Tag Archives: idaho

Technology

“With such fast growth, we lost some focus…” : August 2016 U.S. TECH/COMMUNICATIONS LAYOFFS

More proof you brick-n-mortar store owners can’t directly blame the internet/high-tech competition for your demise. Incomplete list of U.S. internet/high-tech/communications job destruction announcements in August 2016:

California: San Francisco based internet ‘ride sharing service’ Uber lost $1.3-billion USD in the first half of 2016!  Uber pays its ‘contracted’ drivers a subsidy in order to keep ride fares low, and that’s supposedly what caused Uber’s massive loss. Uber now wants to shift to more dangerous driverless cars.  Digital comedy portal Funny or Die shutting down their San Mateo office and eliminating 37 tech jobs.    San Jose hit hard, starting with Cisco Systems which suddenly laid off 899 employees, as part of their new plan to eliminate 14-thousand jobs worldwide! Cisco administrators blame crashing sales of computer hardware.  Despite signing a contract to update San Jose city lights to L-E-D, Sweden based Ericsson issued a shutdown WARN for their San Jose operations, 435 jobs gone by Halloween!   Also in San Jose, computer chip maker Micrel issued a layoff WARN, 195 jobs gone by the end of September! San Jose based solar panel maker SunPower eliminated 1-thousand 2-hundred jobs due to crashing demand for solar power products!  SunEdison suddenly laid off 16 people.  Possibly due to Tesla’s take-over bid SolarCity eliminating 108 jobs in San Francisco and San Mateo!   For some unknown reason state employment administrators finally published the fact that Broadcom and Avago eliminated more than 1-thousand jobs back in March!  State employment admin records show Broadcom and Avago gave the state the mass layoff notices back in January!  Speaking of Broadcom, they just issued another WARN, this time 50 jobs in San Diego gone by mid-September.  It’s been revealed that maker of the new Ghostbusters video game, FireForge (not connected to FireForge Games), went chapter 7 bankrupt busted back in July!   Chapter 7 usually means they’re dead. In Milpitas, cyber security company FireEye laying off 80 employees in October, and the new CEO warned of another 4-hundred layoffs at a yet to be determined later date!  QLogic laying off 69 employees in Aliso Viejo, by mid-October.  In Los Angeles, Xerox laying off 11 people by mid-October.  Glendale based Disney Imagineering laid off an undisclosed number of employees: “Walt Disney Imagineering is a project-based organization, and we continually evaluate and adjust our resources to support the design and development of Disney theme parks, resorts and experiences around the globe.”-official vague explanation

Connecticut: France owned Altice USA-Cablevision Systems Corporation/Optimum shutting down a call center and a customer support center, eliminating more than 5-hundred jobs (some reports say 6-hundred) between October and December!

Georgia: Colorado based EchoStar Technologies shutting down their Atlanta metro area operations, 137 jobs lost by October due to “many factors”!  Internet based Ditech Financial laid off 80 people in the Atlanta area, and another 1-hundred people will lose their jobs in North Carolina and Texas!  Ditech’s parent company, Walter Investments, lost $232-million USD in its 2nd quarter.

Hawaii: Oahu Publications revealed it laid off eight people, there was also news that the owner of the building where Oahu Pubs is HQed has put the building up-for-sale.

Idaho: Idaho National Laboratory (INL) lost its attempt to become the site for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Frontier Observatory for Research in Geothermal Energy, or FORGE: “Although our Idaho site was not selected, INL still has the opportunity to participate in the FORGE effort through our role as a member of the University of Utah-led team and in other funded proposals.”-Rob Podgorney, INL geothermal

Iowa: Iowa State University eliminated 30 InfoTech jobs. At the same time, university administrators claim their reorganization of their IT department actually created eight jobs.

Michigan: Dialog Direct (Novo1) shutting down their Grand Rapids call center, 106 jobs gone by mid-October!  According to local news reports, in 2014 Dialog Direct was promised $1.5-million USD in taxpayer funded “investments” to establish a call center in Grand Rapids and hire 287 people.  There was no explanation in the official WARN as to why they’re shutting it down, or why they hired only 106 people.

Missouri: The Kansas City Star laid off 12 people, local news reports say for the past few months there’s been non-stop layoffs at the struggling newspaper.

Mississippi: Another example of what I call Ripple Effect Layoffs; bankrupt e-Fitness & Wellness shutdown their Biloxi location.  The operators blame a payments collection company in Utah for going bust and as a result cutoff funding for e-Fitness.

New Jersey: Japan owned OKI Data Americas eliminating 38 jobs in Mount Laurel by the end of September.  In Red Bank, California based Qualcomm Atheros eliminating 76 jobs by the end of September.

New York: New York Life eliminating numerous in-house InfoTech jobs across The Empire State, between November 2016 and April 2017.  France based Altice USA laid off 1-hundred people in Bethpage, that’s where Altice took over Cablevision Systems!  News reports say news magazine Time Incorporated will eliminate 110 jobs in an attempt to “optimize” growth!  Advertiser MDC-KBS eliminated an undisclosed number of jobs while at the same time claimed “we’re growing and hiring too”.

Oregon: Software “localizer” Sykes issued a shutdown WARN for their Eugene ops, 418 jobs lost by the end of October!

Pennsylvania:  Thorley Industries-4moms, a company that prides itself on using computers and robots to design and build products for babies, revealed it laid off 53 people back in June. 

Texas: Austin based Revolve Solar now chapter 11 bankrupt busted. Interestingly company administrators stated that their financial numbers filed for the bankruptcy were wrong, and that the company was “fine”.

