Paris, small family business enterprise increasingly bled dry, a large proportion just barely hanging on beneath them (because small business can't expand and hire), and an intellectual/political elite out of touch with reality.
Stir gently, add a tablespoon of accelerant, heat slowly.
We don't want this to happen.
The glorious revolution of the 1790's was followed by the Napoleonic bloodbath, which was followed by...which was followed by...
This post is especially telling.
Quoting below:
[begin copy]
Food stamp usage is up again except the program is now called SNAP Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
Inquiring minds are looking at a SNAP Participation Table that shows a record 39,430,724 receive SNAP benefits, a 22.4% increase from a year ago.
Biggest State Increases
Arizona - 32.9%
Colorado - 32.9%
Florida - 38.6%
Idaho - 45.7%
Nevada - 46.9%
Rhode Island - 42.4%
South Dakota - 32.6%
Utah - 37.3%
Wisconsin - 38.9%
Wyoming - 40.0%
Those numbers are as of January 2010
Households
Household SNAP participants increased from 12,728,981 in Fiscal Year 2008 to 15,232,105 in fiscal year 2009, a 16.4% increase. For comparison purposes, watch the growth in household participation.
SNAP Household Participation
FY 2005 - 11,197,377
FY 2006 - 11,734,491
FY 2007 - 11,789,594
FY 2008 - 12,728,981
FY 2009 - 15,232,105
Cost of SNAP Program
FY 2005 - $31.07 Billion
FY 2006 - $32.91 Billion
FY 2007 - $33.19 Billion
FY 2008 - $37.66 Billion
FY 2009 - $53.63 Billion
Household and cost numbers are as of March 30, 2010.
Clearly the recession took its toll, and will continue to do so until there is a dramatic decrease in the unemployment rate.
[end copy]
Since Uncle Sam spent far less in the aggregate of the years cited on keeping people fed than on keeping firms like Freddie, Fannie, AIG, GMAC, Chrysler and GM on life support in 2008 and 2009, (and let's not forget the banks), let's not quibble about numbers. People in large groups who don't have enough to eat or feed their children do desperate and unpleasant things, and listen to people who advocate desperate and unpleasant things. Ask Marie Antoinette...
Still, we have constructed a culture that begins to look a bit like Louis XVI: Massive wealth and luxury flowing to fewer and fewer people connected to the court in Paris, small family business enterprise increasingly bled dry, a large proportion just barely hanging on beneath them (because small business can't expand and hire), and an intellectual/political elite out of touch with reality.
Stir gently, add a tablespoon of accelerant, heat slowly.
We don't want this to happen.
The glorious revolution of the 1790's was followed by the Napoleonic bloodbath, which was followed by...which was followed by...
German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble: Thrust, Parry, Evade, Repeat
Der Spiegel interviewed the Finance Minister last week, who seemed anxious to reassure the readers that 'No, we aren't going to bail Greece out', while assuring Greece that it wouldn't be allowed to fail.
It sounded like a few pages out of a John LeCarre novel. Bold emphases supplied by OS, because they bear reading. This guy is worried, and isn't telling half of what his fears might be.
SPIEGEL: Let's talk about Greece and the euro crisis. In 1992, a prominent member of Germany's center-right Christian Democratic Union, to which you belong, made the following promise to German citizens: "If a country accumulates high deficits as a result of its own behavior, neither the (European) Community nor a member state is obligated to help that country." Do you know who said that?
Schäuble: A lot of people could have said that.
SPIEGEL: It was the current German president, Horst Köhler, who negotiated the terms of the European Monetary Union (EMU) at the time, in his capacity as a senior official in the German Finance Ministry. Does the sentence still apply today?
Schäuble: I'm a firm believer in the monetary union. At the time, I felt exactly the same way as the current president. The only problem is that the world has changed. The capital market has become globalized to a degree that we couldn't have imagined at the time. And we have experienced a financial crisis from which we in Europe must draw a clear lesson: We cannot allow the bankruptcy of a euro member state like Greece to turn into a second Lehman Brothers.
