I like to learn a fun fact every day, and today I learned TWO fun facts! One is that people still actually read Time, and two is that Romneybot 6000 doesn’t have a scripted response to questions about what he learned from Bain or how Bain in any way qualifies him to be the president of the Greatest Country on Earth. He does, however, know that he has two of the most important qualifications there are: he was born in the United States, and he knows exactly how many people you have to fire to make a businesses grow.
I hadn't thought of that, although I doubt that's one of the "certain industries" on Mitt's mind. Good point, though. I suppose the vast majority of a server farm's expense line is depreciation and electricity. Thank you for that.
Semi-relatedly, I should clarify one of my above remarks. Semiconductor manufacturing (where I spent my career) uses a shitload of electricity, but I still consider it non-energy-intensive because the cost of the energy is trivial compared to the cost of the capital equipment.
I might kvetch about your comment on small-biz success rate -- that's why they call it "entrepreneurship". It's risky.
More to the point, Rmoney wasn't involved in a small business, or really in what I would call "business" at all. He was a fucking vulture capitalist (or, more politely, a "financier"). I've seen no indication that he knows fuck all about actually running an enterprise (except maybe for his private equity company, which is a "business" in the same way a law firm is).
I spent my life in middle management. I also know a few turnaround artists, who are the kind of people that something like Bain Capital would employ to actually manage the businesses they were saving and/or gutting. The ones I know are really good businesspeople. They can not only read a balance sheet, and many other accounting instruments, but they actually understand that their decisions sometimes affect some of the employees they've inherited in a bad way.
They can even feel bad about it. They generally justify their actions to themselves by noting that the shit was gonna inevitably hit the fan, and their decisions made it happen sooner, but less widespread. Often, I agree.
I think I'm digressing. My point is that these turnaround guys have something like a 40,000 foot view of the situation. They're not the ones actually giving the layoff notices (although they may do the plant closures), but they can see the effects, fed back through their subordinates.
By contrast, Rmoney and his ilk have a Low Earth Orbit view. They're totally detached from any contact with individual human beings who may be affected by their machinations. It's all just numbers on a balance sheet. To them, "running a business" is just twisting some dials on a business machine.
Aside: I'm also acquainted with a few Sand Hill Road type VCs, and I'd like to make the following distinction: It is true that for many of them, their only practical business-running experience was a single big tech hit, and for others it's just inherited money. However, the game they"re in is funding startups. Everybody in a startup knows that the deal is: we could get rich, or this can fall apart. It's better odds than the lottery. I tend to give a pass to startup investors.
Note: That wouldn't be Bain Capital.
EDIT: Shit, that ran on didn't it? Even I think it's tl.
Actually, I don't think the Rmoney campaign has even gotten that cohesive. It's more like a bunch of pointers to other people who are willing to say "not the n******".
Regarding your last sentence, ain't that the truth? One of the things that eventually put me off religion was realizing that far more than half the attractiveness of Heaven was being able to go "neener, neener" at the poor assholes in Hell.
The Afterlife as middle school pretty well did it for me.
Chemical or pharmeceutical processing: mostly catalyst driven, possibly some modest energy consumption
Transport: Undoubtedly energy-intensive, but it&#039;s not <i>manufacturing</i>, is it?
This pretty much leaves us with metals (mostly steel) manufacturing as the &quot;certain high energy intensive industries&quot;. And here we have an inadvertent example of how Rmoney couldn&#039;t manage his way out of a fucking paper bag.
The reason the US steel industry collapsed was not the price of electricity. Partly, it was tariffs (which are political, sure, but not related to the price of energy), and partly it was the slowness of the US industry to adjust to the changing requirements of its global customers (a slowness not confined to the steel industry). But nobody ever considered the price of energy to be a major factor; hence, no change in the price of energy will change anything by itself.
If electricity was goddam FREE, it wouldn&#039;t resurrect the US steel industry, unless the industry changed its policies to be more agile and responsive to customer needs. And if they did that, they wouldn&#039;t fucking need free electricity.
<blockquote>The President&rsquo;s experience has been exclusively in politics and as a community organizer.</blockquote>
Of <strong>COURSE</strong> Mitt&#039;s lying <em>again</em>. Obama&#039;s resum&eacute; includes three years (yes, that number) as an associate at Davis, Miner, Barnhill and Galland and twelve years teaching at University of Chicago Law School (eight years as Senior Lecturer).
Mitt naturally has to lie away these things because they remind people that Obama&#039;s not stupid like the fuckwits on the right like to dream he is. Oh yes, and because Mitt&#039;s a compulsive liar.
Unless one extended the definition of &quot;business&quot; to include seasonal halibut-clubbing, it would also insulate us from the possibility of a Snowbilly Presidency. And, come to think of it, would have significantly shortened the Republican debate season this year.
I don&#039;t even want to think about how Washington or Jefferson (e.g.) would have responded to the notion that they should have spent some years &quot;in business&quot;. Of course, we might have had President Franklin.
Seems to me the fuckups on Wall St. who blew up the economy all &quot;worked in business&quot;. And knew how to read a balance sheet.
I hadn&#039;t thought of that, although I doubt that&#039;s one of the &quot;certain industries&quot; on Mitt&#039;s mind. Good point, though. I suppose the vast majority of a server farm&#039;s expense line is depreciation and electricity. Thank you for that.
Semi-relatedly, I should clarify one of my above remarks. Semiconductor manufacturing (where I spent my career) uses a shitload of electricity, but I still consider it non-energy-intensive because the cost of the energy is trivial compared to the cost of the capital equipment.
