it's not whats on the front page--

how scary is it? to be told over and over by an administration that everything is fine: iraq, the economy, the environment, the health care system, the outlook for the future... and all along you know that none of it is fine, hell all of it is really bad and getting worse. for instance two lovely stories today make one ponder some of the imponderables... i came across these as i was focussed on writing about how the media determines the response in the polls and not the other way around... "if we keep telling the people that kerry is a loser, then bush will win" and low and behold, bush moves up the polls that the media create to show that bush is a winner... like a mad sort of catch 22.. tell the lie over and over again and we can all start to believe it...

but story one:

CEOs at companies that outsource the most US jobs are rewarded with bigger paychecks, according to a new report, “Executive Excess 2004: Campaign Contributions, Outsourcing, Unexpensed Stock Options and Rising CEO Pay." Average CEO compensation at the 50 firms outsourcing the most service jobs increased by 46 percent in 2003, compared to a 9 percent average increase for all CEOs at the 365 large companies surveyed by Business Week. Top outsourcers earned an average of $10.4 million in 2003, 28 percent more than the average CEO compensation of $8.1 million. From 2001 to 2003, the top 50 outsourcing CEOs earned $2.2 billion while sending an estimated 200,000 jobs overseas.
Political contributions also appear to pay off. CEOs of the 69 companies that sponsored this summer’s Democratic and Republican National Conventions saw their pay jump 52 percent in 2003, far outpacing the 9 percent raise for the average large company CEO. Similarly, the 38 CEOs who have personally raised at least $100,000 for either the Bush or Kerry presidential campaigns earned an average of $15.2 million in 2003, 88 percent more than the average large company CEO.
After two years of narrowing, the CEO-to-worker wage gap is rising again. The CEO pay to worker pay ratio reached 301:1 in 2003, up from 282:1 in 2002. If the minimum wage had increased as quickly as CEO pay since 1990, it would today be $15.76 per hour, rather than the current $5.15 per hour. Average CEO pay is 56 times more than the pay for a US Army general with 20 years experience ($144,932) and 634 timesmore than the pay for a starting U.S. soldier ($12,776).

and not only that but couple with this story was an AP wire post yesterday that suggested that the boards of 1156 corporations that re-issued earnings reports that showed that the companies lied in previous accounts and over paid executives by huge and obscene amounts refuse to ask for those bonuses back... why is that?? how much greed can greed contain... how long will silly americans keep ignoring the reality that all of that is our money... ours.. not theirs.. a stupid sign i came across today reminded me of this: some far right winger has his own theater sign board in front of his house and today it read.. all business taxes are paid by the consumer... and then went on about changing tax law... But wait... hold on... why are all business taxes passed on to the consumer... because we let them do that.. .it isn't the tax laws .. or the taxes.. it is the greed of the businesses to increase profits by shifting their tax burdens onto others... just like offshoring industries and outsourcing labor... we are letting them do that.. and we don't have to... not at all

Story two:

A new study conducted by the Chinese Red Cross shows that some three-quarters of all Chinese city dwellers are in ill health and that

life expectancies are declining for skilled and educated workers.   The survey by the Red cross Society of China covered 16 Chinese cities

 with populations of over one million, including Beijing, Shanghai and  Guangzhou.   The report said the problem was worst among senior and mid-level  managers and well-educated white collar workers. Their life expectancies have fallen to 58 years - less than the national average of 72.    China's industrial boom and soaring vehicle use have contributed to  severe air and water pollution, while changing diets and exercise habits  have led to increased obesity, stress, heart attacks and strokes.



today we read this and wonder about how bad bad is and shrug it off and not try to think about it.. but people.. this is the spawning ground of the planet's flus and viral infections and bacterial outbreaks.. and if all these people are sick and getting sicker and their environment is sick and poisoned and they can't stop living how they are living just like we can't stop it.. then the whole planet is getting much sicker and more ill prepared to accept humans as a species very much longer... there are huge enormous issues to be understood from 3/4ths of china's urban population experiencing chronic illness.  nearly all of our manufactured goods come from there.. that means that sick people are making all this stuff for us... they are becoming wealthier in terms of their economy and are able to travel from this... bringing to us their new morphed diseases... will what doesn't kill us now make us stronger later... not in this case... all it means is that the viral and bacteriological agents will be stronger and more adaptive and more effective in overtaking hosts and feeder sources and such---us... not good.. if you want to live and prosper and succeed.. mmmmm