America Needs A Raise

Here’s a quick way for a raise: a tax cut. That is taking a large bite out of what people earn.

As for the rest of “getting a raise”, it needs to be earned. You shouldn’t just get it by asking. This is not the land of milk and honey where manna falls from the sky.

“The study also found that 27% of the workforce is in a job that pays poorly and offers neither health insurance or a pension. “

Perhaps it is time for this 27% to work harder ir upgrade their skills. Then their work will be worth more. As for jobs “not offering health insurance”, this is a manufactured non-scandal. Nearly 100% of jobs do not offer food insurance or housing insurance. What, demand these next?

Thanks Wal-Mart Watch for this interesting report. According to this report, you are telling me how good my job at Wal-Mart is, something I never thought WMWatch would do. I’ve always thought it was a good place to work and now you’re telling everyone else that too.

The report defines a “good job” as the following:

Pays at least $16 an hour
Provides health insurance, part of which is paid by the employer
Provides a pension plan

My job at Wal-Mart meets all of those requirements plus many more benefits that they don’t mention in the report.
Thanks again Wal-Mart Watch!

Know what else? Look at this claim in the report “found that between 1979 and 2004 the share of American workers in good jobs remained unchanged at about 25 percent”

I wonder if they will remember this when they claim that all the good factory jobs became bad Wal-Mart jobs during this period, or that the middle class is vanishing, or that free trade has destroyed the American working class.

Before and after the time of free trade and WM’s explosive growth, guess what? The job picture remains the same.

Between 1979 and 2005, the manufacturing sector in this country shed millions of jobs, mostly in steel, auto, textile and general manufacturing. Productivity increased rapidly and our economy has continued to enjoy record growth. How can we lose MILLIONS of high-paying union jobs over the last quarter of a century and, still, the percentage of “good” jobs remains the same? The answer is that private enterprise, the “evil” corporations, has created MILLIONS of new jobs to replace the lost jobs. We don’t lose jobs in this country in the sense that there is an overall net loss of jobs. Rather, the jobs are transferred from one field to the next so that the same amount of jobs are usually available.

If you don’t believe there are more jobs than workers to fill them, why do we have 11 million illegal immigrants willing to risk their lives to come here and work those jobs?

This discussion kind of puts Wal-Mart Watch out of business. The argument people on this board most often fall back on is that Wal-Mart is sending our good jobs to China. It’s a bunch of crap but some morons believe that. Our workforce has grown considerably since 1979, meaning that if the percentage of “good” jobs remained at 25%, we’ve actually seen a net increase in overall jobs at that level. If this is the case, how can Wal-Mart Watch blame Wal-Mart for job losses that do not happen?

The jobs are still here. You just have to be willing to go after them. Wal-Mart would not be to blame if we were losing jobs but now that the numbers prove we actually GAINED jobs, will Wal-Mart get the credit?

Apparently the readers above can’t read between the lines.  The report is basically saying that, while America’s economy has grown by leaps and bounds, the quality of jobs has not.  So what if the economy can replace good jobs that it shouldn’t have lost in the first place.  If they hadn’t been lost, wouldn’t the good job percentage have been higher?  So instead of a lot of people having good jobs and spending or investing that money in a consumer-driven economy, they get shipped overseas and the profits get redirected to those that are lucky to have a retirement plan or rich already.  The rich are getting richer and and the poor are still poor.  Yay status quo!

Or, perhaps like ND, can’t read:

“Perhaps it is time for this 27% to work harder ir upgrade their skills.”

Perhaps ND should should return to page 12 paragraph 2:

“Third, on average, workers’ “human capital”
—their broadly measured skills— is today
much higher than it was in 1979.”

And Sherri, after personally working for the neo-slave employer Wal-Mart overnight (which had a premium) for 4 years, if you’re making $16/hr, you are decidedly in the minority.

