Signs the economy is bad: April 9, 2021 edition

 Welcome to another edition of "Signs the Economy is Bad" here at The Itinerant Librarian. This is the semi-regular (as in when I have time and/or feel like doing it) feature where I scour the Internet in search of the oh so subtle hints that the economy is bad. Sure, pundits may say things are getting better, but what do they know? And to show not all is bad, once in a while we look at how good the uber rich have it.


It has been a good while since I've done an entry in this series. I managed to find some stories for this week, including an award winner, so let's have a look.

Education News

• While progress is being made in getting people vaccinated for COVID-19, there are always some holdouts and fuckbagels who decide they are "skeptical" about the vaccine and do not want to get it. One way to give a little incentive to people to get the vaccine is to pay them to do it like this community college in Kansas is doing. Story via the Shawnee Mission Post. On a side note, my college employer floated this idea, since they claim they cannot just require employees to do it (I honestly would like a formal legal opinion on why not, but that is another story), so they were considering giving college employees some small financial incentive if they got vaccinated and provided proof. As of this post, I have no idea if the proposal has made past the thinking about it stage. For the record, as of this post, I will have had my two shots and thus will be fully vaccinated. While I am not demanding payment, if the college chooses to give an incentive, they know where to send the money.
  

 Rural News

 

• Via PEW's Stateline, the wildfires out west have been a problem for forests. The problem has gotten worse because there are less trees to plant to replace the burnt down trees. Why? Because states like Oregon decided to close down the state run tree nurseries that provided a lot of those replacement trees. Whoops.

 

Government News

•  President Joe Biden has announced he will do some executive orders to implement some modest gun control measures. Via UPI. Why is this a sign the economy is bad? Because any time the government attempts and/or rarely implements any measure of gun control, gun fetishists enthusiasts rush to gun stores to stock up on even more firearms because they fear someone will take their guns away. Let the good times roll. 
• In U.S. politics, once you serve in some high government level, you can expect to find some cushy job and/or sinecure in a think tank, a lobbying group, maybe a university chancellorship, etc. However, Trump administration former officials are finding a hard time getting any of those jobs. Headhunters trying to find them work report no one wants to hire them. Story via The Hill. Gee, I can't imagine why. However, I would not worry about them. People like Mike Pompeo and Elaine Chao are already very rich, so it's not like they need the jobs.
  

The Bad Economy  Around the World

•  Over across the pond in Great Britain, Saga, a travel and insurance company for people over 50, reports major loses in travel revenue due to the pandemic. Story via The Guardian. I will be honest. You cannot pay me enough money to get on a cruise ship, which is nothing more than a floating germ and virus petri dish. 
• This is a story I just found interesting. Telesur has a short article on how China lifted 8 million people in the country out of poverty.
• In Mexico, piñata makers are having a hard time due to the pandemic. However, they are hustling to find ways to adapt such as adding "coronavirus figures to their lineups of superheros and princesses." Story via The New York Times.  

 

In Other News of the Bad Economy

• Amazon is buying up closed down malls to turn them into fulfillment centers and warehouses. Story via NBC. A bit of an irony given that Amazon is a big factor in those shopping malls dying. 
• In some sad news, for me at least, LG announced they are shutting down their mobile phone business. Via Boing Boing. I currently have an LG mobile phone, and of the phones I've, it has been the most durable and reliable. I was hoping to keep it a bit longer, especially since it is paid for by now, but with LG getting out of the market, I may have to get a new phone sooner rather than later. 
• In another bit of electronics news, there is a shortage of internet home routers. Story via Al Jazeera. Much of this is due to pandemic disruptions. 
• Electronic Frontier Foundation has a good article on "what movie studios refuse to understand about streaming." I find this ironic, all that "cut the cable" rhetoric, and we are back to a form of cable basically in a worse way. Personally, I just do not give a hoot about just about anything streaming. If it is good, it will make it to DVD and my library will carry it. For example, The Irishman I watched recently via my library on DVD. If it does not come on DVD/Blue Ray, then I do not worry. I got many other options that are less hassle and often cost a lot less. The article is interesting as it also looks at some history of the days of movie studio monopolies. Those monopolies were eventually broken by the U.S. government and antitrust laws. The monopolies have basically returned, just in different form. It may be high time to break up these new monopolies that really serve no one other than the greedy companies. 
• In the Bad Economy, especially in these pandemic times, that stimulus check the U.S. government sent out to people can be a life saver. However, for people who are homeless and/or may lack a bank account, they may not be able to get that bit of life saving money. In Dallas, TX activists are working to help the homeless get these payments. Story via Dallas Observer. 
• Here is another article from the Dallas Observer I found interesting. This one is about "how independent promoters wrestled with the pandemic." If all you know about wrestling is the WWE, you need to get out more, maybe check out one of the independent operations that may be near you.

Hustlin' in the Bad Economy

• Musicians are also having a hard time in the Bad Economy, especially due to the pandemic. Making recordings can get costly, so they are turning to an old technology to make recordings in a more affordable and accessible way: audio cassettes. Story via Salon. You gotta respect the hustle here.
  

Hold My Beer 

(Serious fuckery in the bad economy)

• After some serious bitching, moaning, gaslighting, and some stupid mistakes on social media, Amazon finally fessed up and admitted what we all knew from documented reports, that yes, they DO have employees they force to pee in bottles in order to keep the work lines going. Story via Boing Boing. Not that most Americans give a fuck about how Amazon exploits their workers. As long as they get their packages on time, Americans are more than willing to turn a blind eye to Amazon's exploitative fuckery that is barely a step above slavery.
  

The "No Shit, Sherlock" Award for Stating the Obvious

•  This week's award winner comes from this commentary comic at The Guardian where it reminds us that having "to ask if workers should be left alone by their employers when they are not being paid at work is offensive and weird." It is not just offensive nor weird. It is obvious. Once you are off the fucking work clock, your employer has no right over you. He wants you to work, he better pony up more pay or shut the fuck up and wait til the next shift. This is a rule I live by: once I go home, I go home. Period. Work e-mail does not get checked I do not care who dies. You want extra work, you need to pay for it. This is as obvious as it gets.