[Rhodes22-list] A Note From Our CEO

Sat Nov 29 15:11:19 EST 2008

Ben,

What is worthy of condemnation is in the eye of the beholder.  If you
own a small company that you built from scratch from your own
sacrifices, you might be a little pissed if a political candidate
targeted you for your success.  Would it be fair to take it out on
employees who might support that candidate?  Again, it is all in the
eyes of the beholder.  I wouldn't want to work for that person and I
have quit jobs for less, but then again, I don't suffer from the
illusion of fairness.

As to your comment, "The only promise I heard was a promise to bring
to bear upon our nation's important issues the minds of the best and
brightest, instead of a bunch of
politcal hack cronies ("great job Brownie, remember?')."  Ben, look
over the list of probable appointees.  Some are really good people but
many are political hacks.  That never changes regardless of which
party is in office (Samantha Powers comes to mind). You couldn't have
drunk that much Kool-Aid, could you have?  I'm not going to defend
Brownie other than to say this insta-analysis of the aftermath of
Katrina by the drive-by MSM and others who don't know Jack about it
gets a bit tiring.  Take me up on my offer to visit the coast some
time and I'll show you around and introduce you to some folks and
their personal stories.  Just because you read something in a
newspaper doesn't mean it is true.

Ben, If O turns out to be a great CEO, I'll be the first to give him
positive recognition.  I promised myself after the election that I
wouldn't me one of the mindless lefties from the past eight years who
couldn't see anything positive in W.  Frankly, I still think Obama is
socialist and veers to the center only out of political necessity, but
hey, that may be enough.  He has a life-long habit of abandoning
people when they are no longer useful to him and maybe he's the same
with political leanings as well.  No one knows what they just bought,
including and perhaps especially you.

