Friday, March 30, 2012

"The Worst Persons in the World"

As per Minister Huckabee tonight, "If we don't get what we want, we will take to the streets."


He was maligning Reverend Al Sharpton, MSNBC, NBC and CNN.


He was accusing them of inciting riots. Funny I haven't noticed any riots in the streets.


He was chuckling with Bill O'Reilly about the current black movement in the USA spawned by the murder of Trayvon Martin.


O'Reilly went on to say, "In all my 37 years I have never seen anything like this."


Murdoch's bigots didn't stop there.


They went on to say the good Reverends Sharpton and Jessie Jackson were inspiring riots.


The idea that Black Men cannot control themselves in the USA is a long standing hatred and completely racism.


When O'Reilly was criticized by a viewer for participating in a discussion regarding Trayvon Martin by bringing on a family attorney, O'Reilly responded by saying, 'What I did was responsible reporting and what MSNBC and the others are doing is irresponsible commentary." 


Excuse me? FOX News is exempt from irresponsible commentary? Since when? 


I also don't believe the other stations are responsible for irresponsible commentary. I believe everyone is attempting to contextualize what happened without an official decision from the authorities. 


I know what happened.




An innocent young man going about life without bothering a soul was nearly home when a man stalking him with a gun interrupted his day. When faced with the danger he feared he attempted to defend himself. He lost the struggle and was shot dead. 


The most responsible party besides Mr. Zimmerman is the State of Florida and other states that have passed "The Castle Doctrine" and "Stand Your Ground" that has empowered gun owners to take the law in their own hands.


Mr. Huckabee being a former Governor believed he was qualified to comment as an authority on the irresponsible nature of the commentary in the media. Mr. Huckabee was the Governor of the most impoverished state in the nation. He has much to reflect on.


It would be beneficial to all if everyone was on the same page with this topic. I can only imagine the added burden and pain the family has when people are this blatantly bigoted over the memory of their son. I am more than pleased they have control of their son's name and image. 


Honestly, Mr. O'Reilly.

From what I hear the Private Equities Firms hold the most tickets.


NEW YORK — At least one New Yorker has a plan for what he'll do if he wins the $640 million Mega Millions jackpot.
Alfredo Mora says he'll reopen the landmark Tavern on the Green restaurant. He was a bartender there for 37 years before he retired.
The 91-year-old Mora waited in line to buy tickets Friday at a newsstand at the Port Authority Bus Terminal.
Ticket buyers were converging on stores in 42 states and Washington, D.C., where Mega Millions tickets are sold. The drawing was scheduled for late Friday night in Atlanta.
Others buying tickets said that if they won they would help their families and give to charity.
Some, like 22-year-old Fatimah Kabba, were first-time lottery customers. Kabba said she bought Mega Millions tickets because "everyone else is doing it."

This was a video made in November of 2011. It is wonderful to see senior members of our society well engaged in life.

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They are wonderful and the nation could not be more grateful for the service to our country of the former President George H. W. Bush.

It would seem Romney's Labor Advisor, Peter Schaumber, knows little to nothing about labor.

National Labor Relations Board (click title to entry - thank you) Inspector General David Berry released a report late last week alleging that recently appointed board member Terence Flynn provided confidential information to two former NLRB members.

Following an investigation, Berry claimed that while Flynn served as a chief counsel to board member Brian Hayes, he leaked information to Peter Kirsanow and Peter Schaumber—both of whom were in private practice at the time—to be used for their private benefit. Berry claimed Flynn’s actions violated Standards of Ethical Conduct for Employees of the Executive Branch; he also snubbed Berry for allegedly demonstrating a lack of candor during the investigation....



Why else would the Romney campaign need information no one else had in their campaign? Romney could come up with labor policy without insider information? It would seem to be the case. There is such a thing as saying, "No." It is ethical to turn down information one is not suppose to have by law. Unethical standards seems to be acceptable in the Romney campaign.

Removing oil subsidies does NOTHING to oil prices. It is like saying if the price of corn goes up beef prices follow. Not the case.

A GOP-aligned oil industry group (click here) announced today that it's launching a $3.6 million advertising blitz in eight battleground states attacking President Obama for rising gas prices....


