FROM 2012 INTO 2013 POLITICS THREAD

Re: THE 2012 POLITICS THREAD

And seasonal adjustment means people who will be laid off before New Year's.

 

Re: THE 2012 POLITICS THREAD

No it doesn't. The actual number (say 171,000 jobs or the 7.9 percent rate) has been massaged to make it comparable to any given month. If the report is 171,000 jobs created in October, then that value has been corrected for the fact that some portion of those jobs reflect seasonal hiring (and won't be around after Christmas).

 

Re: THE 2012 POLITICS THREAD

You missed a lot of classes, didn't you?

 

Re: THE 2012 POLITICS THREAD

Like what?

Don't we already provide 18 years of free public school education? Why do people have no skills?

I'm all for helping the sick, handicapped, elderly, and others who can't work. But, I don't see how forcing businesses to pay unskilled labor more than they are worth will help anything.

It provides an incentive to not acquire job skills, and raises the cost for all labor.

 

Re: THE 2012 POLITICS THREAD

Speaking of class, you have none.

 

Re: THE 2012 POLITICS THREAD

Yes, it's true, and yes, it's an epic choke.

Even before his rape comments, Mourdock was at best dead-even or slightly ahead in a race that would have been a sure thing for Lugar had he made it out of the primary. There already was some bad blood against Mourdock because of his shenanigans as state treasurer during the auto bailout.

 

Re: THE 2012 POLITICS THREAD

"drive up the cost of labor."

Horrors, a slight bump in the road for the Race To The Bottom!

Obviously we cannot have that. Anything that impedes the ability of the corporatocracy to drive down the minimum standard of living is a threat to America.

 

Re: THE 2012 POLITICS THREAD

There's a zillion reasons people end up in minimum-wage jobs, many of which have nothing to do with not having any skills. These people actually exist. Do you think there should even be a minimum wage? Should we let the market decide that, too? Because I'm certain the Waltons and other 1 percenters could easily find ways to drive wages down even further if there weren't the meager protections now in place.

 

Re: THE 2012 POLITICS THREAD

I've mentioned that I like playing around on Mechanical Turk. Judging from that site, the market value of completely unskilled, completely unprotected labor is about $3/hour.

 

Re: THE 2012 POLITICS THREAD

Most of them, if adults, really do have little to no job skills, because they lack a job history.

So, they're not used to showing up on time, following direction, dealing w/ co-workers and/or customers. It's the little things we all take for granted that they lack.

Can they stock shelves? Sure. But that's no good if you lack other basic "skills".

As for the minimum wage, that's a tough one. Right now, millions of teenagers aren't working, because they aren't worth the minimum wage. Some kind of training wage, or age adjusted wage might help that situation.

Teenagers not working leads directly to adults without job skills.

 

Re: THE 2012 POLITICS THREAD

BTW, does anyone think the Obama, Christie, FEMA circle jerk was a little premature?

They praise each other for a great response and the media focuses on the "bromance" between them.

While they provide political cover for each other, there are very critical needs being unmet.

Not to be outdone, Mayor Bloomberg tries to get in on the action, and endorses Obama -- partially based on his storm response -- and pans for the Marathon and the Nets home opener, while they're still searching for bodies on Staten Island.

 

Re: THE 2012 POLITICS THREAD

If only you were there to help.