Nov 17
GlennFleishman commented on The Rich Confess to the IRS.
GlennFleishman commented on The Rich Confess to the IRS.
Yes, the rich who then are obliged to pay back taxes, interest, and penalties, but not face criminal prosecution. They basically lose any money they made plus some, in exchange for taxpayers not having to spend money and time to get the billions owed. Not fair, but still not a good deal for the offshorers.
In the equivalent case, a middle-class person who had money they could hide would perhaps use a mattress.
In the equivalent case, a middle-class person who had money they could hide would perhaps use a mattress.
Nov 16
GlennFleishman commented on Anyone Stupid Enough To Go to the Olympics....
GlennFleishman commented on Anyone Stupid Enough To Go to the Olympics....
Dan's being his usual harsh, but the Olympics seems more like a curse on your community and country than a blessing. Yes, yes, the purity of the sport, the greatness of the spirit, but that's all entirely separate from the giant financial and political machine that is the Olympics.
Every country and city/region goes in to Olympics planning with this whole deal about how the budget will be reasonable, the multi-use facilities, the long-lasting benefits. And pretty much that all gets thrown out the window nearly right away. Budgets always skyrocket. Venues wind up being single use or torn down (not all, but more than promised). Subsequent financial analysis doesn't reveal that the games produced enough revenue to offset costs nor long-term better results.
The Olympics is about dick-waving national pride. The athletes don't really care about the whole structure of it; I'm sure many like the worldwide attention while they do their best.
Every country and city/region goes in to Olympics planning with this whole deal about how the budget will be reasonable, the multi-use facilities, the long-lasting benefits. And pretty much that all gets thrown out the window nearly right away. Budgets always skyrocket. Venues wind up being single use or torn down (not all, but more than promised). Subsequent financial analysis doesn't reveal that the games produced enough revenue to offset costs nor long-term better results.
The Olympics is about dick-waving national pride. The athletes don't really care about the whole structure of it; I'm sure many like the worldwide attention while they do their best.
Nov 8
GlennFleishman commented on The Morning News.
GlennFleishman commented on The Morning News.
Unpaid Intern, if you're going to mention the price of gold in passing, you need to mention that it's passed $1,000 (and gone back under) a few times in the last year. This isn't the first.
Nov 5
GlennFleishman commented on Interview with Mike McGinn: "I'm a Little Bit Different from Your Usual Politician".
GlennFleishman commented on Interview with Mike McGinn: "I'm a Little Bit Different from Your Usual Politician".
@6: You can't have an unedited transcript of an interview with Mallahan, because he gave nearly none. You'd have to turn to his PR flack to create one for him.
Mallahan ran a campaign with seemingly zero engagement, and yet he still nearly won (he may still for all we know). He was pro-business, insider-backed, and opaque on a lot of policies. What was it about McGinn that frightened people into a cipher's arms?
Mallahan ran a campaign with seemingly zero engagement, and yet he still nearly won (he may still for all we know). He was pro-business, insider-backed, and opaque on a lot of policies. What was it about McGinn that frightened people into a cipher's arms?
Nov 5
GlennFleishman commented on Constant Reader.
GlennFleishman commented on Constant Reader.
"If you live on Capitol Hill and you've ordered books from an online retailer, you have a hand in Bailey/Coy's closing."
Give me a mother-loving break, Paul, while crying a river for Bailey/Coy. Great bookstore, but like most of the failing independent bookstores, the blame is put on individuals making their own economic choices, instead of bookstore owners for rethinking what they do and what they offer.
I worked at Amazon in 96-97 (and got no stock as I was there too briefly, so I'm not some whining millionaire early retiree), and I will tell you what the biggest fucking difference was between Amazon and most bookstores -- then and now.
Amazon would order any book you wanted. You didn't have to go through this whole hassle. They would charge you full price and shipping and tell you it might take as long as 6 weeks. But it was available.
Bookstores have notoriously disliked special orders, stuff they can't get from the few hundred thousand items stocked by major book distributors, and available quickly as part of existing order shipments.
