╰☆╮Dean blogger Maura posted tonight about an idea she tried this past year. Write down one happy thing a day, put it in a jar, and read all of the papers next New Year's Eve. Wouldn't that have been a marvelous way to spend this evening? She said last year they only managed to find time to do it 55 days, but 55 happy memories from the past year sounds good, and there were some they would have forgotten about. I think it sounds like a pretty easy way to journal! Actually, you can include anything you think you'd like to remember or reflect on at the close of the year. I suppose it doesn't even have to be a happy item; it could be about something or someone who is important to you this year. I'm going to do it in 2016. Who's with me? ╰☆╮
Copied at length from occupydemocrats.com (123/30/2015): "While many mainstream media outlets have already written off the “unconventional” campaign of Bernie Sanders – that is to say, financially legal, honest, and conducted in a way that would be legal before the debacle of the Citizens United Supreme Court decision – it is clear that the tide is beginning to shift away from the establishment candidates, Wall Street dollars, and lobbyist Super PACs. Democratic presidential candidate and middle-class champion Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) is on pace to outraise every single other candidate in the fourth quarter, mostly through individual donations from his strong online presence. The Hill reports that “Sanders has already received over 1 million donations in the fourth quarter, well above a similar pace that earned him $26 million in the third.” His rival Hilary Clinton is on pace to raise some $21 million during the fourth quarter; Republican candidate and firebrand religious extremist Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) has announced he will be taking in $20 million, which “is expected to be at or close to the top in the Republican fundraising race,” according to CNN.
While Bernie Sanders still has a long road to get to the White House, this outpouring of support from millions of everyday Americans and worker’s unions shows that he is the candidate that truly has his finger on the pulse of the dying American middle class. While others jockey for donations from the mega-rich and multinational corporations, Bernie Sanders has doggedly fought to keep his campaign clean and honest – his is the only one that would be legal before Citizens United. His campaign is being run the way campaigns were meant to be done – by connecting with voters and by focusing on the issues that matter the most to the American people, refusing to be distracted by the contrived fear-mongering of mainstream media and the plutocratic machinations of American oligarchy. While he may not have the connections and the networks that the establishment candidates have, the way his campaign has exploded into the American political consciousness should send a deadly warning to the likes of Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Jeb Bush – the time of crony politics is hopefully coming to a swift and long-awaited end."
That article about the "gig economy" makes me nervous. I am, of course, myself an independent contractor. But if Uber drivers are employees, if people who rent rooms in their houses through AirBnB are employees, why am I not an employee? That would not be good.
(It's not clear to me why, to judge by the article, the legal dispute centers on the nature of the client's business. The definition under California law also relates to the extent to which the client controls the contractor's work. That is the essence of the IRS criteria, with several explicit checkpoints, for distinguishing between employees and independent contractors. I drafted my contract specifically to address the IRS criteria.)
I don't see any mention of AirBnB in the article, Bill; and I don't see any reason for you or me to be concerned. If a company manufactures widgets, that is their business and hiring a consultant from time to time to research the widget market in Botswana, or to find out what new colors of widgets are likely to be in particular demand in Joliet; or if a law firm needs an expert in something other than law for a particular case, and those persons do only a small portion of their work for the businesses that contract with them, then they are not employees. But the Lyft and Uber drivers are essential to the Lyft and Uber businesses--without drivers and the cars they furnish, the companies are kaput. In California a similar smart phone ride-hailing and GPS meter system has been approved by the state for conventional taxi companies--which do regard and treat their drivers as employees.
AirBnB is typically grouped with Uber as part of the "sharing economy." People in general talk as though it is the same sort of thing, although that doesn't mean that the same legal principles apply.
But the rest of what you say applies to Alan, not to Bill. As I mentioned, I have only the one client. And for this particular line of work, I -- and now the writer they are hiring to do journal articles -- are essential. If the person's ability to control his or her own work is not relevant, then the courts could rule that I am an employee. And as I noted, despite the language of the law that doesn't seem to be an issue.
This afternoon I was located by a friend from grammar school! We haven't seen one another since sixth grade, and have had a great time chatting back and forth by e-mail. Nice!
