Scattershots - 25apr17 (updated)

George Rebane

College grads of 2017.  The good news is that enough workers have retired, been laid off, or just left the work force that is this “another healthy year for college hiring” report in the 25apr17 WSJ.  The bad news is that “this year’s job-seeking seniors are ill-prepared for the job hunt and many coveted positions”.  The chart below tells the story.  It’s clear that employers overwhelmingly want people who have some skills that can translate into delivering marketable products/services.  And it’s also clear that too few students want to major in fields that are needed in the wealth creating enterprises when schools denigrate capitalistic pursuits and hold out government and feel-good NGOs as the professional destinations of choice for correctly thinking people.  Note also that the percent of seniors in that pretty broad spectrum of creditable major fields totals only 58.3%.  The question that begs an answer is, ‘What in hell did it say on the degrees of the other 41.7% of graduating seniors?’

Revolving doors of rural counties in California.  One of our prominent local liberals wrote a lament in the 25apr17 Union describing the dreadful job situation in Nevada County.  Not that there are no jobs to be had, but that there are no jobs to be had for people with deficient skill sets (see above scattershot).  These folks are drawn here by our progressive community in the scenic forest covered foothills where from a distance it appears that the livin’ is easy.  In her column she seems to think that all that is required for jobs to spring up in a community is the expressed need for such jobs by new arrivals.  There is no hint of understanding in her piece that employers, first and foremost, are in the business of satisfying their customers’ needs, and that labor is a cost to be minimized.  Add to that our notorious reputation as a business friendly county, and the revolving door for such newcomers explains itself.  The blind are those who invite their like-minded friends to come up here with little understanding of the economic straits we have been attempting to navigate as young families move away and the county’s population decreases.  And the future doesn’t look that much better with rumors that our lamenting and lamentable lady seeks to run for office so that she and hers can complete the job of importing the wisdom of our Statehouse to the Rood Center.

[update]  “Border security” is the new term of art bandied about to step back from Trump’s promise to build a “wall” across our southern border.  As mentioned here before, only naïfs and the cynical interpret that as being an ocean-to-gulf 30ft high wall.  The real term of art should be ‘border porosity’ as the parameter of national sovereignty that we desire to control and set limits on – the correct answer for an acceptable porosity is a maximum of 15,000 illegals per year coming into the country from all sides and sources.  Nobody knows what a bullshit term like ‘border security’ means, but define it as ‘porosity’ and give it an upper limit, then we can have a debate about what it should be and how much it should cost.  When we parametize porosity, we can bring in the cadres of barrier technology experts and people knowledgeable about how legal entrants become illegals to shed light on the problem, so that we don’t wind up with another 11,000,000 in-country illegals seeking a free lunch and/or to bring in the rest of their families.  You have to understand, these illegals are either stupid or cynical when they get here, oppose controlled entry, and then scream bloody murder in the public forum, accusing the rest of us of being “anti-immigrant” in a land that has always welcomed the legal immigrants who have done more than their share of making America great.  We will not solve the illegal alien problem until we acknowledge that immigration is a two-party contract (in the same way we will not solve our butt-stupid ‘war against terror’ until we acknowledge that we are instead in a global civilizational conflict against the Islam that seeks to dominate the world.)

Comments

[ScenesFromTheApocalypse]

From the article:

"As policy makers continue to form ideas about what economic development should look like in Nevada County,"

So far as I can tell, the majority of jobs gained from 'economic development' tend to be in the bureaucracy that attempts to perform 'economic development'. Nice work if you can get it.

Making it easier to found and run a small business might be a good start, but that's more of a statewide issue. The State of California will always crank up the expense and hassle of business to just offset nice weather and a trip to the beach.

Say, I've got an idea. What about gold mining?

[Russ]

The comments following the revolving door article are most interesting, it is easy to seen why we have such a fracture community when it comes to economic development.

http://www.theunion.com/opinion/hilary-hodge-nevada-countys-revolving-door/

I disagree with Ms. Hodges analysis. According to a recent meeting, I had at Sierra College there is a demand for welders in Nevada County. The welder's wife works remote, which is a growing trend. I would say that the two young people Ms. Hodge profiled are more secure job-wise than she portrays in the article.