Washington: In Seattle, advertising-analytics company Marchex laid off about 40 employees after a $68-million USD loss in its 2nd quarter.  And video game maker Z2 laid off an undisclosed number of marketing and administrative employees, probably in connection with being taken over by two differnet companies last year.  Still in Seattle, tech company QuoteWizard suddenly laid off 20 people after spending money on a new office in Colorado, administrators admitted “With such fast growth, we lost some focus…”.   Also in Seattle, software company Moz laid off 60 people after a failed attempt to increase its market diversity: “Increasing the breadth of the product suite added a lot of complexity to the business, but didn’t result in the growth we expected.”-Sara Bird, ceo

“WE’LL BE HIRING A TON OF PEOPLE!” SUDDENLY 70-THOUSAND AUTO WORKERS UNEMPLOYED!

U.S. Navy SAYS SOCIAL MEDIA IS NATIONAL SECURITY THREAT!

3RD SELF-DRIVE CRASH FOR TESLA!

July 2016: “IT’S BRUTAL…LIKE STANDING IN A LINE FOR A GUILLOTINE!”

WARN=Worker Adjustment & Retraining Notification

Former employees who receive severance are not counted as unemployed

Business/Economics, Idaho

“We plan to sell it down to the bones.” 4,000 Radio Shack stores killed off by the UN? : August 2016 U.S. RETAIL/BANKING/SERVICE SECTOR LAYOFFS

Incomplete list of U.S. retail/banking/service sector job loss announcements and shutdowns for August 2016:

Public relations company Coyne PR (offices in California, New Jersey & New York) suddenly laid off 30 people and slashed employee benefits, blaming a now former chief financial officer for “overstating” financial facts, and warning that they’re only just beginning to discover the damage caused by the CFO.

Alabama: In Decatur, after 30 years Green’s Video shutdown due to online competition.  At one point there were several Green’s Video stores across northern Alabama.  The owner says he still has die-hard customers, just not enough: “Customers have asked me multiple times over the years, ‘You’re not planning to go out of business, are you?’ They really enjoyed having a video store. They are pretty upset the store’s going under.”-Dan Green

California: In San Bernardino, after 60 years of costume sales Fun Corner will shutdown in november, so the owners can retire.  After 30 years the adult book store Circus of Books, in Silver Lakes, shutdown to be replaced with a ganja shop.  In North Hollywood, the Laurel Plaza Macy’s shutting down, the property has been sold and will be turned into apartments, 193 jobs gone by the end of Autumn!  In Anaheim, Good Hope International laying off 60 hotel employees by October.  J. Brand clothier laying off 27 people in Los Angeles, by mid-November.  In Glendale, Disney Parks & Resorts laying off 74 people by October.  What car sales recovery? In Riverside, Davidson Motors Lexus eliminating 111 jobs by October!  Team AMVETS shutting down yet another thrift store, this time in Chula Vista, 16 jobs gone by October.  The Orange Y BMX track, the only BMX track in Orange County, shutdown after the property owners-Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) refused to renew the lease.  The operators of the popular and profitable Orange Y BMX even offered to pay as much as $8-thousand USD more per month in rent!  At the same time that Ashley Furniture suddenly shutdown their sofa factory (Without Warning: Ashely Furniture lays off 840 factory employees in five mintues, saying “…there’s no more jobs!”) the RoomsExpress/Ashley Home Furniture HomeStore in Arroyo Grande shutdown.  Local TV station KSBY reports that customers are pissed as they are still waiting for furiniture they’ve paid for to be delivered! 

Colorado: In Fort Collins, The Photo Shop shutdown, the owners will continue custom printing from their home.  In Denver, Guiness Book certified as the world’s largest model train store in 2014, Caboose Hobbies shutdown after 65 years because the owner wants to retire.  At one time the model train store employed 60 people!

Connecticut:  Tudor Investment laid off 15% of employees after ‘investors’ pulled millions out of the hedge fund.

Florida: After its sale to Staples was blocked, Boca Raton based Office Depot announced that it will shutdown 3-hundred additional stores by 2018!  ‘Christian’ Agnostic Warren Buffett eliminated 72 jobs with his Berkshire Hathaway Concierge in Fort Lauderdale.  Advanatage Rent-A-Car/EZ Rent-A-Car laying off 20 people in West Palm Beach, by the end of September.  Fort Meyers based clothing retailer Chico’s conducted a third round of mass layoffs since 2015, this time 2-hundred people were quietly fired!  Chico’s administrators told local news sources that they are still within the guidleines for keeping the taxpayer funded $1.79-million USD ‘investment’ by the county of Lee!  Yet again, Jacksonville based charity Wounded Warrior Project eliminated an undisclosed number of jobs, in the name of “growth”!

Georgia: In Buckhead, after 64 years Gretchen’s Children’s Shop shutting down after Xmas, so the owner can retire.

Idaho: In Pocatello, a divorce settlement forced the shutdown of 112 years old Town and Country Gardens, killing ten jobs: “We plan to sell it down to the bones.”-John Crook, owner, following the divorce court’s orders

Illinois: Chicago based unwanted gift card exchange service Raise laid off about 45 employees in an attempt to “sharpen our focus on the broader payments industry”.  Walmart shutting down its Aurora store due to the fact they’ve built six other Walmart stores within ten miles of the Aurora-West Plaza store!  Without warning Bed Bath & Beyond shutdown their store located in the Prairie Market shopping center.  Local news reports say it’s another blow to the village of Oswego, which has lost several ‘big box’ stores since 2011.

