The needs of the few vs. the needs of the many

[kinvore.livejournal.com]

So apparently US executives make far more money compared to their global counterparts when you compare their salary to their production workers (although there's been some debate as to the accuracy of some of these reports). They receive raises even if their company's stock drops, but production workers are often laid off and/or outsourced as cost saving measures.

I think any corporation that requests bailouts should significantly cut their executive pay. I'm not going to offer any specific amount because I think it needs to be done on a case by case basis, but EVERYONE needs to make sacrifices these days. If those executives leave (I'd like to see where they'd go) I'm sure we can find others to take their place. I think a bit of poetic justice would be to hire executives from other countries, to whom even the reduced salaries would still be a raise. This is, after all, the land of opportunity.

Two great pieces of news this weekend!

[peoriashows.livejournal.com]

Amongst all the negative and depressing news this weekend came two uplifting gems from CNN:

1: Campbell Brown's leaving No Bias, No Bull over to my favorite political correspondant Roland Martin for a few weeks while she goes and pops out another kid

and more importantly

2: The painfully obnoxious D.L. Hughley had his final show on CNN broadcast this weekend. Thank God this guy's leaving! What was CNN thinking having this pointless & annoying show anyway? Were they trying to compete with Comedy Central?

Prison Reform

[lordtwinkie.livejournal.com]

ladies and gentlemen, it looks like some things are starting to change (hopefully), the fact that a politician is not only openly talking about this but is also getting support from Democrats, Republicans and Libertarians.

Webb Crime Bill Gets Unlikely Support

Jimm Webb's courage v. the "pragmatism" excuse for politicians

Jim Webb a Democratic senator from Virginia is proposing we reform the system, because its obviously not working.

heres a link to pdf of his speech
http://webb.senate.gov/email/incardocs/FS_CrimJust_3-26-09.pdf

Let's start with a premise that I don't think a lot of Americans are aware of. We have 5% of the world's population; we have 25% of the world's known prison population. We have an incarceration rate in the United States, the world's greatest democracy, that is five times as high as the average incarceration rate of the rest of the world. There are only two possibilities here: either we have the most evil people on earth living in the United States; or we are doing something dramatically wrong in terms of how we approach the issue of criminal justice. . . .

He was on NPR taking calls,

Caller after caller argued on behalf of legalization; Rehm noted that the subject is "always the first question." Webb didn't shy away from it. "It's a very real question. It's a very legitimate question," he told one caller, noting that the past three presidents and more than half of Americans have used illegal drugs at some point in their lifetimes.

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I personally think that our prisons are a joke, people are going to prison who should be getting help instead of being locked up, in fact i'd argue that our prison system is actively working against society. my wife has become hooked on the msnbc show Lockup and I've been watching it with her, watching this show makes me think its no wonder that prisoners are leaving prison only to end up back there days and weeks later. they are treated like animals, how do you expect them to act? they aren't learning anything of value in prison that can help them function in society, if anything its just making them dysfunctional. I'm not going to be naive and say everyone has a chance to do well, I know some are hopeless, but I don't think most are. Besides this shit is costing me, a taxpayer, too much damn money.

Besides ask yourself this before you opine for the use of draconian prison methods
What Would Vince Offer Do?



I'm just hoping this is the start of something better.