Tomorrow and Sunday at the hospital, but great to have today off, and with family to boot. I will be on the alert for drunk drivers on my way to work (I leave at 0630). Better check the hot water connection beneath the kitchen sink this evening, though.
DO watch for the drunks. Worst auto accident of my life was just outside San Jose on New Year's day. (We'd spent the day at the Winchester Mystery House.) Close to a full head on, and the driver's blood alcohol was over four if I remember correctly. And uninsured. Totaled my kid's T-bird. Amazing no one ended up in an ambulance.
My trip to work is tomorrow (today as you read this), Saturday morning. Usually not much traffic once one gets a ways out of town, and the roads have good visibility. Not like another job I had, south of Fresno; very dangerous road, lots of fog, blind corners and insane drivers even when sober. --Alan
Wow, you WERE fortunate things were not a lot worse, puddle. 0.40+ is as high as I have seen in a driving case, and in every such case I have had over the years, the driver was apprehended after crashing the car. That's well beyond enough to render a normal person comatose.
We went out to see the new Star Wars movie tonight (because Son really wanted to go and we didn't want him to have to go alone.) Hadn't seen one since the first one, and feel I hadn't missed anything. LOL.
Seeing all the characters so old makes me feel a bit old myself. I have to say I thought the years were kindest to Luke...who looked fairly wimpy in the first movie. ;-)
Lots of blast blast blast and, really, (not a spoiler as it's in all the media and trailers) a big version of the Death Star is the best they could come up with? I guess they were too bent on destruction to be creative. ;-) I liked seeing the Tie Fighters again. Zippy, like my Mini. :-)
I liked the new female lead character most, I think.
Much the same here, listener; I hadn't seen one since the first either. Of course it is the sequel of a sequel of a sequel...etc. Upon reflection it really wasn't innovative, and there were too many things that simply didn't make much sense. But there were certainly improvements with respect to ageism, sexism, and racism. I give it a so-so. The scene where Han Solo is killed is in a setting that makes me think instantly of Forbidden Planet, which had a more interesting idea.
Alan!!! Han gets killed??? Oh, No! I'm going to see the movie this coming weekend. ARG!
Well, I guess it's better to be prepared. That would have been a terrible shock otherwise. But, really. *sigh*
I agree that the initial trilogy was by far the best, even if the special effects now look a trifle less than impressive. Still, there's so little out there in the way of movies worth seeing that the excuse to get out is welcome.
Cat, yes, I was sad to hear that too. 65 is way too young. Apparently the Hepatitis C she contracted while a drug user came back to rear its ugly head, and she died of congestive heart failure. =Sigh= I'm glad I've never been famous because the pressure too often drives people to drugs, and the wealth makes them affordable. She died of being famous.
Whirled the car around, broke the rear axle and half the axle and a wheel ended up in a grape field. After making sure my kid (the driver) was okay, ran down to the other car, where gasoline was puddling under her car, and she was trying to start it, and get away. Her daughter, who only accidentally came by, got her to stop, and to get out. At which point, a fire truck also incidentally drove by, and did some patch up on her. She rode away in a CHiPs car the fire guys called. Felt pretty much like a miracle to me. Bless seat belts. Even she was wearing one.
I so very much want Bernie to win in Iowa and NH. It would not only change the story, it would change the world. Americans could lift up their heads around the world again.
And now I must go to bed; morning comes early. I had things I intended to do today, but they can jolly well wait for a bit. None of the ones that I ignored really had to be done today, and a day of R&R is wonderful.
╰☆╮╰☆╮╰☆╮╰☆╮╰☆╮╰☆╮╰☆╮
ReplyDelete╰☆╮It's 2016 and Dean is still First!╰☆╮
╰☆╮╰☆╮╰☆╮╰☆╮╰☆╮╰☆╮╰☆╮
Happy New Year!
ReplyDeleteHere's to President Sanders!
Yeeeaaaahhhhhhhhhh!
