We forget the empirical evidence of the cancer rate near these great refineries higher than the rest of the country in general. Port Author Texas, Houston Texas, Midland Odessa and all of the chemical plants have higher cancer rates. People in Iowa and Nebraska on average live about two years longer. Hence, it is reasonable to conclude that the fossil fuel economies of large cities are not a good thing and or green. $10 a gallon will spur substitutes and innovation as do forward thinking people, such as the Tesla CEO Elon Musk. Can anyone recall Carter mentioning fracking shale? Can anyone recall Reagan taking down the solar panel Carter installed on the White House? Like the two famous GOP economist now state "supply side/trickle down was and is a hoax", we just can't stand anymore of the promised prosperity, as David Stockman and Bruce Bartlett have fessed up.
Government works to synergize all elements of a society or it doesn't work. Hard work and smarts help many become successful, but sometimes luck and timing are involved too. Some unsuccessful people are lazy, but some are also victims of bad luck. You really can't generalize. Adam Smith capitalism doesn't really work, just look at early 20th century America. But I sure don't know of any successful pure socialistic or communist society either. The biggest problem facing the United States I believe is this extremism on both sides and growing self centered narrow vision and selfishness. The middle and moderate that built this country is being shoved aside. I don't think you can be successful long term down the road when people become extreme and intolerant in their views and I think that is what has held back many countries such as in some of the middle east. If you look at historical achievements places like Egypt and Iran should be way ahead of where they are, but these attitudes have stymied themselves. Turning back to America, what are we looking at? Let's see, a president who seems to think the government is essential to just about every aspect of life versus a potential opponent who stashes some of his great wealth in places like the Cayman Islands and Switzerland, or another who seems to think our individual lifestyles and choices should be dicated by his personal religious views. Hard for me to believe any of these guys instill confidence in our greatness or future.
As for the pipeline, it is going to be more about exports than US consumption. We are currently awash in oil - just look at Cushing, OK. It's really more a matter that Texas would like to get into refining the crude for export and Canada prefers to avoid the greatly increased costs of building a pipeline to the Pacific. Nothing wrong with any of that, but if someone thinks that pipeline is going to bring back $2.50 gasoline then they are pipe dreaming. Oil is fungible and becoming increasingly difficult and expensive to extract. Deep sea and fracking cost a lot more money than just pumping it up from the soil, and oil is a global commodity and priced accordingly. The one thing I think might hold back some of the speculator mark up froth is requiring them to either sell or take possesion of the oil when the contract expires, instead of this paper only derivatives nonsense.
I did...shoestring startup...had some money for 4-6 month expenses (don't remember if it was 4,5, or 6), shared space with a few others to cut overhead and office supply cost...naturally took a little while for accident cases to settle, mostly small soft tissue cases, but the cash flow paid office overhead and a little for personal, and wife was working at a bank...
I am not on TV, I am in small city yellowpages (Atlanta too expensive and lawyers with full page ads) and I do not have a website...
If I worked with a form I might have made more money in the past, but I don't work 80 hour weeks and I enjoy the freedom to treat clients as I believe they should be treated, and I am not a mill...
The one thing I think might hold back some of the speculator mark up froth is requiring them to either sell or take possesion of the oil when the contract expires, instead of this paper only derivatives nonsense.
That should have been the first legislation in 2009. Got shoved under the table. I agree with your entire post.
Give us a description of the ideal candidate for employment in your firm provided you have the sufficient profits to hire this individual.
What education does he/she require? What experience? What training?
What do you have to offer a prospective employee?
Could this person live a safe, healthy, and clean living from the pay you provide by First World standards? In other words, will this person be able to afford an apartment in a safe neighborhood or will he get shot waiting for the bus? Will he be able to eat healthy meals or will he be loading up on sodium and carbs eating ramen noodles every night? Will he be able to live a comfortable lifestyle by First World standards or will he have to deal drugs or prostitute his wife and daughters just to keep the lights on?
Will you provide any kind of health care coverage, or will this person end up being bankrupted, disabled, or dead due to any medical emergency?
Unions would've never existed in the first place if capitalists didn't see their workers as expendable commodities to be used-up and discarded. They are human beings; not animals, machines, or fuel/raw materials.
Unions would've never existed in the first place if capitalists didn't see their workers as expendable commodities to be used-up and discarded. They are human beings; not animals, machines, or fuel/raw materials.
I would have to agree, there is a need for unions in this world. Because some given power can't seem to control their power, they quickly become numbskulls and abuse people. They'll fire people without thinking hard about it, because they can. They'll never give someone who deserves a raise a raise. They'll speak abusively of people behind their back.
I've experienced it and I've overheard it and I've seen it. Until this changes unions will be actually more necessary than you think. But then they can inherit corrupt leaders as well. And so the corruption machine trudges on.
Rocky, it is obvious you are not interested in the facts only the Union workers position. So if those refineries are such gold mines of opportunity, why don't the USW members buy them and make tons of money? Just like the Unions have done with some of the airlines. They have tried to sell the refineries for quite a while with no one interested. Could it be true they are not cost effective? Sunoco has lost $800 million since 2009. Refining oil is not a big money maker. The big money makers in oil are the hedge fund operators like George Soros. He made $2 billion plus by running up the price of oil in 2008 then shorting it on the way down. Refiners make a few cents per gallon on gas. If there was a shortage of refineries, don't you think someone would have bought those from Sunoco? Did the socialist blog say that Sunoco was lying about the refineries ability to only process light sweet crude? As the good oil supply diminishes we are stuck with less desirable crude oil. Last, Sunoco has had those refineries on the market since 2009. If Obama wanted to save those 2000 USW jobs, why didn't the energy department offer to upgrade the refineries to handle the abundant supply of heavy crude? They threw $billions at energy projects that have failed or taken our money to China. I also wonder if you would be so fired up if they were non union workers in those refineries?
I agree Obama should try to save them. There is something wrong when oil is this high and we are shutting down plants. If they are only getting a few cents a gallon that is a problem. Maybe Obama should spend the money and turn the plants into bio diesel and give it to the USW to run. We could create a whole new generation of jobs doing that.
Contrary to what you think I support american jobs both union and non union!
We both know why he blocked the Keystone pipeline and that is because the right wingers want to build it over an aquifer and do not want any environmental studies done.
Where do you pick up such misinformation? The environmental impact studies are COMPLETE. There are pipelines running back and forth over the Ogallala Aquifer in many places. The holdup is some nut in Nebraska trying to extort money from the pipeline company.
