Take Your Workers And Shove it

The CEO of a US tiremaker won't be on the short list for an appointment as Ambassador to France:

(Reuters) - The CEO of a U.S. tire maker has delivered a crushing summary of how some outsiders view France's work ethic in a letter saying he would have to be stupid to take over a factory whose staff only put in three hours work a day.

Titan International's Maurice Taylor, nicknamed "The Grizz" for his negotiating style, told the left-wing French industry minister in a letter published by media on Wednesday that he had no interest in rescuing a plant set for closure.

"The French workforce gets paid high wages but works only three hours. They get one hour for breaks and lunch, talk for three and work for three," Taylor wrote on February 8 in the letter in English to the minister, Arnaud Montebourg.

"I told this to the French union workers to their faces. They told me that's the French way!" Taylor added in the letter, which was posted by business daily Les Echos on its website and which the ministry confirmed was genuine.

"Titan is going to buy a Chinese tire company or an Indian one, pay less than one Euro per hour wage and ship all the tires France needs," he said. "You can keep the so-called workers."

Yike. And this is the path Obama hopes to put us on.

Comments

[henry]

The reality sandwich is best served cold, without garnishment, and priced free / all you can eat.

[NK]

Dr. Carson and Mr. Taylor-- I have 2 new heroes in one Month.

[NK]

Henry-- so will the Repub win the Wisc SCt runoff election in April?

[henry]

NK, much depends on the amount of money the lefties are willing to throw into a smear campaign over the next 6 weeks. This is their last chance to stop Walker -- suits concerning Act 10, Voter ID, and essentially any bill passed since 2010 are en route to or pending before the WI SC. On the plus side they have a weak candidate and we have a very PO'd Tea Party willing to counter with the truth about the lefty SC justices. I am nervous about this because the stakes are so high.

[Ignatz Ratzkywatzky]

--And this is the path Obama hopes to put us on.--

Hopes?
I'd say we're hippity hopping quite a ways down the bunny trail already.

[Thomas Collins]

"The French workforce gets paid high wages but works only three hours. They get one hour for breaks and lunch, talk for three and work for three."

Well, at least they work harder than Obama.

[NK]

Two worries for the rest of us about Wisc. 1. the election fraud Henry notes in the April SCt election; 2. IF the repub wins, and the SCt stays sane-- the Repubs have monopoly control- so they MUST produce AND avoid scandal, otherwise the media will succssfully jump all over Walker and intimidate other Midwest reformers in Mich Indiana and Ohio. Not fair that conservatives are held to that standard, but the Media is a reality.

[Threadkiller]

The wheels of le bus come falling off...

[Threadkiller]

LOL TC!!!

[NK]

This in IBD is a more eloquent explanation of the Debt Bomb term I use to describe the truly evil partnership between JEF and Ben B's Fed QE-ZIRP:http://news.investors.com/ibd-editorials-viewpoint/021913-644931-fed-purchases-of-government-debt-enable-the-big-spenders.htm?ref=SeeAlso

[maryrose]

I am going to move to France and get a job where I will only have to work 3 hours a day. I can hardly believe that this is true.They must look at us and think we are workaholics. No wonder the gradual disintegration of Europe is in play.Good luck keeping that Euro afloat.
TC: I laughed out loud in the library again due to your comment.

[maryrose]

henry: How much did Roggenburk win by?

[narciso]

It was a landslide, 64/29

http://www.wisn.com/politics/-/9373216/18552120/-/ol7ordz/-/index.html

[henry]

maryrose, 64-30 in the primary. However given snow / extreme cold / Bulls game (bus conflict per Mel) the turnout was even lower than expected -- 5-7%. Expect something like the Prosser election (except Brookfield will not be "missed" this time).

[maryrose]

henry: That makes me nervous. Will they try and hold out some precincts's results to find out how many votes are needed to swing the election their way?
Can the republicans somehow engineer another Brookfield as added insurance? I can't believe I am suggesting this. Using a dem tactic to make sure the dems don't cheat.

