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Monday, July 14, 2008

The Morning News

posted by on July 14 at 7:14 AM

Supply Problems: As oil hits records highs, Brazilian oil workers go on strike.

KIA: Nine American soldiers killed in Afghanistan.

Presumed Guilty: Guantanamo court not doing much to help “high-value” prisoners on trial.

Counter Offensive: Marble sales keeping the Taliban in business.

Beer-opoly: Anheuser-Busch agrees to buyout with Belgian brewer, now the world’s #1 producer of crappy beer.

Outbreak: Seattle PI’s website spreads computer viruses, herpes.

Science FTW: Scientists find ebola’s weakness, find potential malaria treatment.

Now, in anticipation of that new Batman movie, here’s a decent fan film:

RSS icon Comments

1

Go Brazilian workers! This exactly what organized labor is for; putting a floor on prices and keeping them higher than they would otherwise be.

Posted by Bellevue Ave | July 14, 2008 8:50 AM
2

I agree with BA @1.

That said, it's a sad day when the BBC can't even spell things ...

This stops them being pased through the spleen.

Passed.

Maybe they should stop outsourcing to India.

And note that there are other malarial "cures", most involving crippled parasites being injected into the potential host, to build immunity, but they all mean you're infected, just with a lower load.

Posted by Will in Seattle | July 14, 2008 9:45 AM
3

Awful news about the soldiers in Afghanistan.

And Jonah, I want to slap you for posting the fan film. It was fucking RETARDED.

Posted by Rotten666 | July 14, 2008 10:15 AM
4

We're in the phone book, Rotten. You know where to find me.

Posted by Jonah S | July 14, 2008 10:48 AM
5

I'll phone the cops, @4 ...

Posted by Will in Seattle | July 14, 2008 10:54 AM
6

I agree. Bring back slavery. That'll really lower prices.

Posted by keshmeshi | July 14, 2008 12:18 PM
7

@1

Absolutely! Thank the Maker for the largess, altruism and magnanimity of the Captains of Industry!

Exxon Law of Supply and Demand: We've got all the supply so we can demand whatever the fuck we want. -- R. Klein
Posted by Laurence Ballard | July 14, 2008 12:56 PM
8

Keshmeshi, of course you want to bring back slavery. Fighting for women's rights all hinges on you oppressing another group of people. Being in the privileged position you are as a white woman you would never understand how your actions are racist and how you are against the advancement of all peoples.

Laurence, the workers aren't striking out of altruism. Why hold individuals to a different standard than a legal entity that is considered and individual?

Posted by Bellevue Ave | July 14, 2008 1:18 PM
9

@8,

Yep. Oh, remind me again how residents of Capitol Hill are just supposed to suck it up and deal with other people's choices to buy up shitty condos and eat at chain restaurants. It seems to me that you need to suck it up and deal with other people's choices to form a union, to demand better working conditions and pay, and to strike.

Of course you won't because you're the world's biggest hypocrite.

Posted by keshmeshi | July 14, 2008 2:10 PM
10

Kesh, I support people's right to organize their labor, I also support the companies decision to fire those that want to organize their labor. It's a two way street. How is that hypocritical?

I also tire of people thinking that unions are always awesome and there is no drawbacks to them. This is primarily the reason I voice such a strong anti union opinion here; without me saying it everyone would be viewing unions under these rose colored glasses where unions are the most egalitarian systematic organization of people ever created, ever.

There are obvious pros and cons to unions especially depending on who you are, but unions are not all good like you seem to believe. Please correct me if I'm wrong in assuming you have a utopic vision of how unions work (being a former union member myself (teamsters 856) I can point out the pros and cons of the union).

The people of Capitol Hill weren't always the people of Capitol Hill and I don't find any problem with new people being the people of Capitol Hill.

Immigration and transformation is a positive part of our free and open society. How far are you willing to stop the transformation of a city Kesh? Should the people of San Diego be able to pass laws that make Spanish language signs illegal? What about the laws in Montana that made life suck for the Chinese? They were only upholding the city and culture of the city as they knew it and wanted it to be.

Of course you can point out the stark differences between racial discrimination and municipal protectionism, but at the heart of the matter you're advocating some legal means to prevent the transformation of a place away from something you like, just as the most ardent conservatives have done for years.

Posted by Bellevue Ave | July 14, 2008 2:47 PM
11

The biggest problem with your thought process kesh is that you always fail to consider the misapplication of what you think is generally a good idea. I admit that corporations have their flaws, that capitalism needs to be regulated in some pretty essential and basic ways, and I'm always willing to consider that too much of what I idealize my give me a tummy ache one day.

