Jenksismyhero

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/o...er-last-decade/

So, Obama is calling in the experts (Verizon) to sort out the website mess. I guess we can expect a 90 million dollar bid project to turn into a billion dollar project. Sounds about right for the US Government.

QUOTE (illinilaw08 @ Oct 21, 2013 -> 04:33 PM) You didn't include repayment of student loans or the monthly bill to fill the gas tank (which might be included in the utilities/monthly fixed bills). Student loans are the worst... +1000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000 I regret law school every day (and I regret my wife getting a masters), and will continue to do so for another 12-15 years. At least once those payments go away we'll be able to buy a lake house.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Oct 22, 2013 -> 08:49 AM) When a standard home telephone plan with internet access costs well over that much...both of which by all accounts are 100% mandatory in modern society at this point...I'd say that "completely out of touch with reality" is a really good summary of your point of view. 60% of the world doesn't use the internet, at all. It is not "mandatory." Edit: In the US, less than 30% of people have fixed broadband subscriptions at home, while 75% have cell phone plans. You don't get work done on a cell phone. You don't apply for jobs on a cell phone. You play f***ing Angry Birds on a cell phone. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_count...t_subscriptions

He should have been the 1 million dollar a year recruiting coordinator. Worth every penny.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Oct 22, 2013 -> 08:13 AM) Personally I use AT&T, hate it, have a smartphone, and pay substantially less than that. Perhaps you're referring to family plans only? Furthermore, it's worth noting that there are now a large number of providers who offer smartphone plans for 1/2 that amount, for dollar amounts comparable to the amount that a household would spend on telephone service anyway. So...you've clearly made the assumption that the poorest people who own smartphones will buy the same plans as the highest-income people who own smartphones, which is highly unlikely to be the case. What's "substantially less"? If it's north of $50/month, that's still ridiculous for someone making under 20k a year with kids. It's a freaking luxury, and anyone who says it's not is completely out of touch with reality.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Oct 21, 2013 -> 03:40 PM) One really interesting point is that by the standards of modern business leaders...Jobs's time at Apple was an abject failure. It made him a millionaire but the money he got from apple was pretty small compared to what he got from Pixar. Selling Pixar is what made him a multi-billionaire, Apple money was a small piece of the pie for him that really didn't pay off at all. Jobs created Jobs for tons of people at the place that he didn't rake in a fortune from. His perks were still pretty nice at Apple, like getting a private jet and having his traveling expenses covered: http://www.redmondpie.com/steve-jobs-annua...ess-than-yours/ Let's also remember Apple wasn't nearly the company it is today until about 10 years ago.

QUOTE (Tex @ Oct 21, 2013 -> 03:31 PM) Just so I am clear, Jenks, Alpha, and SS2k5 all believe McJobs and working at Walmart are the examples of job creation we should slash taxes to get. Would Walmart or McDonalds try to get by with less staff if the owner's taxes were higher? What if it meant that the middle class would be paying less taxes and spending that money at McD and WalMart? I'm not really saying that. I'm arguing that those jobs are still jobs that provide an individual an income to live off of. It's not the ideal amount of money, but it's not ideal work. If you work in fast food or retail as a cashier/stocker (i.e., non-management) you shouldn't be expected to make a "middle class wage" because that job does not require those kinds of skills. I'm also arguing that those types of jobs are really no different than laborer level jobs from 80 years ago. And i've really never said anything about slashing taxes. I'd be fine if the rich were taxed more and loopholes were closed. Same with corporations. I WOULD slash taxes for companies that keep jobs here at home instead of outsourcing them. The more incentive to do that, the better.

Can't disagree with you there. Hopefully Cubit sticks around. At least they score some points.

And he provided his laborers enough wages to make a "living?" Again, this gets back to my statement about what a living wage is - is it enough to survive, or is it enough to live a middle class, 2 story home with a picket fence, multiple cars, vacations, etc.

QUOTE (Soxbadger @ Oct 21, 2013 -> 02:22 PM) It is my understanding that is Trestman's preferred offense. He just had slightly changed it for Cutler. I saw the same exact plays being called - couple of reverses to Jeffrey, inside draws to Forte, slants, screens, etc. All plays that the Bears have run before. I think the difference is (1) the crappy defense and (2) McCown getting rid of the ball a little faster than Jay.

QUOTE (Soxbadger @ Oct 21, 2013 -> 01:33 PM) Have you even given Trestman a chance to show what hes supposed to be great at? Before we start saying the Bears need Cutler, why not have an open mind and see what Trestman can do? I was extremely pessimistic about the guy, but when Cutler left yesterday it almost seemed that Trestman got more comfortable play calling. Just in terms of economics its hard to put so much money into Jay Cutler. Now if this was the Bears from 10 years ago, with really young defense and a QB away from multiple super bowl attempts, sure maybe you over spend. But it just seems that the Bears have a lot of problems right now and are going to need time/money/patience to fix them. Half a game does not a quarterback make. They were going up against the worst defense in the league (well, maybe 2nd behind the Bears). McCown looked good, but I really doubt he keeps it up.

I don't like Cutler, but the Bears would be f***ing stupid not to at least franchise him. There's no way in hell they get anyone via the draft or FA that's 1/10th what Cutler is. Without a QB, you're nothing in this league, that's especially true when you have no defense. Add in crazy Brandon Marshall potentially going crazy if his best friend leaves and it's just not worth the risk. Franchise him, draft a QB Trestman thinks he can mold into the next Steve Young and maybe move on in 2015. Also, f*** the football gods. f*** Angelo for so many terrible drafts. f*** Lovie for being mediocre and wasting a golden opportunity to win with a great defense. God. Dammit.

