What is a Job?

George Rebane

In the classic fashion of the Left, Obama’s jobs summit asked dumb questions – “I want to hear from CEOs what’s holding back our business investment.” – and then didn’t understand the answers.  With his top cadre weighing in at fewer than 8% having had any private sector (i.e. wealth creating) experience, what else would you expect?

An example policy output of that little White House charade is a tax credit for a company creating a government acceptable ‘new job’.  As anyone who has run businesses knows, that is a topical band-aid, and not a systemic benefit for sustained growth, like lowering the corporate tax rate.  Henninger’s piece in today’s WSJ lays out the main issue of American job creation.  He concludes with –

The Obama bet is that the U.S. can be a Franco-German welfare state, with a mammoth public sector, and still compete with China, India, Brazil, Korea and the rest. This is a pipedream. We are going to spend four years treading water. If we tread quickly enough, we may get enough growth to save the Democrats, but not the nation.

BTW, no one really knows what a job is.  Is it someone who weatherizes five houses and is then let go?  Or is it someone who is working in a sustainable business with growth and career prospects?  Or is it another government employee?

Meanwhile one Nevada County version of ObamaJobs is hiring people with grant money to raise earth worms.  Now there’s a growth industry.

Comments

[Mikey McD]

How many private sector jobs must be created to pay for 1 more government employee? This administration does not want to create jobs, they want to create more government employees- huge difference.

[Dixon Cruickshank]

I don't know George that may fit Mr Enos's sustainablity theory. They are a good source of protein and along with that very inexpensive squash of yours could work in CA's ultra unemployment scenario. Maybe you need to get back in the kitchen

[George Rebane]

Interesting point to ponder Dixon. During the 70s in a previous life, we started a small worm farm in the back yard (two covered 4x8 bins) and went through the economics of raising the little critters. There is no money in it whatsoever; the more you raise, the more you lose. But they did have books during Jerry Brown's 'Age of Limits' that had earthworm recipes in them. I fried up a batch; the result was not ready for prime time. Maybe I should consider different spices and revisit that enterprise.

[bill tozer]

Abit off topic, but yesterday's San Fransico Chronicle (business section) stated that green jobs comprise 1% of California's workforce. That is everybody from the guy who designs windmills to the guy who installs solar panels or chaulks a window. 1% is all. How much will it cost us to have that raised to 2%?

[George Rebane]

Good question Bill, the answer is probably an outlandish amount even if it goes only to 2%. But according to our Governator earlier this week, he expects two out of three new jobs in California to be green. So you can do the math, either we have very few total new jobs, or a lot more jobs being subsidized by Washington with more taxes collected from us.

[Dixon Cruickshank]

A gazillion dollars

what exactly do you do after the solar panels are up, a little windex maybe? and the wind farm would kinda just make you nuts watching them go round and round - maybe pick up dead birds??
I could do that though, plus its probably a Gov/SEIU job and I could use a good pension, quick, maybe you'll see me out there they've killed the mortgage business.

[Dixon Cruickshank]

President Obama touts solar plant in Central Florida
BY ADAM C. SMITH
St. Petersburg Times
ARCADIA -- Standing in rural Florida amid 180 acres of solar panels, President Barack Obama on Tuesday announced $3.4 billion in federal stimulus grants to modernize America's power grid and create jobs.

``At this moment, there's something big happening in America when it comes to creating a clean-energy economy,'' the president said while visiting the country's largest solar plant: Florida Power & Light's new DeSoto Next Generation Solar Energy Center southeast of Tampa. ``But getting there will take a few more days like this one, and more projects like this one.''

Among the 100 projects receiving stimulus grants: $200 million for an FPL initiative to modernize its power grid, including transmission line improvements and more than 2 million ``smart meters'' that enable consumers to monitor and adjust their own power use and costs.

``Here in this region of Florida, this project will reduce demand for electricity by up to 20 percent during the hottest summer days that stress the grid and power plants,'' Obama said. ``It will provide smart meters to 2.6 million more customers. And most importantly, it will create thousands of jobs - good jobs, by the way, that can't be outsourced; jobs that will last and jobs that pay a decent wage.''

North Carolina-based Progress Energy also received a $200 million grant. A spokeswoman said details were unavailable Tuesday, but that it would be divided evenly between projects in Florida and North Carolina.

The grants were awarded to 100 utilities and businesses which in turn will spend another $4.7 billion in private money on the so-called ``smart grid.'' The current grid system relies on century-old technology that the president said ``wastes too much energy, it costs us too much money, and it's too susceptible to outages and blackouts.''

The vast fields of panels are tucked out of sight outside Arcadia, and utility officials said the $152 million facility generates enough power for about 3,000 homes. In reduced greenhouse gas emissions, the solar facility is estimated to be the equivalent of removing 4,500 cars from the roads every year.

Glowing praise from the president was a welcome change for FPL, which lately has been battered with negative publicity about its relationship with regulators and a request for a 30 percent rate increase.

Took 400 guys to build it

Now that its completed amount of full time jobs - 2

[George Rebane]

Great report Dixon, thanks.

[Dixon Cruickshank]

You'll also notice the 30% increase in rates to ALL rate payers, I'm sure some of that is paying for this and more. Thank goodness I'm not on them in Tampa - they cover St Pete and down the coast