Current Affairs

Buying into Communism

Posted by Dror Poleg

on Wednesday, 19 May 2021 6:30

 

“People are prepared to obtain order and tranquility by giving up other values such as democracy and freedom. This dangerous temptation has not disappeared, even today.”  — Mikhail Gorbachev, 1993

June 4, 2009. I opened the day in Shanghai, meeting with one of America’s largest brands to discuss their expansion plans in China’s 2nd tier cities. On the flight back to Beijing, the entertainment included a program on preparing your dog for the arrival of a new baby to the family. The headlines of the local newspaper spoke of Obama’s visit to Saudi Arabia and the possible sale of Hummer, an American luxury brand, to an automaker from Sichuan.

The air hostess handed me a copy of the Global Times, the official English-language propaganda vessel of China’s Communist Party. On the bottom of the front page, an article titled “Prosperity tangible along Chang’an avenue” spoke of China’s progress since the ‘June 4 Tian’anmen incident’. Apart from a short mention of ‘pitch-black charred bodies of soldiers’, there was no reference to what actually happened that day or why.

The article continued on page two, headlined, “20 years later, China is now called a world power”. The author quoted various local experts carrying messages about the country’s development over the last two decades and summarized the article’s main point: ‘The Chinese people, especially the young, have become much more apathetic about politics than they were decades ago. Education, medical insurance, and employment are among their top priorities.’

Read More

 

Just when you thought it was safe to go back to work……

Posted by Amy Woodyatt

on Tuesday, 18 May 2021 6:52

Long working hours are killing hundreds of thousands of people a year, WHO says

London (CNN Business)Working long hours is killing hundreds of thousands of people a year through stroke and heart disease, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

In a global analysis of the link between loss of life and health and working long hours, WHO and the International Labour Organization estimated that in 2016, some 745,000 people died as a result of having worked at least 55 hours a week.
Most of the deaths were recorded among people aged 60 to 79, who had worked at least 55 hours between the ages of 45 and 74.
Men were the worst affected, accounting for 72% of deaths, the analysis found. People living in the Western Pacific and Southeast Asia, and middle-aged or older workers took on a particularly significant share of the disease burden, the report said.

As Lumber Prices Climb, DIYers Cut Out The Middle Man And Mill Their Own

Posted by EMILY SCHWING

on Tuesday, 18 May 2021 6:38

 

The price of lumber has more than doubled over the past year, and economists warn that things might stay this way for a while. That’s why people like Hans Dow are getting crafty.

“I was like, well, I want a sawmill. I can make a lot of stuff with it. I also need to learn how to weld …,” Dow says as he hefts a 9-foot log onto the deck of his hand-built sawmill. It sits in the corner of his South Anchorage, Alaska, backyard.

Dow spent the winter in his garage building this sawmill from scratch. He collected the scrap metal and the machinery parts from all over the city. He says his brother urged him to take on the project.

“He was working on his house and we were kind of joking like ‘man, lumber is really expensive. We could probably build or buy a sawmill and make our own siding and break even or come out ahead.’ And then I started to do the math,” he says. “And I was like, ‘oh yeah, it would be cheaper.'”

It took him three weeks and $3,000 to build.

Dow says furniture projects are in his future. But his first major home improvement effort is to build garden boxes for his wife. If he were to buy this lumber today, it would cost him at least $2,000. But for Dow, spruce logs are free. He picks them up from Paul’s Tree Service in Anchorage, where he works as a crane operator. The company removes beetle-infested spruce throughout the city.

Read More

 

US and EU Suspend Steel Tariffs

Posted by Raf Casert, AP

on Monday, 17 May 2021 8:25

The European Union and the United States on Monday decided to temporarily suspend measures at the heart of a steel tariff dispute that is seen as one of the major trade issues dividing the two sides.

With the decision, “we are walking the talk in our efforts to reboot the trans-Atlantic relationship,” EU trade chief Valdis Dombrovskis said. It will affect anything from steel production to Kentucky bourbon sales.

On top of suspending the measures, both sides also said they are committed to talks “to address global steel and aluminum excess capacity.

“We are creating the space to resolve these issues before the end of the year,” Dombrovskis said.

It was the second palpable step to get back to better trade relations under President Joe Biden after both sides in March decided on a four-month suspension of tariffs used in the longstanding Airbus-Boeing dispute… CLICK for the complete article

Inflation Jitters

Posted by Global Times

on Monday, 17 May 2021 8:18

While the combination of a massive fiscal stimulus and coronavirus vaccination campaign appears to put the US economy on track of a powerful recovery, several economic indicators issued recently have thrown the market into confusion, which may serve as an early warning that America’s re-opening may enter an unchartered territory.

Judging from recent statistics, there will be no shortage of surprises and cliffhanging moments in the coming months. The disappointing jobs report for April, which fell well short of economists’ estimates of adding 1 million new jobs, already had many wondering whether generous unemployment benefits issued by the Biden administration has led to hesitancy about taking a job.

Then came the big inflation scare… Click for the complete article