tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-974773076690597683.post52653006276058980..comments2024-03-28T16:08:29.578-04:00Comments on Sardonicky: Learn To Grovel GracefullyKaren Garciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15612731479365562803noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-974773076690597683.post-66532322084357110432014-10-23T12:07:32.893-04:002014-10-23T12:07:32.893-04:00In addition to the feather-ruffling essay by Green...In addition to the feather-ruffling essay by Greenwald mentioned by others, there is a fresh post by William Rivers Pitt defining “blowback” (Truthout).<br />http://truth-out.org/opinion/item/27000-the-true-history-of-blowback-in-one-sentence<br /><br />Elizabeth May, one of two Greens at the federal legislative level in Canada, helps us to keep events in perspective as she blogged away from inside yesterday’s locked-down Parliament, ten minutes away from my door (when the roads are open and outside of rush hour). I look forward to the day this lady becomes our PM.<br />http://elizabethmaymp.ca/lock-your-office-door-and-stay-away-from-the-windowsJay–Ottawahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10360356126450612113noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-974773076690597683.post-90254315460130769502014-10-23T07:42:33.161-04:002014-10-23T07:42:33.161-04:00@ Pearl, who said, “So no place is safe anymore an...@ Pearl, who said, “So no place is safe anymore and as long as drones, airstrikes, invasions of countries continues by the U.S. we will all have more of the same.”<br /><br />“Canada, At War For 13 Years, Shocked That ‘A Terrorist’ Attacked Its Soldiers” Writes Glenn Greenwald:<br /><br />“The national mood and discourse in Canada is virtually identical to what prevails in every Western country whenever an incident like this happens: shock and bewilderment that someone would want to bring violence to such a good and innocent country (“a peaceable Canadian community like Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu”), followed by claims that the incident shows how primitive and savage is the “terrorist ideology” of extremist Muslims, followed by rage and demand for still more actions of militarism and freedom-deprivation.”<br /><br />“It is always stunning when a country that has brought violence and military force to numerous countries acts shocked and bewildered when someone brings a tiny fraction of that violence back to that country. Regardless of one’s views on the justifiability of Canada’s lengthy military actions, it’s not the slightest bit surprising or difficult to understand why people who identify with those on the other end of Canadian bombs and bullets would decide to attack the military responsible for that violence.<br /><br />That’s the nature of war. A country doesn’t get to run around for years wallowing in war glory, invading, rendering and bombing others, without the risk of having violence brought back to it. Rather than being baffling or shocking, that reaction is completely natural and predictable. The only surprising thing about any of it is that it doesn’t happen more often.”<br /><br />https://firstlook.org/theintercept/greenwald/<br /><br />"This age: layers of lime harden in the sick son's blood…<br />There's nowhere to run from the tyrant-epoch…<br />Who else will you kill? Who else glorify?<br />What other lies will you invent?"<br />— Osip Mandelshtam, 1924<br /><br />Since the USA has an extensive record of supporting terrorists and using terrorist tactics, our pious pronouncements on the “war on terror” are hypocritical.<br /><br />They attack civilians, men, women, children, innocent people, unknown people far removed from any political game. Their reason was quite simple: to force the public to turn to the state to ask for greater security.<br /><br />There is no war. It’s an Orwellian device created to keep the kleptocrats in power.<br /><br />We the people wallow in fear. We believe, like children, that our leaders are protecting us, when they slaughter the foreign enemy hordes.<br /><br />“In “1984,” George Orwell described doublethink as “the power of holding two contradictory beliefs in one’s mind simultaneously, and accepting both of them,” and portrayed it as a device for destroying the capacity for critical thinking, for controlling populations, and for perpetuating the political status quo. Something like doublethink is occurring as the rhetoric of terror continues to immerse us in a nightmare of skewed reason and perpetual warfare. In condemning terrorism, we think of it as something to be eliminated at all costs. Yet, in sanctioning the use of modern weaponry to achieve this end, regardless of its impact upon civilian populations, we are effectively advocating the very thing we condemn, and this is closer to doublethink than we should ever wish to be.” - Tomis Kapitan, “The Reign of ‘Terror’,” NY Times, October 19, 2014<br /><br />http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/10/19/the-reign-of-terror/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=1&Denis Nevillenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-974773076690597683.post-58592267199446815782014-10-23T06:45:48.331-04:002014-10-23T06:45:48.331-04:00Pearl,
