[PEN-L:225] A word from Senator Hatch
Intrigued by Valis extract from his pamphlet, I requested a copy. Here is his response. Forwarded message: From [EMAIL PROTECTED] Fri Sep 25 03:25:37 1998 Delivered-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Delivered-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Mime-Version: 1.0 Date: Thu, 24 Sep 1998 08:34:41 -0400 Message-ID: [EMAIL PROTECTED] From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] (senator hatch) Subject: Rule: Re: Request To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Description: cc:Mail note part Dear Friend: Thank you for your recent Internet e-mail message to my office. Please accept this response as an indication that I have received your message and will note your comments. I have received an incredible number of e-mail messages, as well as letters, postcards, and phone calls, regarding President Clinton, Monica Lewinsky, and the Independent Counsel. I regret that I cannot answer all of these more fully. Rest assured, however, that I appreciated your comments. The views I have received run the continuum of opinion from support for impeachment to opposition to the Independent Counsel. Of course, public opinion will be a factor in any decision the Congress ultimately makes in this matter after receiving and reviewing the final report of the Independent Counsel's investigation. Unfortunately, due to time and resource limitations, I am unable to reply to your message by e-mail. Those seeking information or asking questions who are Utah constituents and who have included a complete postal address in their message will receive a reply via U.S. Mail as soon as possible. If you did not include a postal address in your initial email and you would like a response from me, please _resend_ your _complete_, _original_ _message_ along with your Utah address. Again, I appreciate hearing from you. Please continue to keep me informed on issues of importance to you. Sincerely, Orrin G. Hatch United States Senator -- Michael Perelman Economics Department California State University Chico, CA 95929 Tel. 530-898-5321 E-Mail [EMAIL PROTECTED]
[PEN-L:224] more on work and family values
A couple of days ago NPR had a story about Native Americans being poor employees because their family obligations are too strong. They are too prone to take time off to help a friend or family member in need. -- Michael Perelman Economics Department California State University Chico, CA 95929 Tel. 530-898-5321 E-Mail [EMAIL PROTECTED]
[PEN-L:223] OVERLOADED STAFFERS COPE BY CALLING IN SICK (fwd)
Forwarded message: Delivered-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Delivered-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Date: Thu, 24 Sep 1998 11:38:54 -0700 To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] From: Sid Shniad [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: OVERLOADED STAFFERS COPE BY CALLING IN SICK X-UID: 2277 THE GLOBE AND MAIL THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 1998 OVERLOADED STAFFERS COPE BY CALLING IN SICK Sue Shellenbarger The Wall Street Journal To understand why absenteeism is rising at many companies, consider the dilemma of a product manager for a New Jersey manufacturer. Like many employees, he is working all out, 10 hours a day, every day, at what feels like 110 per cent of his capacity. He has doubled his load to cover for laid off co workers. "We run very lean. A little too lean," he says. Regardless of how hard he works, stacks of work pile up on his desk. "I could work 20 hours a day, and I still wouldn't be done." His response? Every now and then, he quietly takes an unscheduled day off. "You look at the piles on your desk and say, 'Well, if I'm here or not, it's not going to matter. I'm never going to get done anyway,' " says the product manager, who asked not to be named because he fears top management's reaction. So he calls in, reports that he'll be absent without giving a reason and stays home "to cool off," ride his bike or do errands. For years, workers have been pressing for more flexibility. Employers have responded with new policies, but slowly. Now, it appears, employees are simply taking the time off when they need it whether or not their employers formally sanction it. Unscheduled absences in the United States rose 25 per cent in the past year to seven year highs, says CCH Inc., a Riverwoods, Ill., human resource information concern, in a survey of 401 U.S. companies. The increase is concentrated among the small and medium-sized U.S. companies that employ about 70 per cent of all payroll workers. The findings echo an Aon Consulting survey of 1,800 U.S. employees showing an I 1 per cent rise since 1995 in time lost from work, including unscheduled absences for all reasons and time spent at work on personal matters. For the first time since the annual CCH survey began in 1991, "family issues" were cited as the No. 1 cause of unexpected absences, accounting for 26 per cent, compared with 22 per cent for personal illness. Personal need, "entitlement mentality" and stress together accounted for 52 per cent. Stress and personal matters were also the fastest growing causes of missed time in the Aon survey. It would be easy to conclude that workers are acting like a bunch of truant teen agers. Not so, says David Stum, head of Aon Consulting's Loyalty Institute, Chicago, which studies work force commitment. "This isn't a case of bitterness or anger. People aren't saying, 'I'm going to get back at my employer.' It's more subtle. "The American work force has become sophisticated enough to know that the company is going to do what the company has to do to compete globally," including layoffs and restructurings, he says. "What we see now is the individual saying, 'There are some things I have to do, too.' " Increasingly, "it's a two way street." Many bosses look the other way when workers