tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post2922931901680593564..comments2024-01-05T06:18:18.086-05:00Comments on CommentaramaPolitics: Why People Hate CorporationsAndrewPricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comBlogger53125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-44399600985959993962014-01-17T02:49:56.561-05:002014-01-17T02:49:56.561-05:00El Gordo, It is unfortunate that management tends ...El Gordo, It is unfortunate that management tends to be short sighted. They know that nothing that happens after they have left office matters, so all they care about is the current value of the company. That's why so much innovation happens at small companies compared to large companies.<br /><br />In terms of picking champions, that's never worked. It only works so long as the state bends the rules in their favor and periodically infuses them with cash. It also keeps out the competitors who make economies thrive. In other words, while the French champions may provide some employment and may seem profitable, the cost is that the French economy is rigged and that's why you never see companies like Microsoft or Apple or Amazon starting in France.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-53540069865010719172014-01-16T05:17:23.959-05:002014-01-16T05:17:23.959-05:00The problem with short term thinking among CEOs is...The problem with short term thinking among CEOs is worrying me but I´m not sure what to do about it. In many areas - engineering and manufacturing perhaps most of all - you need to invest in the future all the time. That means people, not just machines. You need to maintain a skilled workforce and middle management and a lot of institutional knowledge. <br /><br />Some modern CEOs hate all that, imho. They are not going to be there forever. They don´t like owning "bricks and mortar" and a workforce that they can´t replace. Their ideal company consists of HR, controlling, legal, marketing, purchasing and ... let´s outsource the rest. I´m exaggerating, but not as much as I´d like.<br /><br />They idea that you can design stuff that you don´t know how to manufacture is wrong. Maybe it works for Apple, but there are no moving parts in an iPhone. Boeing is not the best (worst) example, but for the new 787 Boeing decided to outsource the production of entire assemblies (not just components) to foreign companies. Isn´t this their core competence? In any case it caused huge problems. <br /><br />On the other hand, the idea that a nation (i.e. politicans) can ensure competitiveness by coddling a select group of huge companies ought to be dead since the British government killed their aviation and car industry. The French have "national champions" in almost every kind of industry. These are huge, international and often quite successful companies, although many had to be bailed out at some point. All are run by the same elite network who have been at the same schools. Does it help the economy? I guess. But they simply cannot create enough jobs and innovation that way to really benefit everyone. Most people are not employed by huge conglomerates. Without the companies that employ 20 or 200, you lose. And you can´t make them by decree. Even the big O can´t order them into being. His epitaph: "We couldn´t build that"El Gordonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-59293227581993667742014-01-15T00:32:23.089-05:002014-01-15T00:32:23.089-05:00Rustbelt, This is a difficult issue as you point o...Rustbelt, This is a difficult issue as you point out. Let me respond this way.<br /><br />First, I'm not worried about liberals because we'll never reach them. The key is reaching the middle. The middle is practical, not ideological. They want problems solved.. that's it. So keep that in mind.<br /><br />Now, the first problem we have is that most of our talking heads don't understand any of this. They take the simple approach that they will support anything liberals oppose. That's why they revel in embracing things like pollution. They basically adopt all the liberal boogeymen arguments as true and then claim that this is true capitalism. That's horribly destructive to the image of capitalism and to our own image... it drives away voters in droves and discredits everything else we argue.<br /><br />Secondly, even beyond the idiots, you have the problem that few conservatives really understand how free markets work... "uh, something about tax cuts, right?" It's really hard to defend something when all you know are bumpersticker slogans.<br /><br />Third, once we actually understand this stuff, it's actually very easy to explain in ways that come across as common sense to average people. But there is yet another catch that causes modern conservatives problems: to win people over, we need to address their needs and conservatives are very uncomfortable talking about people.<br /><br />For example, people are concerned about dangerous products, about pollution, about predatory practices, about losing their jobs/healthcare/homes, about getting ripped off in the stock market. The conservative answer is usually to deny the problem through abstract big picture numbers ("not scientifically proven"), or to say that the people who are hurt deserved it, or they get ideological and start screaming socialism. Each of those answers loses the public.