An Independent view of law, politics and social issues confronting Angelinos, Californians, and Americans
Author: coastcontact
I am a somewhat cranky but mostly optimistic 65 plus who refuses to give up on this maddening world. The purpose of this BLOG is to express my feelings, thoughts.
I watched about one half of the first GOP debate and honestly it was a bore. The Mitt Romney/Rick Perry disagreements over job creation and Social Security were the only two disagreements that slightly stirred my attention. Since there are at least two more GOP debates perhaps there will be something substantial spoken. The Obama job creation speech, tonight, will giver GOP candidates some fodder to chew on.
Today’s latest BLS, Unemployment Insurance Weekly Claims Report, provided continuing disappointment along with a struggling stock market should give Republican candidates sufficient ammunition to continue their attacks on the Obama administration.
Why watching Sunday morning talk shows is mostly a waste of time!
The Sunday morning political TV talk shows are really just an opportunity for the partisans to spew their positions not matter how outrageous they are. Whether Democrats or Republicans they all just repeat the same lines over and over. It’s like they don’t think we notice the repetitiveness of their spiels.
This week I thought I would try to catch them at the downright lies and truly ridiculous statements.
Jim DeMint, Republican Senator from South Carolina, appearing on “This Week” said Social Security is bankrupt. In 2010 for the first time in its history the system paid out more in benefits than it receives in payroll taxes as reported in the New York Times. This is not bankruptcy. The system will run out of sufficient funds in 2037 if things keep going as they are now. Alan Greenspan, the former head of the Federal Reserve, recalled in an interview that the sour economy of the late 1970s had taken the program close to insolvency when the commission he led set to work in 1982. So another commission is needed now not fear mongering.
Former Vice President Dick Cheney, appearing on the “Fox & friends” television program, said that if she were in the White House rather than Barack Obama, then things might be different today in the country. No kidding! What a remarkable statement. No two presidents have conducted things exactly the same way. He could also have said things might be different today if John McCain had been elected president. The Associated Press wasted time and posted a story on this non-news item.
Connecticut Senator Joe Lieberman contended on “State of the Union” that there have not been any major attacks since 9-11. Well none have been successful. Two most outstanding incidents did no harm but no thanks to our law enforcement officials. He seems to have forgotten the Christmas Day Bomber who only failed because the detonator failed to function in a plane landing in Detroit. There was also the Times Square Bomber whose terrorist attack was foiled when two street vendors discovered the car bomb and alerted NYPD.
Jim Hoffa, head of the Teamsters union (not Jimmy any more), was also on “State of the Union” contending that American companies are not patriotic. He specifically pointed out Apple Computer as one of the least patriotic because they do have their products made elsewhere.
Michele Bachmann, appearing on “Face the Nation” said gasoline had risen from $1.79 to about $3.90 a gallon since Barack Obama had become president. She is correct. She then went onto criticize the president for not taking advantage of the natural gas and oil resources in North America. She would be wrong on that statement. The United States appears to be about to approve the proposed Keystone XL oil pipeline from Canada to the Texas Gulf Coast. That is a $7 billion project.
Chris Wallace wasted most of his entire program interviewing Dick Cheney. It was basically an infomercial for Cheney’s new book.
So why do I watch these programs? I learn what to expect in upcoming campaigns. Those campaigns are both about re-election and critical legislation.
An acquaintance of mine is a strong advocate for Israel. He most likely considers himself a Zionist. He has asked me to post this solicitation on this blog.
Although I consider the effort useless I am providing this information. Of course David Bancroft, a contributor to this blog, is a strong supporter of Israel.
Friends,
I just signed a petition to the UN member nations encouraging them not to endorse a unilaterally declared Palestinian state should this come to a vote in September.
I invite you to join me in raising our voice against this effort and to sign the petition today. Here is the link: http://www.jcrcny.org/udipetition
Please help me spread this important effort and circulate the petition to your networks via emails and Facebook/Twitter postings
So your last employer terminated you, and your interviewing for a new job? Forget full disclosure. Think spin. Do I think this works? I know it works becasue I did it repeatedly.
It doesn’t matter how horrible the bosses were at Acme Explosives or how badly they treated you. Something about the words “I was fired” makes prospective managers’ blood run cold.
If you left your last job on less-than-sensational terms, there’s got to be a way to address that issue without summarily ending your candidacy, right? As a longtime HR director, I can tell you, there is. First, shake off some misconceptions.
There is zero requirement ever to tell a hiring manager or HR person that your previous employer let you go.
Here are some ideas on explaining why you left your job.
Option No. 1: The Learning Was Done
“It was a fantastic learning opportunity for me—I credit those folks with teaching me everything I know about SEO, for instance, but it was time for me to go, and we agreed on that just as I was getting interested in social marketing.”
The “we agreed on it” is key. If the “agreement” took place only in your own mind as the security guard escorted you out of the building, that’s fine. In the first place, your new employer’s HR folks probably won’t find out you were fired—that information is typically not conveyed to a prospective employer in an employment verification process. And if they do find out and end up claiming the “we agreed on it” was a lie and terminating you because of it, you’ll know those people are pure evil. You don’t want work for them.
Option No. 2: My Interests Shifted
“I got to do so many fantastic projects at Acme Explosives, but my focus was shifting into project management, and the opportunities for that were very limited over at Acme. I didn’t know what I would do next exactly, but my friend from college was starting a consulting practice, and I decided to collaborate with her on that as I shifted to the next thing.”
This way, you never mention who said what to whom, or in what order. What does it matter, truly?