Indiana: After 81 years Lorey’s Ben Franklin in Jasper shutting down so the owners can retire.  Granger Hobby Stop shutdown after 18 years, the owner says he never recovered from the 2008 recession.  In Muncie, Dunham’s Sports suddenly shutdown their Bethel Avenue store.

Iowa: In Cedar Rapids, Mitt Romney wunderkind Staples shutting down its First Avenue South East store by mid-September.

Kansas: In Frontenac, after 62 years Moore Furniture shutting down in September.  In Emporia, after three years Junque Drawer Emporium shutdown because “competition was stiff” and “life events happen.”

Maine: Best Buy shutting down their retail store in Topsham by the end of October, blaming low sales and high rent.

Maryland: Best Buy shutting down two stores, one in Baltimore and one in Rosedale.  120 jobs lost due to the leases not being renewed!

Massachusetts: Framingham based Mitt Romney wunderkind Staples plans on shutting down at least 50 stores by the end of the year, due to losing $766-million USD in its 2nd quarter of 2016! 

Michigan: In Fort Gratiot, after 25 years Pet Supplies Plus shutting down by the end of September, the owners blame it on a 22% crash in sales after a ‘big box’ pet store moved into the area: “…you have to have growth and our growth has not climbed in years, probably five or six years since we last saw any growth, so we made that decision.”-Steve Britz

Minnesota:  After ten years Best Buy shutting down their store in Willmar by the end of September.  Apparently that’s when the lease expires, 34 jobs lost.

Missouri: After 70 years Davis Baskets “The Basket King” up for sale so the 91 years old owner can finally retire.

Montana: In Billings, Zig’s Building Materials (Ziggy’s) shutting down when everything is sold, the owner wants to retire.  Local news reports say the shutdown of Ziggy’s will add 200-thousand square feet (61-thousand square meters) of vacant retail space to the already 157-thousand square feet-plus of vacant space on the west side of the city as a result of Kmart, Hastings, Sports Authority and Hancock Fabrics leaving town!

Nebraska: In Scottsbluff, after 25 years Cornerstone Motors shutting down in September, the owner saying “I realized that I’ve never been this old before and it’s time to retire.” 

New Jersey: In Atlantic City, due to the crashing casino industry Trump Taj Mahal issued a shutdown WARN, 2-thousand 848 jobs gone by mid-October!  State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance issued a WARN saying 77 employees will become unemployed by the end of October.  In Wall, after three years ‘home improvement’ store Lowe’s shutting down their Express store.  The Lowe’s Express was opened in response to rebuilding efforts after Hurricane Sandy, but sales are not high enough! After 57 years men’s clothier The Style Shop shutdown: “Unfortunately the business climate has declined and has made it harder and harder to do business here…”-Joe Tolerico

New York: With its corporate HQ now located in the taxpayer funded NYC area known as Hudson Yards ‘megaproject’, up-scale department store Coach announced it will shutdown 250 stores in 2017, due to stagnating sales!  In Red Hook, car parts store Ruge’s Automotive shutting down by November, 40 jobs lost.  Rochester Action Sports Park shutting down due to the owner’s family health problems, there’s rumors that a group has formed to try and keep the skate park operating.  In NYC, Too Big to Jail Goldman Sachs laying off 15 people by Xmas.  Visium Asset Management WARNed it will begin laying off employees after October. Electronics retailer Best Buy issued a shutdown WARN for its Lawrence store, 60 jobs lost by mid-November.  After 111 years New York Central Art Supply shutting down at the beginning of September.  The operators said sales had slowed down, but the final straw was when the building was sold out from under them.  After 32 years sheet music seller Schenectady VanCurler Music shutdown due to the fact that the internet revealed that old sheet music isn’t that rare after all, and you can get it online for almost a song!  In Syracuse, after 90 years DeJulio’s Army and Navy Store (originally selling shoes starting in 1929) up for sale and shutting down when everything is gone.  The owner blames internet competition.  And the Mallard Tobacconist shutdown after 25 years.  The owner was trying to sell the shop to fund her retirement, but gave up.

North Carolina: M&F Bank laid off 11% of its employees in an effort to save money.  Matthews based Family Dollar Stores eliminating 370 corporate jobs, due to being taken over by competitor Dollar Tree!  After nearly 17 years music venue Amos’ Southend shutting down due to ongoing neighborhood property development “presenting many new challenges to successfully run a music venue.”  The Radio Shack in Wilson shutting down.  In Raleigh, after 70 years bike store Flythe Cyclery shutdown due to a death in the family.

North Dakota: In Grand Forks, appliance store Karl’s shutting down due to the greedy landlord selling the property, and apparently the new (and as yet unknown) property owner doesn’t want to renew the lease.

Ohio: After 37 years shoe store Head Over Heels shutdown in Hyde Park Square. Co-owner Tony Jagoditz blames the industry itself, saying “The whole industry has changed in the last five years. When we opened there was a lot of domestic and European production. A lot of those factories closed or moved production to China.”   In Akron, after nearly 30 years Dimitroff’s Furniture and Design shutting down by the end of October, the owners hope this time they can really retire (after a failed first retirement attempt 11 years ago).  After suffering bigger quarterly losses than expected (a $13-million USD loss), New Albany based clothier Abercrombie & Fitch announced they will shutdown an additional 60 stores! After already shutting down 40 stores this year, Cincinnati based Macy’s announced it will shutdown another 1-hundred stores between now and Spring 2017: “Nearly all of the stores to be closed are cash flow positive today, but their volume and profitability in most cases have been declining steadily in recent years.”-Jeff Gennette, president

And retailer Rocky Brands essentially said the main stream news media claims that the economy is good is BullShit: “In response to market conditions, Rocky Brands made the very difficult decision to lay off approximately 20 employees. We believe that the retail environment which has led to decreased sales over the past six months is systemic as we have seen our competitors experience similar financial results.”-David Sharp, ceo

Pennsylvania: In Shenandoah, after 116 years (making it the oldest surviving business in the city) Talerico’s shoe repair shop shutdown due to skyrocketing demand for shoe repairs, but the old owner couldn’t find any potential employees qualified to repair the shoes: “Somebody could’ve done real good, but I couldn’t get anyone to learn it!”-Tom Talerico

South Carolina: Radio Shack shutting down their West Main Street, Lexington, store.