SPIEGEL: You are exaggerating. In past years, it's happened again and again that a country couldn't pay its debts, and yet that hasn't led to a collapse of the global financial system. Why should this be different in Greece's case?
Schäuble: Because Greece is a member of the European monetary union. Greece's debts are all denominated in euros, but it isn't clear who holds how much of those debts. For that reason, the consequences of a national bankruptcy would be incalculable. Greece is just as systemically important as a major bank.
Is that the phone we hear ringing at the Fed and Treasury?
But wait, there's more!
SPIEGEL: That's not how German citizens have understood the monetary union. They were assured that the euro would be as stable as the German mark. Now their tax money is going to a country in which a quarter of the population works in the public sector and pensions are often higher than salaries. Is this the way to boost confidence in the euro?
Schäuble: I would caution against fueling cheap populism. First of all, every German who has spent a vacation in Greece knows that the standard of living there isn't higher than it is in Germany. Second, Greece is paying a high price for European assistance.
SPIEGEL: Nevertheless, for months the German government was vehemently opposed to government bailouts for Greece. Why did you give in and agree to the EU rescue plan that was recently hammered out and which will involve Germany forking out €8 billion ($10.7 billion) if Greece goes belly up?
Schäuble: We didn't give in. We have always said that before we talk about assistance, Greece has to do its homework first. Meanwhile, the Greek government has approved a credible austerity program that involves serious cutbacks for its citizens, and it even had to step up those measures recently. This is why the German government is now prepared to take on responsibility at the European level.
SPIEGEL: We understood the chancellor's words differently at the time.
Schäuble: That must be your interpretation.
Not even John LeCarre can make this sort of stuff up...and the US is headed in the same direction with its spending.
Once again, the questions arise: Who bails us out in ten years? A grateful Europe?
Do the people at the helm in Washington understand? Do they intend this?
It's wall-to-wall Ivy League degrees in the upper reaches of our government. It isn't like they are not intellectually adept.
It sounded like a few pages out of a John LeCarre novel. Bold emphases supplied by OS, because they bear reading. This guy is worried, and isn't telling half of what his fears might be.
SPIEGEL: Let's talk about Greece and the euro crisis. In 1992, a prominent member of Germany's center-right Christian Democratic Union, to which you belong, made the following promise to German citizens: "If a country accumulates high deficits as a result of its own behavior, neither the (European) Community nor a member state is obligated to help that country." Do you know who said that?
Schäuble: A lot of people could have said that.
SPIEGEL: It was the current German president, Horst Köhler, who negotiated the terms of the European Monetary Union (EMU) at the time, in his capacity as a senior official in the German Finance Ministry. Does the sentence still apply today?
Schäuble: I'm a firm believer in the monetary union. At the time, I felt exactly the same way as the current president. The only problem is that the world has changed. The capital market has become globalized to a degree that we couldn't have imagined at the time. And we have experienced a financial crisis from which we in Europe must draw a clear lesson: We cannot allow the bankruptcy of a euro member state like Greece to turn into a second Lehman Brothers.
SPIEGEL: You are exaggerating. In past years, it's happened again and again that a country couldn't pay its debts, and yet that hasn't led to a collapse of the global financial system. Why should this be different in Greece's case?
Schäuble: Because Greece is a member of the European monetary union. Greece's debts are all denominated in euros, but it isn't clear who holds how much of those debts. For that reason, the consequences of a national bankruptcy would be incalculable. Greece is just as systemically important as a major bank.
Is that the phone we hear ringing at the Fed and Treasury?
But wait, there's more!
SPIEGEL: That's not how German citizens have understood the monetary union. They were assured that the euro would be as stable as the German mark. Now their tax money is going to a country in which a quarter of the population works in the public sector and pensions are often higher than salaries. Is this the way to boost confidence in the euro?
Schäuble: I would caution against fueling cheap populism. First of all, every German who has spent a vacation in Greece knows that the standard of living there isn't higher than it is in Germany. Second, Greece is paying a high price for European assistance.
SPIEGEL: Nevertheless, for months the German government was vehemently opposed to government bailouts for Greece. Why did you give in and agree to the EU rescue plan that was recently hammered out and which will involve Germany forking out €8 billion ($10.7 billion) if Greece goes belly up?
