Lost in the controversy over Scott Walker suggesting that raising the minimum wage is a "lame" idea (so many Americans want it, it must be lame!) is his statement that "we need to talk about how we get people the skills and the education and the qualifications that they need to take on the careers that pay far more than the minimum wage." And how has he done that as Governor of Wisconsin? With a government website that matches Wisconsin residents up with jobs that are too frequently out-of-state? With a privatized economic development corporation so plagued with waste and cronyism that he is no longer its chairman? With his zeal to turn the state's vaunted university system into little more than a vocational school feeding worker bees to big corporations? Hell, if he's so great at "skills and education and qualifications," why is Wisconsin's economy lagging behind the rest of the country? But don't count on Democrats raising such objections during the campaign, since they learned during Tha Bush Mobb years that it's impolite, treasonous even, to tell everyone the Emperor's not just stark naked but doing the helicopter dance in front of you.
Comcast allegedly offers St. Paul (MN) seniors and economically-disadvantaged folks a 10% discount, but their commitment to that plan may be a bit suspect, as Comcast reps tell callers inquiring about the plan to stop asking for "handouts," allege the discount plan is only good in California or Puerto Rico, or just plain seem unaware of the plan's existence. The discount plan does sound like something big corporations put together to claim they're community-friendly when they never intend to do the hard work that would make it effective -- and I also suspect municipal governments tolerate that state of affairs, so they can give off a similarly-unearned "business-friendly" veneer to other corporations. The moral thing to do, of course, would be to hold corporations to their promises, especially when their franchise agreements seem to depend, at least in part, on such promises. Comcast, for its part, has apologized and said it'll re-train its workers about the discount plan, but that also sounds like an old song-and-dance. Well, it sure is a good thing the "free" market always provides alternatives to monopolists! I kid, of course -- Comcast is the only game in St. Paul.
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