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Loading ...RachelWatch: The PR Empire Strikes Back
Labor Pains
The Employee Free Choice Act, if it passes, will make it easier (and less intimidating) for employees to form a union, and Rachel thinks it could cause an even bigger fight between Democrats and Republicans than the stimulus bill. What’s left, flamethrowers?
As Rachel noted, many of these guys take the position that if it’s worth fighting for, it’s worth spreading misinformation about, and EFCA opponents are pretty much just openly lying all over the airwaves.
In response, please keep passing this around: If the Employee Free Choice Act passes, we all get to ride flying horses to work.
Failed State?
How are those Spring Break plans shaping up? Because it turns out that the government of Mexico is in danger of “rapid and sudden collapse.” No, it’s not just the opinion of people who have made the mistake of going to Señor Frog’s – our government thinks so too.
Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano checked in to talk with Rachel about the huge wave of drug cartel violence that is – you’ll never guess – largely supplied by U.S. gun stores and gun shows.
And you thought we didn’t have any viable exports.
Ms. Information
Monday’s Ms. Information featured two different flavors of Maddovian awesome.
The first flavor of awesome: Rachel unashamedly enjoys news stories that involve foundation garments. The Chinese Navy harassed the unarmed U.S. Naval Vessel the USNS Impeccable with some aggressive maneuvering.
After the crew of the Impeccable broke out the defensive fire hoses (Guys? Couldn’t you at least make like you have a sonar gun?), Chinese crewmembers stripped down to their skivvies.
Rachel also reported that as the Impeccable finally sailed away, the Chinese crew “threw down wood.” So I’m guessing China doesn’t have Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.
Your second scoop of awesome: Like the men of the Chinese Navy, Rachel does not stand down.
After Thursday’s segment on how PR firm Burson-Marsteller has been researching time travel just so they can go back and represent Rasputin and the Donner Party, CEO Mark Penn sent a letter to his employees saying that Rachel had been incorrect about his firm’s relationship with Blackwater.
You know what you shouldn’t do, Mr. Penn? You shouldn’t take that contract to represent Ming the Merciless, and you shouldn’t accuse a proud academic nerd who spends eight hours a day prepping for her show of getting her facts wrong.
Now THAT, Ms. Maddow, is a smackdown.
Losing the War
It looks like the one good thing about the situation in Afghanistan is that military and government officials are at least beginning to show some refreshing candor about how badly we’re screwing it up.
Rachel invited Sarah Chayes, founder of the Arghand Cooperative, to bum you out slightly less than you might expect.
Chayes seems to think that looking at what the Afghan people actually want and need and trying to address those things might help. Maybe, but wouldn’t a really cool public relations campaign be way more awesome?
The Whistleblower
Time to get out your Official TRMS Righteous Anger China-Smashin’ Kits!
KBR is the not only the biggest contractor in the Iraq war and not only pretending to be based in the Cayman Islands to avoid paying taxes, it also seems to be fundamentally incompetent at the electrical work it’s been contracted to do.
Rachel welcomed former KBR electrician Debbie Crawford to take turns swallowing anger over the fact that KBR’s crackerjack work is expanding into Afghanistan.
Yeah, you should maybe go ahead and order the Official China-Smashin’ Soup Tureen before you watch the clip.
Until tomorrow, I wish you hoseworthy drawers and plenty of entertainment options away from Señor Frog’s.
While I agree that the government needs to do more to allay concerns, lower corporate taxes is not the panacea. Globalization and its impact on corporate profits was an issue long before the economic meltdown and will likely remain an area of debate long after we get through this. Stating that empowering employees and maintaining corporate taxes will worsen the economy is a little like saying that giving the crew of the Titanic life jackets will sink the ship.
Why are liberals pushing this Employee Free Choice Act so hard? It’s not going to save American jobs. It will end them, though. US labor is already exorbitantly pricey on the world market. We, as a nation, need to look at how to bring down the cost of our labor, rather then making it even more aggravating to work with. More people working is better then a few people with amazing benefits.
Straight up, talking to CEOs, corporate America is spooked. Obama isn’t doing enough to allay their fears. I know everyone is laughing about the republicans crying socialism, but corporations are dealing with world competition, because of the globalized market, and faced with the prospect of having their profits curtailed even further, when they can just as easily move to less restricted markets, they are right now planning to continue their move away. What’s different this time is that it will be corporate offices. They’ll move anything they can off of American soil, because they believe they’re about to get slammed by liberal revenge. If you want to stimulate the economy, there needs to be a law passed right now that promises lower corporate taxes for companies that maintain their businesses in the states. I know many people consider that an anathema, but they are our source of power in the world, and they are leaving.