<br /><br />We need to learn to speak to people in terms that have meaning to them and to address their concerns.<br /><br />If we can get over all of that, then it's easy to explain you would rather have consumers telling companies what they want rather than the government deciding what you get. It becomes very easy to explain why regulation and taxes make people want to work less and make it more expensive to hire people. It becomes very easy to explain that most regulations exist for the purpose of forcing consumers to do what business wants, rather than controlling business as they are purported. It becomes simple to point out how Walmart's benefits package is vastly better than Obamacare, how McDonalds offers a genuine career path, how corporate America gives more to charity that the GDP of most countries, etc. It becomes easy to explain how corporations make everything that makes our lives so comfortable. How venture capital is what allows artists and inventors to turn their ideas into products. How business employs 140 million Americans and pays the taxes that lets the government exist.<br /><br />Those are easy arguments... so long as we are seen as practical, rational and genuine addressing the fears of consumers.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-50970201932538774282014-01-15T00:06:28.250-05:002014-01-15T00:06:28.250-05:00Bev, I had no idea they never had a black woman on...Bev, I had no idea they never had a black woman on the show. Of course, they've had very few women period.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-53639259059408827712014-01-14T22:52:30.292-05:002014-01-14T22:52:30.292-05:00Andrew, this is a tough one. I've had difficul...Andrew, this is a tough one. I've had difficulty defending the free market in the faces of outright libs because, as far as they (and most of the public) are concerned, corporations are the free market. Granted, these were the hard liners I worked with when I was in news. (After Newtowne, one of them actually delcared, "we need the government to get bigger and get those guns. We need more regulation because we have too much freedom in this country and that has to be reeled in." I think I know a few groups this individual could sign up with.)<br /><br />Anyway...I think one of the problems we face is distinguishing between 'good' and 'bad' business practices. The problem is, people have a ridiculously short attention span and want quick and easy answers. This is where liberals have an advantage. All they have to do is say 'business is evil! Bring in socialism!' Simple, straight to the point- completely wrong- but it gets their point across. We, on the other hand, have to somehow show that dastardly corporations aren't the free market, but such an explanation could take time and the audience could quickly lose interest.<br /><br />As an example...last week, I had a conversation with my brother that turned ugly. We were discussing late night TV and somehow we brought up the short-lived 'Tonight Show With Conan O'Brien.' My brother believes it's all Jay Leno's fault for not going away and that Conan was sabotaged by NBC execs. Now, I worked at a station through that fiasco. Needless to say, not only was my brother wrong, but the late night disaster was far more complicated than he realized. I tried to explain this, but after only a few sentences, he got bored, interrupted, shut me up as best he could, and the conversation basically died. (The fact that he's a Conan fanboy didn't help, either.)<br /><br />Back to the subject at hand... if we're going to gain any advantage in this debate, we first need to recognize the problem (as you've said), and stop the knee-jerk defense of corporations. Then, I think we need to find words that can simplify what we're saying. Things like, "we don't want to interfere in business. We don't want to take over the economy. What we DO want to do is stop abusive corporations that ruin it for everyone else- businesspeople and consumers alike. Because if can stop the abusive corporations- like the ones supporting our opponents [insert names]- everyone will share in the rewards. And we won't make you pay for big government socialism in order to do it!"<br />Okay, so I'm not a speechwriter. I was just trying to come up with a rough and simple idea of what could be said. But make no mistake. We need to recognize the problem and figure out a better way to communicate before we completely lose this issue to the other side.Rustbelthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12190297078043033514noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-43946544456112165252014-01-14T22:26:59.677-05:002014-01-14T22:26:59.677-05:00Bev,
It took this long? I never realized they wer...Bev,<br /><br />It took <i>this</i> long? I never realized they were whites and a few black guys. I would've thought they would have had at least one female black in their regular troupe. <br /><br />Regardless, I wish her all the best.Kithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01453591141757808708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-53952251245022282682014-01-14T22:26:31.521-05:002014-01-14T22:26:31.521-05:00other than the Polar Vortex being an unofficial De...<b> other than the Polar Vortex being an unofficial Declaration of War by Canada ( in my opinion),</b><br /><br />aw shucks... you caught us :Pdarskinoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-42414204312407823652014-01-14T21:58:49.076-05:002014-01-14T21:58:49.076-05:00Speaking of ending racism in our lifetime, has any...Speaking of ending racism in our lifetime, has anyone been following the news about SNL finally hiring a Black female for their comedy troupe? Apparently it is big news...yey, BevfromNYChttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14953050916932306270noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-44153047385697985072014-01-14T20:50:20.144-05:002014-01-14T20:50:20.144-05:00Andrew,
