Okay, now that Thanksgiving's over...

The markets today, Friday, even with their shortened trading day, because of Thanksgiving, are all--and I mean all--going to go very far South tomorrow and for two reasons. First, there's this: Fitch Downgrades Portugal to Junk Status LONDON — Fitch Ratings Thursday dropped its credit rating on Portugal into junk territory and warned further downgrades were possible, as a recession in the country is increasing challenges for the government to comply with its austerity plans. Second, there's this: German Bond Windfall May Be Ending With Euro Crisis BRUSSELS — Someone, somewhere, usually makes money from bad news. With Europe’s debt crisis, that — at least until this week — was Germany. A failed German bond auction Wednesday may have brought to an end one turbulent chapter in the history of the Continent’s debt crisis, during which Berlin remained insulated from much of the fallout. But since 2009, Germany and a handful of other countries, like the Netherlands, have benefited significantly from cheaper borrowing as investors diverted cash from riskier assets and the bonds of southern European countries to debt issued by the Continent’s fiscal hawks. So that money-making party is over, in Germany. That's certainly bad for them but it's bad for all of Europe, too, since it's Germany whose been depended on to "save" the EU and the Euro. It's rough over there and getting rougher yet. Oh, well, all we can do right now is to think happy thoughts, regardless and enjoy your long, relaxing weekend. Link: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204630904577057743033166600.html; http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/25/business/global/german-bond-windfall-may-be-ending-with-euro-crisis.html?_r=1&pagewanted=print; http://www.pbs.org/newshour/businessdesk/2011/11/european-bond-scare-germany-ed.html

Germany's employment system vs. the US

Here in the States, regarding employment, we all know it's "every man for himself."

Everything here, economically, is based on this principal.

It's "pull yourself up by your own bootstraps", fight for what you want, work for what you need.

And there's some truth and merit to that, sure.  No one can give you anything, really.  You don't grow if you're just given things.

But the system can and could include plenty of work for more people, I'd claim, without being completely, totally and utterly cut-throat and, as I said, "every person for themselves."

It doesn't HAVE to be management vs. labor or the company vs. the worker.

The opposite of competition really is cooperation.

I write this today because of an article I just read pointing out what Germany at least differently if not better than our "every person for themselves", cut-throat system.  An example:

Germany has focused very directly on protecting existing jobs. Through its "kurzarbeit" program, the government provides subsidies to employers who avoid laying off workers during periods of low demand; instead bosses are encouraged merely to reduce the hours that employees work. Employers themselves have also created more flexible arrangements with their workers: Under a system of "working time accounts," employees work overtime without additional pay when demand is high during boom times, then during the downturn work shorter hours, again at regular pay. The system helps everyone better weather the ups and downs of the economy without the need for layoffs.


See?  That's what I'm talking about.  It's much more collaborative.  It's much more "we're in this together--what can we do?" than our system.


Another thing Germany does that we don't:


As the Washington Post's Harold Meyerson has written, Germany's manufacturing firms still hire large numbers of domestic workers, rather than turning to lower paid foreign workers as many of their U.S. counterparts do. That's not because German execs are inherently any more civic-minded than American one—instead, they're acting under the constraints of Germany's "co-determination" system, which aims to ensure that corporate boards contain an equal number of labor and management representatives. Here, by contrast, organized labor is fighting to avoid seeing its clout reduced still further.


Hello?  


Doesn't that make sense?  


Maybe if we practiced something more like this we wouldn't have millions of people flooding in from other countries, undercutting our wages.  Maybe there wouldn't be this magnet to come up here to get jobs.  Maybe with this, companies wouldn't turn a blind eye to our laws and hire people who are here illegally.  (See?  I'm not blaming the Mexicans and Hispanics totally for this by any means).


And no, Germany doesn't have a perfect system but they do have a good, working system and they've managed to keep most people employed in the midst of an international slowdown and they're stronger, individually and as a nation, because of it.


And the benefits to companies in all this?  If we KEEP our jobs?  Well, won't we still be able to buy their products?


Everyone would win.


We'd all be in this together.


Don't look now but we already are.


Link to original story:  http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_thelookout/20110322/ts_yblog_thelookout/ich-bin-ein-example-what-we-can-learn-from-germany-about-jobs

Another significant reason Americans are angry

From the news this morning:
U.S. slips to historic low in global corruption index

BERLIN (Reuters) - The United States has dropped out of the "top 20" in a global league table of least corrupt nations, tarnished by financial scandals and the influence of money in politics, Transparency International said on Tuesday.

The United States fell to 22nd from 19th last year, with its CPI score dropping to 7.1 from 7.5 in the 178-nation index, which is based on independent surveys on corruption.

This was the lowest score awarded to the United States in the index's 15-year history and also the first time it had fallen out of the top 20.

We're sick of it, frankly.  We're sick of the rich guys and corporations winning and us losing.  We're sick of the money that's going into our politics.  We're sick of our politicians being bought.  It's all just too much.

So rather than just complaining, I propose, yet again, three solutions to our problems:

First, we need to get that ugly money out of our politics.  To do that, we need campaign finance reform so our representatives don't have to go begging to the rich, corporations and their lobbyists for money.  We need our government to pay for these stupid elections.  If we did this, the money would stop buying our officials and their votes because it would be illegal.

Second, we need to make our campaign seasons shorter--by law--so they don't need all this money.  And don't say it can't be done, either.  The British did it long ago, we could certainly do it.

Finally, we need to put the "Fairness Doctrine" back in our media and so, government, so at least two different sides would have to be discussed any time a political subject comes up on our airwaves.  It used to be the law of the land.  The Republicans took it out of our laws and we need to get it back.  This would take the vitriol and emotionalism and ugliness and bitterness out of our discussions.  It won't happen because Fox "News" and the Republicans and corporations and Right Wing wouldn't stand for it and would raise heck about it violating their First Amendment rights and "free speech", even though that's patently untrue.  They could still say whatever they want, it's just that the opposing view would have to also be aired.

It's too bad the above won't happen.  At least it won't until the American people rise up and demand it.  I hope it doesn't require a revolution to get us there.  

This used to be a far better country to live in than what we've got now.

And a lot of that is our own fault.

Links:  http://finance.yahoo.com/news/US-slips-to-historic-low-in-rb-3603521040.html?x=0;

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairness_doctrine