Brad

On Sat, Nov 29, 2008 at 1:16 PM, Benjamin Cittadino
<bigben65 at earthlink.net> wrote:
>
> Rik;
>
> I referred to them as "poor wretches" because of who they work for, not what
> they do, and I think you knew that. You're just looking for a way to change
> the subject. You and Brad want to talk about anything EXCEPT the point,
> which was that firing people from non patronage jobs because of who they may
> have voted for is a lousy thing to do.  I said nothing about illegality, or
> the nature of the work, or any other phony baloney side issue.  Firing
> people because of who they voted for, or who you think they voted for is
> action worthy of condemnation by decent people. And all I get from you is a
> "non sequitur". For what it's worth I've done manual labor in my life and
> there is nothing in what I said that suggests lack of respect for those who
> work in jobs other than the traditional "professions". But anybody who works
> for someone so depraved as to fire folks for political beliefs is a "poor
> wretch" whether he is a college professor or ditch digger.
>
> As for Obama not keeping promises, Brad, you got that all wrong too.  The
> only promise I heard was a promise to bring to bear upon our nation's
> important issues the minds of the best and brightest, instead of a bunch of
> politcal hack cronies ("great job Brownie, remember?'). I can see it now, if
> he fails he was a "socialist terrorist pal", if he succeeds he "broke his
> promises".  What will he have to do for you to just say, "You know Ben, I'm
> sorry, you were right and I was wrong. He's a terrific Chief Executive."
>
> Best wishes;
>
> Ben C.
>
> Rik Sandberg-2 wrote:
>>
>> Brad.
>>
>> If I could say this as well .... I certainly would.
>>
>> Funny, I see the Obama that was promised fading into the background as
>> well. Guess those who thought once he was elected you wouldn't have to
>> worry about paying your mortgage and filling your gas tank are gonna'
>> have to put up with reality for a bit longer.
>>
>> Ben,
>>
>>  > "...poor wretches who happen to be in your
>>  > employ."
>>
>> I've been both employee AND employer. I didn't think of myself as a
>> "poor wretch" when I was an employee and I don't believe most of the
>> employees I've had did either. The idea that some think this way is a
>> bit revolting to me and just may be a bit of what is wrong with our
>> economy and our society in general today. Just because one may earn his
>> living with his hands, or chose not to be a *highly educated
>> professional*, or decides running his own business is not for him,
>> doesn't make him an object to be looked down upon.
>>
>> Rik
>>
>> Will Rogers often said, "There's nothing quite like money in the bank." He
>> went on to say, "I'm not so concerned about the return on my money as I am
>> about the return of my money."
>>
>>
>>
>> brad haslett wrote:
>>> Ben,
>>>
>>> You missed the point.  As you probably recall from labor law, "at will"
>>> employees can be fired for just about anything but race, creed, color,
>>> religion, etc. If one had to downsize on the number of employees, and all
>>> employees were basically equal in talent, choosing the winners and losers
>>> by bumper sticker would be as valid as any - you just couldn't allow them
>>> to know why or make-up a reason.  A local company I'm very familiar with
>>> needed to downsize its IT department a few years ago.  They instructed
>>> all Sr. Managers to choose the worst 10% of their employees and lay them
>>> off.  When it resulted in a list that was composed almost entirely of one
>>> race, they were instructed to keep most of those people and choose
>>> different color crayons from the box.  Fair?  No, life isn't fair!  The
>>> bottom line is this; unless you belong to a collective bargaining agency,
>>> you can be fired for most any reason the people who have risked their
>>> capital choose. Please
>>>  remember this as well, choosing collective bargaining is no panacea.
>>> The UAW has bargained themselves almost to extinction.  Public service
>>> employees have been very successful at collective bargaining but now they
>>> face bankrupt pension plans because over-generous governments caved-in to
>>> demands they couldn't fund (the State of NJ is technically bankrupt when
>>> you factor in under funded pension plans).
>>>
>>> As in most things in life, there is no substitute for common sense.  As
>>> to China, they abandoned the idea of "fairness" in favor of what works.
>>> The market has already reacted both ways in reaction to Obama (remember,
>>> the market is a reflection of the perceived net present value of future
>>> earnings).  When he announced sound policies (scrap the tax hike for now)
>>> the market reacted in a positive way. If he continues to use good
>>> judgment and selects sound economic advisors, the economy will bounce
>>> back soon enough. For those who bought into his pre-election
>>> "bamboozlement", I'm sorry.  So far, he's pretty much following the
>>> previous administration's policies.  As always, things change.
>>>
>>> Brad
>>>
>>>
>>> --- On Sat, 11/29/08, Benjamin Cittadino <bigben65 at earthlink.net> wrote:
>>>
>>>
>>>> From: Benjamin Cittadino <bigben65 at earthlink.net>
>>>> Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] A Note From Our CEO
>>>> To: rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org
>>>> Date: Saturday, November 29, 2008, 9:35 AM
>>>> Brad;
>>>>
>>>> I actually held out the hope that we would agree about this
>>>> post (fool that
>>>> I am). I would have thought that someone with your strong
>>>> political opinions
>>>> coupled with your knowledge of the requirement of
>>>> conformity in political
>>>> thought in order to have a decent job in China, would find
>>>> it offensive
>>>> (indeed, un-American) for an employer to fire individuals
>>>> based upon the
>>>> person they voted for. These are not political patronage
>>>> jobs, they are
>>>> private sector jobs lost because the people involved chose
>>>> to excercise
>>>> their First Amendment rights.
>>>>
>>>> Come on Brad, I believe you think this was a dirty, rotten
>>>> thing to do, and
>>>> your response smacks more of your knee-jerk reaction to say
>>>> "Black" when I