Interestingly, this was written shortly bef...Pearl,<br />Interestingly, this was written shortly before the Ottawa incident.<br />https://firstlook.org/theintercept/2014/10/22/canada-proclaiming-war-12-years-shocked-someone-attacked-soldiers/Katnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-974773076690597683.post-46790661836167897052014-10-23T01:16:35.761-04:002014-10-23T01:16:35.761-04:00Today's shootings in Ottawa were a reminder th...Today's shootings in Ottawa were a reminder that Canada is not immune to terrorists. I was personally worried as my best friend's daughter (my goddaughter) works for the Federal Government in the area and the building was locked down. We were relieved when she called to say she was home safe and sound at the end of the workday. I hope others (Jay?) are not personally affected and I have not had a chance to check on my granddaughter who lives in Ottawa but presume she is alright. The soldier who was killed lived in Hamilton, close by my city of Burlington.<br />There are a large group of people whom the shooter shared Isis philosophy with that were and are being closely watched by the police.<br />So no place is safe anymore and as long as drones, airstrikes, invasions of countries continues by the U.S. we will all have more of the same. <br />Pearlnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-974773076690597683.post-65280512146470843282014-10-21T18:21:07.773-04:002014-10-21T18:21:07.773-04:00I am concerned with the idea hotel customers shoul...I am concerned with the idea hotel customers should leave a tip. And not surprised after reading Denis' comment that the Mariott is trying to start this practice as it has been the excuse for underpaying employees.<br /><br />In restaurants, it is common practice to pay waiters and bartenders sub-standard wages because there is the expectation they will receive tips. These servers usually have to come into work an hour or two early to do menial work like rolling cutlery into napkins and filling salt and pepper shakers as well as stay late to clean up. They are paid some ridiculous amount like $2.50 an hour, even for the non-serving, non-tipped time they work.<br /><br />When my parents took us on a cruise, we were told we could leave a tip for the Filipino man who cleaned our room and bathroom each day. I only found out later that tips left by guests were the life-blood for these men who sent money home to their families but were paid a crappy wage. I can't tell you the number of people who paid thousands of dollars for a cruise but were annoyed at the suggestions and publically said they were unwilling to leave a tip. It totally puts the worker at the mercy of the person he or she is serving and allows employers to exploit those who need employment the most.Valerie Long Tweedienoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-974773076690597683.post-25513254209458624212014-10-21T17:21:52.602-04:002014-10-21T17:21:52.602-04:00@ The New York Crank
Nice snark, if you are refer...@ The New York Crank<br /><br />Nice snark, if you are referring to:<br /><br />“If I were busting my butt in the service industry and wanted an honest day’s pay for an honest day’s work, I’d join a union.” – Obama, Laborfest, Milwaukee, 2014<br /><br />Obama’s never done anything for labor other than talk bullshit like the above. Obama is not into labor. He could give a rat’s ass. There is no urgency on the part of labor union leaders either, who have six-figure incomes, to hold Obama the above. <br /><br />It’s about cooling out the mark. Did the economy cheat us? It’s not the Obama’s fault nor labor union leaders. Con men sit on the sidelines, waiting to cool the mark out. Cooling out marks is how politicians and institutions persuade people to accept things they think are wrong. They convince us getting fleeced is okay. They convince us it’s okay that they’re corrupt. They persuade us it’s okay that they’re incompetent.