The U.S. Department of State is releasing the final version of the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the proposed Keystone XL oil pipeline project today.
The final EIS does not represent a decision on TransCanada’s permit application to build a 1,700-mile oil pipeline from Alberta, Canada to the Gulf Coast. Rather, the final EIS is an environmental and safety analysis of the proposed project, developed to inform the decision. The data in the EIS will be used along with additional input to determine whether the Keystone XL project is in the national interest.
The much bigger risk to the Ogallala aquifer is Corn farmers depleting it.
The aquifer, formed millions of years ago by rivers and streams, is “the single most important source of water in the High Plains region, providing nearly all the water for residential, industrial, and agricultural use,” according to the Water Encyclopedia.
The Ogallala was first pumped 100 years ago to irrigate farms and ranches. People continue to use it as if it were a renewable resource, but of course it isn’t. It is being drained faster than nature can recharge it, especially in the most arid areas, like Boise City, where high winds accelerate the evaporation of what little moisture there is.
So the aquifer is dropping lower and lower, and some geologists fear it could dry up in as soon as 25 or 30 years. This is a major issue confronting not just those eight states but the entire country.
In November, the State Department announced it would delay a decision on the proposed Keystone project to allow for further study of the environmental impact along its 1,700-mile route. The president was stuck between environmentalists and many residents of Nebraska, who opposed the project due to concerns about how it would impact its water supply, and labor unions and others who heralded the jobs the pipeline would create.
Bill Clinton tells Americans to ‘embrace’ Keystone pipeline
Clinton blamed TransCanada for not realizing the pipeline’s original route from the oil sands near Fort McMurray, Alta., to refineries in Texas crossed through sensitive habitat in Nebraska.
Obama rejected that route, saying more work needed to be done to provide environmental protection.
As was said, Adam Smith capitalism doesn't work. We don't need a return to a Dickensian socio-economic spectrum, yet we are headed there.
You would think the Miseseans would figure that out by now!
As far as the pipeline goes I'm all for it so long as they divert the pipeline around the aquifer. That was the original plan that TransUnion proposed as Bill Clinton said then the company tried to pull a fast one to save costs. So if they eliminate the environmental risks it will give work to thousands of union members during the construction. Yeah it's a short term solution to a long term problem but any good paying job at this point puts food on the table. Just wished all the oil would stay here!!! :sick:
Well said, Lemko....The psuedo capitalist look at labor (employees) like animals or numbers. I believe employers have the right to make a profit but unfortunately capitalism breeds greed. That is why they hate unions and union members. They do not want to give them a slice of the pie and when they run the ship into the iceberg the first place they look to cut is the crews wages and benefits. Why does the worker bees the first ones to get the axe? Why do the white collar executives get golden parachutes for a job not well done? That is why I'm opposed to our crony capitalist society!
Hey, if any capitalist can do all the work by himself - fine! Let him keep all the profits. His profits are only limited by his physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, and financial boundaries.
However, those who create the wealth for the capitalist should receive their equal and fair share of it.
Hey, if any capitalist can do all the work by himself - fine! Let him keep all the profits. His profits are only limited by his physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, and financial boundaries.
However, those who create the wealth for the capitalist should earn their equal and fair share of it.
Fair, yes.. Equal?
Why in the world would somebody create a business so somebody else can benefit just as much as the business owner without sharing the risk?
It's not easy to create and run a business. There are responsibilities, liabilities, that employees just don't see.
An employee can go home and enjoy his day. Often not worrying about work until he punches back in. The owner maybe there til midnight trying to figure out how to may payroll on Friday, because while the orders maybe flying in the door, the customers are taking forever to pay and the bank won't increase the line of credit.
I've worked for struggling small businesses and trust me, I was glad that I could just walk away and move on.
Let's say I run a body shop. I have a guy who is a master body repair technician. The customers love his work and refer other customers to me. I'm sitting in my office doing all I can to run the administrative end of my business while my body technician creates the profits for me. I'm most certainly going to pay him a decent wage lest he tells me where to go, starts to slack off, and/or the quality of his work suffers. The customers will then desert my business in droves, bad-mouth me and my business, and the profits turn into losses.
I'm most certainly going to make sure my body techinician works in an environmentally and physically safe environment. If he gets hurt from faulty equipment or gets sick from the fumes emitted by the paint and solvents, he's of no use to me. If he gets some kind of illness outside of work and doesn't receive the proper medical treatment because he lacks health care coverage, gets too sick to keep working or dies as a result, me and my business are screwed.
Exactly!!! The problem is you and I can see that but the elites feel that they are worth 475x master body repair technician. They do not value the guy doing the work for them. If the employer treats him bad he might join a union
Let's say I run a body shop. I have a guy who is a master body repair technician. The customers love his work and refer other customers to me. I'm sitting in my office doing all I can to run the administrative end of my business while my body technician creates the profits for me. I'm most certainly going to pay him a decent wage lest he tells me where to go, starts to slack off, and/or the quality of his work suffers. The customers will then desert my business in droves, bad-mouth me and my business, and the profits turn into losses.
I agree, many successful businesses are run that way. Also not every employee is a key employee. Are you going to pay the kid that comes in to sweep the floors the same as your master tech?
You've been generous paying this kid $10/hr while in HS. Well, he flunks out and doesn't finish HS. He like working for you and keeps sweeping the floors and performing remedial tasks. Well, he knocks his girl friend up and sees your master tech driving a nice car, he now demands a $20/hr living wage (he's got mouths to feed and he thinks he's entitled to a new car). Are you going to pay him?
Why in the world would somebody create a business so somebody else can benefit just as much as the business owner without sharing the risk?
The greedy workers only care about themselves. As proven by the UAW auto bankruptcies. They held firm on their over the top wages and benefits and we had to pay the price to save their worthless butts.
I have yet to see a Union, my own included that volunteered to take a cut when the company was bleeding red ink. It is a one way street for Unions. I wonder how many concessions the USW made to keep those refineries open?
Tesoro refinery workers reject USW labor contract, strike possible
02.22.2012 |
Union workers at three more Tesoro refineries have rejected new labor contracts, setting up the potential for a strike. A general strike at Tesoro's refineries still negotiating could shut down 500,000 bpd of refining capacity, though it wouldn't spread to refineries run by other companies.
comparing the CEO/employee wage level of fortune 500 companies to what the reality is for most businesses is apples and oranges.
