How did education and training become a rescue formula for failed social and economic policies? Each time there is an economic downturn politicians and con artists dust of their big mega phone from their old garages to trump the need for more education and training. This does not mean they believe in the education of little Lisa or big Joe. It just means there is more money to be made by influencing public sentiment about the need for education.
Politicians understand high unemployment is the result of many factors; but the core reason remains greed and mismanagement of resources. Higher middle income and working class taxes and little or no corporate tax is one of the sources of higher unemployment. Corporations export jobs in search of low wages and higher incomes. Sure enough, when they export jobs, they pay no social security tax, avoid employee health insurance, and avoid employee benefits such as vacations and unemployment compensation. Why anyone would will go against such free labor and higher income. This is the main reason why there will be no significant change in the job market.
Nevertheless, the politicians and the pundits would like us to believe that we need more education and skill that may never be realized in employment for the unemployed. Very few challenges exist for such claims and no one dares to question the importance of education and training. Therefore, local governments and communities accept the sermon that education and training will bring full employment and reduce poverty. Opportunist educational and training companies pop up in every corner. These companies grab government grants and public funds claiming to train and teach unemployed people for jobs. Unfortunately, for people who joined these institutions seeking better job and better life for themselves they end up accumulating heavy debts through private lenders.
Public and vocational schools have been training students for the type of jobs industry want them to perform. In many cases, these schools had been successful in creating a labor force that is dependable in following orders and finishing jobs with little instruction. The problem now is that these low end and repetitive jobs are being replaced by automation at the expense of human labor. It is impractical to assume that there will be high skilled jobs for the many that are trained for the alleged new economy while the new economy requires few operators to produce what could have been the duty of many workers.
Politicians, businesses and pundits understand these problems, but they assume these are the problems of tomorrow and let tomorrow take of these problems. Employers will invest their resources only if they find the labor market is competitive to those countries where jobs are exported. The increased communications technology allow businesses to operate anywhere in the world with efficiency.
Education and learning are essential parts of development and human growth. Acquiring education and training should not be based on the need to acquire more money. The current premises of education and training for better jobs are designed to cover major economical and social cracks in our society. For now, many people who hoped to land a job after sinking in debts will find themselves in big disappointment. Many of us who are familiar with the real world knows education and training speeches are feel good rhetoric and does not solve the immediate problem.
Long time unemployment shakes the foundation of a person’s value and meaning in relation to society. People faced with dwindling opportunities risk losing faith in the system. As time goes on, downward growth to homelessness accompanied with personal and emotional problems will replace hope and security. Eventually, the homeless and the mentally unstable created by long time unemployment will join the underclass poor that will be completely ignored and chastised by the social and political elites. They will be labeled as "lazy, drug addict, or alcoholics", that are burdens of society.
The Politicians and the free marketers that preach education and training as the solution for our problem knows that education and training takes a long time to measure it success. On the other hand, they know how the dark side of the system functions. The dark side of the system displaces people to the point where they no longer have a voice in the system. Homeless people do not have address, which means they cannot vote. Politicians will not listen to people who will not vote. Homeless people lack basic communication tools like telephone and mail address, therefore they become invisible to society. To the politicians and social elites, poverty is the preferred method to move a sizable portion of society into a voiceless black hole. That is the frame of "Free Market" and the premises of “people are unemployed, because they are stupid" therefore they need education and training to get jobs they have been doing all their lives.
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Saturday, May 22, 2010
What is for dinner tonight? BP or Exxon Tuna?
Crude Marinated Fish, Courtesy of Big Oil.
It is not difficult to see a fish or a bird covered with crude and struggling to escape. Most will die and some may never have the same friendly environment to continue their species in the polluted waters. So much had been said about global warming from consumption of natural resources, primarily petroleum products that degrades the environment to household chemicals. Our Modern industrial system depends on fossil fuel energy to maintain economic growth at the expense of depleting life supporting oxygen and increasing life threatening gas. Although, there will always be some deniers of human contribution to negative environmental changes, the current temperature increase, Frequent storm and depletion of life in the sea are true outcomes of our action. Those who are responsible for such actions continue to deny, cover, drill and spill chemicals on land and sea. From Alaska to Louisiana, we see the destruction of the ecosystem, the suffering of people and the loss of commercial and consumer food. While the loss of food may seem insignificant at its current stage, loss of oxygen and increase of temperature to the overall global warming is devastating. How much proof do we need before we accept the truth in front of us?