This posting is in response to the earlier posts by Sherri, ND, and Nick. I take umbrage with their statements.  In regards to Nick’s post-when you take into account the growth in our economy, there is no way that the number of ‘good’ paying jobs should have remained the same over the last 26+years. As for your contention that lots of illegal immigrants=lots of jobs, I am not arguing that jobs have not been created. The problem is that it’s an issue of quality rather than quantity.  With respect to ND’s proposed ‘tax cuts’, where should the money come from to facilitate them? Secondly, you say that the 27% of workers in ‘bad jobs’ need to ‘upgrade’ their skills. Well, if a company has 2 vacancies to fill and 17 applicants (with college degrees) apply for the same job, that drives the wage the company is willing to pay down. Why pay Peter $32K a year, if you can pay Paul $28K? The problem is not solely an issue of skilled workers vs. non-skilled workers. Many factors play a role in the disparity in incomes, namely again, that jobs in the service based industries (i.e., jobs at Wal-Mart and other retailers) pay significantly less than those lost in the manufacturing industry. According to a report from the Economic Policy Institute, since 1978 higher-paying union jobs have decreased by 18%, and when you compare today’s minimum wage with that of 1978’s and adjust for inflation, the wage earner in 1978 MADE MORE $. You should also consider that in 1979, the average CEO made 27x the salary of their average worker, and today’s CEO’s make roughly 107X the salary of their average worker.  As for the reports claim that today’s worker and 1979’s worker are in pretty much the same boat, that isn’t true. If you read further into the report, you’ll find that there was a 60% growth in the economy, and that the number of workers in ‘good jobs’ should go up, not remain the same. As for the comments made by Sherri, are you saying that because you have a ‘good’ job at Wal-Mart, that Wal-Mart is a good company to work for? I think given the fact that Wal-mart is the world’s largest privately owned company; they could afford to pay their employees more. More than one-third of Wal-Mart’s employees are cashiers and sales associates. According to the UFCW, they earn roughly $8.00 and $8.50 an hour respectively, typically work 34 hours per week (instead of the traditional 40), and have to spend one-fifth of their paycheck on health benefits. So, let’s do the math: $8.50 an hour x 34 hrs. per week=$289 per week. $289.00 x 52 wks=$15,028 yearly. How can anyone pay for health insurance, tax deductions, shelter, food, clothing, utilities, etc. on so little money? Would you be saying that Wal-mart is a good place to work if you made less than $16K a year? Probably not. I don’t know the specifics of your work history with Wal-mart, for all I know; you could have been a sales associate/cashier and worked your way up. If that is the case, TERRIFIC! I’m willing to bet though, that you’ve never had to support yourself on such meager earnings. I gathered from your, ND’s, and Nick’s posts, that you all seem to feel that the reason people hold low-wage jobs is because they lack the ambition to pull themselves up by their proverbial bootstraps. To a certain extent, I would have to agree with you. It’s not as though there is a crazy person randomly pulling people off the street, and making them apply for jobs at Wal-mart. However, someone has to hold those jobs. Is it entirely unreasonable of them to ask for affordable healthcare coverage and enough money to pay their bills? I don’t think so. I agree with Nick’s underlying message that ‘evil’ corporations are not to blame for the state of the American worker-AMERICA IS. Let’s face it, the reason that Wal-Mart (and companies with similar practices) do business the way they do, is because they can. I read somewhere that Wal-mart could increase the hourly wage of all workers by one dollar, simply by charging ONE PENNY more for all of their items. I don’t know about the rest of America, but I think could spare some change…

