Happy Labor Day

[wheelco]

I call bullshit! I pay more taxes than ever and I am far from well off.

c'mon, we know you're secretly filthy rich

[anodyne]

It makes absolute sense. Our margins have gone to shit quite frankly, a lot in part to asian manufacturers offering our customers product for a lot less cost.

 

 

who is this OUR? be specific. i was speaking specifically of the historical evidence of GM, who began outsourcing heavily in the early 90s to reap record profits from 95-99 only to be on the verge of bankruptcy today. who else outsourced during the nafta/free trade debacle to not reap winfalls but only suffer bad margins?

[bjorn_skurj]

"All hands drunk."

 

See? We HAVE been jobbed. Used to be a lot more fun to work in this country.

 

September 4, 2006

Op-Ed Contributor

The Summer Next Time

By TOM LUTZ

 

Palm Desert, Calif.

 

IN late May, for those of us who teach, the summer stretches out like the great expanse of freedom it was in grammar school. Ah, the days on the beach! The books we will read! The adventures we will have!

 

But before hunkering down to months of leisurely lolling around a pool slathered in S.P.F. 80, we need to take care of a few things: see what got buried in the e-mail pile over the course of the year, write a few letters of recommendation, and finally get to those book reviews we agreed to do. A few leftover dissertation chapters. The syllabuses and book orders for next year

[awatt]

I'm embarrassed to give a hearty AMEN!!

 

"All hands drunk!!"

 

After college most of my friends started 9-5 jobs as lawyers, accountants, managers, etc. making good money, which I knew did not suit me, so what did I do? Graduate school....in religion yet! I followed my heart, and intellectual hunger, instead of the money, not knowing where it would lead. Glad and lucky to have landed where I did, feeling utterly independent and fortunate to have so much time with the family, and teaching, which I enjoy, and writing, which I enjoy even more.

 

Although I would give it all up to be a hard-working roadie with Wilco.

[Duck-Billed Catechist]

http://espresso.repubblica.it/dettaglio/I%...0Puglia/1373950

 

At least this isn't your job.

[mountain bed]

I'm embarrassed to give a hearty AMEN!!

 

"All hands drunk!!"

 

After college most of my friends started 9-5 jobs as lawyers, accountants, managers, etc. making good money, which I knew did not suit me, so what did I do? Graduate school....in religion yet! I followed my heart, and intellectual hunger, instead of the money, not knowing where it would lead. Glad and lucky to have landed where I did, feeling utterly independent and fortunate to have so much time with the family, and teaching, which I enjoy, and writing, which I enjoy even more.

 

Although I would give it all up to be a hard-working roadie with Wilco.

Well,I dunno about that but I'd like to be the keeper of the Grateful Dead vault My app is on file

[EL the Famous]

who is this OUR? be specific. i was speaking specifically of the historical evidence of GM, who began outsourcing heavily in the early 90s to reap record profits from 95-99 only to be on the verge of bankruptcy today. who else outsourced during the nafta/free trade debacle to not reap winfalls but only suffer bad margins?

 

Motorola. My point was, that we were having to reduce price on product sold to our customers to stay competitive and, in some cases, actually losing money on some of them. Our Asian competitors were able to do it for far less and we need to adjust to stay afloat. Coupled w/ tightening of budgets for everything from travel to office space, it worked and I still have a job because of it. Plus, our yearly raises have been tepid, but we've received very healthy bonuses the past two years based on the companies performance.

 

Should I be making more than I do relative to the output of work? Probably. However, at the end of the day, I appreciate the fact I have a good job that allows me to provide for my family and work hard to keep it that way.

[cryptique]

As workers, we get screwed on wages, we get screwed on benefits, and we get screwed on mortgages. (And on lots of other stuff I haven't mentioned.)

 

We're in a 30-year fixed mortgage, and I'm beginning to feel really fortunate that we made that decision. I have a friend who's recently unemployed, having a tough time finding a new job, and in an ARM that's about to reset. I wish I knew how to help him.

[JUDE]

As workers, we get screwed on wages, we get screwed on benefits, and we get screwed on mortgages. (And on lots of other stuff I haven't mentioned.)

 

We're in a 30-year fixed mortgage, and I'm beginning to feel really fortunate that we made that decision. I have a friend who's recently unemployed, having a tough time finding a new job, and in an ARM that's about to reset. I wish I knew how to help him.