South Dakota: In Sioux Falls, Alan Evans Bridal shutdown.

Tennessee: What housing market recovery? Home sale closings fell 3.3% from the previous year, it’s being blamed on skyrocketing prices of homes. In Knoxville, after more than 25 years of selling-trading records and CDs iconic The Disc Exchange shutdown, the owners say they can no longer compete with digital, even with the resurgance of vinyl.

Texas: Fort Worth based bankrupt Radio Shack plans to sell-off or shutdown all remaining 4-thousand stores across the U.S.!   The Hudson Institute blames the death of Radio Shack on the United Nations run international postal rates syndicate.   Dallas based high-end retailer Neiman Marcus laid off nearly 1-hundred people!   San Antonio based Too Big to Jail SWBC (SouthWest Business Corporation) warning of a third round of  layoffs after losing yet another major client.  Possibly an example of what I call Ripple Effect Layoffs as the oil industry BS hits The Lone Star State hard; after 11 years Houston’s only ‘professional’ theater shutdown.  The Texas Repertory Theatre Company (note the evil British empire way of spelling theater) forced to close after The Houston Endowment canceled two years worth of its funding (about $50-thousand USD), and ticket sales crashed (apparently down to just 30 tickets per show)!

Wisconsin: Five hhgregg appliance & electronics stores shutting down based on their evaluation of their “real estate positions”!  After 37 years Sauk Prairie’s Harley Davidson dealer shutting down by the end of September, due to the owners consolidating their multiple dealerships.  In Manitowoc, after more than 20 years Ramona’s Ladies Apparel shutdown, the now deceased owner decided to sell all her business ventures last year.  In Milwaukee, after five years music venue Hotel Foster shutdown.

SEARS KMART UPDATE, AUGUST 2016: BEWARE OF LAMPERTS ‘DONATING’ PROPERTY TO COLLEGES!

AUGUST 2016 OBAMACARE DESTRUCTION: “…WE’LL ALL HAVE TO DO MORE WITH LESS.”

AUGUST 2016 DUMBING DOWN THE U.S.: “IT’S AN INDECENT PRACTICE!” THROWING MONEY AT EDUCATION DOESN’T WORK, UNLESS IT’S TO HELP POLICE CHEAT!

July 2016: 1 COMPANY KILLS 40,000 JOBS IN 1 DAY!

WARN=Worker Adjustment & Retraining Notification.

I found a 2010 AFL-CIO analysis (titled The Public Availability of WARN Notices: Lack of Accessibility and Disclosure…) which proves what I’ve been suspecting in my search of state WARN notices; most states are not complying with federal WARN regulations and are not publicizing or tracking mass layoffs.

Former employees who receive severance are not counted as unemployed!

Employees of religious non-profits might not qualify for unemployment assistance: “If the non-profit organization is a church, you may or may not be entitled to unemployment. It all depends upon state regulations for church employers. In many cases, churches are allowed to set their own rules regarding unemployment benefits, meaning the church can choose whether to offer benefits to former employees.”

The U.S. Department of Labor (DoL) no longer issues mass layoff reports: “On March 1, 2013, President Obama ordered into effect the across-the- board spending cuts (commonly referred to as sequestration) required by the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act, as amended. Under the order, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) must cut its current budget by more than $30 million, 5 percent of the current 2013 appropriation, by September 30, 2013. In order to help achieve these savings and protect core programs, the BLS will eliminate two programs, including Mass Layoff Statistics, and all ‘measuring green jobs’ products. This news release is the final publication of monthly mass layoff survey data.”

U.S.

“…we’ll all have to do more with less.” “a confluence of unpredicted events” : August 2016 ObamaCare Destruction

It must be noted that I started documenting these ObamaCare/healthcare related shutdowns at the beginning of 2014. In that year I posted the reports biannually (every six months). In 2015 ObamaCare cutbacks ramped up and I posted quarterly (every three months). For the past eight months of 2016 there have been so many ObamaCare cutbacks that I’ve posted a report every month!

Incomplete list of healthcare related layoffs and shutdowns, August 2016:

Alabama: Tennessee based Crestwood Medical Center laid off 13 people, directly blaming ObamaCare for lower patient volumes.

California: Menlo Park based Kaiser Health News reporting on a new ‘surprise’ healthcare billing that patients are unaware of, called Observation Care.  Not only can a hospital hit you with the surprise charge of a supposed visit by a doctor you never saw, but they’re also charging for the nurse to “observe” you.  More and more of these Observation Care charges are being rejected by Medicare because such service is now considered outpatient care, thus patients are being billed directly.  Sonoma West Medical Center (previously Palm Drive Hospital) laid off 25 administration staff after signing a management contract with Pipeline Health, they claim they’ll hire more nurses. Germany owned Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals announced they will layoff an undisclosed number of employees in Mission Bay.   Medical products maker Balda C. Brewer issued a shutdown WARN for their Anaheim ops, 130 jobs gone by Halloween! In Corona, Israeli based drugs maker Teva laying off 19 people by October.  MedRisk shutting down their Calabasas location by mid-October.  Bankrupt Gardens Regional Hospital (Tri-City Regional) issued a mass layoff WARN for their city of Hawaiian Gardens hospital (which provides service for low income people), 318 jobs gone by November!  Last year the city of Los Angeles sued Gardens Regional for ‘dumping’ homeless patients.   Gardens Regional administrators blame ObamaCare for their economic destruction saying in federal bankruptcy court “The debtor loses money every month it operates, and would soon be unable to pay its employees for the next pay period.”

