Some very sad economy-related news yesterday:
LOS ANGELES — News Corp., the global media giant controlled by Rupert Murdoch, said Thursday it lost $6.4 billion in its most recent quarter….
The New York-based company, which owns The Wall Street Journal and the Fox broadcast network, also forecast a 30 percent drop in operating profits for the fiscal year to June from a year ago, when it earned $5.13 billion.
I know you all feel as sad as I do about that. I think it’s time to start calling for those overpaid blowhards like Bill O’Reilly and Sean Hannity to take pay cuts. If we can hold UAW workers up as examples of the types of greedy pigs that epitomize all that is wrong with this country, then I think Billy and Sean (and Brit, and Weaselface…) should be held to at least the same standards.
But, in the most important news of the week, Kellogg has dropped Michael Phelps. I think these people are missing a big opportunity. Imagine a red-eyed, giggling Phelps rushing into the kitchen and consuming a box full of Corn Flakes (right out the box, no milk).
“There’s nothing better than Corn Flakes when you come home with a case of the screamin’ munchies at 3 AM.”
And, after former White House hypocrite and liar Andy Card appeared on Inside Edition and chided Obama for having the audacity to take his jacket off while working in his office (“there should be a dress code of respect….I wish that [Obama] would wear a suit coat and tie”), the Huff Post has a photo of dubya in the Oval Office (with former squeeze Harriet Miers), not wearing a jacket. Oh, the shame.
Gotta head in early this morning to take care of some HR-type stuff. Have a good one.
Maybe in the spirit of bipartisanship they will declare Formal Fridays.
I think all that really was was (is is?) part of the total contempt that they had for the Clintons and anything they did, like the Mideast peace process. Didn’t Pickles re-do most of the WH to wipe out the stain of the tacky Arkansans? You know who else can be tacky?
LONE STAR STYLE D.C. Dynasty: Washington awaits the return of clan Bush
I think we should all write to Fox Noise to insist they cut O’Reilly’s and Hannity’s pay in the name of saving the station. In fact firing them would be best.
It doesn’t make me feel any better to know that they wore jackets while they destroyed the country. But, knowing them as we do, we’re probably lucky they didn’t wear diapers or S&M gear.
The country’s largest labor and Hispanic groups are ratcheting up the confirmation fight over Labor Secretary nominee Hilda Solis, preparing a full-out political and media blitz to get the California Democrat approved and into the Obama cabinet.
“Enough is enough, the gloves are coming off on Friday,” said one official with the AFL-CIO, outraged over the delays. “Labor, women’s groups, Hispanic groups are opening fire. We worked with Republicans in good faith. Hilda Solis has answered all their questions but they continue to oppose her for partisan ideological reasons.”
With Solis’s nomination stalled again on Thursday after revelations that her husband had just settled $6,400 in tax leins against his business, unions are no longer willing to hold their breath for the sake of fewer dramatics.
“Our full efforts are being mobilized to fight back,” the union official said. “Earned media and field campaign to generate calls, letters, and emails coming tomorrow. Depending on how things move paid media will be added on top of these efforts.”
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/02/06/labor-to-open-fire-over-s_n_164522.html
:banana: :banana:
Recession-battered employers eliminated 598,000 jobs in January, the most since the end of 1974, and catapulted the unemployment rate to 7.6 percent.
snip
The latest net total of job losses was far worse than the 524,000 that economists expected. Job reductions in November and December also were deeper than previously reported.
snip
All told, the economy has lost a staggering 3.6 million jobs since the recession began in December 2007. About half of this decline occurred in the past three months.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/02/06/employers-slash-nearly-60_n_164568.html
They saved that for the press room and Karl’s office. :spank:
typical gop, the country is going in the crapper and they’re worried about trivial and made-up issues. A jacket? For crissakes. This is like their stupid flag lapel pin brouhaha. Does the black man have no respect for the office – is that their take on things? The only time I can recall them ever taking a matter seriously was when there was a money bonanza at stake for their corporate cronies.
