Working Life

I’m a little disappointed that House Democrats have apparently caved into the demand that, in order to get a minimum wage hike, business has to get tax breaks. Is there any piece of economic legislation that we can pass in this day and age that does not have a tax break in it? Please. Here’s […]

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I tried to listen in on the webcast of the press conference unveiling the new labor-business health care coalition but it was impossible. So, here’s what I know from written materials: The founding members of the “Better Health Care Together” campaign include AT&T, the Howard H. Baker, Jr. Center for Public Policy, the Center for […]

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This is happening today. I don’t know more than what is in this release but will report when more becomes known. WAL-MART, SEIU, CENTER FOR AMERICAN PROGRESS, HOWARD H. BAKER JR. CENTER, KELLY SERVICES, CWA, AT&T, INTEL, AND COMMITTEE FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT TO ANNOUNCE MAJOR HEALTH CARE CAMPAIGN Wal-Mart, the Service Employees International Union, the […]

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Eve since I can remember, there has been a debate about money that we spend for “defense” versus money that is spent for domestic needs–the classic “guns v. butter” issue. Frankly, most of the labor movement has not played a great role in that debate, either because of a sense of patriotism or, more likely, […]

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I just want to point out to the people who criticized my Super Bowl prediction–though, admittedly, I don’t consider myself a football expert–that I came within a touchdown and a two-point conversion from nailing the exact score and got the Bears’ point total precisely. No, I was too dumb not to bet on that one… […]

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I think I’ve mentioned this before that Gretchen Morgenson is one of the consistently rare New York Times reporters who breaks ground and is a damn good reporter. She believes in capitalism but is appalled by the obscene greed of the CEO class. Virtually every column she writes each week in the Sunday Times Biz […]

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Now, you’all now that football is not my sport (thank god catchers and pitchers are getting back into action…sports begins with the crack of the bat). So, with that in mind: COLTS DEFEAT BEARS: 37-17 This is all dependent on the Colts stopping the Bears’ running game–and making Grossman throw the ball. Plus, I like […]

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This is worth a chuckle. Today’s article in The New York Times on the clear threat of global warming as two paragraphs that are quite amusing and jarring. First…: At the same time, Secretary of Energy Samuel Bodman rejected the idea of unilateral limits on emissions. “We are a small contributor to the overall, when […]

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The New York Times editorial writers will never get it when it comes to trade (I’m not even going to mention how wrong Tom Friedman is on this issue…I’ve flogged his nonsense enough so I’ll pass today). Today, the Times has a lead editorial entitled “A Bipartisan Trade Policy.” Ah, yes, I knew it was […]

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Molly Ivins died yesterday. I’m not sure I can say anything original about what a terrible loss this is (here’s the AP story). Her loss is so big, in large part, because she exposed, with her regular writing, how weak and subservient the mainstream media is. Ivins told the truth, and with humor. Here’s a […]

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