[Walt]

OK Scenes,, you had to go and bring up mining. Your probably being hunted down as I speak just for mentioning it. Digging money out of the ground beneath your vary feet in so wrong.(ask any Nevada city LIB and a few in GV) Dope is the only way to go. (ask the same people as before)

[Don Bessee]

I have long considered the wanton distribution of taxpayer underwritten student loans to people with no demonstrable ability or the kind of majors to repay as total lunacy.

The left speaks of investments in education (both budgets and student loans) as key to our future. Investing implies a calculation of return on investments. There is zero return to society from majors in navel gazing, lint picking and the other majors that populate that 41% missing from the left column. ;-)

[Todd Juvinall]

Where is the college major called "change old farts diapers"? That is about the only hiring getting done here now. Thansk FONA. Thanks RQC. Thanks Sierra Fund. You have enabled the prolification of low pay service jobs for you all when you trun old. Excellent!

[Jeff Pelline]

George,
You are threatened by Hillary Hodge and you wear it on your sleeve. Get over her. lol.
"And the future doesn’t look that much better with rumors that our lamenting and lamentable lady seeks to run for office so that she and hers can complete the job of importing the wisdom of our Statehouse to the Rood Center."

[Bill Tozer]

I take HH 88's columns with a grain of salt. Her older column about the need for more tech firms (employers) here said it all to me. It has been an on going discussion on all levels of business, the community, and government since the downsizing of The Group, formerly the largest private employer in the county.....by far. Heck, decades of brain storming, discussions, and joint private-public efforts to attract 'the hub' since Charles Litton was in his heyday. Then HH 88 comes along and looks around and the light bulb comes on. "Hey, what we need is more tech firms here. Good paying jobs and all that. That is what this community needs." Like Madonna thinking she discovered sex.

So, another column discovering what the best and brightest in rural counties across the land have been kicking around since 2/3 of the working aged males (in some large rural regions) moved from the South to the North seeking jobs in the auto manufacturing belt. Strike that. Since young Sam and Sally left the farm to become part of the Industrial Revolution.

There are many pretty as a postcard areas that millions would love to move to, but are stopped by one unanswered question: 'How will we make a living?'. What will they do? Yes, it is nice here and so many rats dream of leaving the overcrowded rat cage. People come, can't find employment that utilizes their 'transferable skills', and move on yet again to greener pastures or move back after a couple of years. Happens everyday, decade in and decade out....across the amber waves of grain.

My mantra has always been if you can find a job, become self employed. Small businesses are the engine of our economy and all that. This area has low paying jobs in the hotel, hospitality, and service sectors. I know 2 long term nurses here. One makes 63 bucks an hour, the other 68. Now, those are transferable skills. No wonder healthcare is so expensive. On the other hand, we all know physicians that have shuttered their doors and gone to work for Kaiser, lol.

Russ hit on the great idea of working remotely. Some will carve out their nitch here, many won't. And it is not for a lack of effort. Some people are more enterprising than others and some seem to fall into the perfect fit. Timing is important.
I recall a chap running for a GV council seat a couple of years back. He campaigned on protecting our Q of L, smart (slow) development, the environment, and bringing jobs to Grass Valley. We need jobs here! I laughed. Want your cake and eat it too. A tiny town canidate is running on jobs. What? Create 4-6 jobs? He came in fourth in the election for a tiny town council seat.. Nice guy with a lifetime of work for Democrat Party advocacy. Jim somebody, but I digress.

Hey, the county is going to hire a homeless coordinator. Over 100k/year and a lifetime of benefits that we will be paying til death due us part. But, only one opening for the position. The rest of you will have to wait tables or drive for Uber. Or go on the dole. Or move to where the work is or out of state where you can get more bang for your buck....

To quote a famous author when asked how one can become a successful writer, the novelist replied, "Marry rich."