<br /><br />“For all the talk about the need to be a likable "team player," many people work in a fairly cutthroat environment that would seem to be especially challenging to those who possess the recommended traits. Cheerfulness, upbeatness, and compliance: these are the qualities of subordinates -- of servants rather than masters, women (traditionally, anyway) rather than men. <br /><br />After advising his readers to overcome the bitterness and negativity engendered by frequent job loss and to achieve a perpetually sunny outlook, management guru Harvey Mackay notes cryptically that "the nicest, most loyal, and most submissive employees are often the easiest people to fire." <br /><br />Given the turmoil in the corporate world, the prescriptions of niceness ring of lambs-to-the-slaughter.” ― Barbara Ehrenreich, Bait and Switch: The (Futile) Pursuit of the American DreamDenis Nevillenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-974773076690597683.post-77152427866211780892014-10-21T15:03:17.152-04:002014-10-21T15:03:17.152-04:00New York Crank: Many low wage workers would be fir...New York Crank: Many low wage workers would be fired if they joined a union or organized one. Look at the Wal Mart employees' dillema.Pearlnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-974773076690597683.post-27056617471425110552014-10-21T14:47:03.544-04:002014-10-21T14:47:03.544-04:00The best tip anyone can give any low wage worker i...The best tip anyone can give any low wage worker is, "If I were you I'd join a union"<br /><br />Yours crankily,<br />The New York CrankThe New York Crankhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04489472134701718697noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-974773076690597683.post-34423139043486376812014-10-21T09:45:58.418-04:002014-10-21T09:45:58.418-04:00One summer many moons ago, I worked as a chamberma...One summer many moons ago, I worked as a chambermaid. The motel manager would go into the rooms listed as checkouts and pick up the tips for herself. Then she'd leave the door open and that was our signal that the room was ready for us to work on - free of any loose money of course. <br /><br />What a clever ploy by management to get first crack at the tips by making the staff fear being accused of theft while they were doing exactly that themselves. Makes me think they'd be a perfect fit to go into politics. annenigmanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-974773076690597683.post-87231745576953119162014-10-21T06:29:38.389-04:002014-10-21T06:29:38.389-04:00This fckin country allows it"s citizens to pa...This fckin country allows it"s citizens to pay for workers that the business should pay living wages to. I saw an ad recently that asked people to send $19 a month to aid wounded GIs. The government should take care of any GI that served his country, period. I didn't see any president but Eisenhower and Kennedy serve their country, instead this country has always been in worse shape after they are gone. In fact Clinton went to Canada to escape serving his country.falken751https://www.blogger.com/profile/12794900671149496486noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-974773076690597683.post-39568801098976567102014-10-21T01:39:52.369-04:002014-10-21T01:39:52.369-04:00Here in Canada on the Learning or Discovery Channe...Here in Canada on the Learning or Discovery Channel originating in the U.S., a series involving all kinds of Canadian businesses in every area titled "Undercover Boss" followed by the name of the company has been appearing more and more often. The owner of a particular company decides to go work in one of their offices or restaurants or stores incognito and see how things are run by the employees. It is filmed as an excuse for making a documentary about how different companies operate. The owner is introduced as someone learning the business before seeking employment and he or she is directed and taught by the employees as to how to do a particular job. Meanwhile, the owner becomes friendly with the employees and asks about their work experiences, their families etc. It is shocking to see what difficult and exhausting jobs people have to do under usually poor conditions often with a speed up system in place. The owners are also usually shocked at how difficult it is to for them to do a particular job well.<br />He or she then returns to their headquarters and invites several of the employees he got to know to meet with him to discuss ways of improving conditions. He then takes off his disguise, introduces himself to them and often encourages the hard working employees to move up into more responsible positions in that business, covers their personal debts or supports the education of their children and sends the employee on a family vacation. The employees are overcome by these reward and break down weeping and throwing their arms around their employer thanking him over and over.<br />They then meet with all the employees (often hundreds or more)and are promised improvements in their working conditions and everyone applauds. <br />So never is a Union mentioned, or how the other employees will have to continue with their slavery at low pay or get the benefits the specific employees observed working hard have received. And all of course, to increase the reputation of the company for TV viewers and increase their profits.<br />It is a disgusting series which avoids dealing with what Karen has touched on. I think Marriot was one of the companies the local owner went undercover about. Pearlnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-974773076690597683.post-32658810095045336252014-10-20T23:43:03.079-04:002014-10-20T23:43:03.079-04:00@ 4Runner
