The oppressed are allowed once every few years to decide which particular representatives of the oppressing class are to represent and repress them. --Karl Marx
I can relate to the Occupy movements of the world.
While the media is focused on the issue of income inequality, I believe the problem is much deeper and complex than that.
Put simply, the people are frustrated with where the world’s economy has been going and the movement is symbolic of that frustration. American’s do not mind that someone makes more money than them, as long as it is seen to be earned. The frustration comes in when we see Bankers receiving record bonuses after being bailed out with US tax dollars, or athletes getting ridiculous guaranteed contracts, while the common man is lucky to have a job.
I have been frustrated in recent years at reports claiming rising wages and low inflation. I, and most of my friends must be working in the wrong industries. I have not seen a raise in five years and have watched my pay actually decrease through rising health care insurance costs and changes in tax laws, which actually lowered my net pay. So my net pay has become less over these past five years, but yet my costs of living keep rising. Utilities, gas and food have all increased, and there is no point in saving any money for the future because interest rates have dropped to historic lows.
If something does not change, I soon will be joining the ranks of the Occupy movements, because I will not be able to afford to keep my house.
And I am not the only one. I know of two co-workers who have already lost their house to foreclosure and others who have made the hard choice of whether to pay the mortgage or utilities some months. That being said, we are lucky to have our jobs. There has been incredible turmoil in the title insurance industry over the past few years, with several major title underwriters going belly up, and others dramatically cutting their employees and/or employees’ pay.
So what is to be done? Attack income inequity? That seems possible through two solutions: tax the rich or raise minimum wage. Neither of these ideas has seemed to work in the past and both may end up being counter productive.
Personally I think the current systems of 401ks are a big part of the problem. All of this money going into the financial sector and the average employee does not actively manage it or move it around, but yet still gets charged hefty fees and wonders why he (she) can not retire at 60. The money in the these accounts gives the financial industry enormous power and leverage and encourage the “greedy mba” stereotype to continue. The stereotype where MBAs and CEOs focus on share prices, rather than putting out a good product, or caring for the employees.
It is not simply income inequality. We need to address corporate philosophy and business ethics. We need to address the entitlement mindset of the American worker that they deserve a raise every year. We need to redesign the American dream.
Now for the real frustration….
Who is going to make the changes? Our legislators and bankers are in the 1% (or in their pockets at the least) and see no reason to make any changes. Imagine a subway, where the wealthy ride n the front and the rest of ride in the back. Reports come in that the back of the train is on fire, but the 1% blithely carry on, because their compartments are unaffected…….
Those who can affect change are part of the problem, and I believe this is why most of America does not take the “Occupy” movements very seriously. The Tea Party had the right motives, but they were naïve in their understanding of how our legislature works. Just because you vote a few out, the committees are still assigned and headed on a seniority basis. To truly unseat the legislature you would have to remove them all at one time. This will not happen, because the system was designed so that it could not. Perhaps this awakening realization explains recent Congressional approval.
Friday, December 2, 2011
Friday, November 4, 2011
Poverty on the Rise?
Let us talk about poverty for a moment.
Poverty in America has been in the news quite a bit lately, but most people do not even know how to define it.
Here is a little history: Back in the 60’s, LBJ decided to declare war on poverty and the government scrambled to find a way to measure it. Mollie Orshansky, working in the Social Security Administration came up with a methodology, that is still in use today.
“Orshansky developed her poverty thresholds by taking the cost of a minimum adequate diet for families of different sizes and multiplying the cost by three to allow for other expenses. (The minimum diet she used was the Economy Food Plan, the cheapest of four food plans issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The factor of three was derived from a 1955 Agriculture Department survey.) Poor families were those whose yearly income was below the threshold for a family of a given size. She intended that the method be used for research, not to determine eligibility for antipoverty programs.”- Institute for Research on Poverty
Notice “minimum adequate diet”, this is a diet that the average person can get by for short term emergencies.
So, you definitely will not be high on the hog, and will probably lose a lot of weight, as you will not be getting your recommended daily allowances of all of your vitamins.
The other interesting factor is the multiple of 3. The poverty level operates under the assumption that you should spend 1/3rd of your income on food, 1/3rd on housing and the other 1/3rd on everything else (including taxes).