[George Rebane]

Interesting to see the FUE’s use of ‘threaten’, but in the main his assessment is correct. I do believe that leftwingers, especially with marginal noodling capacity, are a demonstrated existential threat to constitutional America, its sovereignty, and quality of life – the evidence for that here and across the world abounds. And they are doubly so when they seek elected office. My reaction to such threats is a matter of public record as are my specific criticisms of HH.

When we compare my critiques of the Left, with the years long vitriol that the other side has regularly flung at RR, me, and our readers, then they must really be threatened by what appears on these pages. BTW, no one should confuse my critiques of HH’s ideology and politics with her as a person. I have met her, and she is a fine upstanding lady. I just don’t want her to become one of our political leaders.

[fish]

Of course PelosiBot mangling words, confusing issues and not having any idea where she is makes her the perfect legislator for her district and truly representative of her constituents.

VIDEO: Pelosi breakdown. Garbles words, mispronounces countries in short speech...

http://www.theamericanmirror.com/video-pelosi-breakdown-garbles-words-mispronounces-countries-short-speech/

[Todd Juvinall]

Looks like you poked the FUE into some sort of apoplectic shock! LOL!

[jon smith]

There is no lack of job opportunities. As an employer I'd say among the most important skills are to arrive at the job on time, ready to go to work, and carry a positive attitude. There are many dozens of available positions in our area at this very moment for those who have, what we used to call, a work ethic. A srong work ethic doesn't require a college degree. I'd rather train the right person than hire the wrong person with the right pedigree. Someone who enters the workforce with a sense of entitlement rather than a sense of gratitude and enthusiasm is DOA.

[jon smith]

ugh. There ARE no lack of job opportunities. . .

[Don Bessee]

Good news, one job just got filled. The Raiders inked a deal with the former Seahawks running back Lynch! 3 mil. base with tons of incentives such as a 2 mil. bonus if he goes over 1000 yards. This should be fun to watch. ;-)

[ScenesFromTheApocalypse]

re: BillT@12:42AM

Good post. HH is just another in a long line of unaccomplished people who just love them their talking stick. The need to share wisdom seems to be a common thing among all flavors of ambitious quasi-politicians.

In other news, gotta watch your hand signals in the Age of Trump.

https://theoutline.com/post/1428/the-ok-sign-is-becoming-an-alt-right-symbol

[Barry Pruett]

George: When we decided to move back to Nevada County, I received sage wisdom from a friend. You won't find a job in Grass Valley. You need to bring your job with you (i.e. become self-employed). Jobs are hard to come by locally. Lots of examples out there where people lose their local job (for instance by getting fired...) and have to start their own business or move in order to survive. It is the nature of living in a small rural area.

[George Rebane]

BarryP 322pm - Spot on.

[Bill Tozer]

Border Security? Politics as usual from the usual suspects.

"During the 2013 immigration reform fiasco, Democrats were prepared to approve $40 billion to beef up border security with manpower, technology, and, yes, walls. Oh, and back in 2006, they actually authorized funding for the wall.

In this most recent shutdown showdown, however, Democrats utterly rejected Trump’s request for just $1.5 billion for border security, about $700 million of which would have gone to the wall. That’s less than 2% of the amount Democrats accepted four years ago. It’s not even a rounding error when you consider the $3.9 trillion budget, which is what should be the focus."

https://patriotpost.us/articles/48743

[Account Deleted]

"There are many dozens of available positions in our area at this very moment for those who have, what we used to call, a work ethic. A srong work ethic doesn't require a college degree. I'd rather train the right person than hire the wrong person with the right pedigree."
So - if I look in the Union, I'll find 'many dozens' of jobs paying 45 - 50K a year (plus bennies) requiring nothing more than a 'strong work ethic'? Ha ha ha. And at that pay - good luck finding a house you can afford in Nevada County that isn't sliding into a creek.
Let's face it - Nevada County isn't the place it was. The lumber mills and mines paid good wages and a man could easily buy a plot of land and build their own home for very little.
Any idea what a building permit costs in Nevada County today?