Another reason to make sure to hand th...@ 4Runner <br /><br />Another reason to make sure to hand the cash directly to the housekeeper…<br /><br />Once, after leaving money for a tip on the bedside table, I discovered it wasn’t taken. I later caught up with her and asked why the money was still on the table. <br /><br />She said that they are warned never to not take anything from a guest's room for fear that there might be an allegation of theft. <br /><br />Also, it was widely rumored that management sometimes staged situations tempting housekeeping staff to “steal.” Those who took the money were fired.Denis Nevillenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-974773076690597683.post-24602698472809885552014-10-20T23:16:03.577-04:002014-10-20T23:16:03.577-04:00Bill Marriott Jr. is one of two heirs to the Marri...Bill Marriott Jr. is one of two heirs to the Marriott Hotel chain. His real time net worth is $2.8 billion. <br /><br />Together with his brother Richard, Bill Marriott Jr. is overseeing a massive fortune which is estimated to be over $5 billion. Both Marriotts are listed on the Forbes list of richest people in America.<br /><br />Bill Marriott, Jr. contributed $1,000,000 to Mitt Romney’s Super PAC Restore Our Future. <br /><br />In another Romney 2012 move, Marriott banned its lucrative (making $175 per room annually) porn:<br /><br />“We are working with in-room entertainment providers and technology vendors to transition to the next generation of in-room entertainment. This new platform of Internet-based video-on-demand will facilitate our exit from the traditional hotel video systems that included adult content in the menu selection, and will also provide guests greater choice and control over what they watch across our system. As we transition to this new platform, adult content will be off the menu for virtually all of our newly built hotels. Over the next few years, this will be the policy across our system.”<br /><br />http://travel.usatoday.com/hotels/post/2011/01/marriott-hotels-to-remove-porn-new-hotels/139423/1<br /><br />After losing the 2012 election, Mitt Romney rejoined Marriott International Inc.'s board of directors (back where he belongs taking care of himself and his fellow 0.1%ers) after resigning in 2011 prior to his campaign for the U.S. presidency. Romney received $260,390 from stock owed to him as a director of Marriott. <br /><br />"It is an honor to once again be able to serve in the company of leaders like Bill Marriott and Arne Sorenson and to support the work of the tens of thousands of Marriott associates who make Marriott International the renowned success that it is," said Mitt Romney<br /><br />Romney and Marriotts have a long history:<br /><br />http://www.muckety.com/1CFCC4180886E9C7C92E2520E432CC93.map?big=true&autoGroup=7,7<br /><br />There is no torrent like greed:<br /><br />“Marriott International will pay the government a $600,000 fine for jamming conference attendees’ own Wi-Fi networks at one of its hotels, forcing them instead to pay as much as $1,000 each to use the hotel’s own connection. While agreeing to the fine, Marriott on Friday defended the practice of jamming guests’ own Wi-Fi networks. The company said this wasn’t aimed at charging guests extra for Internet access but about protecting its network.”<br /><br />Marriott operates or franchise more than 4,000 hotels around the world. A spokesman for the company wouldn’t say how many other hotels employ block personal Wi-Fi connections.<br /><br />http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2014/oct/03/marriott-fined-wi-fi-nashville-hotel<br /><br />“I’m Bill Marriott and thanks for helping me keep Marriott on the Move.”