Florida: In Hialeah, eyeglass maker Insight Optical Manufacturing sending 63 in-house jobs to cheap-o contractors by mid-October.  Nephron Pharmaceuticals eliminating 60 Orlando jobs by the end of October.

Georgia: WellStar Health Systems outsourced 521 jobs to a contractor!  Atlanta based Cable News Network (CNN) continues airing reports that swear “there is no proof that ObamaCare has cost jobs.”  I assume they don’t read Blind Bat News.  DeKalb County based U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports at least 2-thousand 517 casesof Zika in the U.S.  So far only the states of Wyoming and Alaska have escaped the virus.

Idaho: Non-profit Project Access Northwest testified before The Gem State legislature, blasting them for their version of ObamaCare saying 40% of the patients they see have no insurance! State Representative Fred Wood, from Burley, stated that Idaho’s version of ObamaCare is a “system where if you’re poor you have to rely on charity care, versus what everybody else gets.”

Illinois: After trying to get employees to retire early, NorthShore University HealthSystem now laying off at least 1-hundred people due to “redundancies”!   In East Alton, the Walgreens on West Saint Louis Avenue shutdown without warning.  The town’s mayor said Walgreens administrators told him the store wasn’t making enough money. Walgreens is also shutting down a store in Decatur.

Iowa: New Links Genetics laid off 1-hundred employees after one of its new cancer treatment drugs failed in testing!

Kentucky: King’s Daughters Medical Center killed 148 jobs!  It’s directly blamed on ObamaCare for reducing patient volumes, and cost reimbursements.

Maine: Eastern Maine Healthcare System laid off 35 people. 13 employees accepted early retirement deals.  It’s blamed on a $3-million USD shortfall caused by ObamaCare.

Massachusets: Nonprofit Baystate Health continues killing jobs, this time 3-hundred jobs gone due to a $75-million USD shortfall caused by reduced Medicaid payments, as a result of ObamaCare!  Employees at Fresenius Medical Care locked up and left an 86 years old dialysis patient inside the clinic!  The grand daughter of the patient had to call firefighters to get her grandma out, employees admitted they never noticed the patient!

New York: NYC based insurance company MetLife announced yet more job killing, this time the insurer wants to cut $1-billion USD in costs, and part of that will be the outsourcing of more than 1-thousand MetLife InfoTech/call center jobs in the U.S. and India!  U.S. Security Associates lost their contract with North Shore Long Island Jewish Hospital, 97 jobs lost by September.  Chapter 11 bankrupt Hebrew Hospital Senior Housing shutting down their Westhester Meadows retirement home, 89 jobs gone by the end of September.  God can’t stop Saint Joseph’s Hospital in Elmira from eliminating 83 jobs by September.  In Troy, god couldn’t stop ‘his’ Samaritan Hospital from eliminating 22 nursing positions.  Israel based drugs maker Teva issued a shutdown WARN for their Pomona location, 236 jobs lost between now and February 2017!  Phoenix Houses shutting down their Brooklyn addiction treatment center on J Street, at least 42 of the 109 employees will become unemployed in time for Thanksgiving.   

North Carolina: Columbus Regional Healthcare System eliminated 28 jobs.  In Ashville, after 19 years Skyland Behavioral Health Associates shutdown due to “a confluence of unpredicted events”.  Non-profit Mission Health eliminated three executive positions, cut executive pay between 13% and 25%, and is laying off 70 employees.  It’s directly blamed on federal taxpayer funding cuts and North Carolina’s version of ObamaCare.

Pennsylvania:  Drugs maker Merk issued a shutdown WARN for their North Wales operations, 148 jobs gone by mid September!  Canonsburg based drugs maker Mylan jacked up the price of its life saving EpiPen by 548%, to $608 USD for a package of two injectors!  Mylan says it’s making a cheaper ‘generic’ version, to retail at $304!  In 2007 the EpiPen cost $98!

Tennessee: Tennova Healthcare laying off 75 people in October.  God powerless to stop ‘his’ Baptist Memorial Health Care from laying off 23 people. Another 61 employees will be let go sometime in the near future.  Administrators directly blame ObamaCare for reduced costs reimbursements: “Healthcare is going through unprecedented change, and we’ll all have to do more with less. These changes will help position Baptist to provide the very best care for all of the mid-South.”-Jason Little, executive vice president and COO

Texas: In Waco, Missouri owned Providence Health Center is outsourcing their office and billing operations to a company in Illinois.  In Lubbuck, god powerless to stop Covenant Health from laying off 49 employees, administrators directly blame ObamaCare: “Covenant Health is financially stable, but the changes we’ve experienced thus far and will continue to undergo are the direct result of reduced reimbursements….”-Richard Parks, executive vice president and CEO

Virginia:  Ohio based grocer Kroger is shutting down its The Little Clinic urgent care ops at four Hampton Roads locations.  News reports didn’t explain why.  Lynchburg’s Centra Health will eliminate 124 jobs between now and Xmas!  Administrators blame the bad economy and ObamaCare for reducing patient volumes and cost reimbursements.