take unauthorized time. The problem with that is that it risks fostering a rebel culture =97 the dreaded entitlement mentality that accounted for 16 per cent of surprise absences last year. Amy Showalter, a government relations manager for a financial services concern, says that's a big issue for "the people who have to pick up the slack." If employees are going to take time off anyway, it's probably better to build it into the system. Big employers are having some success in this. Companies with 5,000 or more workers posted 4 per cent to 7 per cent declines in unscheduled absences last year, CCH says, thanks in part to progressive policies like paid time off banks, alternative work arrangements, backup child care and work at home. By bringing time off needs out in the open, such policies enable bosses to place responsibility for missed work on workers themselves. It wouldn't hurt, either, for employers to figure out whether employee workloads make sense. A little streamlining might go a long way toward helping workers to recover that elusive sense of accomplishment and commitment the New Jersey product manager =97 and others =97 are missing.=20 =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D= =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D LONG HOUR BLUES British managers have cut back on their work weeks, citing the effect of long hours on their personal lives, an Institute of Management report says. =B7 Junior and middle managers were most opposed to long hours =97 nearly 60 per cent said they worked long hours because it was expected by more senior management, or they had no choice. =B7 Seventy eight per cent worked more than
[PEN-L:222] Re: new mellower review
In reply to Valis, you get a little wiser and discover that it's exogenous forces that are making you all that money. Bigwayne wrote, and yet, you had to be in the market and your money had to be at risk . . . That is unless your a big hedge fund or a humougous bank or . . . Regards, Tom Walker ^^^ #408 1035 Pacific St. Vancouver, B.C. V6E 4G7 [EMAIL PROTECTED] (604) 669-3286 ^^^ The TimeWork Web: http://www.vcn.bc.ca/timework/
[PEN-L:220] Re: NY Review on the economy
Has anyone beside me bothered to read the balance of the Leon Levy interview that Louis posted yesterday? I don't think there was anything really revelatory said, but the effect of Levy's comments in full, as well as Madrick's promptings, might stimulate some interesting thoughts in someone on the list. Almost sounds like Levy's cardiologist has given him a new, mellower perspective on things. Below is another section of the interview. valis . J.M.: Economists typically think of capital spending as the main source of the economy's strength. The more the better. L.L.: Yes, that's what many said about Japan. I am not sure that economics has made all that much advance since John Maynard Keynes. I am not an economist, so I won't push the argument too far. But you have to know the causal relationship. Capital investment may improve productivity, but new opportunities may also stimulate capital investment. So what is causing what? It doesn't mean that if you just keep investing, productivity will also keep going up. J.M.: At some point, you're saying, certain kinds of capital investment simply become the fashionable thing to do and that's how economies get overextended. L.L.: If you can raise the money, which you can do these days, someone will come along with an idea about what to do with it. But it may not be a very good idea. That's what happened to Japan. But we are not as overextended as they were, that should be made clear. J.M.: Let me give the conventional argument here, about which I am dubious. A lot of analysts point to the degree of high-technology investment and the computer revolution and say that they will be the source of new growth and rising productivity. L.L.: Well, we've had a lot of electronics investment for a long time. It's probably improving productivity, but it won't raise it by a quantum leap. And we may now be investing too much in these things. As I said, some people tell me their computers are too powerful. J.M.: So, in sum, whatever the trigger, the American economy is vulnerable to a downturn. L.L.: Exactly. As I said, I think a recession is getting increasingly likely. J.M.: What does that mean for the stock market? L.L.: It could mean a serious decline. It's already been serious, remember. Small stocks are way down. J.M.: How overvalued do you think the stock market is? L.L.: Well, I've thought it's been overvalued for some time. And it just kept going up. All markets overshoot. If something's working, you want to buy more. J.M.: How do you analyze the value of the market? L.L.: By the way, I don't think the odds of being right about the market are remarkably large, though at some times trends are easier to see than at others. Perhaps this is one of those times. In evaluating companies in the market, I try to determine what you would pay to buy the whole company, based on its actual performance: its products, its sales, its earnings, and its prospects. Then I compare it to the current market value based on the stock price: the price of the shares times the number of shares. Given the way the stock market has been, it's been a long time since I've been able to find many companies I would want to buy. J.M.: In some fifty years in the business, do you think this market is about as exuberant a stock market as any you have ever seen? L.L.: I don't think any of us really remembers how we felt at different times of our life about different things. I've noticed people always think that this time it's the worst. When you're younger, you are more inclined to believe that the profits you make in the market are due to your own wit or talent. When you get older, maybe you get a little wiser and discover that it's exogenous forces that are making you all that money. ...