Schäuble: We didn't give in. We have always said that before we talk about assistance, Greece has to do its homework first. Meanwhile, the Greek government has approved a credible austerity program that involves serious cutbacks for its citizens, and it even had to step up those measures recently. This is why the German government is now prepared to take on responsibility at the European level.
SPIEGEL: We understood the chancellor's words differently at the time.
Schäuble: That must be your interpretation.
Not even John LeCarre can make this sort of stuff up...and the US is headed in the same direction with its spending.
Once again, the questions arise: Who bails us out in ten years? A grateful Europe?
Do the people at the helm in Washington understand? Do they intend this?
It's wall-to-wall Ivy League degrees in the upper reaches of our government. It isn't like they are not intellectually adept.
Monday, April 19, 2010
Obama Hits The Links While Poland Mourns
Barack Obama decided not to attend the funeral in Warsaw of a fellow head of state, citing the disruption of air traffic due to the Icelandic volcano.
Well, ok. Fair enough. Not good to endanger another head of state enroute to the funeral.
But thoughts do come to mind....
The volcano may have been a factor, but there are routes to Poland that don’t involve flying over the North Atlantic east of Iceland. He had some other options available to him as well, had he cared to make use of them:
1. A video-taped or live-linked personal message of condolence to be broadcast in Poland, translated into Polish for local consumption. We have a State Department to arrange for things like that.
2. A visit to the Embassy to sign the condolence book, and to visit with the Ambassador and the staff of the embassy, many of whom surely lost friends in the tragedy.
3. An invitation for the Polish ambassador to visit the Oval Office, where condolences could have been offered, perhaps in conjunction with option 1.
4. He could have flown to Chicago to attend a Polish-language requiem mass in honor of the Polish leaders who passed away, which surely took place. He knows the way to Chicago, and his way around it, last time anyone checked.
5. He could have signed a presidential proclamation of condolence, and ordered the US flag flown at half-mast for the day of the funeral.
The list goes on, and these are just the obvious, easy things that could have been undertaken–need we continue?
Reagan, Carter, Ford, both Bushes, and probably Bill Clinton would have done at least three of the five. Clinton would have done them with the cameras running constantly, but he would have done them, probably with as sincere a heart as he was able to muster.
Obama hit the links, publicly, on the day of the funeral. Compare and contrast.
OS loves golf, and thinks it's good for everybody to play, especially people with large responsibilities on their shoulders. But, some days, it might be better to stay home...
We live in an age of medical miracles, but alas, there is no cure for lack of class.
Silencing The Music In Somalia: NY Times Story
The next time some self-impressed multi-culturalist drones on about how all cultures are equally valid, that Islam is a religion of peace that poses no danger to civilization, etc., etc., etc., share this news nugget with them.
13 April, 2010
MOGADISHU, Somalia — At least 14 radio stations here in the capital stopped broadcasting music on Tuesday, heeding an ultimatum by an Islamist insurgent group to stop playing songs or face “serious consequences.”
The insurgent group, Hizbul Islam, issued its ultimatum 10 days ago and set Tuesday as the deadline to comply, saying that music was “un-Islamic.” In other parts of the country, insurgents have taken over or shut down some radio stations. Last week, the Shabab, the country’s most powerful insurgent group, said it was banning foreign programs like those broadcast by the BBC and Voice of America, calling them Western propaganda that violated Islam.
The radio stations that stopped playing music on Tuesday are based in both insurgent and government-controlled areas of the ruined capital. Those located in insurgent-held territory seemed to have little alternative, but some of the managers at stations in government-controlled territory argued that the lack of security and the loss of advertising income led them to comply as well.
Now, let's see. We have the suppression of music, the silencing of news programming, all under threat of death at the hands of Muslim jihadists. They have to get their money from somewhere--should we wonder where out loud? Why do the supposedly 'moderate' Muslim states not publicly raise unshirted hell about this stuff?