I also can’t recall an anchor taking a pay cut. News gathering folks are the ones that usually get hit. Kind of like the corporate directors get bonuses but the workers get fired.
Looks like it was bitter cold last night up pj and granny’s way.
Oh my. Best get my head around some positive stuff or I’ll shoot myself today. :sammy:
Rethugs always honor symbols over substance and every shallow thinker believes the easy image.
Forgive this ensuing, but brief rant:
The school system carefully teaches kids to memorize and regurgitate test prep crap. Thinking is not in the curriculum. Questioning takes too much time away from test prep. This keeps the brightest teachers and students from getting too influential.
You know, if the Jeff Gannon/Guckert thing was happening under the Obama administration, maybe we’d find out what really went on. We still don’t know that story. His connections to the White House, Plame, why he checked in to the White House and never out. I mean, what kind of security was this? Why do we not have answers. Talk about bizarro.
Isn’t that more important than a suit jacket?
re: #8, that’s pretty interesting, sp.
Wall Street bankers, with their $18 billion in bonuses, private jets and gaudy conferences, are causing headaches for the GOP.
President Obama has proposed capping compensation for executives at banks that take taxpayer bailout money at $500,000. Republicans hate the idea — a position puts them uncomfortably on the side of people currently about as popular as child-porn producers and subprime mortgage brokers.
Senate Minority Leader Jon Kyl (R-AZ) blamed the “tone deaf” bankers for creating the political environment that allows Obama to call for a cap.
“Because of their excesses, very bad things begin to happen, like the United States government telling a company what it can pay its employees. That’s not a good thing in America,” Kyl told the Huffington Post.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/02/06/gop-opposes-pay-limits-on_n_164544.html
Autoworkers are not employees? Or, were the Rethugs doing something bad for the country when they wanted them paid less?
According to Elizabeth Warren, Chair of the TARP Congressional Oversight Panel, Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson misled their investigation.
I’m shocked, as I’m sure you are:
I could not find a clean embed last night and I had thrown up enough already but the O’Bama speech in Wmsburg to the Dem Congress Critters was pretty great. We need more of this Barack.
I love the bitching about capping Wall St. executive pay when poor people who need welfare have to have their entire lives managed and judged.
Okay, I have a bit of a dilemma. My employer, who I met socially on a dating site, is trying to engage me in politics via email. Now, he’s pretty adamant about no politics at work. Fine, I have no desire to engage anyone at work in politics. I prefer email and blogs. But he sent me this letter to the editor right wing talking points thingy twice, now. I was going to ignore it but it’s obvious he wants to engage. It seems obvious now that he is not an Obama supporter and might be fairly right wing despite calling himself a hippy and being into healthy and environmental issues. We’re growing wheat grass for god’s sake! Do I engage him? Or ignore him? The nice thing about email is you can step away from your emotions before writing. I have a 30 day review coming up next week too.
KP, What have you gotten yourself into?
Ignore him and when confronted, suggest that you thought he was drunk at the time. That’s all I got because I have only had these kinds of problems (threats of violence, weird accusations, etc) when the other party was drunk.
On second thought, Maron would have an even better answer. I just don’t know what it would be.
Maybe I’ll ask Maron for advice, Web. He could make it a bit, like Liberal confessional. I think this guy thinks I’m more liberal than I really am. I think he’s fallen for right wing talking points like many and is really more liberal than he thinks.
KP, perhaps you should tell him that you are uncomfortable engaging in a political discussion with your employer, especially since there is a work rule against it. Engaging in politics with him can only be done outside of work and that would make you very uncomfortable at work.
Bosses are put on earth to make life difficult for employees.
re: #9
I have always been amazed that Jeff Gannon didn’t become a major scandal. Really, the Rethugs made Monica Lewinsky an impeachable offense and Gannon is relegated to back pages. How’d that happed?
Freedom for the Rat!
re: dating sites
I just saw this ad on my yahoo page.
http://content.yieldmanager.edgesuite.net/atoms/4c/26/13/86/4c261386c6333a2003283c07cbb3fd49.jpg
She’s hot, but wha’happen to her skin?