[PEN-L:219] RE: the growth of global (superfluous re:s deleted)
Max Sawicky wrote, The relativist standard can easily be taken to a logical, absurd conclusion: When discussing subjectivity, any *logical* conclusion is proBabely absurd. Here's the way I look at: I have an expectation of how much money I should be able to earn and how much work I should have to do to earn it. If I can't live up to those subjective expectations, I feel deprived. Ordinarily, I could care less if Bill Gates is worth $40 billion, $40 million or $40. I might even get some vicarious enjoyment from the sheer enormity of his wealth. But if I feel I have the skill and have worked hard to entitle me to earn $20,000 a year and I've had to make do on $15,000 then I'm going to feel *resentful*, not about Bill's billions per se but about the story I keep being told about how much Bill *deserves* his billions by dint of his hard work and brilliance. The corollary to the Bill Gates story is that I somehow don't deserve any more than I got. It seems to me that's the context for "relative wealth". It's also the context for subjective experience of injustice (as contrasted with an abstract, theoretical notion of social justice). Regards, Tom Walker ^^^ #408 1035 Pacific St. Vancouver, B.C. V6E 4G7 [EMAIL PROTECTED] (604) 669-3286 ^^^ The TimeWork Web: http://www.vcn.bc.ca/timework/
[PEN-L:217] RE: the growth of global
[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: so if the bottom 80% ends up with 'more' (even though it's a smaller portion of the total ) , it's a worse situation? Doug H.: People judge their welfare in large part against their peers, not some absolute transhistorical standard. So if the rich get way richer, and visibly so, and everyone else gets a smidgen richer, then, yes, most people would feel poorer. Even Adam Smith agreed. Bigwayne asks an important question. I doubt that many working people would prefer a decrease in a high income to increases in both theirs and the high income, where their own increase was disproportionately low. Or more simply, who would not prefer Doug's scenario to a status quo? My impression is that we've had elections about this in the U.S. and the 'relative' position has lost, big-time. But if people prefer higher income with lower relative income, and this also makes them feel "poorer," to what is the meaning of "poor" reduced? I don't doubt that relative incomes are more important than economists make out, but how is not so obvious to me. The relativist standard can easily be taken to a logical, absurd conclusion: Suppose Devine secretly owns orange groves, like the John Huston character in 'Chinatown,' and makes ten million bucks a year, and Doug is some cheesy securities trader in penny stocks who fleeces people and makes $100 grand. Jim's income is 100 times Doug's. Now suppose Louis leads an uprising, smashes the state, and taxes Doug down to $25K and Jim down to $1 million, so his income is 'only' 40 times Doug's. By the relativist standard he ought to feel richer. But I'm quite sure he wouldn't, even after listening to LP's six hour state of the union address. From a practical political standpoint, concentrated wealth is a problem, but there has to be some point where feelings about relative differences are superceded by absolute differences in income, where a better income is simply more, not more in relative terms. Growth and redistribution directed at low incomes are then somewhat more important than obsessing on high incomes, from an economic standpoint. MBS
[PEN-L:215] Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: the growth of global
[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: so if the bottom 80% ends up with 'more' (even though it's a smaller portion of the total ) , it's a worse situation ? People judge their welfare in large part against their peers, not some absolute transhistorical standard. So if the rich get way richer, and visibly so, and everyone else gets a smidgen richer, then, yes, most people would feel poorer. Even Adam Smith agreed. Doug
[PEN-L:214] Re: American Crony Capitalism Lives!!! -or-
When is a Loss not a Loss? In-Reply-To: Your message of Thu, 24 Sep 1998 10:43:26 -0400 To whom..., A loss, it seems, even in this great bastion of market-rationality, risk-management and (gulp) transparency (except for hedge funds, playgrounds of the Gods) is not a question of what you owe, but whom you know. Thus is revealed the eternal achilles heel of capitalism. No matter how they try to sanitize the system, they cannot undo the instability that having so much wealth in so few hands creates. Capitalism's greatest geniuses can't smooth out the wrinkles and they have to go whining to their rich pals. What a bunch of cowards. That Meriwether, Merton and Scholes, gurus of analytical finance capitalism, should be laid low by the Russian nomenklatura is an irony so rich it's practically proof of the existence of God. peace
[PEN-L:213] Re: Russia: Unemployment rising/Communists desperate for votes