The facts are simple. Oil is a commodity and the price for oil is set on Wall Street through speculation. That same dynamic applies to corn and cows. 


The USA is exporting oil, that has nothing to do with gas prices at the pump, what it does do is lower the reserves for future generations. So, while speculators can exploit high prices and get away with it they are and oil billionaires are as well. It doesn't matter how much oil is in the market either, the "Oil Cartel of Wall Street" has set the price and everyone, including a Democratic President, has to live with it.


If OAT prices goes up that doesn't mean the meat producers are going to get more for their products in the market. In the case of oats and livestock it is supply and demand. The only way livestock prices goes up in that scenario is if the producers grow less. But, most farmers, especially within that scenario, will grow more livestock to make up for lost revenues which actually works against their favor. They do it anyway.


The fact of the matter is the Republicans are WASTING THE USA TREASURY on billionaires while abandoning people on Medicare.


Two income tax rates is hideous as well. It is based in ideology and not reality. To expect a family of four with an income of $40,000 per year to pay $4000 in income tax is completely stupid.


Republicans have rhetoric and Democrats have ideas.


Flexible fuel vehicles (FFVs) (click title to entry - thank you) are designed to run on gasoline or a blend of up to 85% ethanol (E85). Except for a few engine and fuel system modifications, they are identical to gasoline-only models. FFVs experience no loss in performance when operating on E85. However, since ethanol contains less energy per volume than gasoline, FFVs typically get about 25-30% fewer miles per gallon when fueled with E85.

Another victory for Apple, this time it is human capital.

China is moving into the real world thanks to Apple.


In this May 27, 2010 file photo, workers cling to the logo at the entrance of the Foxconn complex in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen. A pledge reported Thursday, March 29, 2012 by the manufacturer of Apple's iPhones and iPads to limit work hours at its factories in China could force other global corporations to hike pay for Chinese workers who produce the world's consumer electronics, toys and other goods.


Automation will help, but, Foxconn employees may want to organize to protect their jobs. They could have made these changes a long time ago and saved lives. Apple can be said to be influential in changing labor conditions in China. I congratulate them. It only goes to prove intangible values matter. 


...But the policy change (click title to entry - thank you) also means the electronics manufacturer will need to hire a significant number of extra workers to make up for the lost hours, the audit said. Foxconn already employs 1.2 million workers in China.



Labor costs in China, however, only a make up a small fraction of a product's total cost, said Helen Chiang, an analyst with research firm IDC. In the case of a PC, the labor cost will only amount to three to four percent of its price, she said.
Foxconn is also expanding its factory base into central and western China, where worker wages are lower. This is expected to bring down Foxconn's labor costs by 20 to 30 percent, Chiang said.
"I don't think the new policies will have much impact on product prices," she added. "Foxconn has already been working to resolve these labor costs."...

According to the Globe and Mail there won't be any loss of an average of $634.00 per month. They need to organize and protect their interests.
...Foxconn’s concessions, (click here) including cutting overtime for its 1.2 million mainland Chinese workers while promising compensation that protects them against losing income, were backed by Apple, which has faced criticism and media scrutiny for worker safety lapses and for using relatively low-paid employees to make high-cost phones, computers and other gadgets....
“We have just been told that we can only work a maximum of 36 hours a month of overtime. I tell you, a lot of us are unhappy with this. We think that 60 hours of overtime a month would be reasonable and that 36 hours would be too little,” she added. Mr. Chen said she now earned a bit over $634 a month.
Foxconn is one the biggest employers of China’s 153 million rural migrants working outside their hometowns. Compared to smaller, mainland-owned factories, workers said, its vast plants are cleaner and safer and offer more recreation sites....
Apple invested in the opinion from Fair Labor Association seriously.


...Those details and more were released (click here) Thursday afternoon by the Fair Labor Association (FLA) based in Washington, D.C., of which Apple is a member. Apple agreed earlier this year to participate in an audit of its factories to monitor working conditions, pay, and safety issues. FLA conducted surveys at three Foxconn factories in Shenzhen and Chengdu, China during February and March.

The extensive audit supports what critics have been saying for years. Apple's main contractor in China is accused of ignoring safety while forcing its workers to do excessive overtime on the assembly line....