Central Scrutinizer

Serfing USA: Corporate America Is Robbing American Workers Wednesday 29 December 2010 by: Dave Lindorff | This Can't Be Happening | News Analysis Serfing USA: Corporate America Is Robbing American Workers Along with the staggering theft in broad daylight of Americans’ assets that has occurred in the course of the ongoing financial crisis, as taxpayers funded multi-trillion bank bailouts and banks stole homes through foreclosures with the help of fraudulent paperwork, American companies have also been picking the pockets of workers more directly. This second round of paycheck theft has come in the form of stolen productivity gains. Historically, the relatively high and rising standard of living of American workers--both blue and white-collar--which once gave the US one of the highest standards of living in the world, has come courtesy of rising productivity, which has allowed US companies to produce more goods with less labor, and to then pass some of the enhanced profits on to workers in the form of higher wages, without having to raise prices. That has been important because, when higher wages are financed by higher prices, it tends to be a kind of zero-sum game: higher wages cancelled out by inflation. But beginning in 2000, the old system already creaky, broke down. (It must be noted that this system was never the result of the capitalists' largess, but rather was because of a tighter labor market and, critically, a powerful labor movement.) The corporate onslaught against trade unions and against the minimum wage, which began with the Nixon administration in 1968, combined with so-called “free-trade†deals that allowed US companies to shift production overseas and then to freely import the products of their overseas production facilities back for sale to Americans at home, by weakening the power of workers to demand higher wages, has led to a situation where companies can just pocket all the profits from productivity gains, leaving wages stagnant, or even driving them down. The recession that began in late 2007 has only made matters worse, giving owners and managers the opportunity to really hammer employees. With real unemployment and underemployment now running at close to 20%, employees are in no position to press for higher wages, even as those who are still working are putting in extra effort to keep their jobs, thus pushing productivity gains even higher. The figures speak for themselves. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, productivity gains during the 1990-1999 decade averaged just 2.1% per year. The prior decade, from 1980-1989, the average productivity gain was 1.5% per year. But between 2000 and 2009, when the economy suffered two recessions, the average annual productivity gain has been 2.9%, almost 50% higher than the prior decade, and almost double the rate in the 1980s. During this same period, however, wages have actually declined. According to the BLS, wages in 2010 rose 0.1%, but inflation, running at an official (and grossly under-measured) 1%, more than ate that up. According to the Economic Policy Institute, a Washington think tank, for the whole decade from 2000 through 2009, wages actually sank for most people. In 2000, the median weekly wage for a high school graduate was $629. By the end of 2009, high school graduates were earning a median weekly wage, in inflation-adjusted dollars, of just $626--three dollars a week less than a decade earlier. A college degree didn’t change things, either. In 2000, the median weekly wage for a college grad was $1030, but that had fallen to $1025 by the end of 2009. Remember, all during that decade, companies were seeing productivity gains averaging almost 3% per year. If 50% of that gain in productivity annually had gone to workers, as might have been typical back 30 years ago when unions were stronger and before Congress gave away the store by signing onto the World Trade Organization and the North American Free Trade Act and similar trade agreements, that high school grad would have been earning $729 a week in inflation-adjusted dollars by 2009, while the college grad would have been earning $1,195. Of course as a whole, Americans have been doing even worse, because these are just the mean wages of people who are working full weeks. In fact, many companies have been laying off workers, and making the remaining workers, desperate to hang on to their jobs, work harder to produce the same amount of product, meaning that besides not getting any pay increase, they are producing much more profit for the boss. Many workers who are still hanging onto their jobs are actually working fewer hours, and thus are taking home smaller paychecks, all of which goes into that higher productivity figure for output per worker the government is reporting. Indeed, the Wall Street Journal today reported glowingly that US production of goods and services had returned to its 2007 pre-recession level, but this is with unemployment running at an official rate of 9.8 percent, and an actual rate of about 19 percent. What we’re witnessing is a massive national “speed-up†which is enriching the owners of capital, while the workers are getting stiffed. It is the payoff to the ruling class for decades of hammering of trade unions, and also of trade unions cutting deals with the Democratic Party, which in turn has refused to defend workers’ interests. Look at the sell-out of Labor during the first two years of the Obama administration. The union movement’s one big issue--restoring some measure of fairness to the Labor Relations Act, so that it would be at least possible to organize unions and to win contracts and improved wages and working conditions--was dropped without even a fight by the Obama administration and the leadership of the House and Senate. The government, fully in the hands of Democrats, has also continued to sign trade agreements, most recently with Korea, that further shift jobs overseas, thus further weakening the position of workers here at home. A cynic might speculate that this is also why the Democrats have refused for over three years now to come up with any real public jobs program despite the desperate straits of tens of millions of jobless people who have been without work for more than a year. The Democrats, in thrall to corporate interests, would on the evidence much rather spend $50 billion on a program of extended unemployment benefits that leaves those millions of people hungry for any real job, than spend that same sum on providing them with government jobs, as that would actually reduce unemployment and increase the bargaining power of all workers vis-a-vis employers. Meanwhile, the national corporate media, itself viciously anti-union, continue to skew news coverage to portray unions as corrupt and greedy, so that the 90 percent of American workers who are not in a union don’t even realize that any pay gains or benefits they get are because employers are trying to avoid unionization of their workforce. Unless Americans wake up soon to how this process is impoverishing us all, we will see this shifting income and wealth to the top strata of the population continue until most of us are little more than modern-day serfs. A start would be for people to at least recognize that this stagnation and decline in incomes we’re witnessing is not some natural phenomenon. It is, no less than the fat salaries, perks and bonuses paid by corporate managers to themselves, simply another manifestation of corporate greed gone wild. Link: http://www.truth-out.org/serfing-usa-corporate-america-robbing-american-workers66399