[Russ]

"Report: Bay Area residents are leading the nationwide migration,"

SF Gate's Michelle Robertson: "California dreaming? Hardly. Mattresses on sidewalks, moving vans in driveways and hasty garage sales hint at a trend Bay Area residents have long suspected - exodus. Real estate brokerage site Redfin released its annual "migration report" on Monday and found that those residing in San Francisco Metro are the most likely to leave. The catalyst for moving - high housing costs - should surprise no one.

http://www.sfgate.com/realestate/article/Bay-Area-housing-expensive-costs-migration-leaving-11098941.php

[fish]

Wait till Grampa Simpson.....err......Governor Brown signs this. You won't be able to get a moving van at gunpoint!

California single-payer healthcare bill advances...

"The bill, SB 562, would establish a publicly run healthcare plan that would cover everyone living in California, including those without legal immigration status. The proposal would drastically reduce the role of insurance companies: The state would pay for all medical expenses, including inpatient, outpatient, emergency services, dental, vision, mental health and nursing home care.

The measure says the program would be funded by "broad-based revenue," but does not specify where that money would come from."

California seems to do that a lot.....not "specify" where the money will come from. On the plus side there won't be a need for Trumps wall....because all of Mexico and Central America will be in California before they can mortar a single brick.

http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-pol-sac-single-payer-healthcare-20170426-story.html

[ScenesFromTheApocalypse]

re: fish@6:47

I was just reading some articles on that. I'm not entirely against single payer (or provider) health systems, but only trust studying existing systems for understanding efficacy. You just know that something cooked up from scratch by a bunch of legislators and lobbyists will be a dog's breakfast. There's a lot of tipping over of iron rice bowls and the creation of new ones involved.

Just think of the size of the thing. 40M people * $10k/yr/person = $400B /yr. The current California budget is something on the order of $120B (or $180B, depending on your definition). You end up with a healthcare system with a state government attached to it's side.

Income tax collects $85B, so I guess it might be enough to simply sextuple the rate.

[George Rebane]

Scenes 713am - In your studies Mr Scenes, see if you can find a single payer system ANYWHERE that is sustainable - i.e. does not absorb a greater fraction of GDP and/or reduce services year after year. Then please let us know about such a system.

[fish]

Posted by: ScenesFromTheApocalypse | 27 April 2017 at 07:13 AM

Just think of the size of the thing. 40M people * $10k/yr/person = $400B /yr.

I'm guessing that it will be more along the lines of 30K/yr/employed person with vast herds of the indigent flocking to the state.

http://calwatchdog.com/2013/11/07/ca-suffers-highest-percentage-of-poor/

https://bpr.berkeley.edu/2015/04/19/californias-welfare-benefits-boom-or-bust/

(Even UC Berkeley gets into the action. Watch out for para 3 where the author "cooks the books" by using simple dollar per capita analysis though!)

[ScenesFromTheApocalypse]

re: GR @ 7:27AM.

My gut feeling is that no health system is sustainable. The Gods of the Balance Sheet see to that at some point. It also may well be that no public system works outside of a well-behaved monoculture.

It's funny to me how strongly people feel about how things oughta be without deep domain knowledge in the area, even a smallish place like Singapore has a complex history and setup in their public health universe.

Given that the US is almost 40% single payer (Medicaid + Medicare, this last is highly subsidized), and it's not sustainable, you can argue that we are in the same boat as the rest of the world.

[Account Deleted]

As I posted before - Please, California! Do this! I'm not just being sarcastic, our govt was set up to allow just such 'experiments' to see which way is best.
It isn't a matter of sustainability. It's a matter of allowing market forces to work. A system that guarantees 'free' health care to everyone will quickly fail. What ever is 'free' is soon over used and wasted.
We will always have some sort of health care system as there are people that need health care and there are providers of that care. It is simply a matter of how it is managed (centrally or personally) that makes the huge difference.
Folks demanding that health care be a human right have no clue as to the consequences of what they are demanding.
As SFTA points out - we already have single payer for vets, 65+, the incarcerated and the poor. And it isn't working. Should the govt be involved in health care? Of course, but only in the way that govt needs to be involved in any free market.
"You just know that something cooked up from scratch by a bunch of legislators and lobbyists will be a dog's breakfast."
Always has been - always will be. What else can you expect from California?