Delete╰☆╮Dean blogger Maura posted tonight about an idea she tried this past year. Write down one happy thing a day, put it in a jar, and read all of the papers next New Year's Eve. Wouldn't that have been a marvelous way to spend this evening? She said last year they only managed to find time to do it 55 days, but 55 happy memories from the past year sounds good, and there were some they would have forgotten about. I think it sounds like a pretty easy way to journal! Actually, you can include anything you think you'd like to remember or reflect on at the close of the year. I suppose it doesn't even have to be a happy item; it could be about something or someone who is important to you this year. I'm going to do it in 2016. Who's with me? ╰☆╮
ReplyDeleteHopeful items from the news:
ReplyDeleteAttorney takes on the gig economy for workers [Click]
Copied at length from occupydemocrats.com (123/30/2015):
"While many mainstream media outlets have already written off the “unconventional” campaign of Bernie Sanders – that is to say, financially legal, honest, and conducted in a way that would be legal before the debacle of the Citizens United Supreme Court decision – it is clear that the tide is beginning to shift away from the establishment candidates, Wall Street dollars, and lobbyist Super PACs. Democratic presidential candidate and middle-class champion Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) is on pace to outraise every single other candidate in the fourth quarter, mostly through individual donations from his strong online presence.
The Hill reports that “Sanders has already received over 1 million donations in the fourth quarter, well above a similar pace that earned him $26 million in the third.” His rival Hilary Clinton is on pace to raise some $21 million during the fourth quarter; Republican candidate and firebrand religious extremist Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) has announced he will be taking in $20 million, which “is expected to be at or close to the top in the Republican fundraising race,” according to CNN.
While Bernie Sanders still has a long road to get to the White House, this outpouring of support from millions of everyday Americans and worker’s unions shows that he is the candidate that truly has his finger on the pulse of the dying American middle class. While others jockey for donations from the mega-rich and multinational corporations, Bernie Sanders has doggedly fought to keep his campaign clean and honest – his is the only one that would be legal before Citizens United.
His campaign is being run the way campaigns were meant to be done – by connecting with voters and by focusing on the issues that matter the most to the American people, refusing to be distracted by the contrived fear-mongering of mainstream media and the plutocratic machinations of American oligarchy. While he may not have the connections and the networks that the establishment candidates have, the way his campaign has exploded into the American political consciousness should send a deadly warning to the likes of Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Jeb Bush – the time of crony politics is hopefully coming to a swift and long-awaited end."
If Sanders Wins Iowa, All Hell Breaks Loose
[Click] Thinking of it warms the old cockles, it does.
--Alan
Great articles, Alan. Thanks.
DeleteThat article about the "gig economy" makes me nervous. I am, of course, myself an independent contractor. But if Uber drivers are employees, if people who rent rooms in their houses through AirBnB are employees, why am I not an employee? That would not be good.
Delete(It's not clear to me why, to judge by the article, the legal dispute centers on the nature of the client's business. The definition under California law also relates to the extent to which the client controls the contractor's work. That is the essence of the IRS criteria, with several explicit checkpoints, for distinguishing between employees and independent contractors. I drafted my contract specifically to address the IRS criteria.)
I don't see any mention of AirBnB in the article, Bill; and I don't see any reason for you or me to be concerned. If a company manufactures widgets, that is their business and hiring a consultant from time to time to research the widget market in Botswana, or to find out what new colors of widgets are likely to be in particular demand in Joliet; or if a law firm needs an expert in something other than law for a particular case, and those persons do only a small portion of their work for the businesses that contract with them, then they are not employees. But the Lyft and Uber drivers are essential to the Lyft and Uber businesses--without drivers and the cars they furnish, the companies are kaput. In California a similar smart phone ride-hailing and GPS meter system has been approved by the state for conventional taxi companies--which do regard and treat their drivers as employees.
Delete--Alan
AirBnB is typically grouped with Uber as part of the "sharing economy." People in general talk as though it is the same sort of thing, although that doesn't mean that the same legal principles apply.
DeleteBut the rest of what you say applies to Alan, not to Bill. As I mentioned, I have only the one client. And for this particular line of work, I -- and now the writer they are hiring to do journal articles -- are essential. If the person's ability to control his or her own work is not relevant, then the courts could rule that I am an employee. And as I noted, despite the language of the law that doesn't seem to be an issue.
So much hope for this coming year!