Option No. 3: We Went in Different Directions
“When I got to Acme Explosives, the mission had everything to do with building the brand fast, and we had great results on that front. Two years later, I was becoming a zealot for branding and customer evangelism, but Acme was moving more into OEM work, where the branding piece was almost nonexistent. I was very glad to have been around to help the company advance its value to the point where the Motorolas of the world found it and formed partnerships with it, but as the business moved more and more backstage and away from the customer-facing arena, it wasn’t a great fit for me anymore, and we decided to move apart. I still have tremendous relationships there, of course.”
Those relationships are with managers who “get” you, and with your amazing colleagues, not with the turkey who fired you, but that’s a whole ‘nother Oprah.
The idea that Ms. Ryan is proposing is that you must be creative. Practice that interview with someone who will be critical of your words and behavior.
Digital Photography Review is my favorite photography web site. It’s an English company that tries to appeal to the entire world. Not only do they provide reviews of all the new cameras, lenses, and printers they provide articles on photo techniques, technology, glossary of photo terminology, and a variety of other topics. Also there are forums where everyone can offer their opinion.
What makes this site particularly appealing is that it is owned by Amazon.com. While they do provide connections to buy photo equipment they are not tied to any brand.
I am the owner of two small point and shoot cameras and one superzoom. My favorite is the superzoom. I thought it appropriate to copy this one commentary from their last roundup of superzoom cameras in 2010.
“The latest generation of superzoom cameras incorporate such large zoom ranges that, if you were to try to match them for use on a full-frame DSLR, you’d end up with something so large and imposing you’d expect it to need a special weapons export licence. {notice how they spell license} Even on these small-sensor cameras, the lenses are necessarily large enough to dominate the design of the cameras. The result is that most of these superzooms look pretty much like SLRs – a hand-grip with a large protruding tube at the front.”
That paragraph encapsulates my preference for the superzoom. Now I am awaiting the reviews of the newest batch of superzooms. Mine is three years old and still operates just fine but may not have all the latest features.
How much more brutal can it be when the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics monthly jobs report starts with these horrible words? “Nonfarm payroll employment was unchanged (0) in August, and the unemployment rate held at 9.1 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Employment in most major industries changed little over the month.”
Looking down through the detail only makes you feel even worse. Comments by the White House and the Speaker of the House did nothing to make anyone feel good about the jobs situation.
Rather than actually doing something constructive our national government is tied in knots because the political parties are more interested in dueling than accomplishing anything. Would voting out the incumbents make a difference? Unlikely because the new office holders would simply comply with their party line.
While we may be dangerously close to a double dip recession that probably won’t happen because enough Americans are working and shopping to sustain the business community.
We have the kind of economy that Bill Gross of PIMCO calls “the new normal” and others call “the great reset.” Whatever you want to call this situation there does not appear to be a path back to “the good old days.”
First of all many of the places suggested are not cities. They qualify as towns.
AARP offers their list of the top 10 Affordable Cities for Retirement. They say that they looked at350 cities across the country. They considered not only property and sales-tax rates, median housing price, and cost of living but also the tax rate on pensions and Social Security. Then they added in such criteria as recreation, climate, and arts and culture.
It is difficult for me to understand how they made these selections. After all as we get older we need access to health care that is limited in small towns. I have met people driving 60 to 100 miles into Los Angeles from smaller cities and towns because they do not have the needed medical care. In addition there are fewer opportunities for senior activities. Although it is expensive to own a home in San Diego they do have an abundance of museums. That is a common feature of most larger cities.
Their number 1 choice: Winchester, Virginia. This is a remote town 75 miles from Washington D.C. The winters arevery cold when temperatures tend to be in the 30’s. As I research the town on September 1, 2011, the temperature is 70° and humidity is reported to be 88%. The population is just over 25,000 people. I remember my visit to rural Ruckersville, Virginia on business about eight years ago. I stopped in Culpeper for a cup of coffee at a McDonald’s. There were three people ahead of me and it took 15 minutes waiting in line. If you like slow and boring you will love rural Virginia. I was told slow down or Smokey will stop you.
Number 2 is Portland, Maine. USA Today says, “Winters are long in Portland, Maine, and it is essential to find things to do to avoid cabin fever.” With a metro population of 230000, the Greater Portland area is home to almost one quarter of Maine’s total population.
Gainesville, Georgia is Number 3. At 55 miles and a one hour driving time to the center of Atlanta, Georgia this town would be worth considering. It is an overwhelmingly White community so if that is a factor in your decision you may need to look elsewhere. The demographics are inviting.
Number 4 is Wenatchee, Washington is too far from Seattle at 148 miles and 2 ½ hours away. At just over 30,000 people it really is remote. The climate is warm during summer when temperatures tend to be in the 70’s and very cold during winter when temperatures tend to be in the 30’s.
Tulsa, Oklahoma at Number 5 is a city of almost 400,000 people will at least provide the services that seniors require.
Obviously I am oriented towards cities. They are just more interesting and provide the services that seniors need.
The U.S. government finally took the kind of action that has been absent in the merger and acquisition arena. The financial stations and web sites call it M&A. Here in California we have seen the number of banks, supermarkets, and drug stores decline as one after another is bought by a competitor or an out-of-state company. Sadly no government agency has stood in the way of these consolidations.
In every instance the claim of lower costs to do business was the proclaimed benefit of the acquiring company. In fact those lower costs (thanks to the ensuing layoffs) resulted in higher profits for them but resulted in higher costs to the public.
Today the U.S. Justice Department filed suit to block AT&T’s $39 billion deal to buy T-Mobile USA on grounds that it would raise prices for consumers. Of course AT&T said it would fight for their acquisition to be approved “enormous benefits of this merger.” The Associated Press provided some of the current happenings in this saga.
To reinforce the Justice Department case consumer groups like AARP and Consumers Union should both enter supporting pleas (amicus curiae).
Coast Contact 