[Clarice]

This will come as a surprise to Thomas Friedman who touted the Frenchman's superior attitude toward work--make more time for living. Why not? Stupid Hans in Dusseldorf is picking up a lot of the tab and American boobs pay for defense. Pass the vin rouge.

[narciso]

Didn't he run for President, once as a Republican, the days when we are still willing
to foot the bill for Francois Garcon, or the Germans are coming to an end,

[Jack is Back]

Since we are on a euro-centric thread regarding work, here is an article and video from DeStandaard of Belgium about solar panels that don't work.

The headline translates as follows: "Solar Panels Can't Take The Heat"

For those of you not coversant in Flemish this is the problem in a nutshell:

"The black connection box underneath is faulty and over-heats, then melts the insulation of the cables. So far, 15 panel arrays have been affected."

Now the only saving factor is that in the Low Countries there is never enough sun anyway so the faults are unlikely to be endemic.

[narciso]

Yes, I was right about that;

http://www.titan-intl.com/maurice-taylor

[narciso]

Seriously, maybe they expected them to run at night.

[maryrose]

clarice:
Welcome Back, you were sorely missed. I am glad your vacation was so interesting and fun!

[NK]

The Blue Hell Detroit present is the USA's future. The Debt Bomb has gone off in Detroit. Hundreds of billions of long-term debt--- used to paper over budget deficits caused by labor contracts cannot be repaid AND maintain current workers. Even a decent guy like Dave Bing can't cut spending (City Charter, politics etc.) So the State will take over Detroit's finances and cut for them-- maybe refi some of the crazy % rates-- but bottom line a bunch of City workers will be axed and retirement benes trimmed. This gives me hope that what can't continue at the federal budget level won't. Don't count on those Soc Sec checks!!http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20130220/METRO01/302200361/Review-team-Detroit-faces-financial-crisis-has-no-plan-fix-it?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|FRONTPAGE

[Clarice]

Britain is also, for the moment, one of only two European nations to meet the Nato target of devoting 2 per cent of gross domestic product to defence – the other is Greece. The situation in most other European countries is worse – Spain devotes less than 1 per cent of GDP to military spending. And much European military spending goes on pensions or pay, not equipment. The Belgians distinguished themselves in the Libyan campaign of 2011. But about 75 per cent of Belgian military spending now goes on personnel – causing one critic to call the Belgian military “an unusually well-armed pension fund”.

(from today’s FT)

Thanks, maryrose.

[cathyf]

Totally OT question... Firefox pushed out an upgrade last night, which I did. Now when I refresh a JOM page where I have posted a comment, the refresh takes me back to the top of the comments, instead of to the place in the comments where I was before I refreshed.

Is this happening to anybody else? Is it just mac? Does this mean I shouldn't ever comment on JOM again? NNNNNOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!

[henry]

Will they try and hold out some precincts's results to find out how many votes are needed to swing the election their way?

They will do whatever they can -- much like the chaos at the Cesar Chavez Community Center in Racine in the Walker recall election. What is not clear is whether they can politicize Roggensack enough for that to matter (it didn't with Walker but worked locally on Wanggaard). Also unknown is the secret Census Dept supplied OFA / now loose cannon / and whether it can actually drive votes w/o BO in the election.

[maryrose]

henry:
It looks like we are in for another long night of awaiting voting results in April. Be sure and post that evening as our reliable source of the latest news out of Wisconsin.If you are able to of course.
OT:
Our Governor Kasich gave his State Of Ohio address yesterday and tried to explain why he is accepting additional Medicaid money from the federal government. One statement was because if we didn't take the money California would get it instead. What's that about?

[centralcal]

cathyf - it is happening to me too. Started yesterday with the FF update, also.

[henry]

tried to explain why he is accepting additional Medicaid money from the federal government

Walker will release the WI budget tonight. He is rejecting the Fed medicaid money while expanding the reach of the WI program. Part of his reasoning is that the Fed money stops in a couple years, but state mandates tied to the money do not.