I was saying that white racists will watc...Andrew,<br /><br />I was saying that white racists will watch even occasionally at least a movie w/ black leads. Or listen to their music. So its one less excuse for Hollywood. Kithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01453591141757808708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-43273682340395866492014-01-14T20:41:09.567-05:002014-01-14T20:41:09.567-05:00Kit, I don't follow.Kit, I don't follow.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-22600636194089970302014-01-14T20:40:36.868-05:002014-01-14T20:40:36.868-05:00El Gordo, In my experience, Germans will watch any...El Gordo, In my experience, Germans will watch anything.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-60700752526050657792014-01-14T20:39:32.171-05:002014-01-14T20:39:32.171-05:00Jed, It is indeed an old story, but the level of c...Jed, It is indeed an old story, but the level of corruption is unparalleled except for the Gilded Age. We should still fight back.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-66998216466233418832014-01-14T20:38:46.013-05:002014-01-14T20:38:46.013-05:00Bev, I hadn't thought about that, but it is a ...Bev, I hadn't thought about that, but it is a good point. Perhaps this Polar Vortex is a declaration of war by those pesky Canadians? Let us know if you see a rise in moose sightings or hockey playing in the streets.<br /><br />As for the Equatorial Vortex... uh, you can keep that one.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-24358834574131691292014-01-14T20:18:20.423-05:002014-01-14T20:18:20.423-05:00ScottDS - other than the Polar Vortex being an uno...ScottDS - other than the Polar Vortex being an unofficial Declaration of War by Canada ( in my opinion), it wasn't too terrible. I have decided that once the temp is in the single digits, it doesn't really matter. It's just cold. <br /><br /> But those Canadians better watch out, 'cause they won't know what hit 'em when Texas retaliates with the Equatorial Vortex in July!! ;-)BevfromNYChttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14953050916932306270noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-33903429511206450582014-01-14T20:01:40.659-05:002014-01-14T20:01:40.659-05:00To make Hollywood look worse, you do not need whit...To make Hollywood look worse, you do not need white leads for anti-black racists to see your movie. Author B.R. Myers mentioned that when he was in Apartheid South Africa you had these racist white college students in the 1980s who were saying things like "the blacks should all be fenced in so they could all rot and die" (lovely) but were huge fans of Reggae music. Kithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01453591141757808708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-88419943726339674312014-01-14T18:55:19.149-05:002014-01-14T18:55:19.149-05:00El Gordo -
It wasn't my quote! But it does pr...El Gordo -<br /><br />It wasn't my quote! But it does prove that studio execs underestimate their audiences... but that fact is as old as the hills. :-)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-43531127636390617812014-01-14T18:54:30.126-05:002014-01-14T18:54:30.126-05:00Bev -
It's all old news to me - I was simply...Bev - <br /><br />It's all old news to me - I was simply verbalizing a thought I had a while ago. But even my apolitical (or even left-leaning) friends notice when a movie is preachy, or manipulative. We saw the trailer for <i>Promised Land</i> and my friend - a Matt Damon fan - leaned over and said, "Yeah, looks a bit preachy."<br /><br />So how's the polar vortex working out for you up there? ;-)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-9564693898468043312014-01-14T18:28:09.945-05:002014-01-14T18:28:09.945-05:00By the way, ScottDS, that POS After Earth made 75%...By the way, ScottDS, that POS After Earth made 75% of its $244 mil outside of the US. Django Unchained, 62% or $262mil abroad, of which 51 mil in Germany. We learn: 1. They have nothing against blacks. 2. They´ll watch anything.El Gordonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-75287810199687072892014-01-14T18:15:33.297-05:002014-01-14T18:15:33.297-05:00"This might belong on the other site, but doe... "This might belong on the other site, but does that mean Hollywood can't or shouldn't be able to tell certain stories? Yes, it's totally hypocritical for them to tell the story of corporate misbehavior when... I mean, hey, look at them!