Just a few days ago, the prized winner of the tea party movement from Kentucky declared the president of the United States as unpatriotic for asking BP to stop the oil flow. Bp had boasted in the past about their capability to stop and control any oil related accident in the ocean. In fact, BP claims as the concerned environmentalist that takes care of business while preserving the environment. Most of us know this was just propaganda to collect free taxpayers money every year and marketing in their quest to drill with no restrictions. BP had managed to use its lobbying power and influence to deny access to valid information how much oil is flowing into the sea and perhaps into land. It is difficult to know how much is flowing per day since independent scientists and observers are not allowed to check the real amount. However, different observers claim it can reach anywhere between 200000 gallons to over 4 million gallons of crude oil a day.
At the mean time, many thousands who depend on fishing are out of work and may not have the ability to fish in the spill area in the future. At the current rate of oil spill and destruction, it is uncertain seafood will be restored in the area for a long time.
It is not difficult to see a fish or a bird covered with crude and struggling to escape. Most will die and some may never have the same friendly environment to continue their species in the polluted waters. So much had been said about global warming from consumption of natural resources, primarily petroleum products that degrades the environment to household chemicals. Our Modern industrial system depends on fossil fuel energy to maintain economic growth at the expense of depleting life supporting oxygen and increasing life threatening gas. Although, there will always be some deniers of human contribution to negative environmental changes, the current temperature increase, Frequent storm and depletion of life in the sea are true outcomes of our action. Those who are responsible for such actions continue to deny, cover, drill and spill chemicals on land and sea. From Alaska to Louisiana, we see the destruction of the ecosystem, the suffering of people and the loss of commercial and consumer food. While the loss of food may seem insignificant at its current stage, loss of oxygen and increase of temperature to the overall global warming is devastating. How much proof do we need before we accept the truth in front of us?
Just a few days ago, the prized winner of the tea party movement from Kentucky declared the president of the United States as unpatriotic for asking BP to stop the oil flow. Bp had boasted in the past about their capability to stop and control any oil related accident in the ocean. In fact, BP claims as the concerned environmentalist that takes care of business while preserving the environment. Most of us know this was just propaganda to collect free taxpayers money every year and marketing in their quest to drill with no restrictions. BP had managed to use its lobbying power and influence to deny access to valid information how much oil is flowing into the sea and perhaps into land. It is difficult to know how much is flowing per day since independent scientists and observers are not allowed to check the real amount. However, different observers claim it can reach anywhere between 200000 gallons to over 4 million gallons of crude oil a day.
At the mean time, many thousands who depend on fishing are out of work and may not have the ability to fish in the spill area in the future. At the current rate of oil spill and destruction, it is uncertain seafood will be restored in the area for a long time.
Monday, May 10, 2010
Cash Is the New Threat While Plastic Is the Cancer In Your Purse.
Do you remember the saying “Don’t leave home without it”. Well, those days are gone for good. It is perfectly fine to leave home without your credit or debit card.
Recently I stopped by the local store to get a few items to get me by for a day or so. I picked up some items and took them into one of the cash registers with few customers waiting on the line. The cashier completed scanning the customer’s item in front of me and I assume hit the total button on the register. All of a sudden, the cash register starts playing a sound that we normally hear from winning a lottery. The customer behind me and I immediately assumed the person just hit a jock pot for some sort of store prize. We were wrong. The cashier immediately turned into the customer and told him that he is approved for a Master Card, and continues to ask him if he wanted to apply for it. The customer laughed and replied by saying “you guys never quit to keep us in debt”. I was a little puzzled by the whole drama for the few minutes I stand there and watch what was going on. I decided to ask the cashier how the customer in front of me managed to get the happy musical sound as if he was wining a prize. The cashier replied by saying that it is the computer that recognized the customer that he is a cash customer. The information came from the store card he scanned. The little store card that we use to get a few cents off from our purchase is a tool that collects data about our shopping behavior, what type of items we purchase, and whether we use plastic or cash. Many stores use those cards to attract customers. Safeway, fry’s smart final, staples and others provide their own cards.