That is what the simplistic mind sees, an overpaid executive. The year I retired the top guy in our company did not make twice what I did. And several of the lower managers and engineers made less than I did. There are 1000s of small businesses that barely hang on. With the owners sometimes making little or nothing. I would think most any small businessman would sign a Union contract that said the wages are based on company earnings. We don't have to worry about the mega corporations. They already solved their labor issues by going to another state or country.
There are 1000s of small businesses that barely hang on. With the owners sometimes making little or nothing.
Exactly. I have a friend that owns a small reputable machine shop. He's owned it for 30 years and wanted to retire about 10 years ago. He sold it to the employees at a time where the business was profitable and running well.
Guess what. 3 years later the employees begged him to come back. They ran it it into the ground. He's spent the last 7 years trying to get it back to where it was. He bought it back (of course for less than he sold it, he's not stupid) and has been paying himself a nominal salary while trying to restore the business to where it once was.
With the market where it is today, he really can't find a buyer, so he's working with attorneys to just give it back to the employees hoping that w/o any debt they can at least maintain a living. He's pushing 70 years old and the 60 hour work weeks are getting harder.
My guess is even though the employees think they know what they are doing, it will be closed within a few years after he finally leaves for good.
At dispute was Tesoro's plan to leave employee benefits open to change without bargaining during the next three years, according to the website.
Did you ever work under a contract where you didn't know how much you might have to pay for insurance? They might be telling them they want them to pay $800-$900 bucks a month. When oil companies are making record profits it is not the unions fault that the oil companies only allow the refinery a few cents a gallon while the rest goes to the shareholders and greedy CEO's
lemko: "Give us a description of the ideal candidate for employment in your firm provided you have the sufficient profits to hire this individual."...at the present time, there isn't one...after watching my father get hammered by the Teamsters (now you know where my union opinions come from, plus watching the UAW for 10 years in Detroit) I decided to set up my business to be run by one person, me...I wanted to avoid employees like the plague, because I might accidentally hire a "rocky replica" and that would ruin my life and the afterlife...so I do it myself and could handle doubling the practice and still do it myself, just work longer hours to get the work done...
diesel: "Guess what. 3 years later the employees begged him to come back. They ran it it into the ground."...that is why the employer should receive the bulk, if not all of the profits of ANY business, because the employees, while they [non-permissible content removed] and moan about every little thing, they rarely, if ever, have the brains to run the business end of the business...most folks who punch the time clock have no idea what it takes to actually make the business run from onth to month, and when they get/buy the business they often run it into the ground due to their sheer ignorance...they punch in at 8:00 and punch out at 5:00 and get their checks every other Friday, and they don't know anything else...I respect the employees for their skills, but their business acumen is rarely that above a whining 6 year old...there are exceptions, of course, but not the norm...also, it is worth noting that when 2nd and 3rd generations inherit the business from Dad or Grandad (or Mom or Grandmom) they often screw it up just as much...
rocky: "when they run the ship into the iceberg the first place they look to cut is the crews wages and benefits. Why does the worker bees the first ones to get the axe?"...usually because they are the greatest numbers and the easiest to cut overhead...plus, you are showing with red flares why you understand nothing about business...if sales are down in any organization, obviously then production must be decreased so you do not keep the production folks on the payroll, or else you get the UAW Jobs Bank, except that GM had the excess funds to pay those workers to sit on their collective a**es like welfare cheats and collect checks for doing nothing...now, I also agree with you that if sales are down, white collar should be reduced, too, because if you don't have as many folks to manage, you certainly don't need as many managers...
Oh, and 475X what the worker gets really is quite a low multiple, don't you think???...
lemko, again: I would pay the prevailing wage for a paralegal in the area...where they decide to live would determine if it was safe or not, they would certaibnly not be surrounded by pollutants in the work environment (altho I have been known to bring peanuts into the office for a snack...if he/she is allergic, do I have to get rid of the peanuts or the paralegal?)...as far as get shot waiting for the bus, this is Atlanta...need I say more???
rocky again: "That is why I'm opposed to our crony capitalist society!"...if you don't like it, I am sure that Cuba can hire you for anything you want to do, and you will probably be paid the exact same amount as everyone else...
The one thing you are incapabale of understanding is that there is no guarantee here of making a fortune, but it is one of the countries where it may be possible for anyone to do so...you always seek the security of someone else taking the risk but you think you deserve the profits of their risk-taking...you don't...period...get over it...you are NOT entitled to any share of any profits their risk-taking created...none...you give 8 hours of work and get paid what they agreed to pay you, and the contract is fulfilled...
NOW, if the employers WANTS to share the profits with you, I am all for it...when I had employees in Detroit, my colleagues used to give their employees Xmas bonuses of $50-100 per employee...my bonuses usually ranged from $500-1000 per employee, and that was in the 1980s...I agree with you that profit sharing is nice, but don't try to tell me you are entitled to it by law, you will only receive it because I want to show my gratitude to those who helped me make the $$$...so, we differ in that you think the law ought to mandate it and I think it is at the employer's discretion only...BASICALLY ROCKY, YOU HAVE NO RIGHT WHATSOEVER TO ANY OF MY PROFITS UNLESS I DECIDE TO SHARE THEM WITH YOU...if you don't like it, you can leave and find another job...but don't try to play boss in my business when the only risk you take each day is whether or not you might be killed by a car when you cross the street...I risked what I had to start the business and you ain't entitled to any of it...period...please take your Communist theories to your next employer, and see how far you get...
Okay even if it is 10x for the sake of argument at a smaller company why is that paper pusher worth so much more than the guy making the product. Let's say George is a CEO of a small chemical company that has 100 employees.
Mike is a Chemical Operator and knows how to make degreasers, chemicals to remove paint, and chemicals that brighten aluminum products and many other chemical products the company sells including knowing how to work on the machinery. Mike can't do George's job but George can't do Mike's job. Why is Georges job worth 10-20x more than Mikes? As we've recently seen at Ring Masters where the Janitor bought the company!!!
Since when did being CEO make it your business? What if I and my coworkers own shares of stock in our company? Why should the small board of executives of a corporation have the only voice? Notice how the UAW took some decision making away from GM executives on product and have influences on what will roll down the assembly line or do you still have your head in the sand and only think people with cookie cutter MBA's are the only ones qualified to run a car business. You could plug me in at GM, with accountants and engineers and I would run the company better than any CEO in recent memory. The 475x came from Forbes so I'm parroting there numbers. Oh and if you don't like unions which are recognized by the constitution you can move to some libertarian paradise. I imagine you drove to work today correct? You socialist! What are you doing using public roads? If you get robbed you better not call the cops because that would be socialist. You better not hire any employees that were educated by public education because that would be socialist. You better not hire any employees that used public universities because they receive state and federal money and that would be socialist also. You Misesean, Ayn Rand think tanks are the biggest hypocrites. Walk the talk and quit being socialist in your daily life otherwise you are no better than UAW members
As we've recently seen at Ring Masters where the Janitor bought the company!!!