Washington: Vancouver based non-profit PeaceHealth announced they will layoff 5-hundred employees at two hospitals! PeaceHealth recently lost a major contract with California based Kaiser Permanente.  Interestingly this mass layoff has yet to be reported to state employment adminstrators (WARN).

Washington DC: The Congressional Budget Office predicts that only 12-million people will sign up for ObamaCare in 2017, far less than the 24-million predicted back in 2013.  Analysts say low enrollment in 2017 will mean the death of ObamaCare.

Wisconsin: God can’t stop ‘his’ employees from blowing the whistle on massive layoffs at Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare and Columbia Saint Mary’s.  When confronted by news media the administrators of the ‘christian’ hospitals refused to give numbers, but admitted its part of parent company Ascention Health’s consolidation plans.

OBAMACARE FAIL: U.S. ARMY PROVIDES FREE CARE FOR DESPERATE TEXANS!

OBAMACARE FAIL: U.S. MILITARY DEPLOYED TO RENDER FREE MEDICAL HELP TO 13-THOUSAND U.S. CITIZENS!

July 2016: “…NO AMBULANCE SERVICE.”  

ObamaCare = Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act

WARN=Worker Adjustment & Retraining Notification

Idaho

My Immigrant Idaho: Federales say Idaho dominated by poor immigrants!

28 August 2016 (16:14 UTC-07 Tango 01) 07 Shahrivar 1395/24 Dhu I-Qa’da 1437/26 Bing-Shen 4714

Federales: Spanish for government employees or agencies, pronounced fed-e-rall-ess.

The U.S. Census Bureau warning that sparsely populated Idaho could soon be dominated by immigrants, with the result that the majority of Gem State families will become poor.  The Census Bureau “state projections” say the majority of immigrants to Idaho will be ‘Hispanic’ (last year I revealed how the state Department of Education is using taxpayer funding to operate a ‘department of English’ for Latino migrants).

Between Gregorian years 2000 and 2014 the majority of the population growth in Idaho involved Latino migrants, a whopping 93% within Idaho’s Latino population!  It’s ‘projected’ that by 2019/2020 the number of “families” in Idaho will grow by 23-thousand 5-hundred, mostly from migrants and all concentrated in urban areas (government ‘projections’ say they’ll actually be an exodus from rural areas).

In 2008, 16% of Idaho families were considered poor, by 2014 it jumped to 19%.   Census Bureau projections say as the immigrant population in The Gem State grows the average family income will drop below $25-thousand USD per year!

MY IMMIGRANT IDAHO : CRIMES SKYROCKET PARTLY DUE TO DOMESTIC AND FOREIGN MIGRATION!

Bannock County, Idaho, revealed that their prison operations are facing record overcrowding due to migrants! 

OBAMA TO CREATE JOBS FOR THOUSANDS OF IMMIGRANTS!

IDAHO LOSES JOBS, YET RECORD NUMBER OF PEOPLE IN WORKFORCE….BLAME IMMIGRANTS!

IDAHO BURDENED BY $187-MILLION WORTH OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS!

“IT’S PART OF OUR NEW BUSINESS MODEL…” IDAHO HIT WITH SKYROCKETING POOR U.S. MIGRANTS!

HISTORY SHOWS IMMIGRANTS ARE GREATEST SELF-INFLICTED THREAT TO EMPIRES!

U.S.

“It’s an indecent practice!” Throwing money at education doesn’t work, unless it’s to help police cheat! : August 2016 Dumbing Down the U.S.

It must be noted that I started documenting these education shutdowns at the beginning of 2014, in that year I posted the reports biannually (every six months). In 2015 education cutbacks ramped up and I posted quarterly (every three months). For the past seven months of 2016 there have been so many education cutbacks that I’ve posted a report every month!

Disappearing Students Syndrome (DSS): A phrase created by me to describe a phenomenon taking place across the United States, affecting both privately and publicly funded schools, from Kindergarten all the way through University levels.

Incomplete list of publicly announced education related layoffs & school shutdowns, August 2016:

California: Iconic film and photography school Brooks Institute forced to shutdown their Ventura campus due to a sudden crash in enrollment, 169 jobs lost!  News reports say Brooks suddenly stopped lease required remodeling work and failed to pay $70-thousand USD in rent on the city owned property! The city of Ventura will probably sue the college.  In San Diego, Museum of Contemporary Art laid off 28 people and shutting down their La Jolla campus, saying it’s part of their planned “expansion”.

Connecticut: Bridgeport Public Schools laid off two School Resource Officers (cops). 

Georgia: Albany State University and Darton State College eliminating 110 jobs! It’s blamed on non-stop Disapearing Students Syndrome.  God can’t stop the administrators of ‘his’ Piane College from eliminating 15 jobs due to what I call Disapearing Students Syndrome (it’s The Rapture eyes tells ya).  God’s ‘christian’ college will also reduce many employee’s pay to within 10% of minimum wage!