Now, just for a reality check, let's check out some of the cultural offerings in Israel in the coming weeks. You know, the place with orchestras and conservatories, museums, A FREE ****!!!!**** PRESS, all the things that make them odious to Islamists. And, apparently, Mr. Obama seems to like the Islamists better than the Israelis. He sure as shooting won't stand up to them. Something to ponder as we vote this November, and as we contribute in the days leading up to it.
When this country, and the rest of the West, are willing to finally stand up and say: 'These people are thugs, plain and simple, and we won't tolerate them a moment longer. And, we won't give an inch or a penny to anyone who tolerates them.', we'll be on the road to the solution of our challenges with Islam.
They are the ones with the problem, we aren't.
13 April, 2010
MOGADISHU, Somalia — At least 14 radio stations here in the capital stopped broadcasting music on Tuesday, heeding an ultimatum by an Islamist insurgent group to stop playing songs or face “serious consequences.”
The insurgent group, Hizbul Islam, issued its ultimatum 10 days ago and set Tuesday as the deadline to comply, saying that music was “un-Islamic.” In other parts of the country, insurgents have taken over or shut down some radio stations. Last week, the Shabab, the country’s most powerful insurgent group, said it was banning foreign programs like those broadcast by the BBC and Voice of America, calling them Western propaganda that violated Islam.
The radio stations that stopped playing music on Tuesday are based in both insurgent and government-controlled areas of the ruined capital. Those located in insurgent-held territory seemed to have little alternative, but some of the managers at stations in government-controlled territory argued that the lack of security and the loss of advertising income led them to comply as well.
Now, let's see. We have the suppression of music, the silencing of news programming, all under threat of death at the hands of Muslim jihadists. They have to get their money from somewhere--should we wonder where out loud? Why do the supposedly 'moderate' Muslim states not publicly raise unshirted hell about this stuff?
Now, just for a reality check, let's check out some of the cultural offerings in Israel in the coming weeks. You know, the place with orchestras and conservatories, museums, A FREE ****!!!!**** PRESS, all the things that make them odious to Islamists. And, apparently, Mr. Obama seems to like the Islamists better than the Israelis. He sure as shooting won't stand up to them. Something to ponder as we vote this November, and as we contribute in the days leading up to it.
When this country, and the rest of the West, are willing to finally stand up and say: 'These people are thugs, plain and simple, and we won't tolerate them a moment longer. And, we won't give an inch or a penny to anyone who tolerates them.', we'll be on the road to the solution of our challenges with Islam.
They are the ones with the problem, we aren't.
You Say 'Eyjafjallajökull', I Say 'Eyjafjallajökull'
Or we could just say, 'Let's call the whole thing off'...the Brits did, and now hundreds of thousands are stranded around the world. The airlines, understandably, are climbing the wall, losing millions daily.
All flights grounded in and out of the UK through the 19th. Makes one wonder how many packages are stacking up in the FedEx terminal in Memphis and the UPS terminal in Louisville.
Also makes one reflect on how we take for granted the smooth workings of a complex economy. A lot of people have to do their jobs right, every day, in order to get those hundreds of flights safely flown around the world. It's impressive we have so few mishaps.
Everyone, keep yoh' sense of humor on, we allll gonna need it this week.
All flights grounded in and out of the UK through the 19th. Makes one wonder how many packages are stacking up in the FedEx terminal in Memphis and the UPS terminal in Louisville.
Also makes one reflect on how we take for granted the smooth workings of a complex economy. A lot of people have to do their jobs right, every day, in order to get those hundreds of flights safely flown around the world. It's impressive we have so few mishaps.
Everyone, keep yoh' sense of humor on, we allll gonna need it this week.
Sunday, April 18, 2010
The Steven Rattner Scandal And The Obama White House
It appears the man the Obama White House put in charge of the takeover of Chrysler and GM was already up to his hips in seriously unethical dealings with public pension funds.
It's a convoluted story, but at heart it was a 'pay-to-play' scheme, in which it is alleged Rattner obtained a $100 million dollar public pension fund investment for his firm by unethical means. He made a series of unrelated deals on behalf of people who made the decision to steer the investment in his direction. Wanna bet he landed a handsome bonus at year's end for his efforts?