That's a great story, but the janitor who orchestrated the buyout didn't have a clue about what to do initially. He just wanted to save the company. He spent hours studying and risked everything to make it happen.
I guarantee he's now making 10x what he was making and he should, he's not a janitor anymore.
Okay even if it is 10x for the sake of argument at a smaller company why is that paper pusher worth so much more than the guy making the product. Let's say George is a CEO of a small chemical company that has 100 employees.
Well, the owner is responsible for everything that happens in the plant. Just because he's pushing papers doesn't mean he's not busting his [non-permissible content removed] off. The owner has to deal with the all of agencies, regulators, banks, insurance, suppliers, and everything else required to make the company run. Then on top of it, make sure the employees he/she is paying is doing their job properly.
Ex. my wife in a licensed pharmacists. She manages a large district of pharmacies. She's pretty much responsible for the total operations. Essentially a paper pusher. Funny thing is, every now and then she'll cover an 8 hour pharmacy shift working as a regular pharmacist. When she comes home from those shifts, I'll ask "how was your day". 9 times out of 10 she'll comment, it was a breeze, it was like having a day off! If she was paid the same as pharmacist, she'd just go back to being one.
She'll have one of her employees job shadow her from time to time. They usually respond by telling her they had no idea how demanding her job was and that she can have it.
Wait a minute...if you are talking about a public company with shares of stock, of course anyone who owns stock is entitled to a share of the profits commeasurate with the number of shares they own...
I have always been referring to small company like a lawyer's office or a doctor's office, or a hardware store (not Home Depot), where there is an owner or a partnership of a few people and they hire paralegals or nurses or PAs or whatever...I simply refer to the type of business that I am, one of those small legal offices with 5 or fewer lawyers, or a doctor's office with 5 or fewer MDs...
If you are referring to companies with 100s of stockholders, I absolutely agree that they should share in the profits...if that is what you meant, we are talking apples and alternators...I apologize if that is the impression I gave...I only refer to small companies, you know, the backbone of American capitalism...
I only refer to small companies, you know, the backbone of American capitalism...
You are so greedy! Don't you understand? It's the government's job to decide who has made enough money so Obama and his cronies can "spread the wealth around"...
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Seeing how well those with cookie-cutter MBAs ran the automotive companies, could the blue collar guys on the assembly line possibly do a worse job? The cookie-cutter MBAs don't even need alcohol or drugs to be stupid. At least the line worker has the option of kicking the booze or the dope.
In a public company I do think there should be compensation caps for executive compensation. If I was dictator I would limit it to I also believe just because you own a stake in a company that you are entitled to a dividend on that share of stock. I think a 11-15:1 ratio is about fair. If they want more money they have to give workers a raise.
Or if the other side is in charge, a shameless desire spread the wealth upward, as we've been experiencing trickle-up economics for some time - evidenced by the exploding socio-economic rift.
I wish I could say my experience in corporate land shows such hard work as one ascends the management structure. If anything, from what I can see, there's more of an inverse relationship out there between work and pay.
I wish I could say my experience in corporate land shows such hard work as one ascends the management structure. If anything, from what I can see, there's more of an inverse relationship out there between work and pay.
I don't work for a large corp, but my wife does. I wouldn't be surprised if some under her feel as you do. But I see first hand what she and the execs above her go through. The money is the only reason to endure it.
She's had a few promotion offers to the exec suite, she's turned them down as she doesn't want to travel M-F and work 6 days a week. That's the reality.
I've worked alongside people up to VP level (VP of finance used to have an office almost adjacent to my desk), I see what goes on. I don't see a lot of stress and frustration here. Lots of cronyism, too.
Maybe the reality is different in the pharmacy industry, which has its own stresses - as you mentioned elsewhere, cost pressures which are really dictated by big pharma (a huge special interest lobby in itself) more than anything else, so the crap flows downstream. I also don't see as having a laptop at home and checking email daily as working a whole day, or sitting on a plane as a day of work.
I also don't see as having a laptop at home and checking email daily as working a whole day, or sitting on a plane as a day of work.
Have you ever had a job were you had to travel or spend substantial time out your office?
It's not fun to be out on the road all day, then you get home at 6 or 7 (depending on travel or what you had to do) only to find hundreds of emails waiting for you.
Plus you don't have kids. That changes the dynamics a bunch. It's hard to get anything done at home with kids.
I've worked alongside people up to VP level (VP of finance used to have an office almost adjacent to my desk), I see what goes on. I don't see a lot of stress and frustration here. Lots of cronyism, too.
GM, which is based in Detroit, announced to employees at one of its facilities that it was halting production of the beleaguered electric car for five weeks and temporarily laying off 1,300 employees.
Hey, if any capitalist can do all the work by himself - fine! Let him keep all the profits. His profits are only limited by his physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, and financial boundaries.
However, those who create the wealth for the capitalist should receive their equal and fair share of it.
Take a company like the one I used to work for, Boeing. We were in the SPEEA Union, most of us worked our arses off, and the grey suits/bean-counters still saw fit to lay about 40,000 of us off in 2002-2003. Fine. Make them the money by working hard, and that is how they treat you in the end. Sickening treatment for the little working man.
Pathetic company - it was a good job, but sorry, I can't get all mushy and gushy about how they treat people, I don't care how good they feel their airplanes are.
The Union can only do so much for you in the end, too, unfortunately. :sick:
Emails can be done in motion today. But I have a hard enough time being issued a laptop that was made after Bush's first term, not to mention actually working on it. Just not seeing the extreme hard work in the middle manager to director level set, especially when wages are taken into account. And I won't even get into higher managers and execs.
I think there are more airline pilots that prefer Boeing than Airbus. But as a passenger until you get to the 777, the Airbus tend to have better seats. Back to topic, I think the people that get screwed the most by egregious corporate exec pay are the shareholders. A lot of that money should be going back to them as they are actually the owners who are taking the risks, not the execs.
Two good points you have made. The BOD many times screw the stockholders when they give over the top salaries and bonuses. That is probably where the focus should be on crony capitalism. Board members sitting on several boards passing along bonuses to get the same treatment in return.
