The Revolution: Part 2

[Rip]

He's too busy with that slut Facebook to post to us anymore. Instead of Facebook, since it's such a slut, they should call it something that's a sort of combination of Slut and Facebook, like "Myspace" or something.

Oh, topic at hand. uh. well. I came from living under the poverty line in a shitty-ass trailer, and now I'm Senior Management level making bank before I'm thirty, and I totally support the sentiment behind the Occupy movement (although I prefer a more pragmatic interpretation of Socialism more geared toward the modern European model). People need help sometimes. Not wanting to help them doesn't make you a hero.

What Would Captain America Do?

[Sage]

Probably punch a nazi or a space alien. He's good at that.

[HisDivineShadow]

[Despanan]

Thanks for that. I've been looking for a way to articulate that attitude - because it's not just Europe that's haunted by hypothetical lazy people. The conservatives on my FB feed need to go see an exorcist the get rid of the ghosts of dangerous minorities who are somehow both illegal AND welfare queens.

[Despanan]

Major fast-food strike in NYC today. Workers from 70 establishments have walked out:

http://www.salon.com/2013/04/04/fast_fo ... se_strike/

Also: the NYPD maced a baby:

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/04/01/n ... -old-baby/

[Xaenyth]

I kind of have to laugh at the labor strike. Only because those places get hundreds of applications each week by desperate people in need of income. There's really not much stopping them from just hiring a whole new work force and take the slap on the wrist that they'll get (if they even get it... somehow I doubt that).

[HisDivineShadow]

Even when it comes to relatively simple low-wage jobs, training new recruits eats up a shitton of time, resources, and money for a company. Contrast this against a business model like Costco's, where higher wages and benefits attract better talent, leading to a happier workforce with greater retention. Yeah they're mostly just stockboys and cashiers, but they're also harder workers as a result. Because of this, low employee turnover counterbalances the cost of having to get new hirees, and also leads to better customer satisfaction since the cashiers aren't just sad and miserable and frumpy towards everyone.

Seriously. Take a trip to Wal Mart, then take a trip to Costco. All the employees I've met at Walmart just seem beaten-down, tired, and want to get the hell away from you. All the Costco workers were super cheeful and would happily chat you up on their awesome new black rice they've got.

Ideally unions shouldn't have to exist, because good industrialists know they need to work with their employees rather than against them. It's basically the Henry Ford business model over the Wal Mart model. Sans antisemitism.

EDIT: More information: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-03-2 ... ostco.html

[Despanan]

[Phantomgrift]

I'd almost like to see the fanciful dream come to reality, wherein Desp gains control of his own little country to run as he sees fit.
The contrast between his lofty and rather naive ideals and humanitys base nature would be comedy gold.

[Despanan]

"humanity's base nature" is an unfounded apriori assumption based on nothing but anecdotal evidence and folksy wisdom - it's a thought-terminating cliche that has no place in a conversation about economics, sociology, or public policy.

Your argument is bad and you should feel bad about yourself for making it.