In a message dated 98-09-23 14:03:11 EDT, you write: The resolution cites a '"fivefold increase" in the number of striking enterprises since the beginning of 1998 but notes that many Communist Party raion and city organizations have "little influence" on local labor collectives. yes, well, the communist part didn't have much influence amongst the working class before the fall of the wall either. One would hope that they are learning from their new experiences, but I for one remain skeptical. maggie coleman [EMAIL PROTECTED]
[PEN-L:212] Re: Citicorp-Travelers Merger
At 07:21 PM 9/23/98 -0400, you wrote: A bit back I remember some incensed comment about the Citicorp-Travelers Merger. It seems they announced the merger prior to securing approval from Washington regulators; and the announcement was seen as a move to force Washtington's hand. Well, it seem it didn't take much forcing. 5-0 vote for it, behind closed doors. Article follows. Comment? Comment: I have a book on bank mergers in the US coming out with ME Sharpe in January. It goes into this question of regulatory stance at great length. Let me just make a few basic points: *the Fed regulatory stance shifted definitively in 1982 with Reagan's installment; rules were loosened in 1982 and 1984, defanging the antitrust laws. These have been weakened since, all on the basis of the now-familiar argument that potential entry is a substitute for actual competition in any given market. I have some econometric results for the California mortgage market which show that market concentration still matters in the old-fashioned way; but this leads to the second point. *there is a kind of quiet generational war going on in the Fed between the older structure-conduct-performance types and the newer efficient-market types. This is to some extent a war between the staffs at the Fed Banks (esp. NY) and the Board. Some Fed economists have actually used event study methods to prove the efficiency of a given action *this reliance on market information will probably be less attractive for a while. In any case, I argue in the book that the merger movement in banking is largely Wall-Street driven; and now that banking prices have tumbled (see the NYT article Tom attached) the game is less enticing. These players were buying banks, a low-margin business at best, at 3 to 5 times book value! Nice capital gains if you can cash them in. Just ask Phil Hazen *The Fed has been so passive in evaluating mergers that there is no longer any danger of a denial; hence the "jumping-the-gun" aspect to merger announcements. The announcement date, in effect, is the merger date. *The anti-trust law is actually still on the books. Strange but true. Gary D. Gary Dymski Department of Economics University of California, Riverside Riverside, CA 92521-0427 Phone: 909-787-5037 x1570 Fax: 909-787-5685 Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] (office) [EMAIL PROTECTED] (home)
[PEN-L:210] Cuban economy
Thanks to Louis Proyect for his help posting Fidel's greeting to the Pope. One other request. Can anyone direct me to some insightful and current analysis of Cuba's economic problems and prospects? You may send suggestions directly to me if you don't want to distract others from the current discussions and topics on the list. John Exdell, Philosophy, Kansas State University.
[PEN-L:211] Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: the growth of global
--- so if the bottom 80% ends up with 'more' (even though it's a smaller portion of the total ) , it's a worse situation ? There are mores and there are mores. Some mores actually bring with them more collective and individual vulnerabilities (to disease, abuse, hunger, humilitation, alienation). I, like you (though perhaps yours is a bit less prevalent), live in the midst of such mores. There is also, uh, stuff like justice to consider. Tom Tom Kruse / Casilla 5812 / Cochabamba, Bolivia Tel/Fax: (591-4) 248242 Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
[PEN-L:209] FBI manipulation-Squillacote case
Date: Wednesday, September 23, 1998 11:35 PM Subject: FBI manipulation-Squillacote case Time is short. The trial is only two weeks away on Oct. 7th. Be careful to include the full text below. NOTE: There have already been some good replies and additional information shared on the background of this case, much of which will come out during the trial. Arrangements can be made for mental health professionals, especially representatives of organizations to see a copy of the original BAP document. - CUT Psychological Warfare Alert FBI used unlawfully intercepted Psychotherapist/Patient Conversations to manipulate patient into "Spy Crimes." The October 1997 arrest of Theresa Squillacote for espionage crimes has been revealed to be based on the FBI's manipulation of Ms. Squillacote's emotional issues and treatment for severe depression and post trauma stress. In early 1996, using a secret Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act warrant, the FBI began 24 hour round the clock surveillance of Ms. Squillacote, her husband Kurt Stand and their two small children. This included , without legal authority, FBI taped conversations between Ms. Squillacote and her husband talking to her