>>>> say "White" than any true agreement with the
>>>> poster.
>>>>
>>>> If people could fairly be fired from a private sector job
>>>> because of their
>>>> political affiliation, you would have been out of work
>>>> years ago. Please
>>>> don't encourage the perpetrator of this kind of
>>>> vindictive, mean-spirited, un-democratic, nonsense. Obama
>>>> hasn't done
>>>> anything yet, but prospectively appoint some of the best
>>>> minds in the
>>>> country to work on this crisis.  There is no economic
>>>> reason to fire ANYBODY
>>>> based upon Obama's actions to date.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> best to you;
>>>>
>>>> Ben C.
>>>>
>>>> Brad Haslett-2 wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> Ben,
>>>>>
>>>>> "...it doesn't really matter what's wrong
>>>>>
>>>> with you."
>>>>
>>>>> It really doesn't matter if Bill (or anyone else)
>>>>>
>>>> has 14 employees,
>>>>
>>>>> 140, or 140,000. Businesses operate to make a profit
>>>>>
>>>> and without
>>>>
>>>>> profit, they benefit no one in the long run.  I know
>>>>>
>>>> that's a
>>>>
>>>>> difficult concept for some to grasp but true
>>>>>
>>>> none-the-less.
>>>>
>>>>> "...poor wretches who happen to be in your
>>>>>
>>>> employ."
>>>>
>>>>> Poor in what sense?  Are they locked inside the
>>>>>
>>>> factory like the
>>>>
>>>>> workers at the Triangle Waistshirt Factory fire of
>>>>>
>>>> 1911?  This is 2008
>>>>
>>>>> Ben, "poor wretches" are free to leave and
>>>>>
>>>> find more enlightened
>>>>
>>>>> employers, say the Federal Government.  Now that the
>>>>>
>>>> economy has
>>>>
>>>>> slowed down and there's an exodus for the southern
>>>>>
>>>> border, lots of
>>>>
>>>>> jobs are available in the landscaping and roofing
>>>>>
>>>> trades - lots of
>>>>
>>>>> fresh air, good exercise, and free job skill training
>>>>>
>>>> for those who
>>>>
>>>>> were slackers in school.
>>>>>
>>>>> As for Thanksgiving, I'm thankful that our
>>>>>
>>>> incoming President has
>>>>
>>>>> discovered reality and decided to stick with the
>>>>>
>>>> previous President's
>>>>
>>>>> policies, ie, capitalize on the success in Iraq, leave
>>>>>
>>>> the tax policy
>>>>
>>>>> alone for awhile, let the "GITMO Sensitivity
>>>>>
>>>> Training Center" remain
>>>>
>>>>> in place, etc.  I'm starting to empathize with our
>>>>>
>>>> new "Dear Leader"
>>>>
>>>>> and his "struggle sessions" with former
>>>>>
>>>> friends.  He's not the man I
>>>>
>>>>> thought I knew.
>>>>>
>>>>> As for Christmas, I hope Santa brings me an attorney
>>>>>
>>>> who can kick the
>>>>
>>>>> shit out of the one working for the miserable bastard
>>>>>
>>>> suing me beyond
>>>>
>>>>> our policy limits for an accident that our truck
>>>>>
>>>> didn't cause (or a
>>>>
>>>>> good private eye that catches him on tape with the
>>>>>
>>>> hooker I'm thinking
>>>>
>>>>> about hiring).
>>>>>
>>>>> Brad
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> On Fri, Nov 28, 2008 at 9:48 PM, Benjamin Cittadino
>>>>> <bigben65 at earthlink.net> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> Bill;
>>>>>>
>>>>>> So my first reaction was that your post was just a
>>>>>>
>>>> really sick attempt at
>>>>
>>>>>> humor.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Then, I thought maybe you were just bragging about
>>>>>>
>>>> what a powerful
>>>>
>>>>>> big-shot
>>>>>> business man you think you are, 140 employees and
>>>>>>
>>>> all, looking for a
>>>>
>>>>>> back-door way to puff up an inadequate ego at the
>>>>>>
>>>> expense of the poor
>>>>
>>>>>> wretches who happen to be in your employ.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Then, I thought, "the poor man has simply
>>>>>>
>>>> stuffed himself so full of
>>>>
>>>>>> mashed
>>>>>> potatos and gravy, that he has suffered a stroke
>>>>>>
>>>> and has no idea what he
>>>>
>>>>>> is
>>>>>> saynig."
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Finally I realized, it doesn't really matter
>>>>>>
>>>> what's wrong with you.
>>>>
>>>>>> Happy Thanksgiving, and may the Peace and Joy of
>>>>>>
>>>> the Christmas Season
>>>>
>>>>>> find
>>>>>> it's way into your miserable existence.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Ben C.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Bill Effros wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> As the CEO of this business that employs 140
>>>>>>>
>>>> people, I have resigned
>>>>
>>>>>>> myself to the fact that Barack Obama is now
>>>>>>>
>>>> our next President, and
>>>>
>>>>>>> that our taxes and government fees will
>>>>>>>
>>>> increase in a BIG way.
>>>>
>>>>>>> To compensate for these increases, I figure
>>>>>>>
>>>> that the Clients will have
>>>>
>>>>>>> to see an increase in our fees to them of
>>>>>>>
>>>> about 8% but since we cannot
>>>>
>>>>>>> increase our fees right now due to the dismal
>>>>>>>
>>>> state of our economy, we
>>>>
>>>>>>> will have to lay off six of our employees
>>>>>>>
>>>> instead. This has really been
>>>>
>>>>>>> eating at me for a while, as we believe we are
>>>>>>>
>>>> family here and I didn't
>>>>
>>>>>>> know how to choose who will have to go.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> So, this is what I did. I strolled through our
>>>>>>>
>>>> parking lot and found 8
>>>>
>>>>>>> Obama bumper stickers on our employees'
>>>>>>>
>>>> cars and have decided these
>>>>
>>>>>>> folks will be the first to be laid off. I
>>>>>>>
>>>> can't think of a more fair way
>>>>
>>>>>>> to approach this problem. These folks wanted
>>>>>>>
>>>> change; I gave it to them.
>>>>
>>>>>>> If you have a better idea, let me know.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>> __________________________________________________
>>>>
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>>>> __________________________________________________
>>>>
>>>>>>>
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>>>>>>
>>>> http://www.nabble.com/A-Note-From-Our-CEO-tp20741229p20743678.html
>>>>
>>>>>> Sent from the Rhodes 22 mailing list archive at
>>>>>>
>>>> Nabble.com.
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>>>>>>
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>>>>>
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