Do you realize that every day you do the job of dozens of people and don’t get paid to do them? In fact, you pay the corporations and businesses for the privilege to serve yourself.
I’ve been thinking about this for some time….
We now pump our own gas, check ourselves out at the grocery store, help ourselves as we can’t find a clerk at Macy’s, check ourselves in at the airport, pay our parking at a machine….the list goes on and on.
These used to be jobs. People used to do these jobs. These jobs used to enable people to buy homes and have families. They used to make us interact with people and make our lives more human and humane and less frantic and stressed.
Now we “self-service” so the corporations can make more profit and cut tedious expenses like “employees.”
When I visit my Mother at her Assisted Living facility, I see people who made careers as sales clerks and in other customer service jobs. They made enough money to live decent, middle class lives and pay for the outrageous fees at that home.
Shoppers and travelers used to feel pampered and appreciated. Now they are stressed and over burdened.
And don’t even think about the internet and the push to self service there for banking, shopping and every other imaginable task.
Banks now want to charge Customers to see a teller- and to use their Debit Cards to self service and help banks avoid the processing charges associated with checks.
Businesses will do anything to avoid interacting directly with their Customers.
Customers are also another inconvenience to businesses. Business doesn’t understand why people don’t just give them money and walk away. So what, if the service and products are shoddy or not what the people want.
They just want their cash- sorry, credit or debit cards. Cash is too people-intensive to handle.
But the Corporations are making record profits….and stashing them in under their figurative mattresses.
Think about this a while and you will really start to understand that Occupy Wall Street was a long time coming…
Here is a brief excerpt from today’s New York Times. I encourage you to click the link and read the entire article…..
The conventional wisdom is that America has become a “service economy,” but actually, in many sectors, “service” is disappearing. There was a time when a gas station attendant would routinely fill your tank and even check your oil and clean your windshield and rear window without charge, then settle your bill. Today, all those jobs have been transferred to the customer: we pump our own gas, squeegee our own windshield, and pay our own bill by swiping a credit card. Where customers once received service from the service station, they now provide “self-service” — a synonym for “no service.” Technology enables this sleight of hand, which lets gas stations cut their payrolls, having co-opted their patrons into doing these jobs without pay.
Examples abound, helping drive unemployment rates. Airports now have self-service check-in kiosks that allow travelers to perform the jobs of ticket agents. Travel agents once unearthed, perused and compared fares, deals and hotel rates. Shadow-working travelers now do all of this themselves on their computer screens. Medical patients are now better informed than ever — as a result of hours of online shadow work. In 1998, the Internal Revenue Service estimated that taxpayers spent six billion hours per year on “tax compliance activities.” That’s serious shadow work, the equivalent of three million full-time jobs.
Once upon a time, retail stores had employees who were not cashiers but roamed the floor, assisting customers. Go into a Wal-Mart or Target or Staples and find someone to help you locate and choose a product. Good luck. You’re on your own, left to wander the aisles in search of an unoccupied staff person. (Meanwhile, you might stumble on and purchase some item you hadn’t planned on buying.) Here, it’s not technology, but a business tactic that cuts payroll expenses by trimming the service provided to customers — and prolongs the time those customers spend rambling around inside the store. Regardless, the result is still more shadow work, as customers take on the job that retail salespeople once did.
Lost in the 21st Century 
Ten Things I Hate About Republicans
As a start, let’s remember the classic premise under which the Republican Party has traditionally built its platform: “A strong national defense and less government intrusion into our daily lives.” Doesn’t sound too bad on the surface, but the devil is in the details and how the GOP has evolved over the last 30 years.
The GOP used to be the bastion of White Shoe Lawyers, Old Money and the Corporate Elite. At least they were straight forward about their goals in those days. It was all about preserving capital within the family, making money and leaving every one else alone as long as those goals were achieved.
Then came the unholy alliance with the Religious Right. Then they had to pretend they gave a damn about abortion and gays. There went the part of the platform about “less government intrusion into our daily lives.” Out the window. The proverbial baby with the bath water,
That eventually led to most sensible people leaving the GOP. This was all just too tacky for the Country Club Republicans to accept. So, they moved to the Democrats and we saw the rise of the Corporatist Wing of the Democratic Party.
Arguably, a lot of today’s Democrats are very similar to the Republicans of 30 or 40 years ago. That means a lot of people don’t quite fit anywhere. However, the Democratic Party is more open to dissension and discussion, so most of these folks stay with the Dems and try to work it out. The Dems negotiate, the GOP purges like the Stalinists of yore….
But I digress…let’s get back on topic.
What do I hate about the “modern” GOP? Let me tell you…
1. They are mean- these folks go for the jugular vein. They don’t discuss, they don’t book dissent, they kill. Truth is usually the first victim. They have obviously read their Machiavelli and believe you can’t wound a prince, you must kill him. (See Rick Perry)
2. They lie with impunity- The modern GOP does not believe in facts, they believe in propaganda. They will look you in the eye – or more likely television camera- and lie. Their goal is to create an alternate reality that benefits the Rich without anyone getting wise to the situation. (See Fox News)
3. They are hypocrites- They claim moral superiority and belief in “traditional” family values while serially abandoning wives and families for new trophy wives. (See John McCain and Newt Gingrich)
4. They are plastic- If Ken and Barbie ran for office they would be Republicans. I’m convinced the GOP and fundamentalist ministers keep the hairspray companies in business. I would just love to put all the GOP debaters in a wind tunnel and see how they came out. I wonder if their hair is real or if it’s like some play-dough helmet they put on everyday….(See Mitt Romney and Rick Perry)
5. They are proud of their ignorance- They hate science and won’t believe simple facts. They can’t be bothered to learn or study the issues. (See Herman Cain and Sarah Palin-among others)
6. They are intolerant of other religions or the religious views of others- Each of them seem to be convinced they have a direct line to God and he speaks only to them. Anyone who disagrees with them is bound for hell. (See Michele Bachmann and Rick Santorum)
7. They are heartless- Ideological purity is of the utmost importance-particularly to the Libertarian Republicans. These guys believe in almost no government. If you get sick and don’t have any money, it’s okay to let you die. They think you should have planned better and worked harder. (See Ron Paul)
8. They are anti-intellectual- Used to be we wanted the smartest guy or gal in the room for our President. Not the GOP. Not only are they proud of their ignorance, they dismiss intelligence and intellectual curiosity as signs of ideological weakness. They think people who actually study the issues and the facts are wasting valuable time. To them, facts are to be adjusted to drive the agenda and one shouldn’t think too much about things like starting a war with Iraq because someone insulted Daddy. (See George W. Bush)
9. The are vengeful- They truly believe there are only two important concepts in politics: Loyalty and Revenge. You must be loyal, without asking questions, or you will face their revenge. (See George W. Bush and Dick Cheney)
10. They are always out for themselves- Their motto really should be “I’ve got mine, screw you.” They don’t believe in anything that stands in the way of profiteering. It’s all about “me” to them. They don’t even recognize the existence of anyone else as that would require them to stop gazing at themselves in the mirror and reading their bank statements. (See Sarah Palin)
I could go on, but I’ll stop here for now….
I’m sure before the Republican Presidential Primaries are over, I’ll be able to add to this list…..
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Tagged as Elections, george w bush, GOP, Herman Cain, Michele Bachmann, Mitt Romney, Republicans, Rick Perry, Rick Santorum, Sarah Palin, The Economy