Oh, fuck.
Whighty tighty LIBEL!!!!!!111!!!!!!
I might kvetch about your comment on small-biz success rate -- that&#039;s why they call it &quot;entrepreneurship&quot;. It&#039;s risky.
More to the point, Rmoney wasn&#039;t involved in a small business, or really in what I would call &quot;business&quot; at all. He was a fucking vulture capitalist (or, more politely, a &quot;financier&quot;). I&#039;ve seen no indication that he knows fuck all about actually running an enterprise (except maybe for his private equity company, which is a &quot;business&quot; in the same way a law firm is).
I spent my life in middle management. I also know a few turnaround artists, who are the kind of people that something like Bain Capital would employ to actually manage the businesses they were saving and/or gutting. The ones I know are really good businesspeople. They can not only read a balance sheet, and many other accounting instruments, but they actually understand that their decisions sometimes affect some of the employees they&#039;ve inherited in a bad way.
They can even feel bad about it. They generally justify their actions to themselves by noting that the shit was gonna inevitably hit the fan, and their decisions made it happen sooner, but less widespread. Often, I agree.
I think I&#039;m digressing. My point is that these turnaround guys have something like a 40,000 foot view of the situation. They&#039;re not the ones actually giving the layoff notices (although they may do the plant closures), but they can see the effects, fed back through their subordinates.
By contrast, Rmoney and his ilk have a Low Earth Orbit view. They&#039;re totally detached from any contact with individual human beings who may be affected by their machinations. It&#039;s all just numbers on a balance sheet. To them, &quot;running a business&quot; is just twisting some dials on a business machine.
Aside: I&#039;m also acquainted with a few Sand Hill Road type VCs, and I&#039;d like to make the following distinction: It is true that for many of them, their only practical business-running experience was a single big tech hit, and for others it&#039;s just inherited money. However, the game they&quot;re in is funding startups. Everybody in a startup knows that the deal is: we could get rich, or this can fall apart. It&#039;s better odds than the lottery. I tend to give a pass to startup investors.
Note: That wouldn&#039;t be Bain Capital.
EDIT: Shit, that ran on didn&#039;t it? Even I think it&#039;s tl.
Actually, I don&#039;t think the Rmoney campaign has even gotten that cohesive. It&#039;s more like a bunch of pointers to other people who are willing to say &quot;not the n******&quot;.
Regarding your last sentence, ain&#039;t that the truth? One of the things that eventually put me off religion was realizing that far more than half the attractiveness of Heaven was being able to go &quot;neener, neener&quot; at the poor assholes in Hell.
The Afterlife as middle school pretty well did it for me.
It isn&#039;t only a damned lie, it&#039;s devoid of content. It&#039;s not even an honest lie.
&quot;Certain high energy intensive industries&quot;. What the fuck does that mean? Well, let&#039;s think.
Semiconductors, biotech, IT?: these are notably NOT energy intensive.
Services (retail, boiler rooms, medical/dental, lawyers, fast food, slightly less fast food): not very energy intensive.
Financial services (e.g., Bain Capital): fucking haha.
Chemical or pharmeceutical processing: mostly catalyst driven, possibly some modest energy consumption
Transport: Undoubtedly energy-intensive, but it&#039;s not <i>manufacturing</i>, is it?
This pretty much leaves us with metals (mostly steel) manufacturing as the &quot;certain high energy intensive industries&quot;. And here we have an inadvertent example of how Rmoney couldn&#039;t manage his way out of a fucking paper bag.
The reason the US steel industry collapsed was not the price of electricity. Partly, it was tariffs (which are political, sure, but not related to the price of energy), and partly it was the slowness of the US industry to adjust to the changing requirements of its global customers (a slowness not confined to the steel industry). But nobody ever considered the price of energy to be a major factor; hence, no change in the price of energy will change anything by itself.
If electricity was goddam FREE, it wouldn&#039;t resurrect the US steel industry, unless the industry changed its policies to be more agile and responsive to customer needs. And if they did that, they wouldn&#039;t fucking need free electricity.
All of them, Katie.
Damn, you&#039;re more OCD than I am. Since you already checked, what was Poppy Bush&#039;s business experience?
And look who the Romney business rule lets in: Dubya and Herbert Hoover.
<blockquote>The President&rsquo;s experience has been exclusively in politics and as a community organizer.</blockquote>
Of <strong>COURSE</strong> Mitt&#039;s lying <em>again</em>. Obama&#039;s resum&eacute; includes three years (yes, that number) as an associate at Davis, Miner, Barnhill and Galland and twelve years teaching at University of Chicago Law School (eight years as Senior Lecturer).
Mitt naturally has to lie away these things because they remind people that Obama&#039;s not stupid like the fuckwits on the right like to dream he is. Oh yes, and because Mitt&#039;s a compulsive liar.
Exactly <br /><br />---
Unless one extended the definition of &quot;business&quot; to include seasonal halibut-clubbing, it would also insulate us from the possibility of a Snowbilly Presidency. And, come to think of it, would have significantly shortened the Republican debate season this year.
I don&#039;t even want to think about how Washington or Jefferson (e.g.) would have responded to the notion that they should have spent some years &quot;in business&quot;. Of course, we might have had President Franklin.
The guy that invented the KKK teeter-totter?
Fuck, Donald Trump has business experience. Mostly in filing bankruptcy, but hey, it&#039;s experience.