Christy,

Thank you for your post. I do feel, however, that you are speaking with your heart and not your head. That is, emotion rather than logic. You mentioned the loss of manufacturing jobs-they’ve been replaced. You see, in 1978, there were very few software engineering jobs, no web development jobs, no tech support jobs, no internet sites, no networking engineers, no Yahoo, Amazon, AOL, Ebay, Google or Cisco. Microsoft was a tiny company with few employees, as was Apple. Oracle and Sun were not around and Dell did not exist. Today, these companies have created hundreds of thousands of jobs, hundreds of billions in stock market wealth and many billions in profits and productivity savings. A whole industry sprang up around computers, then software then the internet. It will be with us always. These things did not exist in 1979. Are you saying that the loss of 500,000 manufacturing jobs was not worth the creation of 500,000 IT jobs? Yes, it would be nice if everyone could have a cushy job and make lots of money. But that is not reality. You have to earn it and yes, most people who are poor are poor through their own fault. There are unfortunate cases of people falling through the cracks. These sadden me. But the great majority of poor people choose to be poor. Of course, in the US, the “poor” pay no taxes and contribute nothing, yet they live better than the middle class in Europe and Asia.

Christy, you ask “is it entirely unreasonable of them to ask for affordable health coverage and enough money to pay their bills”? Yes, it is unreasonable. People should not be paid according to their needs. They should be paid according to their abilities and contributions. If you paid everyone on the basis of need, there would be no money left for anyone. Since when did an employer become your parent? Employers are not responsible for your personal problems or bills. Many employers do offer benefits as a way to attract and retain talent. That is the only reason. If people were equally willing to work and equally happy, an employer would have no motivation to offer benefits. Your employer is only responsible for obeying the law and paying you a minimum of $5.15 per hour. Do you know why people are opposed to the capitalist idea of success? Because they would have to make a serious effort to get ahead, instead of coasting along and getting a large paycheck. People are lazy by nature. Few people really care to make the effort it takes to better themselves. If you want to get ahead in this country and you are poor and have no athletic ability, you can still get ahead. Study hard, go to school, learn, work, go to college and grad school. Become a doctor or an engineer. The point is, YOU have to make the effort. Wal-Mart, or any other employer, is not responsible for your happiness or your health insurance or your car payment or your mortgage or your kids’ college fund or your vacation fund. Your employer offers a wage. You accept. You work. Your employer pays you. It is a simple transaction, nothing more.

I do look forward to your response. Thank you.

John in KC,

I have worked for Wal-Mart for 17 years and I know there are other associates in our store who have been there that long who are also making what I make. When our store first opened 17 years ago, we started at $3.80 an hour, which was slightly higher than min. wage at that time. It’s taken a long time to get where we are, but it shows if you work hard and prove you are a committed, dependable employee, they will reward you to keep you around. I show up on time every day, know what’s expected of me and get my job done.
Christy,
Yes, I am saying that Wal-Mart is a good company to work for. I wouldn’t have stayed there for 17 years if I didn’t think that.  Our store has many associates who have been there since we opened and they feel the same way. I admit, working retail is not for everyone, but if you enjoy it ,Wal-Mart is a good place to work. If you don’t, then go work somewhere else. Nobody forces us to work there.

John in KC,

I’ve worked for Wal-Mart for 17 years next month.  I’m making over $18 an hour.  I love my job and all my benefits.  I get along great with my management team, and with the District Manager.  I started out at $4.25 an hour and I lived on that.  I rented an apartment, owned a car and paid my own utilities and food.  I had the WM insurance too.  I was still able to set money aside and save.  Each time I received my raise I saved.  I started out working in the UPC office. I worked in invoicing, cash office and on the floor in electronics.  Now I’m Lead Cash Office.  Of course now I have a nicer home, a nicer car and am able to afford more.  You can’t work as a night stocker or unloader for only 4 years and exepect to be making alot.  I wasn’t making that much after only 4 years.  I can’t remember back then, but if I had gotten 4 annual raises I was probably at $6 an hour by then.  By the way, I never used welfare or any other type of assistance.

Kim,

I think you’re a Wal-Mart operative assigned to blog how wonderful your boss is and tar Wal-Mart Watch.

Its amazingly consistent.  As soon as someone starts talking like they are half way intelligent and likes Walmart, they are accused of being paid to promote Walmart in this forum.

As a correlary.  Many of those most critical of Walmart are incapable of writing a complete sentence.