WinXP is head and shoulders above both Vista and Win7. The filing system sucks. Networking is an absolute pain. I wiped a Win7 machine clean and loaded my copy of WinXP Pro. So much faster.
It's not fun to be out on the road all day, then you get home at 6 or 7 (depending on travel or what you had to do) only to find hundreds of emails waiting for you.
The other week, I needed an update to a schedule from someone. Called her, no answer, left a message. Not two minutes later, she called me back, from home, as it turns out she was off that day. She sounded all excited, and told me about this new feature on our work phones that can forward any messages to another number, like home or cell. When she asked me if I wanted her to email me instructions on how to do it, I told her HELL no! There's no way in hell I want to be that connected to work. When I leave the office, work disappears as far as I'm concerned.
But, on the flip side, this scheduler makes more money than I do. So, I guess there is some benefit to being tethered to the office, even when you're on vacation. And if I wanted to become a scheduler, I'd probably have to deal with that, too.
From what I've seen at various jobs over the years, the higher up the totem pole you get, you don't always work harder. But you usually have more responsibility, longer hours, constantly on call, etc.
But yeah, like Fintail said, lots of cronyism goes on, too. I know I've mentioned before, about how they got rid of this sweet little old lady last year because the government employee she supported didn't like her. And then they replaced her with two younger women who were childhood friends of this gov't woman's daughter! The daughter, whom I should mention, also works in our building.
WinXP is head and shoulders above both Vista and Win7. The filing system sucks. Networking is an absolute pain. I wiped a Win7 machine clean and loaded my copy of WinXP Pro. So much faster.
I've generally been happier with Windows 7. If find the networking aspect is easier to use and media streaming capabilities is much better IMO.
Ironically, my wife has a new Lenovo laptop with an I5 processor and XP Pro (work computer).
I've used just about every version of Windows going back to 3.0 (IIRC). Windows ME really sucked, and Vista is nearly as bad. The laptop I'm typing this on shipped with Vista. It was always a PITA. Running windows 7 and it's been much better.
I still have an old HP Pentium 4 laptop my 9 year old primarily uses with XP and it still runs fine. But I've learned to appreciate some of the nuances with Windows 7. I have a home built I5 720 PC in my office that's slightly over clocked and it runs great with Windows 7 Ultimate 64bit. The laptops are a bit more finicky, but always seems to be the case.
Absolutely they can, but if most of your travel is by car (which my wife and mine is) I would like to see you check emails and open excel files from a black berry while driving 70 MPH down the interstate. I posted one message on here a while back from my phone while driving and a received a few tongue lashing from a few on these boards;)
The other week, I needed an update to a schedule from someone. Called her, no answer, left a message. Not two minutes later, she called me back, from home, as it turns out she was off that day. She sounded all excited, and told me about this new feature on our work phones that can forward any messages to another number, like home or cell. When she asked me if I wanted her to email me instructions on how to do it, I told her HELL no! There's no way in hell I want to be that connected to work. When I leave the office, work disappears as far as I'm concerned.
But, on the flip side, this scheduler makes more money than I do. So, I guess there is some benefit to being tethered to the office, even when you're on vacation. And if I wanted to become a scheduler, I'd probably have to deal with that, too.
Off the top of my head my wife has probably 200 people which report to her. And it's a 24/7 business, so she can get calls at all hours. So yes, she doesn't go anywhere without her blackberry. We've ruined two while out on the boat (they don't float, and don't like to be wet;))
That said, technology has certainly made it easier to stay in the loop. Her blackberry syncs with Lotus notes or she can tether her laptop to the phone. So most of the time if a crisis happens when she's not at work can be handled where ever she's at.
Comments
As for the pipeline, it is going to be more about exports than US consumption. We are currently awash in oil - just look at Cushing, OK. It's really more a matter that Texas would like to get into refining the crude for export and Canada prefers to avoid the greatly increased costs of building a pipeline to the Pacific. Nothing wrong with any of that, but if someone thinks that pipeline is going to bring back $2.50 gasoline then they are pipe dreaming. Oil is fungible and becoming increasingly difficult and expensive to extract. Deep sea and fracking cost a lot more money than just pumping it up from the soil, and oil is a global commodity and priced accordingly. The one thing I think might hold back some of the speculator mark up froth is requiring them to either sell or take possesion of the oil when the contract expires, instead of this paper only derivatives nonsense.
Good point about rabid union types screwing their peers instead of the public in general like the 1% screws, though.
As was said, Adam Smith capitalism doesn't work. We don't need a return to a Dickensian socio-economic spectrum, yet we are headed there.
Is that why Georgia is such a land of prosperity and opportunity for all?
I am not on TV, I am in small city yellowpages (Atlanta too expensive and lawyers with full page ads) and I do not have a website...
If I worked with a form I might have made more money in the past, but I don't work 80 hour weeks and I enjoy the freedom to treat clients as I believe they should be treated, and I am not a mill...
I bet ATL is accident claims lawyer heaven, crazy drivers and some sketchy stuff around. I am sure you are one of the more tolerable lawyers.
That should have been the first legislation in 2009. Got shoved under the table. I agree with your entire post.
What education does he/she require?
What experience?
What training?
What do you have to offer a prospective employee?
Could this person live a safe, healthy, and clean living from the pay you provide by First World standards? In other words, will this person be able to afford an apartment in a safe neighborhood or will he get shot waiting for the bus? Will he be able to eat healthy meals or will he be loading up on sodium and carbs eating ramen noodles every night? Will he be able to live a comfortable lifestyle by First World standards or will he have to deal drugs or prostitute his wife and daughters just to keep the lights on?
Will you provide any kind of health care coverage, or will this person end up being bankrupted, disabled, or dead due to any medical emergency?
Unions would've never existed in the first place if capitalists didn't see their workers as expendable commodities to be used-up and discarded. They are human beings; not animals, machines, or fuel/raw materials.
Unions would've never existed in the first place if capitalists didn't see their workers as expendable commodities to be used-up and discarded. They are human beings; not animals, machines, or fuel/raw materials.
I would have to agree, there is a need for unions in this world. Because some given power can't seem to control their power, they quickly become numbskulls and abuse people. They'll fire people without thinking hard about it, because they can. They'll never give someone who deserves a raise a raise. They'll speak abusively of people behind their back.
I've experienced it and I've overheard it and I've seen it. Until this changes unions will be actually more necessary than you think. But then they can inherit corrupt leaders as well. And so the corruption machine trudges on.