doctors, close relatives and friends about her illness, including calls for emergency psychiatric medical assistance. This surveillance started after their names were ID'ed in former East German Stasi files from the early 90's. While, the FBI uncovered no evidence of criminal conduct, past or present, they did discover that she was in the midst of a profound bout of Clinical Depression, a problem that had plagued her family for many years (including her eldest sister who committed suicide some 8 years earlier). Using these wire taps and other psychological sources, the FBI developed a Behavioral Analysis Profile (BAP) which outlined her perceived emotional problems and weaknesses and recommended specifically how to construct an effective "sting" operation, custom made to exploit these vulnerabilities. (The defense has a copy of this document.) For example, the FBI noted that it needed to execute the operation quickly, to "exploit the vulnerable state" she was then in due to a break-up of a personal, "highly dependent" relationship with a German man. The FBI also worked to specifically execute this trap before she left her government position, as she was then contemplating. The gist of the "sting" operation involved sending a purported South African emissary to her, ostensibly as a follow-up to a political analysis she had sent a South African official and author the year before. The undercover agent (UCA) was instructed to play upon her low self-esteem and weak sense of identity by complimenting her efforts and making her to understand that she was uniquely gifted. By further playing upon her sympathies for a socially progressive government in South Africa, and upon her innate fears of abandonment, the UCA cajoled her into providing government documents, ultimately leading to the arrest of her and her husband. This psychologically manipulative FBI "sting" raises issues for all of us. Psychotherapist/patient privilege should never be violated, least of all by a government agency intent on building a crime where none existed before. If, in the post Cold War environment the "cold warriors" of the National Security establishment must resort to such dirty tricks to continue to justify their existence, what boundaries will they ever come to respect? This profound invasion of privacy threatens all of us. If we tolerate exploiting the most vulnerable amongst us, then ultimately none of us are safe. Prepared by: Metro DC Committee of Correspondence P.O. Box #11109, Washington, DC 20008-0309 What can you do? (Please freely copy this post and send it on.) 1. Please copy and repast this letter on all lists and to whomever you think should hear about it. 2. Protest to your Congressional Representatives and the U.S. Dept. of Justice. 3. Send donations to help their two children to the: Stand Childrens Family Trust Acct. No. 209357355 Crestar Bank, 1700 Elton Rd., Silver Spring, MD 20903 4. Contribute to their defense: Fund for the Fourth Amendment P.O. Box 5685, Washington, DC 20016 (For more information on FISA and the case check: http://www.igc.org/criddiough/ks.htm) END - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Walter D. Teague, LCSW-C, LICSW Clinical Social Worker in Maryland and DC Tel. 301-439-6755 Fax 301-439-2436
[PEN-L:207] Hedge Fund headaches
Wall St. Struggles to Save Big Fund By Steven Mufson and John M. Berry Washington Post Staff Writers Thursday, September 24, 1998; Page A01 A huge private investment fund run by Wall Street legend John Meriwether and two Nobel Prize-winning economists teetered on the verge of collapse yesterday as losses mounted on more than $100 billion of bets it made in financial markets around the world. In an attempt to avoid a new bout of global market turmoil that might be caused by a fire sale of the fund's assets, chief executives and other top officials from two dozen of the world's largest banks and brokerage firms spent six hours hammering out a preliminary agreement yesterday at the New York Federal Reserve Bank to provide a rescue plan of more than $3.5 billion for the Greenwich, Conn.-based fund, called Long-Term Capital Management L.P. The money is not a bailout of the firm's investors but rather a takeover of the firm by its creditors, who are attempting to buy time so they can recover some of its losses. The negotiations at the New York Fed underscored the seriousness with which regulators regard the turmoil surrounding Long-Term Capital. The fund, like many similar "hedge funds" on Wall Street, used a complex, computer-based strategy to invest in bonds and currencies from around the globe -- and officials fear that its demise could reverberate well beyond the narrow confines of Wall Street. Traders said banks already are tightening credit in response to the crisis, a credit crunch that eventually could affect loans to individuals and small businesses. The high-level negotiations are likely to cast further attention on the largely unregulated business of hedge funds, which use borrowed money to wager on the direction of financial markets. Their web of international transactions has played a key role in linking