ReplyDeleteI just found out that Natalie Cole died last night. RIP
ReplyDeleteThis afternoon I was located by a friend from grammar school! We haven't seen one another since sixth grade, and have had a great time chatting back and forth by e-mail. Nice!
ReplyDeleteTomorrow and Sunday at the hospital, but great to have today off, and with family to boot. I will be on the alert for drunk drivers on my way to work (I leave at 0630). Better check the hot water connection beneath the kitchen sink this evening, though.
Alan
DO watch for the drunks. Worst auto accident of my life was just outside San Jose on New Year's day. (We'd spent the day at the Winchester Mystery House.) Close to a full head on, and the driver's blood alcohol was over four if I remember correctly. And uninsured. Totaled my kid's T-bird. Amazing no one ended up in an ambulance.
DeleteUnholy Moly, puddle! No ambulance is amazing! Let's hear it for the word "close"!!
DeleteAlan, did you make it there and back again? Hope so!
That'd be point four plus. . . .
DeleteMy trip to work is tomorrow (today as you read this), Saturday morning. Usually not much traffic once one gets a ways out of town, and the roads have good visibility. Not like another job I had, south of Fresno; very dangerous road, lots of fog, blind corners and insane drivers even when sober.
Delete--Alan
Wow, you WERE fortunate things were not a lot worse, puddle. 0.40+ is as high as I have seen in a driving case, and in every such case I have had over the years, the driver was apprehended after crashing the car. That's well beyond enough to render a normal person comatose.
Delete--Alan
We went out to see the new Star Wars movie tonight (because Son really wanted to go and we didn't want him to have to go alone.) Hadn't seen one since the first one, and feel I hadn't missed anything. LOL.
ReplyDeleteSeeing all the characters so old makes me feel a bit old myself. I have to say I thought the years were kindest to Luke...who looked fairly wimpy in the first movie. ;-)
Lots of blast blast blast and, really, (not a spoiler as it's in all the media and trailers) a big version of the Death Star is the best they could come up with? I guess they were too bent on destruction to be creative. ;-) I liked seeing the Tie Fighters again. Zippy, like my Mini. :-)
I liked the new female lead character most, I think.
Much the same here, listener; I hadn't seen one since the first either. Of course it is the sequel of a sequel of a sequel...etc. Upon reflection it really wasn't innovative, and there were too many things that simply didn't make much sense. But there were certainly improvements with respect to ageism, sexism, and racism. I give it a so-so. The scene where Han Solo is killed is in a setting that makes me think instantly of Forbidden Planet, which had a more interesting idea.
Delete--Alan
Alan!!! Han gets killed??? Oh, No! I'm going to see the movie this coming weekend. ARG!
DeleteWell, I guess it's better to be prepared. That would have been a terrible shock otherwise. But, really. *sigh*
I agree that the initial trilogy was by far the best, even if the special effects now look a trifle less than impressive. Still, there's so little out there in the way of movies worth seeing that the excuse to get out is welcome.
Cat, yes, I was sad to hear that too. 65 is way too young. Apparently the Hepatitis C she contracted while a drug user came back to rear its ugly head, and she died of congestive heart failure. =Sigh= I'm glad I've never been famous because the pressure too often drives people to drugs, and the wealth makes them affordable. She died of being famous.
ReplyDeleteWhirled the car around, broke the rear axle and half the axle and a wheel ended up in a grape field. After making sure my kid (the driver) was okay, ran down to the other car, where gasoline was puddling under her car, and she was trying to start it, and get away. Her daughter, who only accidentally came by, got her to stop, and to get out. At which point, a fire truck also incidentally drove by, and did some patch up on her. She rode away in a CHiPs car the fire guys called. Felt pretty much like a miracle to me. Bless seat belts. Even she was wearing one.
ReplyDeleteI so very much want Bernie to win in Iowa and NH. It would not only change the story, it would change the world. Americans could lift up their heads around the world again.
ReplyDeleteThat would be very fine, indeed, listener.
DeleteAnd now I must go to bed; morning comes early. I had things I intended to do today, but they can jolly well wait for a bit. None of the ones that I ignored really had to be done today, and a day of R&R is wonderful.
--Alan