Store membership cards are good, customers get discounts on some items, but what I did not understand is that why stores or merchants push their customers to use credit or debit cards. Merchants pay fee to card issuers per purchase. Some issuers charge merchants a fixed fee and other charge a predetermined percentage per transaction. Merchants benefit from customers using cash and lose money when customer’s use plastics. It is not merchants want to pay transaction expenses by pushing credit cards but it is because of the influence of card issuers like big banks, credit card companies such as Visa, MasterCard, and Amex had significant power and influence on merchants. Therefore, merchants have no choice but to follow the orders of big banks and credit card companies’ desire.
Have you watched lately the TV news, using cash to buy airline ticket can land you in a terrorist suspect list. The mighty dollar is now part of a profiling criteria to identify who is a terrorist or not. This poor profiling of using cash as a terrorist shows how far being banks and credit card companies with their junior associates called credit reporting companies gang up against consumers to suck part of every dollar consumed.
The credit system is setup to transfer wealth from consumers to the few big financial institutions constantly while maintaining a high level of debt on consumers. Of course, they claim use of card or credit increase the overall economy. It is true the use of plastic facilitates business and contributes to the growth of economy. At the same time, it also contributes to increased economic inequality leading to the status where the rich get richer and the majority of the people grow poorer.
According to Moody's economy.com, the study on use of card found that, on average, increasing card usage by just 1 percent translates to a 0.024 percent increase in GDP. This equates to $15 billion in additional GDP globally for every 1 percent increase. The article continued by saying that card usage contributed by 270 billion to US economy and 1.1 trillion dollar to the world economy from 2003 to 2008.
Let us see how this economic growth translates to those companies who benefits for consumers higher debt.
Credit Card Companies:
As of May 6, 2010, the market capitalization of Visa was 69.6 billion.
Master Card had a market capitalization of 30 billion dollars.
American Express had a market capitalization of 50.92 Billion dollars
Big Banks:
As of may 6, 2010, Bank of America had a market capitalization of 163.32 Billion dollars
JP Morgan Chase had a market capitalization of 162.24 Billion dollars
Wells Fargo had a market capitalization of 162.31 Billion
Citigroup had a market capitalization of 115.63 Billion
Credit reporting companies
Equifax
Experian
TransUnion
Credit Reporting Companies are private companies and they do not list their market value, but one can assume they share substantial amount of consumer’s money through fees and charges each time a consumer or a company wants personal data from consumers.
It is not too difficult to realize how a web of financial institutions controls our lives through a system that is designed to keep the public under water and dependent economically. These companies decide who is worth being a person in getting their service. They write the rules how much interest we have to pay, who they can keep as a customer or for that matter that can have a job. Companies had begun acquiring credit report information before they even consider candidates for a job. Imagine, after the great recession of 2008, and 2009, very few people will meet their sleazy credit scores. Can we afford to continue this losing route? No law or regulation will be significant enough to change his or her way of doing business. These financial companies have all the tools they want to continue business as usual. They control the representatives, they control the communication apparatus, and they have the lobbying power to influence political and public outcomes. However, there is one thing they are scared of, that is consumers cutting up credit cards and using cash for transactions. If people use cash, they can only spend based on how much they have. On the other hand, if people use plastics, they will spend not only on what they plan but also on what they see now. When customers spend emotionally, they spend more than they have and in turn more money for the credit card issuers with a higher interest and associated fees income. If customers use cash for any transaction that means big banks will generate less money from fees and interest. That means credit card companies such Visa and MasterCard generate less revenue from issuing the cards. That means less money for credit reporting companies and debt collectors, financial advisors.
I do not expect many people will give up their addiction of plastics but for those who want to be free of financial slavery the outcome is very sweet.
Be the first and reclaim your true independence.
If we are serious about changing our way, cut up and throw those cards into recycling bins.
Recently I stopped by the local store to get a few items to get me by for a day or so. I picked up some items and took them into one of the cash registers with few customers waiting on the line. The cashier completed scanning the customer’s item in front of me and I assume hit the total button on the register. All of a sudden, the cash register starts playing a sound that we normally hear from winning a lottery. The customer behind me and I immediately assumed the person just hit a jock pot for some sort of store prize. We were wrong. The cashier immediately turned into the customer and told him that he is approved for a Master Card, and continues to ask him if he wanted to apply for it. The customer laughed and replied by saying “you guys never quit to keep us in debt”. I was a little puzzled by the whole drama for the few minutes I stand there and watch what was going on. I decided to ask the cashier how the customer in front of me managed to get the happy musical sound as if he was wining a prize. The cashier replied by saying that it is the computer that recognized the customer that he is a cash customer. The information came from the store card he scanned. The little store card that we use to get a few cents off from our purchase is a tool that collects data about our shopping behavior, what type of items we purchase, and whether we use plastic or cash. Many stores use those cards to attract customers. Safeway, fry’s smart final, staples and others provide their own cards.
