I live in Seattle. These are things that catch my attention, pique my
interest and/or make me want to pass notes in class like a 7th
grader
An awesome letter to the editor: from the Memphis newspaper “The Commercial Appeal”
Quite a few Republicans this week have tried to claim that the death of Osama bin Laden is due to the efforts of George W. Bush, not Barack Obama. The same Bush who spent eight years chasing wild geese from one end of Iraq to another? Bush chased bin Laden with angry words and empty threats; Obama chased him with Navy SEALs.
These same Republicans will say that the recession is Obama’s fault, even though the economy began its fall in early 2007, two years before Obama became president. Now they would have us believe Bush is somehow responsible for bin Laden, even though that took place two years after Bush left office. The only way this illogic makes sense is if they believe America had two presidents at the same time for the past four years, Obama in charge of domestic policy and Bush in charge of foreign policy. That way Obama can be blamed for all the failures of the last four years and Bush can receive credit for all the successes.
Barack Obama, the guy Republicans claim is an illegal Kenyan, a secret Muslim, an unelected president, a conspirator to bring a Shariah dictatorship to America, the guy who wants to take away all our rights and guns and make big government control our lives — he’s the guy who took down America’s greatest enemy. He got the job done when your hero Bush could not or would not.
Richard Wilkinson
Amory, Miss.
(via think4yourself)
A wonderful and highly relatable look one mans struggle with the recession. This both made me laugh and almost brought me to tears.
because this can’t be said often enough [Poverty, Self-Denial, and New Nikes]
Teaching relatively class privileged students about why poor people can’t just pull themselves up by their bootstraps can be extremely challenging. One of the things that they harp on is their impression that the poor spend money on frivolous things; somehow they believe that, if the poor just eschewed cable television and Nikes, they would pop up into the middle class.
I try to explain to them that being poor is like living a life of self-denial. To be poor is to be forced to deny oneself constantly. The poor must deny themselves most trappings of an adult life (your own apartment, framed pictures on the walls, matching dishes), a comfortable life (a newish mattress, a comfy couch, good shoes that aren’t worn out), a convenient life (your own car, eating out), a self-directed life (a job you care for, leisure time, hobbies, money for babysitters), a life full of small pleasures (lattes, dessert, fresh cut flowers, hot baths, wine), a healthy life (fresh fruits and vegetables, health care, time for exercise), not to mention all of the must-have consumer goods that are constantly marketed to us (mp3 players, organic food, travel, expensive clothes and accessories). And, since most poor people remain poor their whole lives, they must be prepared to deny themselves (and members of their families) these things, perhaps, for the rest of their lives.
So when my students see someone (they think is) poor walking down the street with a brand new pair of Nikes, perhaps what they are seeing is someone who decided (whether out of a moment of weakness or not) to NOT deny themselves at least one thing; perhaps they are seeing someone who is trying to hold on to some feeling of normalcy; perhaps what they are seeing is a perfectly normal person who just wants what they want for once.
Lisa at Sociological Images: Poverty, Self-Denial, and New Nikes
Very well said.
25 years old: Starting out
Forty years is a long time. So long, in fact, that it’s easy to put off saving for the future. There are bills to deal with, college debt to pay, stuff to buy, vacations to take, a career to build.
Savings — sure, but who has money for that? Indeed, one of every three Americans between the ages of 18 and 33 have no personal savings, according to a recent Harris Poll survey. What’s more, 53% of this age group has zero in the way of retirement savings.
They’re missing out, big time. If a 25-year old with $10,000 invested $320 a month at a 7% annual compound rate of return until they turned 65, they would wind up with $1 million.
“There’s a reason why Albert Einstein called compounding the most powerful force in the universe,” said Jonathan Guyton, a principal at investment manager Cornerstone Wealth Advisors in Minneapolis.
Whether or not Einstein really said this, the math speaks for itself. At 7%, your money doubles every 10 years.
Buy low people, you’ll be really glad when you’re ancient. There are some really great calculators so you can run the numbers, here.
When home furnishing giant Ikea selected this fraying blue-collar city to build its first U.S. factory, residents couldn’t believe their good fortune.
Beloved by consumers worldwide for its stylish and affordable furniture, the Swedish firm had also constructed a reputation as a good employer and solid corporate citizen. State and local officials offered $12 million in incentives. Residents thrilled at the prospect of a respected foreign company bringing jobs to this former textile region after watching so many flee overseas.
But three years after the massive facility opened here, excitement has waned. Ikea is the target of racial discrimination complaints, a heated union-organizing battle and turnover from disgruntled employees.
Workers complain of eliminated raises, a frenzied pace and mandatory overtime. Several said it’s common to find out on Friday evening that they’ll have to pull a weekend shift, with disciplinary action for those who can’t or don’t show up.
[…]It’s ironic that Ikea looks on the U.S. and Danville the way that most people in the U.S. look at Mexico,” Street said.
Seriously, IKEA, get your act together and don’t give into so completely to the super store cliche.
—
John Perkins, Confessions of an Economic Hit Man—
John Perkins, Confessions of an Economic Hit Man
This is from a book I just started this morning. I have a feeling I am really going to like this one.
My favorite response is from Barbara Ehrenreich, author of Nickel and Dimed. She writes:
Could we first dispense with the smarmy connect-the-dots answer this question seems to cry out for? That is, that I’d use the $10 to buy a hot dog for the beggar and perhaps give the change to the vendor as a tip, thus rewarding a hardworking citizen while assuring that the shiftless beggar does not get the wherewithal for another drink — while of course giving me a nice little hit of middle class self-righteousness.
Although I’m atheist, I defer to Jesus on beggar-related matters. He said, if a man asks for your coat, give him your cloak too. (Actually, he said if a man “sue thee at the law” for the coat, but most beggars skip the legal process.) Jesus did not say: First, administer a breathalyzer test to the supplicant, or, first, sit him down for a pep talk on “focus” and “goal-setting.” He said: Give him the damn coat.
As a matter of religious observance, if a beggar importunes me directly, I must fork over some money. How do I know whether he’s been drinking or suffers from a neurological disorder anyway? Unless I’m his parole officer, what do I care? And before anyone virtuously offers him a hot dog, they should reflect on the possibility that the beggar is a vegetarian or only eats kosher or Hallal meat.
So if the beggar approaches me and puts out his hand, and if I only have a $10 bill, I have to give it to him. It’s none of my business whether he plans to spend it on infant formula for his starving baby or a pint of Thunderbird.
For me the matter is simple. At the end of the day, I would rather be the person who gave to those who asked and was a fool than the person who turned away someone truly in need.
Secondly, for those whose complaint is that the same people are out asking for money every day, I offer this perspective. Do you think the seventy-five cents you gave them yesterday was sufficient to get them clean clothes for a job interview? Do you think it is enough to get them first, last and deposit on a place to stay? These people are out there because they need help and because, while the change they collected helped keep them fed today, it’s hard to turn your life around a quarter at a time.
