culture, politics, commentary, criticism

Tuesday, January 24, 2006
Pig without lipstick. Yet another of the missed opportunities Democrats fail to employ as a political strategy — the five-year flat stock market and the eroding economy. Here are a few snippets from (only) today's "What's News" in the Wall Street Journal:
DaimlerChrysler said it will cut 6,000 jobs over the next three years in a drive to lower costs by more than $1 billion a year.

Ford announced plans to slash up to 34,000 North American jobs over the next six years and shut 14 plants.

Knight Ridder plans to cut jobs and benefits and reduce newspaper sizes as part of an effort to improve its margins.

Lexmark's profit plunged 47%, but beat expectations, and the printer giant unveiled plans to cut 825 jobs and freeze its U.S. pension plan.
Slash and cut, slash and cut. Shares of these companies surged, naturally enough, because labor and benefits are so gosh-darn costly that they eat into corporate profits.

Ford workers can at least know that, though they have no jobs, their 401(k) shares of Ford are up 5% for the day. Yippee!
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