Is Kasich listening to Rove?

[MaryD]

cathyf,refresh is putting me back at the top of the page today even if I haven't posted a comment.

[Jimmyk]

"This gives me hope that what can't continue at the federal budget level won't."

The difference being, of course, that Detroit can't sell its debt to Gentle Ben.

[Frau Edith Steingehirn]

Yes, welcome back, Clarice. CH kvetched only once that JOM was "tits up" without you. I'm sure our host understood. I did.

[cathyf]

Found the trick with the refresh. At least for me, it's not happening on the first page. I notice that when you are at a page above the first, the url looks like: http://justoneminute.typepad.com/main/2013/02/gun-control-follies-ny-times-ongoing/comments/page/4/#comments

I took the /#comments off of the url and hit return, and it loaded the page and left me at the top. Then I rolled down to where I wanted to be, and hit refresh, and after it refreshed it returned to the spot I had left it.

So, sorry guys, I'm gonna keep posting!

[Clarice]

Thanks, frau. It'll be a couple of days before I get over jet lag so be patient. I haven't lost my revolutionary fervor.

[NK]

JimmyK@1:44- a man can hope that BenB can't buy those long-term T-Bonds crap forever... can't he? PS: I urge to read the link to IBD posted at 11:10 which reminds how BenB enables those TRILLION Dollar annual debt increases.

[NK]

Clarice-- Welcome back to the Occidental West!

[He also said that if Al Gore's hair were set on fire, it would supply heat and light sufficient for a small English village.]

narciso, I expect you know that in Spain solar-powered arrays fed in at night in some cases. The rate paid was high enough to make it economic to run diesel powered generators for light to shine on the arrays. Those feed-in tariffs are now dropping rapidly and in some places, entities are being sued by wind and solar companies. Germany has found 'renewable' disappointing, and, after panicking and closing nukes, is not building or planning over 30 new coal plants. England faces 'Bryony Blackouts' and some hope for gas to ooze from the Machina Deus. France, of course, sails on with its rational nuke use(Atomkraft, oui, merci).

China and Japan roar on, bring Lineman from Wichita to replace drying dung dots on huts. Did I read that between them they plan a thousand new coal plants.

Now for some topicality. Some puck once called Obama a Lincoln Continental.
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[Usually, I prefer the slip.]

Heh, Germany is now building or planning over 30 coal plants, brown coal, at that.
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[The EPAlephant in the Room. Gone wild, and trampling the innocent.]

Let her introduce herself, she's Mr. Richard Windsor.
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[Melinda Romanoff]

Any guess as to where that coal's coming from, kim?

[Don't know much about economic geography.]

I believe the Ruhr.
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[Melinda Romanoff]

Cause you can't use it here.

[Clarice]

The pity of it is that once we shut down out fossil fuel resources and refineries and electrical generating facilities and grind to a halt on unreliable and inefficient "renewables".the LIVs will be told it's all the fault of the energy companies.

[NK]

BTW-- the whole EPA bogus email addresses to avoid public records laws-- appalling, absolutely appalling. Just a symptom of JEF's lawlessness.

[Melinda Romanoff]

kim-

WV

[NK]

Clarice@3:47-- that's the JEF/Crony plan.

[Melinda Romanoff]

And they tied up every loose ton they could, back in October.

[NK]

MelR-- this whole coal and shale crude/refined product export issue is a massive unreported story IMO. IF, IF-- Federal policy was to open up every Shale Crude and modern coal extraction for US use AND export COUPLED with further opening Fed land to NatGas fracking to keep NatGas prices low long-term for almost exclusive US use for electric generation and long-haul heavy transport (railroad and truck diesel) then BenB's ZIRP would make a hell of alot more sense. Because the ZIRP would be far less destructive to US consumer energy and food costs, as USA energy would be decoupled to a large degree from Brent pricing PLUS coal and crude/refined products would support the Dollar. Instead we have the worst of both worlds, Ben's Dollar debasing ZIRP PLUS JEF's anti-energy policies. It's absolute madness.