There has to be a lesson there somewhere.

Jeb,

I’m sorry you think that way.  I’m only trying to tell you all the truth from first hand experience.  I’ve never been to Bentonville.  I’ve worked in my one store since it opened back in 1988.  Why is it so hard to beleive, if 1.6 million people work for Wal-Mart, that maybe it’s not what the unions make it out to be? 

H.O.  installed Computers for people to apply for jobs on back in Nov 2003.  And since then, in 1 year and 10 months over 7,000,000 people have applied for a job.

Christy - “With respect to ND’s proposed ‘tax cuts’, where should the money come from to facilitate them? “

The money comes from tax cuts. When the government robs less from us, we have more to keep.

Christy - “Why pay Peter $32K a year, if you can pay Paul $28K? The problem is not solely an issue of skilled workers vs. non-skilled workers.”

You are right. It is an issue of workers being paid the worth of their skills. Why pay Peter more? If he is a better worker.

Christy - “You should also consider that in 1979, the average CEO made 27x the salary of their average worker, ...”

Why even bother to consider this? Some jobs are worth a lot more than others. It is really only the business of those who decide to pay their wage.

Christy - “I think given the fact that Wal-mart is the world’s largest privately owned company; they could afford to pay their employees more”

Not really. There would be “costs” if they were forced to pay more than the real value of the work. Greatly diminished service, big layoffs at first to pay for the raises, and massive layoffs down the road when the threadbare company with overpriced goods begins to die. Look at General Motors, with its wrench-heads paid $50 an hour for $8 an hour work. The chickens are coming home to roost on that one. That sort of situation is not sustainable.

Christy - “ gathered from your, ND’s, and Nick’s posts, that you all seem to feel that the reason people hold low-wage jobs is because they lack the ambition to pull themselves up by their proverbial bootstraps”

The bigger reason is that their work is not just worth more money. Maybe they just have poor skills. The vast majority who hold low-wage jobs know they are getting a fair deal. There are, however, some whiners who want to be paid high-wages for low work.

Christy - “ How can anyone pay for health insurance, tax deductions, shelter, food, clothing, utilities, etc. on so little money? “

Only a moron would do this. Only the morons who make BAD CHOICES whine about it. You’d be amazed at how much more you can get out of “so little money” if you decide to share housing expenses (roommate) or not waste money on things. A shared household with two of these “wks=$15,028 “ earners ends up with more than $30,000.

Christy - “Is it entirely unreasonable of them to ask for affordable healthcare coverage and enough money to pay their bills? “

Yes, it is entirely unreasonable, unless they actually earn it. What next: full health care plans for the paperboy?

Christy - “Let’s face it, the reason that Wal-Mart (and companies with similar practices) do business the way they do, is because they can. “

Not ‘because they can”, but because almost all of WM’s workers and almost all of WM’s employees like what WM does.

----------------

The main point of this news item, repeatedly overlooked, that a situation of 25% good jobs in 1979 and 25% good jobs in 2004 means an increase of MILLIONS OF GOOD JOBS DURING THE WAL-MART ERA, due to the population increase which has occured over this 25 year period.

Kim,
just ignore jeb and his comments. If you follow his logic, then he must be the UFCW rep for PA since all he does is praise the unions whenever he gets a chance.I have been working for wal-mart for going on 8 years and quite happy with how my employment is going. I’m not going to say its a unbelievably great job, but they treat me with respect and pay me a wage I’m satisfied with. I also have good health care benefits and a 401k. No job is perfect, but I am quite happy where I’m at.
By the way, did anyone see the article in the press just recently showing that different democrat campaigns were buying their supplies at wal-mart,even though they preach so much against them. When asked about it, most of them responded that it was a mistake by their campaign staffs. Isn’t it funny that the democratic party is allowed to save money when it comes to buying supplies, but the people they represent can’t. This just proves that they are all hot air and will say whatever it takes to keep the unions dollars flowing to their campaigns....

