Tuesday, October 14, 2003

CaliFrance

Is it just me, or is California starting to resemble France?

This is what happens when you allow the nanny-state mentality to take hold.  When a government or employer gives its citizens benefits which they haven’t earned, other than by refusing to work, all the government does is encourage further striking.  After all, why work to better your situation when you can achieve the same via blackmail?

(1) Comments
Posted by Jed at 1721 hrs
Politics + Politics - General

  1. Glad to see someone from elsewhere notices this. The strikes (this one and a grocery strike) aren?t as debilitating as in France, but the transit strike is the second in three years. 

    As you may have noticed, we are trying hard to emulate the dynamic French economic powerhouse. We decided that too much economic activity hurts the environment. We?ve been chasing out those dirty manufacturers, and instead hired 44,000 new state workers over the last two years. They work quietly, and don?t create a lot of clutter.

    Culturally we know we have a long ways to go to be the next France. We?ve been working on pretension for years now, though. Our elites (entertainment moguls and personalities) are pretty comfortable with the whole noblesse oblige thing. We also get complements on our condescension. Of course, like the French, we?re well-traveled and have a superior understanding of world affairs. We?ve simplified a few things, too. We have, for exmple, established that conservatives are either stupid or evil. Perhaps you have heard our foreign affairs experts (Sean Penn, Susan Sarandon, Barbra Streisand and others) discourse at length. Tr?s cultiv?, no? 

    With regard to the transit strike, even though no one we know actually rides buses, it is terribly inconvenient because it is adding to traffic and is making it hard for our housekeepers and nannies to get to work on time. (We?re showing our solidarity by not docking their pay unless they?re really, really late.)

    We?re actually ahead of the French in one key area. With respect to your comment:
    When a government or employer gives its citizens benefits which they haven’t earned, other than by refusing to work, all the government does is encourage further striking.

    Heck, in California you don?t even have to be here legally in order to strike. Finally, you?ll love the hardship the grocery clerks are being asked to endure. They are being asked to contribute to their health benefits. The obscene amounts? $5/week for individuals, $15 for a family.

    That?s the news from California, or as we like to think of ourselves, Nuevo France.

    Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on October 15, 2003 at 0420 hrs


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