He then went on to be put in charge of the 'rescue' of two dead auto firms, which by the way, are still....not viable. But tens of billions of dollars changed hands in the process, and deal after deal after deal were made along the way. That's what the man does, you know, make deals. It's his way of life, how he makes his living.
The obvious question has to be raised: What sorts of deals were made, and what small slices of those tens of billions ended up flowing in his direction? It all happened very quickly, all very confused, lots of smoke and mirrors, and massive skirting of bankruptcy law occurred, if memory serves.
Another obvious question: Before assigning him to the task, didn't the Obama White House vet this guy? Or did the fact that he was a major Democrat fund-raiser help them decide? Did these things matter, or did they hire him because of who he was, knowing the manner of the man?
In the meantime, back to this week's account:
"Mr. Rattner does not agree with the characterization of events released today, including those contained in Quadrangle's statement," said Jamie S. Gorelick, an attorney for Rattner. "He looks forward to the full resolution of this matter."
Standard lawyer boilerplate. But the name of the lawyer rings a bell! Why, OS scratches his gray head in wonder? Where has he encountered the name of Jamie S. Gorelick?
Here's one place. From the Washington Post, April 6, 2005:
Fannie Mae employees falsified signatures on accounting transactions that helped the company meet earnings targets for 1998, a "manipulation" that triggered multimillion-dollar bonuses for top executives, a federal regulator said yesterday.
Armando Falcon Jr., director of the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight, said the entries were related to the movement of $200 million in expenses from 1998 to later periods. The result of the changes was an increase in Fannie Mae's 1998 earnings per share and the release of a $27.1 million bonus pool for senior executives.
Fannie Mae reported paying the following executive bonuses in 1998: chairman and chief executive James A. Johnson received $1.932 million; Franklin D. Raines, chairman-designate, received $1.11 million; Chief Operating Officer Lawrence M. Small received $1.108 million; Vice Chairman Jamie S. Gorelick received $779,625; Chief Financial Officer J. Timothy Howard received $493,750; and Robert J. Levin, an executive vice president, received $493,750.
That's one reference...there are more, not difficult to find.
OS does not believe in conspiracy theories. No one was passing envelopes of cash to the President, or wiring vast sums to his offshore accounts. But the best thing one can say about having Rattner on board is that the White House staff were reckless and gullible.
This is not another Watergate. But it is indicative of attitudes. And as businesses and families struggle through The Great Recession, stories like this are demoralizing.
It's a convoluted story, but at heart it was a 'pay-to-play' scheme, in which it is alleged Rattner obtained a $100 million dollar public pension fund investment for his firm by unethical means. He made a series of unrelated deals on behalf of people who made the decision to steer the investment in his direction. Wanna bet he landed a handsome bonus at year's end for his efforts?
He then went on to be put in charge of the 'rescue' of two dead auto firms, which by the way, are still....not viable. But tens of billions of dollars changed hands in the process, and deal after deal after deal were made along the way. That's what the man does, you know, make deals. It's his way of life, how he makes his living.
The obvious question has to be raised: What sorts of deals were made, and what small slices of those tens of billions ended up flowing in his direction? It all happened very quickly, all very confused, lots of smoke and mirrors, and massive skirting of bankruptcy law occurred, if memory serves.
Another obvious question: Before assigning him to the task, didn't the Obama White House vet this guy? Or did the fact that he was a major Democrat fund-raiser help them decide? Did these things matter, or did they hire him because of who he was, knowing the manner of the man?
In the meantime, back to this week's account:
"Mr. Rattner does not agree with the characterization of events released today, including those contained in Quadrangle's statement," said Jamie S. Gorelick, an attorney for Rattner. "He looks forward to the full resolution of this matter."
Standard lawyer boilerplate. But the name of the lawyer rings a bell! Why, OS scratches his gray head in wonder? Where has he encountered the name of Jamie S. Gorelick?
