Well, it is Friday once more, and here we go again. I will say that having the Fourth of July holiday (or any holiday) in the middle of the week feels weird. I would suggest we make July 4th like any other holiday, having it first Monday of July or such, but someone wiser than me than said, "but then it would not be '4th of July.'" I am still not convinced. At any rate, let's see what has been going on in the bad economy.
- Let's start with a little 4th of July trivia in honor of the holiday we just had. According to this story out of VICE, here are 11 companies that pretty much have a stranglehold on the holiday. Odds are good if you are having a picnic, cookout, tailgating party, outing to the lake, etc., you probably bought at least one if not all of these products.
- In news from the front in the War of Tariffs:
- Last week or so, Harley Davidson was whining they were taking jobs overseas due to tariffs. This week we get General Motors saying they are cutting more jobs due to the tariffs. Story via The New York Times, with a hat tip to Juanita Jean's. At this point, I have no sympathy for those workers since this is exactly what they voted for. The Pendejo In Chief said exactly what he would do, which is in fact a big reason they voted for him, the "he says what he means and means what he says." So, you reap what you sow.
- Then again, fuck those people. They may be getting screwed, but they are STILL happy to support the Pendejo In Chief and the Party of Stupid, like these nail factory workers in Missouri. Story via The Rural Blog. Some people are just beyond salvation. I say when they go claim unemployment, they should get rejected. I mean, they are so proud and all to deny government assistance to the needy, I say they should suffer the fate they wish on others.
- In other Pendejo In Chief and Party of Stupid bad economy news:
- Lo and behold, it turns out those big tax cuts to the wealthy and corporations DO NOT increase middle class incomes. I did not need a fancy academic paper to tell me that, but here is said fancy academic paper anyhow via Harvard's Working Knowledge.
- The Pendejo In Chief's administration is engaging in extortion that would make the Mob blush as they demand payments to allow immigrant children to be returned to their parents. Story via Daily Intelligencer. At this point, I'd rather take my chances on the Mafia. They at least have rules about not harming children.
- However, it is not all that bad under the Pendejo In Chief and the Party of Stupid. Wells Fargo, J.P. Morgan among others stand to make profits from the anti-immigrant policies and imprisonments. Story via Latino Rebels.
- In education news:
- There is a trucker shortage. There are also shortages of jobs in higher education. What the real issue boils down to is simple: neither trucking companies nor higher education wants to properly compensate those workers they need. Story via Inside Higher Ed. Higher education is particularly notorious for things like adjunctifying faculty so they do not have to pay for a full tenure line and hiring part timers to one full time job, again, so as not to have to pay a decent wage and benefits.
- For some unknown reason (stupidity likely), more states are adopting robo-grading for academic papers in college. Story via Inside Higher Ed.
- It is a well known fact that Americans are notoriously stingy when it comes to funding public education. They want their brats educated, they just want someone else to pay the taxes for it. This gets so bad that teachers, already underpaid, have to use their own money to buy school supplies. So, how bad is it? Well, the most recent story I found has one teacher who died asking for backpacks and school supplies for her kids in lieu of flowers at her funeral. Story via Good.Is. Now THAT is a serious commentary on American fuckery.
- In assorted corporate fuckery:
- Here is a situation update on the fuckery of debt collection technology. Even if you do not owe anything, odds are good some of this harassment may come your way at least once. Because they are getting seriously more devious, and they have no shame in lying and cheating. In the end, know your rights and if need be sue them so they stop harassing you. Story via Dumb Little Man. As I often say, if the revolution comes, and by some miracle I am in charge, these vultures are among the first I am putting against the wall.
- Yet another story reinforcing why you need to avoid flying. Here we have an angry American Airlines gate agent engages in poor customer service AND even takes the customer's phone away, tossing it on the ground, because. . . fuckery. Story via Inc.
- And finally for this week, some assorted signs the economy is bad:
- Is there such a thing as eating too much at an all you can eat restaurant? Turns out there is, and this Chinese restaurant found out when they went broke after only two weeks of being open. Story via Boing Boing.
- In another illustration of the selfish nation the U.S. is, a woman who got trapped and injured by an NYC subway car begged for folks nearby NOT TO call the ambulance. Why? Because she said she could not afford the ride. Story via AlterNet. So while the rest of the civilized world has universal care, and this would not be an issue, this is the good old U.S. of A.
- In "what can we blame Millennials for this week?" segment: Kenyan farmers are exchanging cultivation of coffee for avocado trees. It's all that avocado toast Millennials seem to enjoy. Well, not totally that. The reality, joke aside, is a bit more complex. Coffee prices have been seriously fluctuating, more recently downwards, meaning farmers get less for the coffee. Avocados have good demand, prices have been more stable, and so they can make better money. Story via The Christian Science Monitor.
- In Japan, time is of the essence. Taking time out to pay your respects at a funeral is hard. As a result, drive-thru funerals are becoming more popular. Story via VICE.
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