2021 Kia Soul LX 6-speed stick
I agree Obama should try to save them. There is something wrong when oil is this high and we are shutting down plants. If they are only getting a few cents a gallon that is a problem. Maybe Obama should spend the money and turn the plants into bio diesel and give it to the USW to run. We could create a whole new generation of jobs doing that.
Contrary to what you think I support american jobs both union and non union!
-Rocky
Where do you pick up such misinformation? The environmental impact studies are COMPLETE. There are pipelines running back and forth over the Ogallala Aquifer in many places. The holdup is some nut in Nebraska trying to extort money from the pipeline company.
The U.S. Department of State is releasing the final version of the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the proposed Keystone XL oil pipeline project today.
The final EIS does not represent a decision on TransCanada’s permit application to build a 1,700-mile oil pipeline from Alberta, Canada to the Gulf Coast. Rather, the final EIS is an environmental and safety analysis of the proposed project, developed to inform the decision. The data in the EIS will be used along with additional input to determine whether the Keystone XL project is in the national interest.
http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2011/08/171082.htm
The much bigger risk to the Ogallala aquifer is Corn farmers depleting it.
The aquifer, formed millions of years ago by rivers and streams, is “the single most important source of water in the High Plains region, providing nearly all the water for residential, industrial, and agricultural use,” according to the Water Encyclopedia.
The Ogallala was first pumped 100 years ago to irrigate farms and ranches. People continue to use it as if it were a renewable resource, but of course it isn’t. It is being drained faster than nature can recharge it, especially in the most arid areas, like Boise City, where high winds accelerate the evaporation of what little moisture there is.
So the aquifer is dropping lower and lower, and some geologists fear it could dry up in as soon as 25 or 30 years. This is a major issue confronting not just those eight states but the entire country.
http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/05/04/aquifers-depletion-poses-sweeping-thre- - at/
In November, the State Department announced it would delay a decision on the proposed Keystone project to allow for further study of the environmental impact along its 1,700-mile route. The president was stuck between environmentalists and many residents of Nebraska, who opposed the project due to concerns about how it would impact its water supply, and labor unions and others who heralded the jobs the pipeline would create.
http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2012/02/boehner-obama-cant-have-it-both-way- s-on-keystone-pipeline/
Will the Keystone XL pipeline lower gasoline prices?
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/fact-checker/post/will-the-keystone-xl-pipel- ine-lower-gasoline-prices/2012/03/01/gIQAtWkXlR_blog.html
Bill Clinton tells Americans to ‘embrace’ Keystone pipeline
Clinton blamed TransCanada for not realizing the pipeline’s original route from the oil sands near Fort McMurray, Alta., to refineries in Texas crossed through sensitive habitat in Nebraska.
Obama rejected that route, saying more work needed to be done to provide environmental protection.
http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/americas/united-states/120229/bi- ll-clinton-tells-americans-embrace-keystone-pi
-Rocky
-Rocky
You would think the Miseseans would figure that out by now!
As far as the pipeline goes I'm all for it so long as they divert the pipeline around the aquifer. That was the original plan that TransUnion proposed as Bill Clinton said then the company tried to pull a fast one to save costs. So if they eliminate the environmental risks it will give work to thousands of union members during the construction. Yeah it's a short term solution to a long term problem but any good paying job at this point puts food on the table. Just wished all the oil would stay here!!! :sick:
-Rocky
Marsha7's dream job is being a judge on the NLRB :sick:
-Rocky
-Rocky
However, those who create the wealth for the capitalist should receive their equal and fair share of it.
However, those who create the wealth for the capitalist should earn their equal and fair share of it.
Fair, yes.. Equal?
Why in the world would somebody create a business so somebody else can benefit just as much as the business owner without sharing the risk?
It's not easy to create and run a business. There are responsibilities, liabilities, that employees just don't see.
An employee can go home and enjoy his day. Often not worrying about work until he punches back in. The owner maybe there til midnight trying to figure out how to may payroll on Friday, because while the orders maybe flying in the door, the customers are taking forever to pay and the bank won't increase the line of credit.
I've worked for struggling small businesses and trust me, I was glad that I could just walk away and move on.
Let's say I run a body shop. I have a guy who is a master body repair technician. The customers love his work and refer other customers to me. I'm sitting in my office doing all I can to run the administrative end of my business while my body technician creates the profits for me. I'm most certainly going to pay him a decent wage lest he tells me where to go, starts to slack off, and/or the quality of his work suffers. The customers will then desert my business in droves, bad-mouth me and my business, and the profits turn into losses.
I'm most certainly going to make sure my body techinician works in an environmentally and physically safe environment. If he gets hurt from faulty equipment or gets sick from the fumes emitted by the paint and solvents, he's of no use to me. If he gets some kind of illness outside of work and doesn't receive the proper medical treatment because he lacks health care coverage, gets too sick to keep working or dies as a result, me and my business are screwed.
-Rocky
-Rocky
Let's say I run a body shop. I have a guy who is a master body repair technician. The customers love his work and refer other customers to me. I'm sitting in my office doing all I can to run the administrative end of my business while my body technician creates the profits for me. I'm most certainly going to pay him a decent wage lest he tells me where to go, starts to slack off, and/or the quality of his work suffers. The customers will then desert my business in droves, bad-mouth me and my business, and the profits turn into losses.
I agree, many successful businesses are run that way. Also not every employee is a key employee. Are you going to pay the kid that comes in to sweep the floors the same as your master tech?
You've been generous paying this kid $10/hr while in HS. Well, he flunks out and doesn't finish HS. He like working for you and keeps sweeping the floors and performing remedial tasks. Well, he knocks his girl friend up and sees your master tech driving a nice car, he now demands a $20/hr living wage (he's got mouths to feed and he thinks he's entitled to a new car). Are you going to pay him?
The greedy workers only care about themselves. As proven by the UAW auto bankruptcies. They held firm on their over the top wages and benefits and we had to pay the price to save their worthless butts.
I have yet to see a Union, my own included that volunteered to take a cut when the company was bleeding red ink. It is a one way street for Unions. I wonder how many concessions the USW made to keep those refineries open?
Tesoro refinery workers reject USW labor contract, strike possible
02.22.2012 |
Union workers at three more Tesoro refineries have rejected new labor contracts, setting up the potential for a strike. A general strike at Tesoro's refineries still negotiating could shut down 500,000 bpd of refining capacity, though it wouldn't spread to refineries run by other companies.
http://www.hydrocarbonprocessing.com/Article/2982915/Tesoro-refinery-workers-rej- ect-USW-labor-contract-strike-possible.html
Expect higher gas prices due to greedy USW strikes.
