Love those great old Scifi movie posters!
Sunday, February 13, 2005
Thursday, February 03, 2005
Education, Work and Crime
Young people hear so much about the value of education and “stay in school” admonitions that they surely get bored by it. And those most in need are most likely to ignore or defy such advice. If I were advising young people I would use a different approach.
I would ask my young audience (I am thinking Junior High to young adult) “what can you do?” What knowledge or skill do you have that anyone would pay wages for? This is a tough question and is perhaps unfair for the youngest but nonetheless it gets at the heart of the matter. University is not the answer for everyone. For many, a skilled trade learned through training or on the job would be better. Good mechanics with documented training credit can make good momey. There is always demand for HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning)technicians who are certified.
I would also ask “can you show up?”. A frequent complaint of employers is that workers cannot get out of bed and get to work on time or at all. It seems a basic enough ability but this is a widespread problem especially in low pay and part time work. A person who is reliable and has a work ethic is a valued employee and is worth training.
Related to this subject is your desired standard of living. Today in the USA basic needs are met for most people even if they do not work. The issue becomes wants...nice car, nice house, nice clothes, vacations, entertainment, etc. So I would say to young people that if you can forgo “wants” then you will not need training, education or a work ethic. But, quoting Shakespeare , “Aye, there’s the rub.” If you want, want ,want then prepare to work, work, work.
There is an alternative to work and it is called Crime. For people who can’t show up, refuse to be trained or educated, have no work ethic and still have “wants” there is this path. From earliest times when it was perceived that one can steal a crop rather than grow it, crime has been part of humanity. When the number of criminals becomes large relative to the number of workers society collapses into chaos and ruin. This includes the purse snatcher and the CEO who is stealing the company assets. A study was published back in the 1970’s that showed that if the number of dishonest workers and businesses approached 20% of the total our country could not function.
I would ask my young audience (I am thinking Junior High to young adult) “what can you do?” What knowledge or skill do you have that anyone would pay wages for? This is a tough question and is perhaps unfair for the youngest but nonetheless it gets at the heart of the matter. University is not the answer for everyone. For many, a skilled trade learned through training or on the job would be better. Good mechanics with documented training credit can make good momey. There is always demand for HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning)technicians who are certified.
I would also ask “can you show up?”. A frequent complaint of employers is that workers cannot get out of bed and get to work on time or at all. It seems a basic enough ability but this is a widespread problem especially in low pay and part time work. A person who is reliable and has a work ethic is a valued employee and is worth training.
Related to this subject is your desired standard of living. Today in the USA basic needs are met for most people even if they do not work. The issue becomes wants...nice car, nice house, nice clothes, vacations, entertainment, etc. So I would say to young people that if you can forgo “wants” then you will not need training, education or a work ethic. But, quoting Shakespeare , “Aye, there’s the rub.” If you want, want ,want then prepare to work, work, work.
There is an alternative to work and it is called Crime. For people who can’t show up, refuse to be trained or educated, have no work ethic and still have “wants” there is this path. From earliest times when it was perceived that one can steal a crop rather than grow it, crime has been part of humanity. When the number of criminals becomes large relative to the number of workers society collapses into chaos and ruin. This includes the purse snatcher and the CEO who is stealing the company assets. A study was published back in the 1970’s that showed that if the number of dishonest workers and businesses approached 20% of the total our country could not function.
Friday, January 16, 2004
Sci-fi movie analagous to war in Afghanistan:
The 1950’s movie “War of the Worlds” is one of my all time favorites. In one scene the scientist (Gene Barry) and a Marine colonel are in a bunker observing a pit where the Martian fighting machines are gathering and making preparations. The colonel tells Barry he has the Martians surrounded with our best weapons and we are ready to blast them off the earth if they make a move. A General from Washington who is there as an observer tells Barry that what happens here will be a pattern for the war.