That's because it was a pain to process these by hands. But starting in the 1980s, we had these things called computers, and smart bookstores invested during the good times in making inventory more efficient. Powell's was ahead of the curve both in intershelving used and new books (used book buying is an art in and of itslef), but also on the information technology side.
The fact that they were on the Internet early wasn't because they were all geeks (they did have a great tech bookstore early on). Rather, it was because they understood that inventory + computers = good idea.
So don't tell me that indie bookstores are failing because of Amazon. They are failing because they didn't understand how to both connect and engage their customers, while using technology to their advantage, like every other fucking retail business has to do, independent or chain, to be competitive.
More...
Give me a mother-loving break, Paul, while crying a river for Bailey/Coy. Great bookstore, but like most of the failing independent bookstores, the blame is put on individuals making their own economic choices, instead of bookstore owners for rethinking what they do and what they offer.
I worked at Amazon in 96-97 (and got no stock as I was there too briefly, so I'm not some whining millionaire early retiree), and I will tell you what the biggest fucking difference was between Amazon and most bookstores -- then and now.
Amazon would order any book you wanted. You didn't have to go through this whole hassle. They would charge you full price and shipping and tell you it might take as long as 6 weeks. But it was available.
Bookstores have notoriously disliked special orders, stuff they can't get from the few hundred thousand items stocked by major book distributors, and available quickly as part of existing order shipments.
That's because it was a pain to process these by hands. But starting in the 1980s, we had these things called computers, and smart bookstores invested during the good times in making inventory more efficient. Powell's was ahead of the curve both in intershelving used and new books (used book buying is an art in and of itslef), but also on the information technology side.
The fact that they were on the Internet early wasn't because they were all geeks (they did have a great tech bookstore early on). Rather, it was because they understood that inventory + computers = good idea.
So don't tell me that indie bookstores are failing because of Amazon. They are failing because they didn't understand how to both connect and engage their customers, while using technology to their advantage, like every other fucking retail business has to do, independent or chain, to be competitive.
Nov 5
GlennFleishman commented on Stupid Fucking Cred—Hey, Wait a Second!.
GlennFleishman commented on Stupid Fucking Cred—Hey, Wait a Second!.
@12: I know! In the old days, you could count on a troll really getting under your skin with someone "nearly false but sounds true enough and has a germ of truth in it" statement that could make your blood boil, even on someone else's behalf.
Now, these kids with their wikipedias and encyclopedia.com don't even bother to come out with something new.
Now, these kids with their wikipedias and encyclopedia.com don't even bother to come out with something new.
Nov 4
GlennFleishman commented on Tom Carr: Victim of an "Anti-Incumbent Year".
GlennFleishman commented on Tom Carr: Victim of an "Anti-Incumbent Year".
Yes, anti-incumbents who weren't effective at their jobs.
Oct 21
GlennFleishman commented on Indecent Exposure!.
GlennFleishman commented on Indecent Exposure!.
So...what's the protocol for a protest. Do we all get up, naked, at 5.30 and stand in our windows?
Oct 12
GlennFleishman commented on War Without End.
GlennFleishman commented on War Without End.
@10: I keep suggesting that if we wanted to be truly fair, we'd keep tax dollars in the same area in which they were raised. So Washington State would have to spend $1 for each $1 brought in in Seattle, meaning that Eastern Washington would lose the 400-percent subsidy they get for each dollar of tax revenue there.
That would be enjoyable as a thought experiment, but I would regret the cannibalism that would inevitably result.
That would be enjoyable as a thought experiment, but I would regret the cannibalism that would inevitably result.
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No Montlake Flyer station (no bus on/off on the bridge, like today), which means people in Capitol Hill and the U District suddenly have no reasonable interchange option (except at the MEdical Center? Adds time and is already overwhelmed).
The UW light rail stop will have no interchange with buses, which is insane.
Basically, the UW stamped its feet about the 520 plan, and got its way. This plan destroys existing services, and kills intermodal transit options. The UW is a public institution; it should be serving a public purpose here. (Also, its students are hugely commuters; why is the UW opposing plans that would make it easier for students --and staff -- to get to school?)
Yes, I love the freeway caps. No, I hate the second bascule.