Ah, yes, you mean the farang 'baht millionaires' here? Same thing isn't it? Men with the equivalent of a million baht, or many more, compared to the average Thai woman's income? Rather similar, even for just a ST 'marriage'. :content: Makes for a mini 'Hef' experience? 55555 Part of the lure of the LOS isn't it for many? And no pre-nup agreement required.

Perv, yes that point comes when you become a multi multi millionaire. Age no longer matters, no one can say shit as they all know what the score is. Old man with big bucks, young lady with good looks. Age no longer matters. All know it is true love. I suspect she was crying while she was signing the prenup.

Stooges not funny? Well, that's because Curly wasn't in that one. Shemp sucked (and Curly Joe was even worse), but the original Curly made the Stooges funny and worth watching as a kid all those years ago. :-)

Munchie, It needed to be done. I could not in good conscience let Acockasian travel to the dangerous and strange land of the Scots without a tutorial on what to watch out for. It needed doing, and I's a dones it. A public service message for those not clued in to the Scottish culture. CS p.s. Many thanks to Munchie for posing for the Scotsman porno stud pic. They are proud of him back in the old sod. Justifiably so.

ACA, Before you decide to actually go to Scotland there are a few things you should know. The cattle are all blind. It is very hard to find a parking space if you are not Scottish. Scotsmen lie a lot. The pussy is all fat and hairy. This man is the most famous Scotsman ever in their history, and the highest paid. Above is the most recent winner of the Miss Scotland beauty pageant. Inexplicably there are very long lines to the bathrooms. It is one reason the men wear kilts sans underwear. The horses there are carnivorous! The natives are not friendly. There is something very wrong with their dogs. They absolutely despise the poor Puffin. As well as the English. Understandably so. The fishing though is grand and some trophy catches have been made over the decades. They have yet though to figure out how to build a proper doorway. This mad man is their funniest comedian. We'll just have to take their word on how funny he is as no one besides a Scot can understand what the fuck he is going on about. This slop is their national breakfast. God save them. This Scotsman above is their best hung porno star. Now you can see why they are known to be such liars. The men though do so love to get flowers. Remember this and your kilt and I am sure you will have a wonderful time there. Give us a trip report on your return Acockasian. I am sure it will be very interesting to the other gay men wanting to expand their sexual horizons beyond Pattaya and Bangkok.

Sort of, but I went back in time for a better comparison. Rome was a better one than Pakistan man. :nahnah:

Not odd at all. Would have been the same in Roman times if they had internet and forums such as we have now. 'Damn those Roman-centric posts and threads! They drive me crazy! Hate those fuckers! They should all be in one area/thread!' This coming from one of the ancient Roman gods likely, nervous gods likely, as they were soon to be disregarded... like most gods should be.

Well done. No more and Now god can get back to more important issues like solving world famine and helping flat chested women grow some tits. This US post ranting and raving was a waste of his omnipotence.

Just downloaded and watched 'Crank'. Some funny stuff among the blood and gore and killing. Fast paced, some amazing stunts. Nice tit shots. Having found a decent bit torrent site that works well with my Thai/Surin adsl I have watched a ton of movies lately. 1. Seven Pounds 2. Zack and Miri Make a Porno 3. Jumper 4. Slumdog Millionaire 5. Pineapple Express (don't bother - some funny bits) 6. Australia 7. Outlander (sucked) 8. The Children of Huang Shi (not as good as I thought it might be) 9. Twilight 10. Role Models (funny one I thought) 11. Punisher - War Zone 12. Underworld - The Rise of the Lycans 13. Madagascar 2 14. Ice Age 2 15. Wall-E 16. Bolt (Hey, I DL these for my daughter and a friend's kids- and watch them myself as they can be fun and amusing.) 17. How to Lose Friends and Alienate People (funny) 18. Death Race 19. What Happens in Las Vegas 20. Ghost Town 21. The Incredible Hulk 22. X-Men Origins Wolverine (I like the X-men series) 23. Flash of Genius 24. Taken And a bunch more I forget now. Saw the latest Bond 'Quantum of Solace'. None of the earlier camp and humor really. Just a killing machine. Was a good movie, but not your usual Bond. All downloaded easily from BTjunkie.

