In 1968, when General Motors was a widely emulated icon of American business, many of its workers were lifetime employees. On average, they earned about $29,000 a year in today's dollars, a solidly middle-class income at the time. They also had generous health and retirement benefits.The state next door. Connecticut executes someone for the first time in 45 years. This might be considered state-assisted suicide, as the man fought for the right to abandon appeals and be killed. However, had there been no legal death penalty, had he been sentenced to life in prison, that would not have been an issue.
Since then, America has grown much richer, but American workers have become far less secure.
Today, Wal-Mart is America's largest corporation. Like G.M. in its prime, it has become a widely emulated business icon. But there the resemblance ends.
The average full-time Wal-Mart employee is paid only about $17,000 a year. The company's health care plan covers fewer than half of its workers. [Read it here.]
[Please note: proponents of capital punishment are respectfully asked to make their cases elsewhere.]
Down the street. This happened a few blocks from us. Check out that picture. Amazingly, no one was hurt.
On the other side of the globe, the US continues to spread democracy and good will.
2 comments:
Oh how I wish we could spread some of that freedom here at home!
Well, not this kind of freedom - the kind that liberates people from their arms and legs, and their lives.
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