So let us look at the 2010 US Census numbers for poverty thresholds:
Poverty Thresholds for 2010 by Size of Family and Number of Related Children Under 18 Years
Size of family unit Weighted Eight
average None One Two Three Four Five Six Seven or more
thresholds
One person (unrelated individual)....... 11,139
Under 65 years.............................. 11,344 11,344
65 years and over........................... 10,458 10,458
Two people...................................... 14,218
Householder under 65 years........... 14,676 14,602 15,030
Householder 65 years and over........ 13,194 13,180 14,973
Three people.................................... 17,374 17,057 17,552 17,568
Four people..................................... 22,314 22,491 22,859 22,113 22,190
Five people...................................... 26,439 27,123 27,518 26,675 26,023 25,625
Six people........................................ 29,897 31,197 31,320 30,675 30,056 29,137 28,591
Seven people................................... 34,009 35,896 36,120 35,347 34,809 33,805 32,635 31,351
Eight people.................................... 37,934 40,146 40,501 39,772 39,133 38,227 37,076 35,879 35,575
Nine people or more.......................... 45,220 48,293 48,527 47,882 47,340 46,451 45,227 44,120 43,845 42,156
Source: U.S. Census Bureau.
To put this in perspective:
If you are a single person and you make $11,139 per year or less, you fall under the poverty threshold and are considered impoverished, this works out to $928.25 per month (roughly 128 hours at the current minimum wage of $7.25)
Say, an average of 30 days per month and this gives you an amount of $30.94 per day you have to make to be over the poverty threshold.
You would have $10 per day to spend on food. Per day! Can you imagine?
$300 per month to spend on housing and $300 per month to spend on utilities, clothes, transportation, insurance and taxes. Yes, taxes. Even though you will not be filing a 1040 at this wage level you still have to pay your FICA taxes. Let me know if you find an apartment for $300 per month.
In my own case it would be a family of 3, with one child and we would have to make less than $17,552 per year ($1662.67 per month; $48.75 per pay), leaving me to feed my family on $16.25 per day (McDonald’s dollar menu here we come) and finding housing for $487.55 per month.
Now comes the announcement that the Census is improving their methods of measuring poverty. Let us hope it projects a more realistic view of the costs of living today.
Other articles
Poverty Rate even higher
Obama Redefining Poverty
Poverty and Inequality in the US
How We Measure Poverty
Poverty in America has been in the news quite a bit lately, but most people do not even know how to define it.
Here is a little history: Back in the 60’s, LBJ decided to declare war on poverty and the government scrambled to find a way to measure it. Mollie Orshansky, working in the Social Security Administration came up with a methodology, that is still in use today.
“Orshansky developed her poverty thresholds by taking the cost of a minimum adequate diet for families of different sizes and multiplying the cost by three to allow for other expenses. (The minimum diet she used was the Economy Food Plan, the cheapest of four food plans issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The factor of three was derived from a 1955 Agriculture Department survey.) Poor families were those whose yearly income was below the threshold for a family of a given size. She intended that the method be used for research, not to determine eligibility for antipoverty programs.”- Institute for Research on Poverty
Notice “minimum adequate diet”, this is a diet that the average person can get by for short term emergencies.
So, you definitely will not be high on the hog, and will probably lose a lot of weight, as you will not be getting your recommended daily allowances of all of your vitamins.
The other interesting factor is the multiple of 3. The poverty level operates under the assumption that you should spend 1/3rd of your income on food, 1/3rd on housing and the other 1/3rd on everything else (including taxes).
So let us look at the 2010 US Census numbers for poverty thresholds:
Poverty Thresholds for 2010 by Size of Family and Number of Related Children Under 18 Years
Size of family unit Weighted Eight
average None One Two Three Four Five Six Seven or more
thresholds
One person (unrelated individual)....... 11,139
Under 65 years.............................. 11,344 11,344
65 years and over........................... 10,458 10,458
Two people...................................... 14,218
Householder under 65 years........... 14,676 14,602 15,030
Householder 65 years and over........ 13,194 13,180 14,973
Three people.................................... 17,374 17,057 17,552 17,568
Four people..................................... 22,314 22,491 22,859 22,113 22,190
Five people...................................... 26,439 27,123 27,518 26,675 26,023 25,625
Six people........................................ 29,897 31,197 31,320 30,675 30,056 29,137 28,591
Seven people................................... 34,009 35,896 36,120 35,347 34,809 33,805 32,635 31,351
Eight people.................................... 37,934 40,146 40,501 39,772 39,133 38,227 37,076 35,879 35,575
Nine people or more.......................... 45,220 48,293 48,527 47,882 47,340 46,451 45,227 44,120 43,845 42,156
Source: U.S. Census Bureau.