Idaho: Idaho State University (ISU) laying off 34 people at its Research and Innovation in Science and Engineering Complex (RISE), officially due to contract expiration.  Unnamed employees told local news sources that the RISE was being shutdown due to lack of money, but ISU admin denied the rumor.     More proof that throwing a lot of money at a problem doesn’t fix anything! After eight years, the state Department of Education’s $135-million USD campaign to increase math scores failed, big time! 8th graders considered at or above grade level dropped from 38% to 34% last year! 4th graders dropped from 41% to 38%!   The Education Commission of the States says Idaho’s taxpayer funding of education fails because “…the current formula did not contemplate a variety of different learning modalities, the increasing mobility of students and the states move toward mastery-based education.”      The 2016 Idaho Ready for Change survey says 73% of Idahoans prefer charter, or private schools, over traditional taxpayer funded schools.    Seven years later CenturyLink and Education Networks of America (ENA) now suing the state Department of Education over the scandalous Idaho Education Network project.  State Supreme Court rulings invalidated the IEN contracts, and the whole IEN broadband project was scrapped. CenturyLink and ENA claim they lost $18.5-million USD as a result!   Idaho public schools are also struggling financially after a court ruling (last year) revealed that the fees Idaho schools have been charging for decades violate the state constitution.  School District 151 revealed the illegal fees they were charging would’ve amounted to $140-thousand for the current school year.  School District 411 spent taxpayer funding on an attorney to find ways to continue to charge ‘fees’ without violating the state constitution.   Parents from school districts 2 and 25 (my district) are now suing for a refund of the illegal fees.  

Illinois: Chicago Public Schools (CPS) issued layoff notices to 1-thousand and 29 employees! Administrators claim that the layoffs are at schools experiencing crashing enrollment, but that other schools will actually be hiring.  In Pilsen, Benito Juarez Community Academy laid off ten people as part of the CPS funding cuts.  Elgin Community College laid off 15 employees and warned more layoffs are in the works as state taxpayer funding keeps getting cut.  In Wrigleyville, after 32 years Bookworks shutdown their brick-n-mortar store and will focus on internet sales only. The owners blame their declining brick-n-mortar book sales not on internet competition, but on jacked up rents, which in turn have changed the local brick-n-mortar landscape: “…the bar scene increased dramatically. For a number of years now it seems like every space that has gone for rent has eventually become a bar. It really has changed the atmosphere and focus of the neighborhood…”-Bob Roschke, co-owner

Indiana: The U.S. Department of Education is now banning Carmel based ITT Tech from accepting new students who rely on federal education loans or grants!

Iowa: Iowa State University eliminated 30 InfoTech jobs. At the same time, university administrators claim their reorganization of their IT department actually created eight jobs.

Kansas: Proof that taxpayer funding does not directly equal student performance? The Kansas Association of School Boards reports that student performance is ranked 10th for the United States, despite funding being ranked 29th!

Kentucky: In Louisville,  Speed Art Museum laid off seven people and reduced full-time employees to part-time.  It’s blamed on crashing attendance and $60-million USD in renovation costs.

Maryland: God’s Notre Dame laid off 12 people and shutdown 14 vacant positions.

Minnesota: After 103 years God powerless to stop the shutdown of ‘his’ Crossroads College (International Christian Bible College), after the Fall Semester! ‘Christian’ administrators blame it on what I call Disapearing Students Syndrome (it’s The Rapture eyes tells ya).

Ohio: In Beavercreek, education supply store Tools 4 Learning shutdown.

Oregon: After almost 40 years non-profit Arts Central-Art Station-VanGo-Artists in Schools shutdown its education programs in Deschutes, Crook and Jefferson counties.

Pennsylvania: Fiscally ignorant NAACP suing the state, saying the additional $260-million in education funding (on top of the state’s supposed “historic” funding levels) is not enough (see Idaho and Kansas above for proof that mo-money doesn’t equal mo-education)! California University of Pennsylvania has warned its employees of layoffs at the end of the 2016-17 school year, due to crashing enrollment.  A former university instructor reveals that state universities and local police are working together to ‘cheat’ on internet testing for future law enforcement personnel: “Many who earn their Penn State degrees through World Campus, particularly those serving in the military, eventually pursue careers in law enforcement. The removal of the exam-proctoring safeguard signaled to students that cheating in online courses was not only tolerated, but to some extent, also encouraged by Penn State.”-Shane Ralston 

South Carolina: It’s been revealed that PowerBall Lottery funding for state college scholarships is down: “We did not intend for the general fund to cover lottery scholarships to the extent it has. You can’t just tell someone we’re out of money.”-Chip Limehouse, weak-willed state Representative

It was also revealed that many of the state scholarships officially meant for low income students are actually going to students from wealthy families: “It’s an indecent practice! ….you’re sending kids to college on poor folks’ money, but you can’t figure out how to fund schools in Jasper County?”-Reverand Joe Darby

Wisconsin: Half Price Books shutting down their Highland Plaza store: “…during this changing time for our industry, we have to be smart about the business decisions we make. We have great customers here in Milwaukee, but unfortunately the customer traffic hasn’t been high enough to allow us to stay, so we are focusing our resources on our other Milwaukee-area locations.”

July 2016: “WE ARE GOING DOWN…”

Idaho, U.S.

Idaho one of only 11 states supplying most of the human cannon fodder for the Obama regime?

25 August 2016 / 18:29 UTC-07 Tango 01 (05 Shahrivar 1395/22 Dhu I-Qa’da 1437/24 Bing-Shen 4714)

The biggest tax sucking states in the U.S., the ‘New England’ states, along with Mormon HQ Utah, refuse to support their own demand for the False Flag war on terror!

Economically depressed Idaho is one of 11 states supplying the most military personnel for the never ending, and undeclared, war on terror. That’s according to the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD)!

Alaska, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Maine, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia provide the most military recruits (between the ages of 17 and 24), per capita, than any of the other U.S. states!  (when counting actual ‘boots on the ground’ recruits Texas leads the way)

By sharp contrast, Defense Secretary Ash Carter stated that Vermont, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Minnesota, North Dakota and Utah provide the least number of recruits (per capita).  It should be noted that Mormon dominated, and federal tax funding dependant, Utah not only has the lowest recruitment per capita, but is also near the bottom as far as actual ‘boots on the ground’ recruits go (only 113 Utahans joined up in 2004)!