The Martian machines start moving and appear to be floating above the ground. A local citizen points this out and says to Barry “Hey look, they’re flyin’ with no wings or anything. That ain‘t possible is it?” Barry replies “If they are doing it, it is.”
After a disastrous battle the Martians remain untouched while their mysterious heat rays completely destroy the Marines. During the rout, the bunker is in chaos and Barry grabs the General and shouts “General! You’ve got to get the word to Washington that this kind of defense is useless against that kind of power!” I wonder if a similar scene may have occurred in Afghanistan when high tech weapons were used by the U.S. against primitive opponents.
The 1950’s movie “War of the Worlds” is one of my all time favorites. In one scene the scientist (Gene Barry) and a Marine colonel are in a bunker observing a pit where the Martian fighting machines are gathering and making preparations. The colonel tells Barry he has the Martians surrounded with our best weapons and we are ready to blast them off the earth if they make a move. A General from Washington who is there as an observer tells Barry that what happens here will be a pattern for the war.
The Martian machines start moving and appear to be floating above the ground. A local citizen points this out and says to Barry “Hey look, they’re flyin’ with no wings or anything. That ain‘t possible is it?” Barry replies “If they are doing it, it is.”
After a disastrous battle the Martians remain untouched while their mysterious heat rays completely destroy the Marines. During the rout, the bunker is in chaos and Barry grabs the General and shouts “General! You’ve got to get the word to Washington that this kind of defense is useless against that kind of power!” I wonder if a similar scene may have occurred in Afghanistan when high tech weapons were used by the U.S. against primitive opponents.
What all this buzz about tax cuts favoring the rich?
Do you think federal income taxes unfairly favor the rich? Of course, what is fair is debatable but consider the following: Of the approximately 130 million taxpayers in this country about 48 million pay zero federal income tax. These are almost all low income persons. Is this fair? Another feature of our tax system is the Earned Income Tax Credit. If you qualify you can obtain up to $4,000 back from the IRS over and above any tax you paid. In other words, you can receive a net profit from the tax system. For fairness this credit requires that your income be low and all of it must come from wages. About 20 million returns qualify for this credit.
If your income is over $60,000 you are in the top 25% of taxpayers. This group pays 84% of the total income tax bill. This too is considered fair. Also note that a corporation will pay up to 35% tax on dividends given to shareholders. Shareholders then pay tax on this as personal income. A person in the 39% tax bracket would then see a total of 74% of the dividend go to the government.
Any across-the-board tax cut will have no benefit for people who already pay no taxes. Only persons who pay taxes will benefit. This seems fair to me but as we know, fairness is a very debatable issue.
Update 15Apr2005: According to Rush Limbaugh's website (http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/today.guest.html) 20% of taxpayers pay 80% of taxes and the top 50% pay 96% of the bill.
Do you think federal income taxes unfairly favor the rich? Of course, what is fair is debatable but consider the following: Of the approximately 130 million taxpayers in this country about 48 million pay zero federal income tax. These are almost all low income persons. Is this fair? Another feature of our tax system is the Earned Income Tax Credit. If you qualify you can obtain up to $4,000 back from the IRS over and above any tax you paid. In other words, you can receive a net profit from the tax system. For fairness this credit requires that your income be low and all of it must come from wages. About 20 million returns qualify for this credit.
If your income is over $60,000 you are in the top 25% of taxpayers. This group pays 84% of the total income tax bill. This too is considered fair. Also note that a corporation will pay up to 35% tax on dividends given to shareholders. Shareholders then pay tax on this as personal income. A person in the 39% tax bracket would then see a total of 74% of the dividend go to the government.
Any across-the-board tax cut will have no benefit for people who already pay no taxes. Only persons who pay taxes will benefit. This seems fair to me but as we know, fairness is a very debatable issue.
Update 15Apr2005: According to Rush Limbaugh's website (http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/today.guest.html) 20% of taxpayers pay 80% of taxes and the top 50% pay 96% of the bill.
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