To put this in perspective:
If you are a single person and you make $11,139 per year or less, you fall under the poverty threshold and are considered impoverished, this works out to $928.25 per month (roughly 128 hours at the current minimum wage of $7.25)
Say, an average of 30 days per month and this gives you an amount of $30.94 per day you have to make to be over the poverty threshold.
You would have $10 per day to spend on food. Per day! Can you imagine?
$300 per month to spend on housing and $300 per month to spend on utilities, clothes, transportation, insurance and taxes. Yes, taxes. Even though you will not be filing a 1040 at this wage level you still have to pay your FICA taxes. Let me know if you find an apartment for $300 per month.
In my own case it would be a family of 3, with one child and we would have to make less than $17,552 per year ($1662.67 per month; $48.75 per pay), leaving me to feed my family on $16.25 per day (McDonald’s dollar menu here we come) and finding housing for $487.55 per month.
Now comes the announcement that the Census is improving their methods of measuring poverty. Let us hope it projects a more realistic view of the costs of living today.
Other articles
Poverty Rate even higher
Obama Redefining Poverty
Poverty and Inequality in the US
How We Measure Poverty
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Halloween 2011
Halloween was an adventure this year. The first year that my daughter , SLC, could really could get into it. Robely had her watching an trick or treat episode of Ni Hao Kai Lan, hoping some if it would sink in. I guess it worked, because by 6:15 my little girl was chanting “go-go” and pointing down the street. And go-go she did, wearing Robely and one of our neighbors out. Where does a 19 month old find all that energy?
The funny part was that she is not even interested in the candy, she was happy just knocking on doors and being seen by the neighborhood. My little socialite.
Meanwhile, I was terrorizing all of the trick or treaters that came to the door. Robely had gotten me a spook costume with glowing red eyes, and I had a staff with a mini skeleton on it.
Most of the kids were convinced, I was either a stuffed doll or some sort of an animatronic. I wouldn’t even have to say “boo” to scare the bejeezus out of them. Simply moving my staff or saying something was enough to knock them out of their sock. A lot of the parents were scared more than the kids.
Now comes the clean up and preparing for next year….
Friday, August 26, 2011
Awesome, if it can actually stand up
......
Starbucks CEO says 100+ businesses to withhold campaign donations over debt.
.By Rachel Rose Hartman
Heads of over 100 major companies have joined Starbucks Corp. CEO Howard Schultz in a pledge to boycott political donations until Congress and the president agree on a long-term debt and deficit plan, Schultz announced in a letter Wednesday.
"Remarkably, the initiative triggered a national dialogue and a groundswell of support," Schultz wrote, adding that in the 10 days since releasing his pledge, he "heard directly from thousands of concerned citizens and was astounded by the volume of support we received through calls, emails, social media exchanges and various other public votes of confidence."
That included over 100 business leaders who signed on to Schultz' initiative, including Myron Ullman of JC Penney, Duncan Niederauer of NYSE, and Walter Robb, co-chief executive of Whole Foods, Tim Armstrong of AOL, Mickey Drexler of J. Crew Group, and billionaire investor Pete Peterson.
Schultz earlier this month issued an internal message at Starbucks reportedly expressing dismay over "the lack of cooperation and irresponsibility among elected officials as they have put partisan agendas before the people's agenda." The response to that message led him on Aug. 15 to issue the campaign donation boycott pledge to business leaders, casting it as a strike to force politicians to act swiftly on the debt crisis and clean up what he views as their dysfunction.
