Special LABOR DAY Edition...
Time for some random thoughts and snippets from the news mixed with an ample dose of pungent social commentary...in other words, the kind of enlightening material you've come to EXPECT from this blog (unless of course you don't READ this blog...which would make you uninformed on SO many levels). And remember, they don't call it LABOR for nothing...ask any mother during CHILDBRITH!

* * * If you work in Indiana, chances are you dislike your job more than the average American (big surprise there). But at least the cost of living is a bit LOWER (but at this rate...not for much longer). This latest study show that employee loyalty is taking it on the chin in the Hoosier state. Loyal workers are more likely to behave in ways help the company (gee...'ya think?).

I worked for a place that after nine years, hired some hot-shot mover & shaker, who promptly proceeded to pry as much information out of all the employees about their jobs (he didn't know $hit), and then found ways to claim "they were expendable" (not a John Ford film). And I was one of those "lucky" ones. Today, that still leaves a bitter taste in my mouth...and that as in PHILLY!

* * * Home repair sales are expected to DROP to the tune of about 1.3%, and isn't expected to improve until 2008. Now I understand that HOME SALES themselves are on the skids, and it's a buyers' market out there for existing homes, but excuse me for being a bit curious about this. Did houses suddenly find ways to MAINTAIN THEMSELVES? Sorry, but ANY house that is NOT less than 5 years old will need SOME kind of maintenance (unless you live in MY neighborhood, where we fix houses by slapping on a coat of paint and calling it practically *new*...and then resell them for UNDER $10K!!!), and the older they get, the more they need it. It's like the human body. You get out whatever you put in. Junk in - junk out (wow, if THAT doesn't sound like the RENTERS here...LOL).

* * * Changes in manufacturing have chipped away at the median income in Indiana (and here I thought it was all those CHINESE IMPORTS we were scarfing up at a record pace...silly me).These economic development "officials" claim the best way to stem or even reverse declining wages is for people to get more training and education to be prepared for those "high-paying, high skill" jobs when they come.
OK...got a lot to gripe about here.
First off, if we DIDN'T send ALL our manufacturing jobs to MEXICO...or the PHILIPPINES, or CENTRAL AMERICA...we'd STILL have them, wouldn't we? The companies created this debacle...they can damn well FIX it as well.
Next, I agree that you're going to have to educate people, but not for all these 'high-tech" jobs. Who is teaching cabinet-making? Or plumbing? Or carpentry? Right...it's the TRADE SCHOOLS. We haven't yet got to the point where we have a bunch of robots doing everything FOR us (and if it gets like the movie I,ROBOT...we might not want to). The median income in Indiana for 2006 was $57,601 (wow...don't tell those teachers and fireman and police officers and nurses in FORT WAYNE about this crap, 'cause they sure ain't making THAT money anytime soon). Since June of this year, Fort Wayne has SHED 8,700 manufacturing jobs (not good). MY solution would be for ALL of us to get on welfare, have a $hitload of illegitimate kids by as many fathers as the women can find, leach off of the state and the Feds, and then deal drugs on the side. Well, it DOES seems to work for the minority sector quite well...and face it, you'd really LOVE to have that new ESCALADE and not have to worry about gassing it up (like the people we see all the time on the S.E. side of town)...right?

* * * Lastly, a carwash worker in Wyoming, Michigan (why does it always happen in MICHIGAN?) became entangled in the automatic brushes and died. Sadly, the man as closing the facility when a customer returned to have his vehicle washed AGAIN (picky bastard, huh?). I suppose that customer bitched about the BLOOD on his car then....("it clashes with the white exterior")... Our lesson here? Stay IN the damn car, even if you WORK there. but if you HAVE to venture INSIDE the carwash...make the hell sure everything if OFF or in NEUTRAL first. The life you save might be your OWN.

Aww...screw it...wash you OWN damn car...show a little PRIDE and don't be some damn afraid of getting a tad wet...'ya wuss!

And there you have it...stories of labor...stories of the love of labor...and the labor of love we call....life.

Have a safe holiday.