Attacking Wal-Mart
Robert Reich wants to know if Walmart is being punished for our sins.
In the eyes of Wal-Mart’s detractors, the Arkansas-based chain embodies the worst kind of economic exploitation: it pays its 1.2 million American workers an average of only $9.68 an hour, doesn’t provide most of them with health insurance, keeps out unions, has a checkered history on labor law and turns main streets into ghost towns by sucking business away from small retailers.But isn’t Wal-Mart really being punished for our sins? After all, it’s not as if Wal-Mart’s founder, Sam Walton, and his successors created the world’s largest retailer by putting a gun to our heads and forcing us to shop there.
Wal-Mart helps poor Americans buy products they otherwise could not, insists on manufacturer efficiency to keep costs down, and frees up consumer money and resources to buy other products that the consumer would not otherwise buy.
Lefties are so interested in Wal-Mart as the anti-union monster, they are uninterested in the fact that the quality of life of many American poor would be worse without Wal-Mart.
Shattering Windows
Regular readers know I have no love for Microsoft. It’s technology is unimaginative and usually is ripped off from someone else and altered just enough to be brought up to Microsoft’s level of crappiness.
Well, it looks like Microsoft might have gone too far. According to Faultline, Microsoft’s Windows Media Player is a blatant rip off of technology and Sony Electronics, along with Phillips, might just be about to sue. Good for them.
So what factors would Philips and Sony take into account to help them decide whether or not to take legal action? Well, one of the first considerations must be the fact that the codec patents are well known and there are several places where they can be looked up and referenced, such as MPEG LA, and yet Microsoft still decided to launch its own VC 9 (the Windows Media 9 version of the Video Codec 1) without attributing the technology to anyone other than itself. Its web site has consistently described the technology as “Microsoft’s”. There is no public record of any licenses being negotiated between Microsoft and any of the companies we have suggested might own title to the codec technology. All of this speaks badly about the outcome for Microsoft were the case to go to court, and were the court to decide that the patented technology had indeed been infringed. It would make it look as though Microsoft had deliberately made little attempt to establish to whom it should pay licenses for the technology and that would make the case all the more open and shut, as it would imply “intent”.
Go get ‘em.
Note to William Mack
Stop posting on my site. You are banned. Your IP to the State of South Carolina has been traced. Go harass someone else with stuff on Ann Curry and Satan.
Georgia Redistricts
It should go without saying that the current Congressional Districts in Georgia are bizarre and difficult to navigate. The maps were drawn by a Democrat controlled legislature intent on taking seats from the GOP. It didn’t quite work as they intended.
Take, just as an example, Congressman Phil Gingrey’s district (R-11th). It looks like some deformed and mutated bacteria.
The district covers the metropolitan areas of Columbus, Rome, LaGrange, and Cobb County, which is part of metro-Atlanta. Portions of it connect through a lake. The district loops through rural middle Georgia and, at one point, you can jump across the 8th Congressional District from one side of the 11th and land in another portion of the 11th.
You can also see on the picture above the 13th district, which is blue and looks like a spider on the south side of Atlanta. While it may be constitutional, it is unconscionable that the desperate Dems would gerrymander the state in such a way.
The Republicans have decided to fix things and are doing so with this map. (PDF). If passed, which seems likely, the districts will be more compact and better represent communities of interest in Georgia. Most likely two Democratic Congressman will be hurt, one being Middle Georgia’s Jim Marshall. That said, Marshall has run so much like a conservative Democrat, I still think it will be tough for a Republican to beat him.
This may, however, do to Marshall what the Democrat redistricting did to Saxy Chambliss — force Marshall into the US Senate election where he would be battling against Chambliss for the second time in a decade. They previously ran against each other for the US House. Saxby beat Marshall then and would probably do so again.
The significant downside to the redistricting is that Democratic controlled legislatures in other states might be inclined to go on a redistricting rampage as well. Though still a wild card, it is increasingly likely. And, if Ahnuld is able to get his anti-gerrymandering initiative passed in California, GOP control of the US House gets tenuous.
Flat Tax
John Fund makes a good point. Many former Communist countries in Europe have led the way in adopting the flat tax.
While the idea might work, here is some food for thought:
Would you be willing to give up your mortgage interest deduction?
Would you be willing to give up the deduction of your state income tax?
Would you be willing to give up charitable deductions?
A good many of us probably would not. That is why I think a flat tax and national sales tax are both unworkable right now. The best solution is to untangle the web of tax regulations and truly simplify the code.
Beat Down
Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., doesn’t face re-election for another 44 months, but already Republicans are hoping to turn her opposition to some of President Bush’s judicial nominees into a potent campaign issue. Republicans believe that with judicial nominees they’ve hit on the perfect political issue for Landrieu and other incumbent Democrats from conservative states. Even if Democrats succeed in maintaining their resistance to some of Bush’s more contentious judicial choices, Republicans believe the issue of “Democratic obstructionism” can be a winner with voters.
Landrieu was beat up pretty hard in 2002 during her re-election bid. She made many promises along the way to make herself seem less liberal. But, once re-elected she went back on all the promises and angered a lot of people who were conned into supporting her.
It’s time for Landrieu to go.
The Problems for the Old Man
Europe is in decay and Mr. Steyn has some thoughts on Bush’s visit to see the old man. He also shows off his great wit. The column is here. This bit made me laugh out loud.
The new EU ”constitution,” for example, would be unrecognizable as such to any American. I had the opportunity to talk with former French President Valery Giscard d’Estaing on a couple of occasions during his long labors as the self-declared and strictly single Founding Father. He called himself ”Europe’s Jefferson,” and I didn’t like to quibble that, constitution-wise, Jefferson was Europe’s Jefferson — that’s to say, at the time the U.S. Constitution was drawn up, Thomas Jefferson was living in France. Thus, for Giscard to be Europe’s Jefferson, he’d have to be in Des Moines, where he’d be doing far less damage. . . . . Until the shape of the new Europe begins to emerge, there’s no point picking fights with the terminally ill. The old Europe is dying, and Mr. Bush did the diplomatic equivalent of the Oscar night lifetime-achievement tribute at which the current stars salute a once glamorous old-timer whose fading aura is no threat to them. The 21st century is being built elsewhere.
The Deacon
Christy’s parents are here. We are church bound this morning. I’m to be ordained a deacon at Vineville Presbyterian Church. It’s quite an honor — I go back and forth on whether I should really do this, it is a big responsibility. Frequently I think someone made a mistake. Surely there are better men than me to be in the diaconate. But, I am honored.
The Old Joke
It is a very, very old joke among Republicans. When a Republican is in the White House, the media does stories seemingly every day on the numbers of homeless in America. Oh, the damn Republican President — starving children and forcing families to burn down their houses to stay warm. The horror!
Well, the AP picks it up from there.
I always say that as far as the Democrats and media are concerned, when a Dem is in the White House social security needs saving and the homeless all have homes.
When a Republican resides at 1600 Penn. Ave, NW, social security is suddenly solvent and the homeless have flooded the streets.
Yes It Does
The Numa Numa Dance is covered here.
The question remains why two million people would want to watch a doughy guy in glasses wave his arms around online to a Romanian pop song.
Yes, yes it does.
What the heck is the Numa Numa Dance? Oh, you’ve seen it and you’ve seen him. See it again here.