Posted by Bellevue Ave | July 14, 2008 2:55 PM
12

@8

The comparison of a legal entity constitutionally considered and court approved as an individual and the non-altruistic striking petroleum industry workers in Brazil is not a very rationally compelling one outside of the courtroom, or the classroom--or slog. Especially so in the kitchens of some of those oil workers on walk out. Without the collective bargaining of our own past, or those pesky industrial action-taking individual Brazilians now hitting the bricks, we--here in the States, at least--would still be treated, well, in the manner the Red Fascist Chinese Legal Entities treat their individual laborers today.

Read up on your Beck Rights; the American Labor Movement is a far cry and a mere shadow of its former self and status; for bad and for good. But come on down to the Deep South, if you want to really see 'Right to Work' in action. Here in Savannah, there's a helluva lot of Plantation Capitalism going on.

Posted by Laurence Ballard | July 14, 2008 3:22 PM
13

@10,

What's hypocritical is your whining about how much unions harm the economy, profitably, blah, blah, blah and yet you won't tolerate any whining or genuine criticism of shitty developers. You have one standard for others and another standard for yourself. That is the very definition of a hypocrite.

The rest of that garbage you just typed out is nothing other than straw woman beating. I have never endorsed any of the shit you're attacking; I've never said nor even implied that unions are perfect.

Posted by keshmeshi | July 14, 2008 3:49 PM
14

why do you support unions so steadfastly if they aren't more or less your idealistic state of labor organization?

I don't tolerate criticism developers when people put the aesthetics of a building ahead of construction jobs or housing. It isn't hypocrisy to point out the contradiction of wanting jobs for poor people (like in construction) but then simultaneously preventing those jobs from even being created due to developer backlash.

laurence: It's a good thing you brought up the south; who is gaining car manufacturing jobs more steadily? The South without its unionize workforce or Detroit with UAW?

The point is, there are very tangible effects from unionization that people who are pro union choose to ignore or downplay when it is pointed out that they simply won't be competitive without market power on labor.

Posted by Bellevue Ave | July 14, 2008 4:27 PM
15

and the problem keshmeshi is that you havent endorsed the specific policy but you've supported the general idea that people of a community should be able to pursue legal means to maintain a way of life that they enjoy and to prevent other people, outsiders as it were, from changing that. that is what i'm trying to get you to understand; the road to hell is paved with good intentions. there are unintended and bad consequences for reactionary action to a threatened status quo.

Posted by Bellevue Ave | July 14, 2008 4:31 PM
16

...why do you support unions so steadfastly if they aren't more or less your idealistic state of labor organization?

...that people of a community should be able to pursue legal means...

Perfect example of straw woman arguments. I have never said that. Grow a fucking brain.

Posted by keshmeshi | July 14, 2008 4:38 PM
17

Then what do you propose the residents of capitol hill do to prevent hte loss of their community? Whine like a bunch of whiny liberal vaginas from bellingham? Cmon now, how many other ways are there to prevent the destruction of a neighborhood's institutions other than invoking lawsuits, or writing laws? How effective are these alternative means?

I'm sorry your brain can't connect dots as readily as I can. or that you rather plod slowly to the obvious conclusion. or that other options for an outcome are unfeasible or ineffective.

Posted by Bellevue Ave | July 14, 2008 4:52 PM
18

@14

The UAW is a non-issue outside of Virginia. Parts Manufacture is the heart of the auto industry; where are those jobs going? In less time than it took Detroit to crumble these same factories in the South will be reduced to assembly units for parts made in Mexico or Brazil. What part of the country is foisting more and more of its labor force onto state assistance rolls? Hospital Emergency Room care? Faith-based resources? Where did RAM--Remote Area Medical--designed to bring free medical help to the Third World recently visit? What states pay the lowest UI benefits? Top out workman's comp payments to "2/3rds of weekly salary or a maximum between $268--$400 a week, whichever is higher?" What part of the country (and their employers) consider 28 hours as 'full time'? The South is eating its seed corn in a generational race to the finalcial bottom, abetted in part, and in your example, by foreign auto manufacturers (VW, KIA, HONDA, TOYOTA) who couldn't hope to have such salad days in their own countries and view our labor force the way we view Mexico's.

Posted by Laurence Ballard | July 14, 2008 5:25 PM
19

@14

At the rate this is going, your grandchildren will be the nannies, butlers and landscapers of wealthy Chinese.

The language of the future is Mandarin.

Posted by Laurence Ballard | July 14, 2008 5:34 PM

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