QUOTE (Y2HH @ Oct 21, 2013 -> 12:19 PM) ...and speaking on this thread, this is actually a very interesting subject. I know quite a few people that view me as rich, and I'm really not, but it would be impossible to convince them of that. In comparison, it may appear that way, but a lot of the reality behind it is overlooked. First, my wife is a stay at home mom, we have two kids, etc. Outside of my mortgage, I have no debt. Now, an interesting thing about Facebook, Twitter, and other such social media is it allows us to do is silently observe people. It doesn't take long for me to realize why I'm viewed as rich because I always seem to have money, while they view themselves as poor. All one needs to do is look at their timeline to see where they spend all their money ... which is eating out seemingly EVERY DAY. The last place I ate out at was Buffalo Wild Wings...29$. Meanwhile, I see picture after picture of these "poor" people at Blackhawks games, Bears games, restaurants, etc... Yes, I'm rich then. Because I don't spend more than I make. The worst part ... when your success is attributed to luck. Yes, my company pays me what they pay me because I'm lucky. That's what it is. With the way the country is going, you're a fool for being so responsible. You're going to be penalized in retirement for saving, whereas someone who "wastes" there money will eventually be picked up by the government and supported.

QUOTE (Soxbadger @ Oct 21, 2013 -> 11:54 AM) Everything is a standard middle class life. Cell phones, computers, tvs, 3 cars, summer camp, winter vacation, college. So a minimum wage is like 50k/year.

Thank god Rose is back.

QUOTE (Tex @ Oct 21, 2013 -> 10:07 AM) Tumblr sold for 1.2 Billion had about 20,000 employees. A billion dollar plus business in 1913 would have needed 5x that. We are reaping the promise of technology. Employees are much more efficient today that even a generation ago. Just think about all the secretaries and book keepers that have been eliminated. Sure, but how many tech related jobs have been created to make/implement/maintain that technology? I'm sure it's not 1 to 1, but it's not like we're only employing 10% of people these days because of technology.

Carnegie also bought up every business he worked with in order to maintain his monopoly. Nowadays you hire different firms for different specialties. Microsoft employs ~100k people (almost twice as many as 8 years ago, sorta of debunking your theory right there) and I bet they outsource a whole lot more than that.

QUOTE (bigruss22 @ Oct 21, 2013 -> 09:39 AM) 10k? Even I think that's crazy low if you don't have any help: Monthly amount (assuming 10k is after taxes): ~833 per month. Rent: 450 (hard to find in Chicago but possible) Food: 250 (let's say they really scrounge, thats like $8 a day) Right there you are at $700, and thats with the bare minimum. Now add in clothes, utilities (gas and electric), etc and youre creeping on $830 a month real fast. I honestly don't know how you can say we could live easily off of 10k a year. I meant after tax, but still, raise it a little. You need something for shelter/utilities - say 600/month, you need food (you could get by on rice, beans, veggies, fruit, etc.) pretty easily for $250, probably less. We're talking a single person here, not a family. The point is, the "alive but not living a life of luxury" amount really isn't that much in the grand scheme. It's all the extra stuff Americans spend their money on that requires better pay.

QUOTE (TaylorStSox @ Oct 21, 2013 -> 12:23 AM) Easily the best directed and most emotional episode of The Walking Dead ever. I like the show, but this was the first time that I've ever felt like I was watching great film making since I've followed the show. Agreed it was a good episode, though there were still some DERRRRRR moments: Also,

QUOTE (Soxbadger @ Oct 18, 2013 -> 07:46 PM) I am watching Undercover Boss right now and it made me think of this thread. A cashier can be smarter, harder working, better person, than the CEO, but due to circumstance just didnt have the opportunities. In a better world even the cashier would make enough money to give their kids everything they want. The bleeding heart hippy side of me (that you all hate) hopes that I can one day make it happen. A friend and I were debating the whole living wage argument this weekend and we basically got down to this issue. What exactly does the bolded mean? What is "everything?" What is "enough?" Individually, we all could easily live on 10k a year - no fancy house, no cell phone, few clothes, etc. You could do it, but obviously it would be a life without luxury (and no kids).

how is illinois' defensive coordinator still employed. just f***ing terrible

QUOTE (TaylorStSox @ Oct 18, 2013 -> 01:08 PM) In the past Americans were able to get skilled labor and manufacturing jobs that enabled families to have a decent standard of living. As those jobs dissipate, the disparity between the classes grows. It's unsustainable. We've seen it on the south side. The cost of doing business in the past was considerably less too - no health insurance, workers comp benefits, overtime, annual income increases, etc. Yes, the rich execs got richer, but i'm sure if you looked at the numbers the cost of employing one person today versus 1950 is remarkably different.

QUOTE (Buehrle>Wood @ Oct 17, 2013 -> 08:27 PM) Illinois basketball scrimmage tonight. I'm watching online. Ray Rice looks really good as does Jaylon Tate. The rest not so much. EDIT: Egwu too is definitely bigger and better. Egwu could be playing himself into the NBA if he keeps developing. He's got the body for it. Sounds like he's worked a ton on his offensive game over the summer. edit: from the highlights, wow is Darius Paul huge.

QUOTE (mr_genius @ Oct 18, 2013 -> 09:17 AM) I would guess a small percentage. A small anecdotal story; I have been to McDonald's overseas and the customers appeared to all be locals with the exception of me. The menu was also different than a U.S. McDonald's, with a few things the same. I did a big research project on McDonalds in college specifically focusing on their overseas operations. This was 10 years ago so it was not anywhere as big as now. And that was a brilliant move on their part- instead of just buying land and plopping down an American McDonalds, they went over to X country and did a lot of research/study groups into what types of food (vegan, lamb, etc) would fit and then tailored the menu around that.