Here's one place. From the Washington Post, April 6, 2005:
Fannie Mae reported paying the following executive bonuses in 1998: chairman and chief executive James A. Johnson received $1.932 million; Franklin D. Raines, chairman-designate, received $1.11 million; Chief Operating Officer Lawrence M. Small received $1.108 million; Vice Chairman Jamie S. Gorelick received $779,625; Chief Financial Officer J. Timothy Howard received $493,750; and Robert J. Levin, an executive vice president, received $493,750.
OS does not believe in conspiracy theories. No one was passing envelopes of cash to the President, or wiring vast sums to his offshore accounts. But the best thing one can say about having Rattner on board is that the White House staff were reckless and gullible.
This is not another Watergate. But it is indicative of attitudes. And as businesses and families struggle through The Great Recession, stories like this are demoralizing.
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Food-Stamp Culture: Nashville, Tennessee
Driving out of town for a weekend trip, OS and his bride had the local NPR affiliate on the car radio. In the neutral tone their news staff are known for, the local reporter calmly reported a shocking statistic: One person in six in Nashville/Davidson County, Tennessee, OS's hometown, are on the Food Stamp program.
1 divided by 6= 16.67 percent of a what has become a large city in the past twenty years or so.
Since there are entire swaths of the county where Food Stamps would almost certainly never be needed or used, that means there must be other swaths where their use is now commonplace.
It's to the point, says our reporter, that the State of Tennessee has hired some six hundred Food Stamp recipients to process the flood of Food Stamp applications. Of course, this full-time employment takes them off Food Stamps themselves, but their salaries are funded by federal 'stimulus' money. Which will run out. Then they'll go back on their Food Stamps...
Well, the claim can be made that 'jobs were created'. But missing in this 'job creation' is one simple fact: These six hundred people are providing a service, and are now employed, but their employment creates no wealth.
And we now have the expansion of a more-or-less permanent underclass in this great city. The social and political implications of having some 16-17% of a population directly dependent upon the government for their food are sobering to contemplate.
Since the early 70's the recessions have come in waves--busts and recoveries, but each recovery leaving more people behind in the ditch, more businesses closed, more productive work sent offshore.
No, Virginia, the Great Recession is not over.
1 divided by 6= 16.67 percent of a what has become a large city in the past twenty years or so.
Since there are entire swaths of the county where Food Stamps would almost certainly never be needed or used, that means there must be other swaths where their use is now commonplace.
It's to the point, says our reporter, that the State of Tennessee has hired some six hundred Food Stamp recipients to process the flood of Food Stamp applications. Of course, this full-time employment takes them off Food Stamps themselves, but their salaries are funded by federal 'stimulus' money. Which will run out. Then they'll go back on their Food Stamps...
Well, the claim can be made that 'jobs were created'. But missing in this 'job creation' is one simple fact: These six hundred people are providing a service, and are now employed, but their employment creates no wealth.
And we now have the expansion of a more-or-less permanent underclass in this great city. The social and political implications of having some 16-17% of a population directly dependent upon the government for their food are sobering to contemplate.
Since the early 70's the recessions have come in waves--busts and recoveries, but each recovery leaving more people behind in the ditch, more businesses closed, more productive work sent offshore.
No, Virginia, the Great Recession is not over.
Friday, April 16, 2010
On The Road: Louisville, KY 15 April 2010
A quick 'there-and-back' visit for business meetings. It is such a delightful city, in so very many ways, with large quiet neighborhoods well-supplied with locally-owned restaurants.
OS and his bride rewarded themselves with dinner at Molly Malone's, on Baxter Avenue in the Irish Hill neighborhood. The potato-leek soup is heavenly, the shepherd's pie just yummy, the service always cheerful.
We had just made the trip to the post office to drop the Tax Document into the box held by the cheerful Postal Service employee in the parking lot, and Molly's was close by, so...why not? With the three-hour drive ahead, we couldn't drink, but could take in the jolly atmosphere.
It was packed, at least all the outdoor tables and the party deck. We opted for indoors, a/c, and quiet. The folks outside were uproariously loud, and very jolly. The banner had been hung over the deck--it was a gathering of accountants and employees sponsored by one of the CPA firms.