<br /><br />“In a society governed passively by free markets and free elections, organized greed always defeats disorganized democracy.” - Matt Taibbi, Griftopia: Bubble Machines, Vampire Squids, and the Long Con That Is Breaking AmericaDenis Nevillenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-974773076690597683.post-85855490431286972014-10-20T22:20:05.634-04:002014-10-20T22:20:05.634-04:00We always tip. But you must make sure to give the ...We always tip. But you must make sure to give the cash directly to the maid. If you leave it on the bed or nightstand, it will be picked up by the head housekeeper when, after you check out, she first visits the room.4Runnerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02582762546159637023noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-974773076690597683.post-55094739664487811192014-10-20T20:37:51.672-04:002014-10-20T20:37:51.672-04:00Google for Marriott and fired housekeepers in Bost...Google for Marriott and fired housekeepers in Boston for a Sept 26th article in the Boston Globe.<br /><br />It tells the sorry tale of how, five years ago, the Marriott duped 98 housekeepers into unknowingly training their outsourced replacements -- hired at $8/hour and no benefits. Marriott just coughed up a small amount of money to end an ongoing boycott over the firings.<br />voice-in-wildernessnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-974773076690597683.post-24972082446299785022014-10-20T18:08:55.618-04:002014-10-20T18:08:55.618-04:00“Housekeepers deserve tips too, and timed with the...“Housekeepers deserve tips too, and timed with the kickoff of International Housekeepers Week, we’re going to provide a gentle reminder to our guests. We’re partnering with Maria Shriver and A Woman’s Nation to launch ‘The Envelope Please.’ … I’m Bill Marriott and thanks for helping me keep Marriott on the Move. <br /><br />http://www.blogs.marriott.com/marriott-on-the-move/2014/09/most-people-are-not-sure-who-to-tip-and-who-not-to-tip-when-receiving-good-service-i-try-to-tip-everyone-from-the-pizza.html<br /><br />In 2013 Marriott made $13 billion in revenue and $626 million in profits:<br /><br />http://files.shareholder.com/downloads/MAR/3472032323x0x742452/f657cf68-7023-4766-8626-d61b031f79fa/Marriott_2013AR.pdf<br /><br />So how much should we tip? <br /><br />Marriott International President and CEO Arne Sorenson says $1 to $5 a night, depending on room rate. <br /><br />"It is not Marriott's responsibility to remind customers to tip; it's their responsibility to pay their workers enough so that tips aren't necessary." - Barbara Ehrenreich, who tried working as a hotel maid for her book "Nickel and Dimed"<br /><br />Arne Sorenson earned $9.2 million in total compensation in 2013, up from $8.6 million in 2012 — a 5.7 percent increase.<br /><br />http://www.bizjournals.com/washington/blog/top-shelf/2014/04/compensation-up-for-marriott-hilton-ceos.html<br /><br />Housekeepers are paid regular wages, not tipped wages like waiters. Marriott Housekeeper Hourly Pay - Base Pay: $9/hour; <br /><br />http://www.glassdoor.com/Hourly-Pay/Marriott-Housekeeper-Hourly-Pay-E7790_D_KO9,20.htm<br /><br />Is Marriott is trying to turn their housekeeper into tipped wage employees?<br /><br />Under federal law, a tipped employee is anyone who regularly gets $30/month or more in tips. Employers can meet its minimum wage obligation for tipped employees by reducing the hourly minimum to $2.13 from $7.25, provided tips make up the rest. The potential reduction in minimum wage obligation to the employer is thus a bit more than $200/week for each full time worker. If a tipped employee fell below minimum wage in earnings, the employer would need to make up that difference.<br /><br />http://www.dol.gov/elaws/faq/esa/flsa/002.htm<br /><br />“There seems to be a vicious cycle at work here, making ours not just an economy but a culture of extreme inequality. Corporate decision makers, and even some two-bit entrepreneurs like my boss at The Maids, occupy an economic position miles above that of the underpaid people whose labor they depend on.<br /> <br />The larger society seems to be caught up in a similar cycle: cutting public services for the poor, which are sometimes referred to collectively as the 'social wage,' while investing ever more heavily in prisons and cops. And in the larger society, too, the cost of repression becomes another factor weighing against the expansion or restoration of needed services. It is a tragic cycle, condemning us to ever deeper inequality, and in the long run, almost no one benefits but the agents of repression themselves.” ― Barbara Ehrenreich, Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in AmericaDenis Nevillenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-974773076690597683.post-57638473871271288502014-10-20T15:36:30.088-04:002014-10-20T15:36:30.088-04:00"A society that has more justice is a society..."A society that has more justice is a society that needs less charity."<br /><br />Ralph Naderstranger in a strange landnoreply@blogger.com