Category Archives: Business/Economics

Business/Economics, Idaho, International, Opinion, U.S.

Europeans Strike! Who Cares About Terrorism?

Europeans were told that a Mumbai style terrorist attack in Europe was foiled, do they care? Hell no! Why? Because, according to strikers in Latvia, people are dying because of the drastic measures undertaken by their government to deal with their crashing economy. In other words, Europeans are more afraid of their governments than random terrorists.

Today, people in France, Spain, Belgium, Ireland, Greece and several other countries not mentioned in U.S. media, went on strike. What happened to the economic recovery? A former European Union commissioner is quoted as saying “The party is over…”. European governments want even more drastic belt tightening, increasing the burden of paying for the partying of political and business leaders upon the average European taxpayer. No wounder Europeans are outraged.

Is this a sign of pending doom for the U.S. recovery? The same caca del toro is happening with our leadership here in the U.S. Where are the mass strikes? Are we so afraid of our leadership that we’d rather continue playing along with their war on terror game?

The real terrorism is being waged on the average U.S. worker, by corporate America and their puppets; our political leaders. Let me give you an example: When my son was 17 he got a job working for a movie theater here on the east side of Idaho. His first two weeks he put in 90 hours. We though he was going to get overtime pay, nope, not under the Fair Labor Standards Act. According to the Idaho Department of Labor, movie theater employees are number 5 on the list of jobs exempted from overtime pay.

We also learned that Idaho employers do not have to provide breaks under Idaho state law. My son was told that he would be fired if he was caught taking a break or eating, even when he worked 8-9 hour shifts. Here is what Idaho says: “IDAHO LAW DOES NOT REQUIRE
1. vacation, holiday, severance or sick pay;
2. a discharge notice or a reason for discharge;
3. rest periods, breaks, lunch breaks, holidays
off or vacations;
4. premium pay rates for weekends or holidays
worked;
5. pay raises or fringe benefits; or
6. a limit on the number of hours an employee
can work per day or week for employees 16
years of age or older.”

Visit labor.idaho.gov

Wake up America!

Business/Economics, International

Lowe’s Defective Drywall, China Strikes Again

Anyone who bought drywall from Lowe’s prior to July 27, 2010, and it was defective causing damage or injury, could collect a settlement payment.

Lowe’s has made a settlement offer in a lawsuit, that will be heard for approval by a Georgia Superior Court on November 19th.

Faulty drywall can emit sulfur gas, which can damage electrical wiring, or anything using copper like air conditioner coils, as well as make you sick. Copper items might require replacing, as well as the drywall. Some cases involve homeowners who rebuilt their homes after damage by Hurricane Katrina. It seems most of the drywall came from China.

The bad drywall wasn’t sold just by Lowe’s. A local supplier in Florida was successfully sued, for the same issue, bad drywall from China.

Lowe’s settlement offer is in the form of gift cards ranging from $50.00 to $2,000.00. For cases with more than $2,000.00 in damage Lowe’s will add up to $2,500.00 in cash. Anyone who thinks they are entitled should visit www.drywallsettlement.info. Be advised there is a lawsuit in Louisiana that is targeting the Chinese manufacturer of the drywall, and attorneys in that case have challenged the Georgia/Lowe’s settlement.

A warning to building contractors; some legal sources say contractors could be sued for using the defective Chinese drywall. The most common, and obvious, sign of the bad drywall is the sulfur smell, which is like rotten eggs.

Business/Economics, U.S.

LED street lights for Arlington County, VA

Over the next 6 years, Arlington County, Virginia, is planning to replace all 4,200 high pressure sodium (HPS) street lights owned by the county with LED street lights. Spending approximately $1.5 million just in 2010 to replace 1,800 fixtures with LED technology.

However, Dominion Power owns 12,000 street lights in Arlington County. The county is discussing with Dominion Power about working together to replace all 16,200 street lights with LED technology over the next decade. This will result in an estimated a $1 million per year savings once the project is complete.

“We anticipate reducing our total streetlight energy costs by nearly 50%, and when we successfully convert all 16,000 streetlights, we will be saving about $1 million per year.” Chief of Transportation Wayne Wentz, Arlington County.

from www.newstreetlights.com

Arlington County, VA, isn’t the only one switching to LED street lighting. Los Angeles, CA, Seattle, WA, and Pittsburgh, PA, are just a few of the many cities planning to convert to the new lighting.

LED street lighting emits a whitter and brighter light, which studies suggest may decrease or displace crime in the better lit areas. Some argue the bluer light has a calming effect as opposed to the harsher orange-yellow HDS street lights. However, some argue that it may increase crime due to the increased visibility.

Reasons for opposition include; glare, light pollution, light trespass, operations to upgrade lighting being disruptive, officials attempting to disrupt livelihood. Opposition can also come from nearby neighborhoods in the form of jealousy or concern for displacement of crime to their neighborhood. Opposition in business districts can be similar.

from U.S. Department of Justice – Improving Street Lighting to Reduce Crime in Residential Areas