Partisan gridlock in Washington was on full display this summer when Republicans in Congress and the White House sparred over raising the debt ceiling. They failed to reach an agreement until the day before the U.S. was expected to begin defaulting on its debt, causing panic and uncertainty. Ratings agencies have since downgraded the U.S. credit rating.
Schultz' pledge also asks leaders to personally take action by accelerating job creation within their own companies.
Schultz has long donated to Democrats, handing over around $100,000 over the past 15 years to Democratic candidates and committees, according to the Center for Responsive politics. The Center lists a single Republican donation by Schultz: $1,000 to Sen. John McCain in 1999.
On Wednesday, website www.upwardspiral2011.org and an accompanying Facebook page were launched to connect citizens, businesses and organizations over Schultz' pledge.
..
......
Starbucks CEO says 100+ businesses to withhold campaign donations over debt.
.By Rachel Rose Hartman
Heads of over 100 major companies have joined Starbucks Corp. CEO Howard Schultz in a pledge to boycott political donations until Congress and the president agree on a long-term debt and deficit plan, Schultz announced in a letter Wednesday.
"Remarkably, the initiative triggered a national dialogue and a groundswell of support," Schultz wrote, adding that in the 10 days since releasing his pledge, he "heard directly from thousands of concerned citizens and was astounded by the volume of support we received through calls, emails, social media exchanges and various other public votes of confidence."
That included over 100 business leaders who signed on to Schultz' initiative, including Myron Ullman of JC Penney, Duncan Niederauer of NYSE, and Walter Robb, co-chief executive of Whole Foods, Tim Armstrong of AOL, Mickey Drexler of J. Crew Group, and billionaire investor Pete Peterson.
Schultz earlier this month issued an internal message at Starbucks reportedly expressing dismay over "the lack of cooperation and irresponsibility among elected officials as they have put partisan agendas before the people's agenda." The response to that message led him on Aug. 15 to issue the campaign donation boycott pledge to business leaders, casting it as a strike to force politicians to act swiftly on the debt crisis and clean up what he views as their dysfunction.
Partisan gridlock in Washington was on full display this summer when Republicans in Congress and the White House sparred over raising the debt ceiling. They failed to reach an agreement until the day before the U.S. was expected to begin defaulting on its debt, causing panic and uncertainty. Ratings agencies have since downgraded the U.S. credit rating.
Schultz' pledge also asks leaders to personally take action by accelerating job creation within their own companies.
Schultz has long donated to Democrats, handing over around $100,000 over the past 15 years to Democratic candidates and committees, according to the Center for Responsive politics. The Center lists a single Republican donation by Schultz: $1,000 to Sen. John McCain in 1999.
On Wednesday, website www.upwardspiral2011.org and an accompanying Facebook page were launched to connect citizens, businesses and organizations over Schultz' pledge.
..
Thursday, July 14, 2011
Monday, May 9, 2011
American Airlines AAdvantage 30th Anniversary Celebration Featuring 30 Deals in 30 Days
American Airlines AAdvantage 30th Anniversary Celebration Featuring 30 Deals in 30 Days: "Get the daily deal and enter for a chance to win 30,000 AAdvantage miles every weekday from April 18 – May 27. Check it out: http://bit.ly/f9D6g3"
Monday, April 4, 2011
Monday, January 17, 2011
2010 in Review
What an exciting year for me and my family!
The wife had an addition to the family, little Sandra Lynn, who has kept us on out toes ever since.
At this time last year, I was still tending to my bed ridden wife and not doing much of anything else. Some of the hardest months of my life, but seeing my child for the first time made it worth it.
One of our four footed children had to have back surgery and I have ended the year with a bronchial infection that I am still trying to shake. Not an auspicious beginning...
Normally, I would be throwing up some statistics about my game play for the year, but once again, my hard drive got fried and all my data was lost. So I have only the information that gets recorded on BGG as my records. Having a lot less free time, I didn't get in near as much as I would have liked, though the wife did graciouscly let me go off to Origins and BGG.con this year.
I had no game that saw over ten plays in 2010 and only 4 that saw 5 or more:
Innovation (with 9 plays)
Endeavor (7 Plays)
Thunderstone (6 plays- through a bit more if I counted the solo version)
Dominion (with 5 plays)
Hopefully 2011 will have more games in store and less sickness
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