Hey all you WM employees, this is being written all over the net and from my source is very accurate, if you don’t beleive me ask your manager tomorrow.  So come back after the first of the year and tell use what you think of WM then.

“After January 1st, 2006 there are going to be several changes taking place thru out all Walmarts.
He noted there will be drastic cuts across the board and very severe schedule changes.
New titles and postions with more responsibilites yet no changes in pay.
District Managers, Department Managers, Stockers, and
Loss Prevention will all be cut back.
The department manager will then be called a merchandise manager.
Most of them will have three departments...like the old zone managers.
Department Managers will no longer have every weekend off. They will have 2 weekends off a month with schedules as follows....
Schedules are 8-5, 8-5, 10-7, 1-10, 1-10 each week and only two weekends a month are off.
Each super center is supposed to be staffed with 30 stockers on each shift for the entire store.
All stockers will go where they are assigned when they come in. They do not belong or work in the same departments on a regular basis. You may get one, then again you may not.
District Managers are going to be cut nearly in half, those wanting to keep working for Walmart will need to reapply for thier position, as if they never worked for Walmart before. Those wanting to take a severance package may; it consist of “one weeks pay per year worked.”
All employees will be part time or on demand
Any new stores that opens before the begining of 2006 will start out with these new policies.”

Gee Nick,

So where is this info coming from that’s “all over the net”?
This info was also posted last week by Steven, and I asked him for a web site where he found it but he did not answer me. Maybe you will answer me since your source is very accurate. There is a new store in our district opening in Jan and they will be starting with the new positions and schedules
similar to what you described. We have also been told about the district managers having to re-apply for their jobs. I know my sources are accurate because I was told by the people who are directly affected by the changes themselves.
Can you say the same for your source?

Hi guys I am a receiving associate for a Wal Mart store in Tennessee.  I like the workout I get and I get along fine with the managers.

A year and a half ago I started working for $7 an hour and today I make $8.65 an hour. When you see the difference between how much Lee Scott is paid and the amount I am paid plus the fact that the department is understaffed don’t you think I deserve more.

Bert,

I don’t think that is a good example of why you deserve a raise Bert.  Unloading trucks is a very physical job, but just about anyone can do it.  Not just anyone can fill Lee Scott’s shoes on the other hand.  I"m sure you work your butt off, and you probably do deserve a raise.  Hey, have you asked for one?  I do know one thing, they sure won’t just give you a merit, you have to ask for it.  It can’t hurt to try now can it?  Good luck.

There is a reason why Lee Scott earns $5 million per year and you earn $8.65 an hour, Bert. First, Mr. Scott has been with Wal-Mart in an executive capacity for more than 20 years. Second, he has been CEO for nearly 5 years. Third, he is CEO of the world’s largest company. Fourth, someone at Wal-Mart believes Mr. Scott is worth $5 million and you are worth $8.65 an hour.

Considering the work he does, the company he manages, the conflict he has had to deal with and the good job he has done, Mr. Scott is probably underpaid.

He is #9 in believe in terms of compensation among retail industry executives. (Target’s CEO made more than $26 million last year for managing revenues of less than 1/4 of Wal-Mart’s).

Wal Mart Believes I am olny worth $8.65 an hour because they are too obsessed with the dollar.

Sherri why so hostile?  You question the creditability of the info I posted and then you validated it, who cares who my sources is as long as they are accurate!  As for the web sites just check any forum that is anti WM, I would love to see WM’s site that is so truthful post this info.

Anyone who thinks anyone can unload trucks should do it for a week.

Bart,

I respect the fact that you work hard. That is a physically demanding job. Not everyone can do it but apparently there are enough people who can and will do it for less than $9/hr. It is a market mechanism. If you were a neurosurgeon you would probably be making $500,000/yr. Why? Because to become a neurosurgeon, you have to go through more than a decade of schooling and training AFTER college. Because it requires special skill. And because there are more positions available than there are available neurosurgeons to fill them. No disrespect mean to you or your co-workers but Wal-Mart could replace you tomorrow. If a group of neurosurgeons walks off their job, they would be a bit harder to replace due to scarcity and supply/demand factors.