In 2014 DoD administrators could not explain the disparity in recruitment data.  Today, instead of blaming it on economic realities (top 11 per capita recruiting states do not have many job opputunities for youth, however, recent data suggests that the majority of recruits come from middle class families) DoD analysts are claiming that computer tech driven youth are intentionaly avoiding traditional marketing (recruiting) campaigns: “All of us recognize that with the advent of multimedia, social media, the internet, that we all consume information in a very different way. It used to be … your television and radio were your primary sources of entertainment and information.”-Stephanie Miller, DoD

The decline in overall recruiting is also blamed on base shutdowns and fewer and fewer families with relatives in the military.

Ash Carter is leading the DoD’s recruitment changes under a program called Force of the Future.  Carter says the DoD will make major changes not only to recruiting efforts (like a new ‘digital’ recruitment campaign) but to applicant testing and medical processing (ASVAB & MEPS).

Idaho

2016 Chubbuck Days mass baptism by Fire….Truck!

Image

13 August 2016 /19:35 UTC-07 Tango 01 (24 Mordad 1395/10 Dhu I-Qa’da 1437/12 Bing-Shen 4714)

Some long time attendees of the annual Chubbuck Days at Cotant Park were wondering where the Chubbuck Fire Department was, after all it’s tradition for the Fire Department to cool down the crowd with some artificial rain.  Just like the cavalry, the Fire Department showed up at the last minute, to the excitement of all the children present (click the pics to make bigger, photos by AAron B. Hutchins):

CHUBBUCK DAYS COTANT PARK 2016:  CAR SHOW & HELICOPTER FORCED LANDING

Idaho

Car show & Helicopter forced landing: Chubbuck Days Cotant Park 2016

Image

13 August 2016 /18:55 UTC-07 Tango 01 (24 Mordad 1395/10 Dhu I-Qa’da 1437/12 Bing-Shen 4714)

The highlight at Cotant Park was when the helicopter ride force landed, twice, and looking very much like it would crash into neighboring Chase Park playground, due to passenger overloading.  However, the main attraction had arrived and most people were thus busy getting baptized by the Chubbuck Fire Department, so they missed the ‘copter excitement.   (I try not to include repeat offenders, I mean cars that were in previous Chubbuck Days), Clicks the pics to make bigger, photos by AAron B. Hutchins:

2015 CHUBBUCK DAYS CAR SHOW

2014 CHUBBUCK DAYS CAR SHOW

The job I had in 2013 caused me to miss Chubbuck Days.

6TH ANNUAL CAR SHOW, 2012 CHUBBUCK DAYS (PART 1)

6TH ANNUAL CAR SHOW, 2012 CHUBBUCK DAYS (PART 2)

11 AUGUST 2012: BUSIEST CHUBBUCK DAYS EVER!

I was out-o-town for 2011 Chubbuck Days.

2010 (when I started taking pics of the cars) CHUBBUCK DAYS CAR SHOW IN IDAHO

Idaho

Saudi Arabia kills $5-million for Pocatello! Death blow for Idaho State University?

12 August 2016 (15:03 UTC-07 Tango 01) 22 Mordad 1395/08 Dhu I-Qa’da 1437/10 Bing-Shen 4714

I warned back in February that Kuwait and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) were going to cancel their funding for their students attending cash strapped Idaho State University (ISU).  Back then it was due to falling oil prices, but then Arab students began reporting increased cases of harassment and discrimination by Idahoans (a couple months ago at least 50 Arab ‘students’ reported their residences being burglarized).  By June Kuwait and KSA suspended scholarships for their 1-thousand 2-hundred students at ISU. 

The 1,200 Kuwaiti & Saudi students made up about 90% of the foeriegn students at ISU, going by this ISU generated graph

At the beginning of August administrators at the Pocatello based university revealed that the loss of the Arab students will cause ISU to lose $5-million USD for the 2016-17 school year!  Coupled with ongoing ‘domestic’ student exodus ISU will start the new school year with less than 9-thousand 5-hundred students.

The local news media are being careful not to bring religion into their reporting of this issue, but I guarantee you the average ‘christian’ Idahoan says it’s totally about the foreign students being ‘muslims’ from the biggest sponsor of terrorism (U.S. ALLY SAUDI ARABIA, NOT IRAN, IS THE MAIN SPONSOR OF “ISLAMIC EXTREMIST TERRORISM”!).

But this exodus of students (both foreign and domestic) is being downplayed, maybe even covered up by the failing University.  A July article in the Idaho State Journal revelaed that the actual crash in enrollment is about 56%!  Not the 38% reported by administrators.  Apparently administrators were doubling up on students known as ‘dual enrollment’ (one student that on paper is enrolled twice).

The National Association of Foreign Student Advisers (NAFSA: Association of International Educators) economic analysis shows the struggling Gem State made $110-million in tuition/fees and living expenses from foreign college students during the 2013-14 school year!  NAFSA says 882 jobs were created as well.

A few months ago ISU announced that for Idahoans who want to attend they can now get a four year “tuition lock”, but this week a local TV news program stated that when they spoke to ISU students the overwheming response was that the cost of education needs to drop, not be ‘locked in’.

RECORD NUMBER OF FOREIGNERS ATTEND IDAHO STATE! IT CAN’T STOP THE ENROLLMENT BLOODLETTING!