Post closing-time on 15 April, it was indeed time to blow off steam. Excellent HR move on someone's part. Hangovers and absences this morning won't mean diddly, anyway. Hopefully, days off were granted. The nation's supply of Jameson whiskey took a serious hit last night. OS thinks of whiskey as the principal reason God created corn, and Kentucky is a place that understands the Theology of Corn.
Three quiet cheers for a humane employer, and a gracious city.
Back on the road today.
OS and his bride rewarded themselves with dinner at Molly Malone's, on Baxter Avenue in the Irish Hill neighborhood. The potato-leek soup is heavenly, the shepherd's pie just yummy, the service always cheerful.
We had just made the trip to the post office to drop the Tax Document into the box held by the cheerful Postal Service employee in the parking lot, and Molly's was close by, so...why not? With the three-hour drive ahead, we couldn't drink, but could take in the jolly atmosphere.
It was packed, at least all the outdoor tables and the party deck. We opted for indoors, a/c, and quiet. The folks outside were uproariously loud, and very jolly. The banner had been hung over the deck--it was a gathering of accountants and employees sponsored by one of the CPA firms.
Post closing-time on 15 April, it was indeed time to blow off steam. Excellent HR move on someone's part. Hangovers and absences this morning won't mean diddly, anyway. Hopefully, days off were granted. The nation's supply of Jameson whiskey took a serious hit last night. OS thinks of whiskey as the principal reason God created corn, and Kentucky is a place that understands the Theology of Corn.
Three quiet cheers for a humane employer, and a gracious city.
Back on the road today.
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Henry Waxman Has Second Thoughts About His 'Invitation': The Impact Of ObamaCare On Business
Their Dream came true. ObamaCare became the LawOfTheLand one bright Sunday afternoon. Next day, a number of large corporations, the ones who create jobs and wealth, also complied with other federal law, and restated their projected earnings in light of ObamaCare. It was pretty distressing. Caterpillar projected a $100 million dollar hit, and firms like ATT projected dings of up to a billion dollars.
So Waxman and Stupak then went into Chicago Mode. It goes like this: Guys in suits walk into the place of business, and say, 'Dis here's a nice little business you got going here! It would be a crying SHAME (wouldn't it, Vito) if someone were to show up one night and BURN IT TO THE GROUND!! What you're gonna need to do is get yourself some fire insurance (right, Vito?). Yeah, fire insurance. Vito here, he'll be by to collect premiums every Friday afternoon. He don't like no late payments on premiums. Neither do I. It makes me UPSET!'
Well, Waxman and Stupak weren't quite that blatant, but they did send letters around to a lot of execs at a lot of firms, like the one they sent to the President of Verizon. The language was almost as charming as Gino and Vito back in the 'hood:
The Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations will hold a hearing on April 21, 2010 at 10:00 a.m. in Room 2123 of the Rayburn House Office Building to examine the impact of the new law on Verizon and other large employers. We request your personal testimony at this hearing.
To assist the Committee with its preparation for the hearing, we request that you provide the following documents from January 1,2009, through the present: (1) any analyses related to the projected impact of health care reform on Verizon; and (2) any documents, including e-mail messages, sent to or prepared or reviewed by senior company officials related to the projected impact of health care reform on Verizon. We also request an explanation of the accounting methods used by Verizon since 2003 to estimate the financial impact on your company of the 28% subsidy for retiree drug coverage and its deductibility or nondeductibility, including the accounting methods used in preparing the cost impact released by Verizon this week.
We ask that you provide the requested information by April 9, 2010. For purposes of this request, the term "senior company officials" includes all company officials at the level of Vice President and above for the company or any subsidiary. Attachments to this letter provide additional information about responding to Committee document requests and testifying before the Committee.
Youse guys need some FIRE INSURANCE, so you better 'SPLAIN YOURSELF!
Well, as the date approached, it dawned on our two intrepid Congressmen: What if the lawyers and accountants all showed up and made presentations that would enter the Congressional record that ObamaCare was a financial nightmare for business?
Word came down today that hearings were cancelled. Nothing rescheduled.
They'll be extorting some other way to be sure, just don't want to be caught doing it in the light of day.
That's not The Chicago Way.
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