financial crises in one part of the globe to seemingly unrelated markets elsewhere. A source close to the negotiations described hedge funds as "the connectors of the global economy." The leaders of many developing countries, such as Malaysia, have placed the blame for a regional economic collapse at the feet of hedge fund managers. Long-Term Capital has trading contracts based on securities worth nearly $1 trillion, an investment banker close to the talks estimated, and its agreements involve institutions scattered all over the world. The fund's arcane series of transactions linked its fortunes to securities ranging from Russian treasury bonds to Danish mortgages, from the British pound's value against the U.S. dollar to the volatility of the American stock exchanges. In a statement last night, Long-Term Capital said it believed the infusion of new funds would provide enough breathing room for the company to manage its investments -- and if the markets cooperate, recover some of its losses. The deal came with a price, however. The consortium of banks lending the money will now own 90 percent of the firm and appoint an oversight committee that will direct its overall strategy and make sure it reduces its exposure to markets. The committee will consist of representatives from Goldman Sachs Co., Merrill Lynch Co., Morgan Stanley Dean Witter, Travelers Group Inc. and UBS Securities Inc. -- firms with some of the largest exposures to Long-Term Capital's troubles. Long-Term Capital had an enviable track record before this year, but a series of miscalculations combined with unusual international economic upheavals have hammered the fund's performance. Earlier this month, Long-Term Capital said it had lost $2.5 billion, or 52 percent of its net assets, in trading so far this year, most of it in less than two months -- and the losses are said to have climbed even further this month. The fund's swift decline was propelled in part by its strategy of borrowing heavily to finance large market bets. The heavy borrowing, or high leverage, meant that once the fund suffered losses, it was forced to sell some of its other holdings to meet margin calls from creditors concerned that the fund's collateral was no longer sufficient to meet minimum loan requirements. Being forced to sell while markets were in turmoil only compounded the fund's losses -- and added to turmoil both in emerging markets and in the United States, where it was easier to unload investments such as Treasury bonds. "When positions move away from them, the value of the collateral shrinks and so they owe more collateral. To get the collateral, they have to sell something else," said one source. Long-Term Capital's troubles have been compounded by the difficulty of untangling such large positions in a short time. "Once the Street knows you're a wounded animal or cornered bear, you're not going to get a good price," said Steven Lonsdorf, president of Van Hedge Fund Advisors. Hedge fund sources said that in late August, Long-Term Capital asked the Quantum Fund, run by hedge fund titan George Soros, for an injection of half a
[PEN-L:206] Re: Fidel's Greeting
Posted at 7:40 p.m. EST Wednesday, January 21, 1998 Translation of Castro's speech The official translation of Cuban President Fidel Castro's statement of welcome to Pope John Paul II: Holy Father, The land you have just kissed is honored by your presence. You will not find here the peaceful and generous native people who inhabited this island when the first Europeans arrived. Most of the men were annihilated by the exploitation and the enslaved work they could not resist and the women turned into pleasure objects or domestic slaves. ... There were also those who died by the homicidal swords or victims of unknown diseases brought by the conquerors. Some priests have left tearing testimonies of their protests against such crimes. In the course of centuries, over a million Africans ruthlessly uprooted from their distant lands took the place of the enslaved natives already exterminated. They made a remarkable contribution to the ethnic composition and the origins of our country's present population where the cultures, the beliefs and the blood of all participants in the dramatic history have been mixed. It has been estimated that the conquest and colonization of this hemisphere resulted in the death of 70 million natives and the enslavement of 12 million Africans. Much blood was shed and many injustices perpetrated, a large part of which still remain after centuries of struggle and sacrifices under new forms of domination and exploitation. Under extremely difficult conditions, Cuba was able to constitute a nation. It had to fight alone for its independence with unsurmountable heroism and, exactly 100 years ago, it suffered a real holocaust in the concentration camps where a large part of its population perished, mostly old men, women and children; a crime whose monstrosity is not diminished by the fact that it has been forgotten by humanity's conscience. As a son of Poland and a witness of Oswiecim, you can understand this better than anyone. Today, Holy