LOL, comparing the CEO/employee wage level of fortune 500 companies to what the reality is for most businesses is apples and oranges.
That is what the simplistic mind sees, an overpaid executive. The year I retired the top guy in our company did not make twice what I did. And several of the lower managers and engineers made less than I did. There are 1000s of small businesses that barely hang on. With the owners sometimes making little or nothing. I would think most any small businessman would sign a Union contract that said the wages are based on company earnings. We don't have to worry about the mega corporations. They already solved their labor issues by going to another state or country.
Exactly. I have a friend that owns a small reputable machine shop. He's owned it for 30 years and wanted to retire about 10 years ago. He sold it to the employees at a time where the business was profitable and running well.
Guess what. 3 years later the employees begged him to come back. They ran it it into the ground. He's spent the last 7 years trying to get it back to where it was. He bought it back (of course for less than he sold it, he's not stupid) and has been paying himself a nominal salary while trying to restore the business to where it once was.
With the market where it is today, he really can't find a buyer, so he's working with attorneys to just give it back to the employees hoping that w/o any debt they can at least maintain a living. He's pushing 70 years old and the 60 hour work weeks are getting harder.
My guess is even though the employees think they know what they are doing, it will be closed within a few years after he finally leaves for good.
At dispute was Tesoro's plan to leave employee benefits open to change without bargaining during the next three years, according to the website.
Did you ever work under a contract where you didn't know how much you might have to pay for insurance? They might be telling them they want them to pay $800-$900 bucks a month. When oil companies are making record profits it is not the unions fault that the oil companies only allow the refinery a few cents a gallon while the rest goes to the shareholders and greedy CEO's
-Rocky
diesel: "Guess what. 3 years later the employees begged him to come back. They ran it it into the ground."...that is why the employer should receive the bulk, if not all of the profits of ANY business, because the employees, while they [non-permissible content removed] and moan about every little thing, they rarely, if ever, have the brains to run the business end of the business...most folks who punch the time clock have no idea what it takes to actually make the business run from onth to month, and when they get/buy the business they often run it into the ground due to their sheer ignorance...they punch in at 8:00 and punch out at 5:00 and get their checks every other Friday, and they don't know anything else...I respect the employees for their skills, but their business acumen is rarely that above a whining 6 year old...there are exceptions, of course, but not the norm...also, it is worth noting that when 2nd and 3rd generations inherit the business from Dad or Grandad (or Mom or Grandmom) they often screw it up just as much...
rocky: "when they run the ship into the iceberg the first place they look to cut is the crews wages and benefits. Why does the worker bees the first ones to get the axe?"...usually because they are the greatest numbers and the easiest to cut overhead...plus, you are showing with red flares why you understand nothing about business...if sales are down in any organization, obviously then production must be decreased so you do not keep the production folks on the payroll, or else you get the UAW Jobs Bank, except that GM had the excess funds to pay those workers to sit on their collective a**es like welfare cheats and collect checks for doing nothing...now, I also agree with you that if sales are down, white collar should be reduced, too, because if you don't have as many folks to manage, you certainly don't need as many managers...
Oh, and 475X what the worker gets really is quite a low multiple, don't you think???...
lemko, again: I would pay the prevailing wage for a paralegal in the area...where they decide to live would determine if it was safe or not, they would certaibnly not be surrounded by pollutants in the work environment (altho I have been known to bring peanuts into the office for a snack...if he/she is allergic, do I have to get rid of the peanuts or the paralegal?)...as far as get shot waiting for the bus, this is Atlanta...need I say more???
rocky again: "That is why I'm opposed to our crony capitalist society!"...if you don't like it, I am sure that Cuba can hire you for anything you want to do, and you will probably be paid the exact same amount as everyone else...
The one thing you are incapabale of understanding is that there is no guarantee here of making a fortune, but it is one of the countries where it may be possible for anyone to do so...you always seek the security of someone else taking the risk but you think you deserve the profits of their risk-taking...you don't...period...get over it...you are NOT entitled to any share of any profits their risk-taking created...none...you give 8 hours of work and get paid what they agreed to pay you, and the contract is fulfilled...
NOW, if the employers WANTS to share the profits with you, I am all for it...when I had employees in Detroit, my colleagues used to give their employees Xmas bonuses of $50-100 per employee...my bonuses usually ranged from $500-1000 per employee, and that was in the 1980s...I agree with you that profit sharing is nice, but don't try to tell me you are entitled to it by law, you will only receive it because I want to show my gratitude to those who helped me make the $$$...so, we differ in that you think the law ought to mandate it and I think it is at the employer's discretion only...BASICALLY ROCKY, YOU HAVE NO RIGHT WHATSOEVER TO ANY OF MY PROFITS UNLESS I DECIDE TO SHARE THEM WITH YOU...if you don't like it, you can leave and find another job...but don't try to play boss in my business when the only risk you take each day is whether or not you might be killed by a car when you cross the street...I risked what I had to start the business and you ain't entitled to any of it...period...please take
your Communist theories to your next employer, and see how far you get...
Mike is a Chemical Operator and knows how to make degreasers, chemicals to remove paint, and chemicals that brighten aluminum products and many other chemical products the company sells including knowing how to work on the machinery. Mike can't do George's job but George can't do Mike's job. Why is Georges job worth 10-20x more than Mikes? As we've recently seen at Ring Masters where the Janitor bought the company!!!
-Rocky
-Rocky
That's a great story, but the janitor who orchestrated the buyout didn't have a clue about what to do initially. He just wanted to save the company. He spent hours studying and risked everything to make it happen.
I guarantee he's now making 10x what he was making and he should, he's not a janitor anymore.
Okay even if it is 10x for the sake of argument at a smaller company why is that paper pusher worth so much more than the guy making the product. Let's say George is a CEO of a small chemical company that has 100 employees.
Well, the owner is responsible for everything that happens in the plant. Just because he's pushing papers doesn't mean he's not busting his [non-permissible content removed] off. The owner has to deal with the all of agencies, regulators, banks, insurance, suppliers, and everything else required to make the company run. Then on top of it, make sure the employees he/she is paying is doing their job properly.
Ex. my wife in a licensed pharmacists. She manages a large district of pharmacies. She's pretty much responsible for the total operations. Essentially a paper pusher. Funny thing is, every now and then she'll cover an 8 hour pharmacy shift working as a regular pharmacist. When she comes home from those shifts, I'll ask "how was your day". 9 times out of 10 she'll comment, it was a breeze, it was like having a day off! If she was paid the same as pharmacist, she'd just go back to being one.