A man boards an airplane for a trip and as he sits down he sees the man beside him has a black eye. This amuses him as he has a black eye also. They look at each other and laugh. The first man finally asks, "How did you get that shiner?" The second man replies, "Well, it was a tongue twister. I was at the counter buying my ticket this morning and the girl behind the counter had the most gorgeous boobs I have ever seen. I looked at her and meant to ask for a ticket to Pittsburgh, but I actually asked for a picket to Titsburgh. She got pissed off and smacked me one right in the eye." After a good laugh, the second man asked the first, "So tell me your tale, how did you get your shiner?" The second man replied, "Same way, a tongue twister. This morning I was at the breakfast table and meant to ask my wife to pour me a bowl of cornflakes, but I actually said, You ruined my life you stupid bitch."

Three Doctors walk into a bar together and discuss surgeries they had performed. The first one said, "Iâ??m the best surgeon in Texas. A concert pianist lost 7 fingers in an accident, I reattached them, and 8 months later he performed a private concert for the Queen of England." The second doctor said, "Thatâ??s nothing. A young man lost both arms and legs in an accident, I reattached them, and 2 years later he won a gold medal in field events in the Olympics." The third surgeon said, "You guys are amateurs. Several years ago a cowboy who was high on cocaine and alcohol rode a horse head-on into a train traveling 80 miles an hour. All I had left to work with was the horseâ??s ass and a cowboy hat. Now heâ??s president of the United States."

Loved those 2 Munchie! I just read this on another site that has to do with Thailand stuff. Cracked me up. ----------------------------- A woman was shopping at her local supermarket where she had selected the following items: A half-gallon of 2% milk, A half carton of eggs, A quart of orange juice, A small head of romaine lettuce, A 2-pound can of coffee, And a 1-pound package of bacon. As she was unloading her items on the conveyor belt to check out, a drunk standing behind her watched as she placed the items in front of the cashier. While the cashier was ringing up her purchases, the drunk calmly stated, "You must be single." The woman was a bit startled by this proclamation, but she was intrigued by the derelict's intuition, since she was indeed single. She looked at her six items on the belt and saw nothing particularly unusual about her selections that could have tipped off the drunk to her marital status. Curiosity getting the better of her, she said "Well, you know what, you're absolutely correct. But how on earth did you know that?" The drunk replied, "'Cause you're ugly."

A young man walked into a bar.. sat down and ordered a drink. As he started to drink his beer an older fellow came up to him and said, "I licked on your mommaâ??s tits!" The young man lowered his head and shook it in shame. Ten minutes later the older fellow came up and said, "I fucked your momma in her mouth!!!" The young man shook his head again and kept drinking. Ten more minutes passed and the old fellow came back and said, "I fucked your momma in the ass!" The young man finally got tired of it and said, "DAMN IT dad go home, you're fucking drunk!"

A man approaches a prostitute on the street and asks, "How much?" She says "$300". The man says "ok". He takes her to his hotel room and immediatley begins to masturbate. She says, "What the hell are you doing?" He says, "What, you think youâ??re gonna get the easy one?"

A man walking down the street sees a sign on the side walk "HAND JOB $100" so he walks in the shop and says to the lady behind the counter, "100 bucks for a hand job thats a rip off." She replies, "Come over here. See that BMW parked over there? I paid for that in cash by my hand jobs." The man thinks then hands over the cash and gets the best hand job he has ever had. Two weeks later heâ??s walking down the same street and sees another sign that reads "BLOW JOB $250". So he walks in the shop and says to the lady behind the counter, "250 bucks for a blow job, thats a rip off!" She replies, "Come over here. See that huge boat down on the harbor? I paid for that in cash by my blow jobs." The man thinks then hands over the cash and gets the most amazing blow job heâ??s ever had. Same man power walks down the street, no sign this time. He walks straight into the shop anyways. He says to the lady, "Iâ??ve had your hand job and your blow job, but this time I want the full deal." The lady replies, "Come over here." He moves over with a huge grin on his face. "See that huge mansion on the water front?" He starts to nod his head, still with the stupid grin on his face. Then she says, "Well if I had a pussy I could have paid for that in cash."

JS, I'm sorry to hear this. Best of luck and good health for the future. And thanks for having the courage to post this personal problem. It might help some stop and think a bit. I have a close cousin who is +, and a friend as well. I also know a couple others who are +. All are in good health using the meds the health care givers have now for keeping their viral loads nearly at zero. And almost every week some new info comes out about new meds being made by the pharma companies for this damn disease. I like your attitude. Keep that going and even if you have some down periods you'll do fine. And I agree, alcohol lets us take risks we really might not do if sober. And yes, I speak from experience. Stay strong. Best of luck JungleSoup. Cent