Mammon category archive
Oil Slickers 0
Brian Greenspun, publisher of the Las Vegas Sun, argues that, if you must base your vote on the price of gas, rather than on larger issues, such as, say, just for an example, the loss of our democratic form of government, then
. . . let’s make sure we are blaming the right president for that which is ailing us right now.
Follow the link for a long and complex narrative explaining why prices at the pump got pumped. I doubt if I’ll be giving away in surprises when I say that Joe Biden is the wrong president to blame.
The New Gilded Age 0
F. T. Rea thinks that Donald Trump and Elon Musk are fitting figures for our new gilded age. He suggests:
What Musk and Trump have most in common is that they will always want more.
Follow the link for his reasoning.
(Grammatical erorr correxeded.)
Facebook Frolics 0
SeattlePI reports on yet more metastasized frolics. Here’s the lede:
That’s pocket change to the Zuckerborg.
“The Rent Is Too Damn High” 0
Thom takes a look at why the homeless population has exploded.
(It’s not the fault of the persons who have no places to live, but that should be no surprise to any thinking person. Unfortunately, we seem to have shortage of thinking persons, but that’s another story. No one–at least, no one whose mind is functioning, to borrow a phrase from my old doctor, “within normal limits”–wants to be without a place to live.)
The Privatization Scam 0
Martin A. Davis, Jr., takes issue with Virginia Governor Trumpkin’s maligning the efficacy of Virginia public schools by misrepresenting the meaning of certain national test data. He points out that, despite the Governor’s spin, the numbers show that “Virginia is performing as well as most every other state in the union, and better than a significant number.”
It’s a cynical ploy based on the faulty belief that competition makes everything better.
Education is not a business. It is a public good. And public education in Virginia is doing quite well relative to other states.
Follow the link for more details about the data.
A Twit Owns Twitter 0
Yet another reason I’m glad I never leaped on the Twitter manure spreader.
Speaking of the Zuckerborg . . . . 0
The editorial board of The Seattle Times is fed up with Facebook’s scofflaw frolics.
The Artful Dodger 0
I am reminded of what Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., once said.
Gas Attack 0
Republicans are hoping to gain seats by riding on gasoline prices, implying that they will somehow “fix” them.
Now comes the Washington Monthly’s David Atkins to explain why that’s a con. He explains why the federal government is not responsible for the price increases and can have little influence over them.
A snippet:
Let’s start with why gas prices are high. The biggest factor is society normalizing after the height of the pandemic. More people are driving. There is usually a summer spike in demand, but after years of postponed vacations, business travel, and road trips to see Grandma, Americans are back in their cars. Higher demand means higher prices. The second most significant factor is Russia’s bloodthirsty invasion of Ukraine, which has led to sanctions and boycotts of Russian energy, as well as Moscow’s apparent sabotage of its own production to punish Europe for supporting Ukraine. (It’s not just the Nord Stream pipeline mysteriously blowing up but lots of questionable “maintenance” slowing the Russian energy flow.) Third, supply chain disruptions and the pressures on international shipping have only added to oil prices.
Afterthought:
And to the extent that some of price increases result from price gouging by oil companies, rather than “market forces,” experience teaches us that Republican sure as shootin’ won’t do anything about that.
A Notion of Immigrants, Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell Dept. 0
At my local rag, Tom Wallace reminds us that theft of labor is as American as apple pie (though he does not use that precise term).
After reminding us of America’s original sin of chattel slavery, theft of labor at its most brazen, he discusses the Reagan era escape clause for those who wish to employ exploit undocumented immigrants. An excerpt (emphasis added):
But how could millions of undocumented immigrants avoid deportation? The answer: Congress created the necessary legislation. The Reagan administration’s Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 made it illegal to recruit or hire undocumented immigrants. However, it also provided a loophole for employers to hire while not violating the law by simply neglecting to ask or verify citizenship.
And, ironically, those who most willing to exploit undocumented immigrants seem to also be those most willing to demonize them when it suits their fancy . . . .
A Thumb on the Scales 0
And this surprises just whom, exactly.
Fly the Fiendly Skies . . . 0
. . . and get left holding the bag.
The New Gilded Age, It’s All about the Algorithm Dept. 0
At the San Francisco Chronicle, Amos Toh describes how exploitation of workers is baked into the snaring economy. He starts by recounting the experience of one person who drives for Lyft, but doesn’t stop there. A nugget:
(snip)
Algorithms that dispatch jobs to gig workers and manage how they are paid can be gamified in ways that compromise their livelihoods and well-being.
Exploitation is exploitation, be it empowered by whip or by algorithm.
A French Twist to Phoning It In 0
Frankly, I wouldn’t mind this happening here:
According to the Journal Officiel, a new regulation for commercial phone calls (eg [sic] from call centres) will come into place on March 1st, 2023.
Specifically, telephone canvassing will only be allowed between the hours of 10am to 1pm and 2pm to 8pm, from Monday to Friday, according to the new decree, which was published on Friday, October 14th.
The Disinformation Superhighway, Fatted Pig Dept. 0
Cezary Podkul offers guidelines to avoid falling prey to an on-line “Pig Butchering” con. Here’s the opening of his article; follow the link for a detailed analysis of how the scam is worked:
“Pig butchering,” as the technique is known — the phrase alludes to the practice of fattening a hog before slaughter — originated in China, then went global during the pandemic.
Via the Progressive Populist.
(Broken link fixed.)