Store membership cards are good, customers get discounts on some items, but what I did not understand is that why stores or merchants push their customers to use credit or debit cards. Merchants pay fee to card issuers per purchase. Some issuers charge merchants a fixed fee and other charge a predetermined percentage per transaction. Merchants benefit from customers using cash and lose money when customer’s use plastics. It is not merchants want to pay transaction expenses by pushing credit cards but it is because of the influence of card issuers like big banks, credit card companies such as Visa, MasterCard, and Amex had significant power and influence on merchants. Therefore, merchants have no choice but to follow the orders of big banks and credit card companies’ desire.
Have you watched lately the TV news, using cash to buy airline ticket can land you in a terrorist suspect list. The mighty dollar is now part of a profiling criteria to identify who is a terrorist or not. This poor profiling of using cash as a terrorist shows how far being banks and credit card companies with their junior associates called credit reporting companies gang up against consumers to suck part of every dollar consumed.
The credit system is setup to transfer wealth from consumers to the few big financial institutions constantly while maintaining a high level of debt on consumers. Of course, they claim use of card or credit increase the overall economy. It is true the use of plastic facilitates business and contributes to the growth of economy. At the same time, it also contributes to increased economic inequality leading to the status where the rich get richer and the majority of the people grow poorer.
According to Moody's economy.com, the study on use of card found that, on average, increasing card usage by just 1 percent translates to a 0.024 percent increase in GDP. This equates to $15 billion in additional GDP globally for every 1 percent increase. The article continued by saying that card usage contributed by 270 billion to US economy and 1.1 trillion dollar to the world economy from 2003 to 2008.
Let us see how this economic growth translates to those companies who benefits for consumers higher debt.
Credit Card Companies:
As of May 6, 2010, the market capitalization of Visa was 69.6 billion.
Master Card had a market capitalization of 30 billion dollars.
American Express had a market capitalization of 50.92 Billion dollars
Big Banks:
As of may 6, 2010, Bank of America had a market capitalization of 163.32 Billion dollars
JP Morgan Chase had a market capitalization of 162.24 Billion dollars
Wells Fargo had a market capitalization of 162.31 Billion
Citigroup had a market capitalization of 115.63 Billion
Credit reporting companies
Equifax
Experian
TransUnion
Credit Reporting Companies are private companies and they do not list their market value, but one can assume they share substantial amount of consumer’s money through fees and charges each time a consumer or a company wants personal data from consumers.
It is not too difficult to realize how a web of financial institutions controls our lives through a system that is designed to keep the public under water and dependent economically. These companies decide who is worth being a person in getting their service. They write the rules how much interest we have to pay, who they can keep as a customer or for that matter that can have a job. Companies had begun acquiring credit report information before they even consider candidates for a job. Imagine, after the great recession of 2008, and 2009, very few people will meet their sleazy credit scores. Can we afford to continue this losing route? No law or regulation will be significant enough to change his or her way of doing business. These financial companies have all the tools they want to continue business as usual. They control the representatives, they control the communication apparatus, and they have the lobbying power to influence political and public outcomes. However, there is one thing they are scared of, that is consumers cutting up credit cards and using cash for transactions. If people use cash, they can only spend based on how much they have. On the other hand, if people use plastics, they will spend not only on what they plan but also on what they see now. When customers spend emotionally, they spend more than they have and in turn more money for the credit card issuers with a higher interest and associated fees income. If customers use cash for any transaction that means big banks will generate less money from fees and interest. That means credit card companies such Visa and MasterCard generate less revenue from issuing the cards. That means less money for credit reporting companies and debt collectors, financial advisors.
I do not expect many people will give up their addiction of plastics but for those who want to be free of financial slavery the outcome is very sweet.
Be the first and reclaim your true independence.
If we are serious about changing our way, cut up and throw those cards into recycling bins.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