As for being too focused on the dollar, what’s wrong with that? Isn’t money your first concern if you work? Of course, many people like their jobs and some say they would work for free but at the end of the day you have bills to pay and you have to take care of yourself. If you are complaining about your wage, and perhaps you have a legitimate complaint, aren’t you focusing on the dollar? Nothing wrong with that, say I. Get what you can. Earn as much as you can because it can never be too much.

“You’re gonna be rich, Buddy boy, and I’m not talking about some working Wall Street stiff making $400,000 a year, flying first class and living comfortable. I’m talking about LIQUID. Rich enough to have your own jet. Rich enough to not waste time. $50-$100 million dollars, Buddy. A player-or nothing.”

I unloaded trucks for a former employer for over 3 years.  Not such a hard job.  Before I started at walmart, I worked for TG&Y;stores for 3 years and I was making 3.85 an hour when I left there.  We did it all by hand, no pallets or pallet jacks.  I had no benefits either.

Kim said “I worked for TG&Y;stores for 3 years and I was making 3.85 an hour when I left there.  We did it all by hand, no pallets or pallet jacks”

Were you satisfied with low pay for a job of low worth? Or did you tear up your guts in greed and jealousy and whine because someone with better skills made more than you did?

Bert: “Wal Mart Believes I am olny worth $8.65 an hour because they are too obsessed with the dollar. “

I wonder who is obsessed with the dollar here. Bert, you show evidence of it.

That’s not true. Talk about being obsessed. Sounds like you have a one sided view of the world.

I checked around town recently and I found a few stores that will pay more starting out than Wal Mart

Wow.  You found stores that pay more than Walmart for starting jobs.  I have no doubt that Walmart will now lose all of their employees.

Dear Nick in Wheeling,
You wrote in your response to my posting that you felt I was speaking with my heart rather my head. That’s funny; I thought I did a pretty good job of being factual rather than emotional.  When I lamented the loss of the manufacturing jobs, your rebuttal was that they had been replaced with jobs in the IT industry. You then went on to say that those jobs would ‘always be with us’. I was watching ‘Lou Dobbs Tonight’, and he brought up the issue of HB1 visas. I have also heard them referred to as H1-B visas; I am not sure which is correct.  For the remainder of this post, I’ll call them HB-1 to avoid confusion.
You may already know what an HB1 visa is, but I will assume that some of the readers of this post may not, and will attempt to elaborate.  An HB1 visa allows professional-level immigrants U.S entry, if a U.S. company sponsors them.  These visas are good for up to 6 years, and unlike some other visas, allow the holder to apply for permanent residency.  If I remember correctly, Mr. Dobbs reported that 30K of the 72K visas issued last year were HB1’s, and they were for companies in the Internet Technology industry.  If that’s true, I think it’s only a matter of time before many of the jobs created in the I.T. field are lost.  In the interest of evenhandedness, I also read on a website that U.S. companies are required to verify that the HB1 visa worker is paid the prevailing wage for the work they perform, and that employment of a foreign worker is not harming conditions for US workers. Something about this doesn’t make sense to me.  Why hire a foreign worker, if you are paying them as much as you would an American? How does an employer ‘verify’ that they are not harming conditions for U.S. workers by hiring foreigners?  What factors are coming into play? Something’s goin’ on.
Now on to some other topics I would like to address.  I got the impression from your response that you think I am not a fan of capitalism, that I believe employers are responsible for the personal happiness of their employees, and that providing someone with ‘enough money to pay their bills’ means paying them, in your words-‘according to their needs’. Not true.  I think capitalism and self-determination are what enable people to work their way up the ladder, and what makes America, America.  As for personal happiness, I don’t think I saw any of that in my company cafeteria, but I’ll check again tomorrow.  On the issue of ‘paying someone enough money to pay their bills’, let me clarify: To me, that means trying to keep people above the poverty line, not keeping them in the lifestyle to which they want to become accustomed.  I would also like to address something else in little ‘rant’ of mine.  From my perspective, a number of people who have posted messages on this board, seem to regard those in the lower income brackets with disdain and resentment. They seem to feel as though everyone in a low-paying job has somehow brought it upon themselves, and is looking for someone to blame.  I think that’s oversimplifying the situation, and making unfair generalizations.  I posted my initial message because I felt that we, as Americans, are more apathetic and less socially responsible than we used to be, and that American corporations seem to be taking advantage of the situation. I fear if that doesn’t change, we’re in serious trouble.