 

The only way to help is to talk to the lender and try for a forebearance, or alternate short term payment plan, before he get's into trouble. I wouldn't get your hopes too high because the lenders aren't really willing to play yet.

 

That story is quite sad, from my real estate experience I'd say better than 75% of all mortgages written in the last 8 years are all junk paper, ARM's, Negative AM's, etc. The housing crash is not going to be pretty.

[austrya]

I think a lot of it also has to do with people living wayyyy beyond their means. Just because the bank will loan you $400K for a new house, doesn't mean that you have to spend that much on a new house. A lot of people who think they're being screwed are actually screwing themselves. I think the cost of living is going up because people have to spend that much more to keep up with the Jones'.

 

When I was a kid, my mom stayed home and my dad worked. They didn't use credit cards, buy fancy stuff they didn't need, etc. My dad bought his first house in 1978 at 17% interest! They did with what they had and made it work. We still went on big vacations ever other year and went up north several times a year. We still got toys and video games and all of the typical stuff that kids get. The difference is that my parents didn't take out home equity loans to go on vacation and to buy Christmas presents. They saved.

 

Jason and I try to live like that, but it's hard. I have to work, even with 3 kids in daycare.

[EL the Famous]

I think a lot of it also has to do with people living wayyyy beyond their means. Just because the bank will loan you $400K for a new house, doesn't mean that you have to spend that much on a new house. A lot of people who think they're being screwed are actually screwing themselves. I think the cost of living is going up because people have to spend that much more to keep up with the Jones'.

 

When I was a kid, my mom stayed home and my dad worked. They didn't use credit cards, buy fancy stuff they didn't need, etc. My dad bought his first house in 1978 at 17% interest! They did with what they had and made it work. We still went on big vacations ever other year and went up north several times a year. We still got toys and video games and all of the typical stuff that kids get. The difference is that my parents didn't take out home equity loans to go on vacation and to buy Christmas presents. They saved.

 

Jason and I try to live like that, but it's hard. I have to work, even with 3 kids in daycare.

 

Sage advice and amen.

[cryptique]

I think a lot of it also has to do with people living wayyyy beyond their means. Just because the bank will loan you $400K for a new house, doesn't mean that you have to spend that much on a new house. A lot of people who think they're being screwed are actually screwing themselves. I think the cost of living is going up because people have to spend that much more to keep up with the Jones'.

 

When I was a kid, my mom stayed home and my dad worked. They didn't use credit cards, buy fancy stuff they didn't need, etc. My dad bought his first house in 1978 at 17% interest! They did with what they had and made it work. We still went on big vacations ever other year and went up north several times a year. We still got toys and video games and all of the typical stuff that kids get. The difference is that my parents didn't take out home equity loans to go on vacation and to buy Christmas presents. They saved.

 

Jason and I try to live like that, but it's hard. I have to work, even with 3 kids in daycare.

My parents were the same way.

 

We are also forcing ourselves to be savers rather than credit-card buyers. Sure, we forgo a lot of luxuries, but we sleep better at night.

[Atticus]

I think a lot of it also has to do with people living wayyyy beyond their means. Just because the bank will loan you $400K for a new house, doesn't mean that you have to spend that much on a new house. A lot of people who think they're being screwed are actually screwing themselves. I think the cost of living is going up because people have to spend that much more to keep up with the Jones'.

 

When I was a kid, my mom stayed home and my dad worked. They didn't use credit cards, buy fancy stuff they didn't need, etc. My dad bought his first house in 1978 at 17% interest! They did with what they had and made it work. We still went on big vacations ever other year and went up north several times a year. We still got toys and video games and all of the typical stuff that kids get. The difference is that my parents didn't take out home equity loans to go on vacation and to buy Christmas presents. They saved.

 

Jason and I try to live like that, but it's hard. I have to work, even with 3 kids in daycare.

 

Couldn't have said it better. That was the example set for me by my parents. It is sometimes hard to follow in this day and age where even low-wage workers seem to have cell phones, cable, and multiple televisions (if not multiple vehicles, video games, (no insurance of course), and, well, I'll just stop there...)

[bjorn_skurj]

My Game Boy is insured. What would happen, though, if everybody stopped buying things they really didn't need? Would not our entire economy collapse, or at least contract severely? I remember after 9/11, Bush took great pains to tell people that they should continue to lead their normal lives, which I took to mean, "For God's sake, don't stop spending money!"