Father, genocide is attempted again when by hunger, illness and total economic suffocation some try to subdue this people that refuses to accept the dictates and the rule of the mightiest economic, political and military power in history; much more powerful than the old Rome that for centuries had the beasts devour those who refused to abdicate their faith. Like those Christians horribly slandered to justify the crimes, we who are as slandered as they were, we choose a thousand times death rather than abdicate our convictions. The revolution, like the Church, also has many martyrs. Holy Father, we feel the same way you do about many important issues of today's world and we are pleased it is so; in other matters our views are different but we are most respectful of your strong convictions about the ideas you defend. In your long pilgrimage around the world, you have been able to see with your own eyes many injustices, inequalities and poverty; uncultivated lands and landless hungry farmers; unemployment, hunger, illness; lives that could be saved with little money being lost for lack of it; illiteracy, child prostitution, 6-year old children working or begging for alms to survive; shanty towns where hundreds of millions live in unworthy conditions; race and sex discrimination; complete ethnic groups evicted from their lands and abandoned to their fate; xenophobia, contempt for other peoples; cultures which have been, or are currently being, destroyed; underdevelopment and usurious loans, unpayable and uncollectable debts, unfair exchange, outrageous and unproductive financial speculations; an environment being ruthlessly and perhaps helplessly destroyed; an unscrupulous weapons trade with disgusting lucrative intents; wars, violence, massacres; generalized corruption, narcotics, vices and an alienating consumerism imposed on peoples as an ideal model. Mankind has seen its population increase almost fourfold just in this century. There are billions of people suffering hunger and thirst for justice; the list of man's economic and social calamities is endless. I am aware that many of them are cause of permanent and growing concern to the Holy Father. I have been through personal experiences which allow me to appreciate other features of his thinking. I was a student in Catholic schools until I obtained my bachelor's degree. There, I was taught that to be a Jew, a Muslim, a Hinduist, a Buddhist, an animist or a participant of any other religious belief was a terrible evil deserving severe and unmitigated punishment. More than once, even in some of those schools for the wealthy and privileged -- where I was one of them -- I came up with the question of why there were no black children there; until this day, I have not forgotten the unconvincing answers I was given. In later years, the Second Vatican Council convened by Pope John XXIII undertook the analysis of some of these sensitive issues. We are aware of efforts by the Holy Father to preach and
[PEN-L:205] BLS Daily Report
This message is in MIME format. Since your mail reader does not understand this format, some or all of this message may not be legible. -- =_NextPart_000_01BDE7BF.BDEF5810 BLS DAILY REPORT, WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 1998 RELEASED TODAY: The median number of years that wage and salary workers had been with their current employer (referred to as employee tenure) was 3.6 years in February 1998, edging down from 3.8 years in February 1996. Among men, median employee tenure decreased for most age groups, as it did in 1996. Among women, overall tenure changed little from 1996 to 1998. ... The number of employed youth increased by 2.5 million from April to July 1998, slightly less than in the summer of 1997, BLS reports. In the summer of 1998, the number of unemployed youth aged 16 to 24 grew by 702,000 between the spring and summer. BLS does not adjust this data for seasonal variations, because the focus of its analysis is the seasonal changes in youth employment. ... (Daily Labor Report, page D-1). One in five California grape growers and one in two farm labor contractors failed to pay workers the federal minimum wage, the Department of Labor found in an investigation of 66 growers and 23 contractors. But DOL Wage and Hour Division investigators found much higher compliance levels for child labor and federal health and safety laws in the representative sample of 8,000 growers in 23 counties. ... (Daily Labor Report, page A-8). Federal Reserve policymakers voiced growing concern Tuesday about slowing economic growth in a sign they're at least willing to entertain the notion of an interest rate cut when they meet next week. The balance of risk has shifted from one of concern about inflation to one of concern about inadequate growth, New York Federal Reserve Bank President William J. McDonough said. The anecdotal evidence regarding investment plans, regarding reductions in the labor force (layoffs), and the beginnings of a reduction in consumer confidence all add up. Experts say, however, that the decision on whether to cut interest rates next week rests with Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan. Greenspan is slated to present his latest views on the U.S. and world economies to the Senate Budget Committee today. ... (New York Times, page C7; Washington Post, page A1). Overloaded staffers are starting to take more time off work. ... For years, workers have been pressing for more flexibility. Employers have responded with new policies, but slowly. Now, it appears, employees are simply taking the time off when they need it, whether or not their employers formally sanction it. Unscheduled absences rose 25 percent in the past year to seven-year highs, says CCH Inc., a Riverwoods, Ill., human-resource information concern, in a 401-company survey set for release today. The increase is concentrated among the small- and medium-size companies that employ about 70 percent of all payroll workers. ... For the first time since the annual CCH survey began in 1991, "family issues" were cited as the No. 1 cause of unexpected absences, accounting for 26 percent, compared with 22 percent for personal illness. Personal need, "entitlement mentality," and stress together accounted for 52 percent. ... (Sue Shellenbarger in "Work Family," Wall Street Journal, page B1). -- =_NextPart_000_01BDE7BF.BDEF5810 gAEAEQAAAEJMUyBEYWlseSBSZXBvcnQAkAUBDYAEAAICAAIAAQOQBgBwCwAAHEAAOQDg tRu5wOe9AR4AcAABEQAAAEJMUyBEYWlseSBSZXBvcnQAAgFxAAEWAb3nwFk8 99g2c1OKEdKIjgAgr5wDCAAAHgAxQAENUklDSEFSRFNPTl9EAAMAGkAAHgAw QAENUklDSEFSRFNPTl9EAAMAGUAAAgEJEAEAAACqCAAApggAAJ4NAABMWkZ1 jfHinf8ACgEPAhUCpAPkBesCgwBQEwNUAgBjaArAc2V0bjIGAAbDAoMyA8UCAHDccnESIAcTAoMz EwwGsNBzdGVtAoB9CoAIzx8J2QKACoENsQtgbmcxTDAzFIALA2xpGKA4eQLRaS0ZYwtVFIIB0CAE QkwF8ERBSUxZAQfwRVBPUlQsIEBXRURORVMbUFkFHBBTG8BURU1CRRBSIDIzHBAxOTl+OAqPC5ES 8hrhHgUbsEyERUEc4EQgVE8ckaI6IKBoZSAHgGQHMBkDoG51BtAEkCBvZsggeWUR0SB0EcAFQBh3 YWchQABwZCBz2wdACsB5IxAFsGsEkAQg3xHAI5AiAAnwIxBpItAiwXRlaQXAYwhwFtACMCBbFbAL UG8icAXAKBbQZvcEkBbRIsBvI2AEICZlIUA3FaAh0BbQKSMRBCAzLgY2ImULgCBGZWJyXnUj4h3C HBAJgGcLgGdwIGRvdwOgA1IpMTjzKX8qgzYuE9AEYCtBB4D+bhwQIWUn/StgBZAW0CfA/ydhAhAF wARgFZAjYCNBCcB5CGBwcxwQJ8ElQCtgaZ8jkCnhLXokIC4zb3YEkP8HQAMgL4URsRiAJ2EZQAJA fmwhQCvDLXIngh3CLbAu/TbwIB+mHgUhIiHYJmUjkF55CGAlUQuAMBZiJAAyfC41IVADEBlAAiAr tEFHE5ADESeRSnVsKoZz+RlAZ2g1gCQANZAEESLR/wOgKeElgSOgIeAHgCIjHcGuNxwQGxIW0HAW cXMtsJ5JPl8qs0CyIdh1bjkNyyMxI5AxNkMyNDFRB9HBOpE3MDIsMEWAJNH8dHck8kCzO+ErQSNz PsNPLbAbEitwB5FubzEBZHxqdTDxItAEACtgIvBhnzCDEfAnwAIgB0AgdgrAnQcwdDtBMbEiAGNh SLD/KGEhMQIQJeAEICJBJUAEIP8AcAdAFYBJEUkRQLNJ5jTULyyTOZQmZC4xdDbUKETbC3A8gUwB oAWxUkADHBBLHjAjQUQZ0CkuN0xPz0LgKdIZsDPwIEMHQAaQzwWwAwBJcAnAYXAxQ0XwvyKhI3IC IFNDReAnoGYKwL8r8AtgUOIFoAIwNBBjJ5D/IqFWYAMQJ2QeMCQIS6MJgHc0AjrxAwBtIeAjE0HU RPtAAArAdE+yIjJQxAIQQtB/MmM+EzPwFZA9MEqjIjI2fylgVPodgFcKR5E5sBtAT/ZMHCAjNkgI YRtAU6AEAP87Ql0YV5NcY1owEbAkkD0x7yIRBaAmcSGRYyFANZAz8O5sYsIlwUkAbDUxUNMjcr9Z
[PEN-L:204] Re: Re: Re: NY Review article on the economy
C. Perelman, Go to sattelite.nikkei.co.jp and look around. The story is a couple weeks old, I think, but they should still have it available. I was actually going to forward it to the list when I first read it, but it was at a time when my e-mail had gotten away from me. If you can't find it, write them. They've been very nice to me. peace
[PEN-L:203] Re: Re: Re: the growth of global
On Thu, September 24, 1998 at 00:43:43 (EDT) [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: ... -- my point being that when you 'condemn' rich people for being rich yet the rising tide that has allowed that 'richness' to effloresce also raises all the boats in the harbor, including the poorest 80% -- which if the tide hadn't risen would still be dying of various septic diseases and living a short and squalid life (as opposed to today's long and [relatively at least] culturally wealthy life, eh? I condemn the rich because they live off the labor of others. They are not what has caused the tide to rise, notwithstanding the propaganda you have evidently swallowed. This is, however, entirely beside the point for considerations of wealth distribution, which you have conveniently ignored (again). Bill
[PEN-L:200] Re: NY Review article on the economy
To whom..., My reaction to Levy's point about Japanese capital investment is that it was true some time ago but not, apparently, today. The Nikkei news service reported that U.S. industrial equipment is now newer than Japanese equipment for the first time in a great while. The Japanese crisis has been brewing for a long time, it seems. peace
[PEN-L:197] Re: the growth of global
On Wed, September 23, 1998 at 23:58:00 (EDT) [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: compare the lowest 20% today with the lowest 20% as of 50 years ago . . . eh? I have you sold in slavery to me, condemning you and your children to such a life, in which your family's wealth is 1/100th that of mine. 50 years later, my children inherit your children, and from your childrens' labor become fabulously wealthy. My children raise the caloric level from subsistence levels to that plus a little fresh fruit on special occasions (perhaps when quotas are exceeded), while the wealth disparity rises to 1/100. Your point being??? Bill
