FROM 2012 INTO 2013 POLITICS THREAD

Re: THE 2012 POLITICS THREAD

From a larger story on the C.I.A.'s response to the attack in Benghazi:

Two more stars to be added to the wall in Langley.

 

Re: THE 2012 POLITICS THREAD

Agreed. But there seems to be a false comparison at work here. Dingbats on the right are suggesting that reports intended for public consumption are being manipulated for political advantage. This story is being interpreted as the right doing the same thing. NOTE THAT I DO NOT BELIEVE THE ADMINISTRATION IS FUDGING UNEMPLOYMENT NUMBERS. But the dingbat accusation from the right is more serious than this accusation from the left.

 

Re: THE 2012 POLITICS THREAD

It's a little better, but still not impressed with their prices lately. I'll scavenge the clearance racks, but that's about it.

 

Re: THE 2012 POLITICS THREAD

Again, I don't disagree with any of that. What I said was we should have better protections and higher minimum wages for unskilled labor.

That the small-newspaper industry (with the exception of the major metro level) also sucks doesn't make Wal-Mart any better, though. Do people really still start at $20,000? I started at $23,000 back in 1981.

 

Re: THE 2012 POLITICS THREAD

I have plenty of choices as to where to shop. I find them all to be close to hell on Earth. I shop at Wal-Mart a lot because I can get done what has to be done in one trip to hell. If I didn't shop at Wal-Mart, I'd have to make three to four times as many trips a week. Ain't gonna happen.

 

Re: THE 2012 POLITICS THREAD

It's been pointed out to me - and also alluded to in a post by Tony earlier - that businesses might pay workers higher wages than market so that those workers can then buy products at the business. In other words, pay higher wages in order to build employee loyalty, etc., etc. That's still largely a self-interest calculation, and probably smart business if a CEO thinks that this will help the viability of the business in the long run. What some out there seem to desire is strict charity and altruism, and that's different. That's a recipe for going out of business. And then no one wins.

What I was trying to get at is that worker protections should be handled at the government regulation level.

 

Re: THE 2012 POLITICS THREAD

Turns out the Romneys made about $15.3 million on the auto industry bailout and some of their hedge fund donors did considerably better, yet they still don't like it.

http://www.thenation.com/article/170644/mitt-romneys-bailout-bonanza#

 

Re: THE 2012 POLITICS THREAD

Thought some of you might like this.

http://www.thestar.com/entertainment/stargazing/article/1281684--u-s-election-the-simpsons-mr-burns-endorses-mitt-romney?fb_source=ticker&fb_action_ids=10100335338496976&fb_action_types=og.recommends

 

Re: THE 2012 POLITICS THREAD

Good for them for their intellectual honesty and consistency, then.

 

Re: THE 2012 POLITICS THREAD

I keep getting emails from the Joe Donnelly campaign claiming he leads Richard Mourdock by 9-11 points for that Indiana Senate seat. If true, that would be a stunning turnaround - and an epic choke.

 

Re: THE 2012 POLITICS THREAD

That timeline should end the "the battle lasted seven hours and Obama left the ambassador to die as he watched video from a drone" story the extreme right has been selling. Should, but won't.

 

Re: THE 2012 POLITICS THREAD

Before I ascended into the ivory tower, I had some experience with trying the whole pay-a-premium-to-keep-them-loyal approach. I'd pay a premium on skill -- say $10 an hour for a worker who really was only worth $9 -- and then hope that worker wouldn't leave for greener pastures as his skill level increased. Inevitably, about the time I'd approach the break-even point (that is, about the time I'd get to the point at which I wasn't paying a premium on skill), some other offer would pop up and then I'd be out not only the employee but also all those skill premiums I'd paid to date. This happened over and over. Finally I reworked my operation and figured out how to make it go without needing to count on employees who'd be there for the long term. Then, I'd simply hire relatively unskilled (for the industry) workers and pay them what they were worth. As they developed their skill level, they'd move on and so would I.