Christy,

The reason there are so many H1-B visas issued to foreigners is very simple: there aren’t enough educated Americans to fill certain positions. Opportunities for Americans are being chipped away at both ends. Illegal immigrants on the bottom take the low-paying jobs Americans don’t want. Legal immigrants and those on work visas take the jobs at the top because not enough Americans are qualified to fill them. Look at any phone book under “physicians” and you will see that a great many come from India, China, Japan or Africa. Let me tell you why things are the way they are.

Our public school system, which is unconstitutional, has failed. Years of wasted money, militant teacher’s unions, poor parenting and declining social standards have led us to this point. The only way to save education in this country is to allow for a limited voucher program that can be used for private and/or religious schools. Parents should get more involved in education, including financing. Teachers should work year round, be highly qualified and have actually worked in their field in the real world. Students should be disciplined. Students should have to achieve some basic level of skill.  We need to focus more on Math, Science, Proper Grammar, Speaking skills, writing skills, foreign language skills and proper US and World History. The rest of that crap, ie. Voc-Tech, Basket Weaving, Home Economics, does not belong in school. Our students need to be challenged and they need to understand that they are not special, the world does not owe them a living and that they will get nowhere in life without effort. Those who refuse to conform should be ridiculed. We need to get our students in school nearly year round and we need to push them. The days of crop harvesting are over. There is no valid reason to give students and teachers the summer off. If teachers want to be treated like professionals, they should work year round like professionals.

Lack of discipline, poor parenting, loose morals, declining social standards, the liberal movement and lack of respect for property rights have led this country down the path of darkness. Discipline, education, respect, morality, social skills, kindness and property rights will set us on the path to salvation.

Hopefully, I was able to explain the immigrant issue to you, Christy. Sorry it took me so long.

“Lack of discipline, poor parenting, loose morals, declining social standards, the liberal movement and lack of respect for property rights have led this country down the path of darkness. Discipline, education, respect, morality, social skills, kindness and property rights will set us on the path to salvation.”

WOW, Nick how can you sit there and say if society would just do these things all would be fine?

Surprise; I agree with you.  But, on the other hand you give Corporate America a free ride by saying they shouldn’t have to practice these very same values because their only responsibility is to make money.  I would say that your thinking may be a bit flawed or at the very least contradicting, don’t you think?

New Walmart Campaign:

“A Place for Everyone.”

Nick I still dislike you - because not for the intelligent posts - but the duplicitous posts.

Intelligence and honesty (numbers aside) counts for more.

That aside - I got my new employee handbook (didn’t read), but everything I needed to know was on the wire.

OK with that.

The first sentence - a gift.

Christy - The only problem with the H1-B program is that it is too restrictive. If someone can do a job better than someone else, let them.

You said “If that’s true, I think it’s only a matter of time before many of the jobs created in the I.T. field are lost”

Lost? Lost to whom? People of the wrong skin color who eat funny food and have funny accents?

As mentioned before, the Lou Dobbs show only encourages racist jingoism. He really hates it when workers who can do the job better happen to be “dirty foreigners”. Every time I watch him, I get an unpleasant urge to beat up a Japanese person in order to strike a blow for the American auto industry.