<br /><br />ScottDS - I am jumping in and this has probably been said already, BUT I like harassing you. ;-) Anyway, no, there is nothing wrong about them making movies about bad corporations, <br /><br />What is hypocritical is that, as an industry, they lobby the government and campaign for candidates denouncing the very evil corporate empire issues that they themselves practice. For instance, tax subsidies and rebates/deferrals for companies to move into a state/locale. How many times have I heard the screaming hordes from Hollywood denounce this kind of "corporate welfare" and that "lowering taxes" will only take food out of the mouths of starving babies. <br /><br />Yet, how do you think that the State of New York got The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon to move from LA to NYC? One guess...tax incentives. Special tax cuts just for them. That's just one example of the many. California just gave a special tax break to film industry and related businesses because CA is hemorrhaging...because film production companies can film cheaper in other states. <br /><br />That's what makes me angry - The "Do as I say, not as I do" mentality of the industry. Not so much the movies they make.BevfromNYChttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14953050916932306270noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-38429321425262060962014-01-14T17:52:34.302-05:002014-01-14T17:52:34.302-05:00Gordo - good point. I was talking the other day ab...Gordo - good point. I was talking the other day about the unrealistic use of bootylicious actresses as ass kicking cops who are bosses of dullard male underlings as being unrealistic. I mentioned the same things with blacks, and reading your post registered the real reason that is being done.<br />Tennessee Jedhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10604275115906776992noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-30872620669339072072014-01-14T17:43:58.241-05:002014-01-14T17:43:58.241-05:00Andrew - that has been done since people have been...Andrew - that has been done since people have been meeting in the lobby of the Willard Hotel. Money and power are like hand and gloveTennessee Jedhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10604275115906776992noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-17144138325435220652014-01-14T17:39:32.474-05:002014-01-14T17:39:32.474-05:00ScottDS, I don´t really care either but I have a h...ScottDS, I don´t really care either but I have a hard time believing that guy. Will Smith or Eddie Murphy were extremely popular in Germany. Same in France. Django Unchained did very well. I know they had the Cosby show on tv all the time. Does he think European kids don´t listen to rap? <br /><br />Maybe black stars don´t go over well in Asia and Chandrasekhar didn´t want to admit it. But even so - what does it mean? You can´t make a $40 or 70 million movie with blacks because it might be a problem in India or Japan? Pathetic. It is so much easier to fill the quota by casting blacks in unimportant roles playing authority figures. You know, cop, judge, doctor, scientist. Not entirely realistic but hey, we´ve done our part.<br /><br />As for women directors, Kathryn Bigelow is not just better than most directors of genre movies, she is by now more interesting than her ex, James Cameron. There I said it! El Gordonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-31469804260809609312014-01-14T17:19:00.755-05:002014-01-14T17:19:00.755-05:00El Gordo, That's true about guns and phones. ...El Gordo, That's true about guns and phones. But even more to the point, the same people who do ads saying that guns should be banned and sit on board of gun control groups think nothing of doing films in which they use guns to make themselves look cool and use gun violence to solve their problems. The fact is, Hollywood sells gun <i>violence</i>.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-30352746898410528282014-01-14T17:09:55.984-05:002014-01-14T17:09:55.984-05:00Scott, I don't buy that actually and I'll ...Scott, I don't buy that actually and I'll tell you why. What he's really saying (and what Hollywood keeps saying) is: "Sigh... the world is so racist and not as noble as we are, so as a practical matter, we need to sink to their level."<br /><br />That's self-serving BS. There are many minority actors who have shown repeatedly that they have huge appeal with white audiences. In other words, the problem isn't on our end... it's on the Hollywood end.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-51701571287474155822014-01-14T17:07:06.251-05:002014-01-14T17:07:06.251-05:00Hollywood has not exactly been leading when it com...Hollywood has not exactly been leading when it comes to colorblindness. An example that drives me crazy is Collateral (2004). I like the movie but I can´t get over the fact that they cast Jada Pinkett as damsel in distress because the hero is black. It is hard enough to believe that an ambitious super-attractive female attorney would give her phone number to an underachieving cab driver she just met. It is a big coincidence that the next guy who gets into the cab will try to assassinate her. That they both have to be black ... that is where it gets ridiculous. <br /><br />As for their hypocrisy on guns, consider this: in countless movies, they have to get rid of cellphones and guns because if the protagonists used either, there wouldn´t be a movie. Every time the heroine has "no signal" or no one in a small midwestern town has a gun, it just proves how useful guns and cellphones are. See also: cars that never start when a life is at stake. El Gordonoreply@blogger.com