She'll have one of her employees job shadow her from time to time. They usually respond by telling her they had no idea how demanding her job was and that she can have it.
I have always been referring to small company like a lawyer's office or a doctor's office, or a hardware store (not Home Depot), where there is an owner or a partnership of a few people and they hire paralegals or nurses or PAs or whatever...I simply refer to the type of business that I am, one of those small legal offices with 5 or fewer lawyers, or a doctor's office with 5 or fewer MDs...
If you are referring to companies with 100s of stockholders, I absolutely agree that they should share in the profits...if that is what you meant, we are talking apples and alternators...I apologize if that is the impression I gave...I only refer to small companies, you know, the backbone of American capitalism...
You are so greedy! Don't you understand? It's the government's job to decide who has made enough money so Obama and his cronies can "spread the wealth around"...
Mine: 1995 318ti Club Sport-2020 C43-1996 Speed Triple Challenge Cup Replica
Wife's: 2021 Sahara 4xe
Son's: 2018 330i xDrive
Considering 2 out of the 3 Detroit automakers went bankrupt, I'd say no.
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/10/06/1023469/-CHART-OF-THE-WEEK:-US-CEO:Work- er-Pay-Ratio-is-475:1
-Rocky
I don't work for a large corp, but my wife does. I wouldn't be surprised if some under her feel as you do. But I see first hand what she and the execs above her go through. The money is the only reason to endure it.
She's had a few promotion offers to the exec suite, she's turned them down as she doesn't want to travel M-F and work 6 days a week. That's the reality.
Maybe the reality is different in the pharmacy industry, which has its own stresses - as you mentioned elsewhere, cost pressures which are really dictated by big pharma (a huge special interest lobby in itself) more than anything else, so the crap flows downstream. I also don't see as having a laptop at home and checking email daily as working a whole day, or sitting on a plane as a day of work.
Have you ever had a job were you had to travel or spend substantial time out your office?
It's not fun to be out on the road all day, then you get home at 6 or 7 (depending on travel or what you had to do) only to find hundreds of emails waiting for you.
Plus you don't have kids. That changes the dynamics a bunch. It's hard to get anything done at home with kids.
I've worked alongside people up to VP level (VP of finance used to have an office almost adjacent to my desk), I see what goes on. I don't see a lot of stress and frustration here. Lots of cronyism, too.
I won't dispute that happens.
http://thehill.com/blogs/transportation-report/automobiles/213889-gm-halting-pro- duction-of-chevy-volt
Hey, if any capitalist can do all the work by himself - fine! Let him keep all the profits. His profits are only limited by his physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, and financial boundaries.
However, those who create the wealth for the capitalist should receive their equal and fair share of it.
Take a company like the one I used to work for, Boeing. We were in the SPEEA Union, most of us worked our arses off, and the grey suits/bean-counters still saw fit to lay about 40,000 of us off in 2002-2003. Fine. Make them the money by working hard, and that is how they treat you in the end. Sickening treatment for the little working man.
Pathetic company - it was a good job, but sorry, I can't get all mushy and gushy about how they treat people, I don't care how good they feel their airplanes are.
The Union can only do so much for you in the end, too, unfortunately. :sick:
2021 Kia Soul LX 6-speed stick
Emails can be done in motion today. But I have a hard enough time being issued a laptop that was made after Bush's first term, not to mention actually working on it. Just not seeing the extreme hard work in the middle manager to director level set, especially when wages are taken into account. And I won't even get into higher managers and execs.
WinXP is head and shoulders above both Vista and Win7. The filing system sucks. Networking is an absolute pain. I wiped a Win7 machine clean and loaded my copy of WinXP Pro. So much faster.
I won't blame the UAW for Win7.
The other week, I needed an update to a schedule from someone. Called her, no answer, left a message. Not two minutes later, she called me back, from home, as it turns out she was off that day. She sounded all excited, and told me about this new feature on our work phones that can forward any messages to another number, like home or cell. When she asked me if I wanted her to email me instructions on how to do it, I told her HELL no! There's no way in hell I want to be that connected to work. When I leave the office, work disappears as far as I'm concerned.
But, on the flip side, this scheduler makes more money than I do. So, I guess there is some benefit to being tethered to the office, even when you're on vacation. And if I wanted to become a scheduler, I'd probably have to deal with that, too.
From what I've seen at various jobs over the years, the higher up the totem pole you get, you don't always work harder. But you usually have more responsibility, longer hours, constantly on call, etc.
But yeah, like Fintail said, lots of cronyism goes on, too. I know I've mentioned before, about how they got rid of this sweet little old lady last year because the government employee she supported didn't like her. And then they replaced her with two younger women who were childhood friends of this gov't woman's daughter! The daughter, whom I should mention, also works in our building.
I've generally been happier with Windows 7. If find the networking aspect is easier to use and media streaming capabilities is much better IMO.
Ironically, my wife has a new Lenovo laptop with an I5 processor and XP Pro (work computer).
I've used just about every version of Windows going back to 3.0 (IIRC). Windows ME really sucked, and Vista is nearly as bad. The laptop I'm typing this on shipped with Vista. It was always a PITA. Running windows 7 and it's been much better.
I still have an old HP Pentium 4 laptop my 9 year old primarily uses with XP and it still runs fine. But I've learned to appreciate some of the nuances with Windows 7. I have a home built I5 720 PC in my office that's slightly over clocked and it runs great with Windows 7 Ultimate 64bit. The laptops are a bit more finicky, but always seems to be the case.
Absolutely they can, but if most of your travel is by car (which my wife and mine is) I would like to see you check emails and open excel files from a black berry while driving 70 MPH down the interstate. I posted one message on here a while back from my phone while driving and a received a few tongue lashing from a few on these boards;)
But, on the flip side, this scheduler makes more money than I do. So, I guess there is some benefit to being tethered to the office, even when you're on vacation. And if I wanted to become a scheduler, I'd probably have to deal with that, too.
Off the top of my head my wife has probably 200 people which report to her. And it's a 24/7 business, so she can get calls at all hours. So yes, she doesn't go anywhere without her blackberry. We've ruined two while out on the boat (they don't float, and don't like to be wet;))
That said, technology has certainly made it easier to stay in the loop. Her blackberry syncs with Lotus notes or she can tether her laptop to the phone. So most of the time if a crisis happens when she's not at work can be handled where ever she's at.