[Atticus]

My Game Boy is insured.

 

 

my penalty for writing a quick response at work.

 

I was speaking more to the fact that certain people seem to be able to afford these luxuries but will not pay for insurance--to the detriment of those of us who do pay for insurance.

[bjorn_skurj]

 

my penalty for writing a quick response at work.

 

I was speaking more to the fact that certain people seem to be able to afford these luxuries but will not pay for insurance--to the detriment of those of us who do pay for insurance.

In New York, you have to have car insurance or you will be arrested when you get pulled over. I guess that;s not true - in Albuquerque, my mom got into an accident where one of the drivers was uninsured.

People do spend money unwisely; Lord knows I have and am paying the penalty for that to this day.

[Buford T. Justice]

What would happen, though, if everybody stopped buying things they really didn't need? Would not our entire economy collapse, or at least contract severely? I remember after 9/11, Bush took great pains to tell people that they should continue to lead their normal lives, which I took to mean, "For God's sake, don't stop spending money!"

 

Isn't that what Jeff Tweedy advocated at one of his shows at the Vic in the Spring of 2005 (right after singing "Dear Employer")? He told people to stop buying shit. And to live on baked beans. Sage advice.

[anodyne]

Motorola. My point was, that we were having to reduce price on product sold to our customers to stay competitive and, in some cases, actually losing money on some of them. Our Asian competitors were able to do it for far less and we need to adjust to stay afloat. Coupled w/ tightening of budgets for everything from travel to office space, it worked and I still have a job because of it. Plus, our yearly raises have been tepid, but we've received very healthy bonuses the past two years based on the companies performance.

 

Should I be making more than I do relative to the output of work? Probably. However, at the end of the day, I appreciate the fact I have a good job that allows me to provide for my family and work hard to keep it that way.

that's great your job is working out well. i mean that.

 

i don't remember motorola outsourcing domestic jobs the way GM did - and as a mac guy i was keeping an eye on what motorola was doing (home of my favorite chipset).

[Beltmann]

And to live on baked beans.

I think I could do that.

[anodyne]

real wages have tumbled severely since 1978. what was possible then is not as possible now.

 

and i totally agree about savings v credit. i don't even have a credit card (just a debit card with a visa logo). if i can't afford it, i can't afford it.

[Beltmann]

i don't even have a credit card (just a debit card with a visa logo). if i can't afford it, i can't afford it.

For the longest time my wife and I resisted, but eventually got one for online purchases and emergencies. But we haven't wavered in principle: We pay the full balance every single month. I don't think the credit card company has ever collected a penny in interest. They probably hate us.

 

But we don't put nearly enough into savings, which needs to be addressed and soon.

[EL the Famous]

that's great your job is working out well. i mean that.

 

i don't remember motorola outsourcing domestic jobs the way GM did - and as a mac guy i was keeping an eye on what motorola was doing (home of my favorite chipset).

 

thanks. probably not near to that scale, but yes...we've moved a lot things to other countries from manufacturing to customer service. granted, not all of either, but big chunks. All of the engineering reources i'm working w/ on all my North American products are either in Beijing or Brazil.

[Beltmann]

Speaking of Beijing, we learned last week that our new school superintendant wants to add Chinese--Mandarin? Cantonese?--to the list of foreign languages offered in our district. Her initiative is a direct response to China's growing economic influence. All the Spanish and French teachers quaked in their boots.

[Atticus]

In New York, you have to have car insurance or you will be arrested when you get pulled over. I guess that;s not true - in Albuquerque, my mom got into an accident where one of the drivers was uninsured.

People do spend money unwisely; Lord knows I have and am paying the penalty for that to this day.

 

Some years ago my father was t-boned by an illegal alien, who, of course, carried no insurance, despite being required by law (but hell, if you're not going to pay income tax, why the hell bother with insurance?). So the $5000 or so in repairs fell squarely on his shoulders. Si se puede!!!

[EL the Famous]

Some years ago my father was t-boned by an illegal alien, who, of course, carried no insurance, despite being required by law (but hell, if you're not going to pay income tax, why the hell bother with insurance?). So the $5000 or so in repairs fell squarely on his shoulders. Si se puede!!!

 

That is such bullshit and I would have totally taken Chinese instead of French had it been offered in HS. That's effing cool.