[NK]

..crude/refined products exports... would support the Dollar.

[Melinda Romanoff]

No debasing going on here, IMO.

[NK]

No debasing in relation to other worthless QE'd currencies (BP, now the Yen and the 2012 Euro), or in relation to commodities?

[Melinda Romanoff]

Commodity trade reflects the hot money action, with the commodity collapse of today (Gold off $40, Crude off $2+. I suspect some more HF redemptions are being honored.

The debasement is in JY and EUR, since they never, ever took any losses. Again, not occurring here.

[Melinda Romanoff]

CAT arning on the collapse of their asian markets, this AM, didn't do much to boost confidence in another bout of green shoots.

[Melinda Romanoff]

"arning" = warning

[NK]

MelR-- "hot money action' I have been persuaded (by you and others) that owing to short leashes that BenB's printing press doesn't directly create hot money. But, ZIRP is EXPLICITLY aimed at pumping up asset prices-- US Homes and Equities is the plan. Well-- investors have changed the plan and directed money into commodities-- they don't trust Dollar trapped (or any currency based) investments. Even ze German Gov't wants its gold back. Direct/Indirect, matters not-- QE/ZIRP debases US consumer purchasing power, most emphatically for food and energy costs. That is the monetary part of the double whammy imposed on the US economy. The other of course is the fiscal nightmare that is Obamacare plus the DEBT, and the out of control regulatory state suppressing economic activity --especially job creation and wage growth.

[Melinda Romanoff]

Yes, the ZIRp is all about pumping up the asset prices, but it matters how and by whom. The hot money is DIRECTLY created by the constraints of Ben's tool box, the Primary Dealer system. Via either the POMO or other methods, the money barely leaves that circle of Tri-State Blue Hell and is pumped into the markets via HF, Quants, or HFT funding. As the redemptions to those come in, the loan books will start to swell, but until then, that pile of Bens are the hot money du jour.

[Jack is Back]

Kim

The trouble with "brown" coal or Lignite is you need to burn 3 times as much to get the equivalent BTU of Bituminous. However, with new scrubber and precipitator/baghouse technology it shouldn't be a problem just need more space to store it and move it.

[rse]

That's not the only place he has us headed.

http://www2.ed.gov/about/bdscomm/list/eec/equity-excellence-commission-report.pdf came out today. I am almost finished with it while also trying to get the diva off to all state.

It's not just universal preschool. He wants to emulate the cradle to career template ky and oh are using called strive. And make the schools the focus for preventive health care including mental health. And extended day and cultural programs and summer.

And all of that is without pointing out what these terms really mean.

I have captured some stunning quotes on the intentions on technology. I had qguessed what was intended from 1988 book but subsequent book I finished today was beyond graphic. It was meant for ed leaders and not the likes of us which is why it is so forthcoming.

One more thing in that document. There are several points where it is made clear that there will be no move to make English the dominant language for ELLs. Even in preschool.

[moxieman]

Pro business path and you want to whine, Tom? Why, because Obama put us on it? Or do you not want us on a pro-business path?

:)

[Ignatz Ratzkywatzky]

--Or do you not want us on a pro-business path?--

Government pro business paths lead to Mussolini and trains that don't even run on time.
Pro free market paths lead to Adam Smith, prosperity and liberty.

[daddy]

CH kvetched only once that JOM was "tits up" without you.

Ha! I missed that, but Captain Hate is on the money. Welcome back Clarice and DoT!

[Caro's iPad]

Great to have you home, both Clarice and Danube

[L!ink U!nder N!ame.]

Clarice, @ 3:47 PM. That's already happening in Great Britain. See the Bish's thread @ bishophill.squarespace.com

The Early Bird will find worms there, too.
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