[jon smith]

Scott O Apr 26 9:47PM - Actually you don't know how right you are. An RN or PA could get a job in our towns in under an hour. The biggest problem has been finding those who actually show up on time and take their job seriously. The attitude among (many) younger workers is that they are looking at jobs as transient commitments rather than careers. We are NOT talking minimum wage stints.

[ScenesFromTheApocalypse]

re: Border security. It would be interesting to hear from a member of the Green Libertarians what an acceptable immigration policy might be. Number of people, skills of people, age, what countries, etc. Of course, I don't expect it on this blog given the posters, but it would be a genuinely educational thing to see elsewhere. As near as I've heard tends to be from some adherents to Libertarian philosophies, who tend to be (not 100%, but a lot of them) in the hardcore open-borders camp.

In other news, a story that I had missed:

http://dailycaller.com/2017/04/24/bullets-shatter-windows-next-to-a-prominent-global-warming-skeptics-office/

So be careful you deniers. The use of a Five-seveN is an interesting angle to this.

[fish]

Posted by: ScenesFromTheApocalypse | 28 April 2017 at 07:08 AM

re: Border security. It would be interesting to hear from a member of the Green Libertarians what an acceptable immigration policy might be. Number of people, skills of people, age, what countries, etc.

He'll never give an honest answer because he can't even admit it to himself. The proper number of people is that which provides a sufficiently staffed army of new democrat lever pullers to ensure the establishment of new and protection of existing government programs at all levels. Excepting, of course, those laws and programs pertaining to the restriction of marijuana consumption.

It's really what you would expect from a guy who describes his Green Libertarianism as the practice of "You don't crap where you eat!".

Which is fine I suppose ....as far as that goes. But wholly inadequate as legitimate political philosophy!

[ScenesFromTheApocalypse]

re: Fish@8:12AM

It's always possible that the issue isn't simply stuffing the ballot box in order to achieve other policy objectives, but is an honest difference of opinion on which groups of people you favor.

If the Green Libertarian philosophy includes the idea that all people, worldwide, are of equal value, then a lack of national borders might make sense. The logical end game would be to back the 747s up in places like Lagos and New Delhi and load up as many people as will fit in order to bring diversity from sea to shining sea. The magic dirt will sustain everyone.

OTOH, if you favor your own family, neighbors, culture, or country over others, then you begin acting in your group's self interest.

So, what group does a Green Libertarian feel obligated to?

As the world hits carrying capacity, it's the great question of the age.

[fish]

Posted by: ScenesFromTheApocalypse | 28 April 2017 at 08:32 AM

I've never seem anything from our Green Libertarian™ the wasn't a thinly veneered endorsement of standard issue democrat policy prescriptions. Previous exceptions noted.

[fish]

Venezuela.......ah Venezeula!

"It would be easy to feel bad for the long-suffering people of Venezuela. But it would also be unkind, for this is the future they chose. Not even twenty years ago, they freely elected socialist Hugo Chavez, who ran on a platform of "I'll steal all the gringos' money and capital and give it to you." Now that free stuff has all run out, and the people are still hungry. Too bad.

But the lesson here is not that democracy is often an idiot, nor that socialism only works until you run out of other peoples' money. It's that when the chickens come home to roost, the government is not going to protect the average person, but those in power. The operative words in the story quoted above are not guns or even armed militias, but loyalists.

Those loyal to the government get guns. Those disloyal do not. Unless you already have your own, that is. The solution may still be messy, but at least the mess won't all be on your side of the street."

The next time somebody goes on about how we need more gun control think on this.......!

[fish]

Now as somebody who casts a jaded eye towards "Black Lives Matter" shakedown artists and the "Hands up Don't Shoot" types in the black community I will always acknowledge something important, something of note......!

"Cola pioneered new engineering methods and materials to control light and heat in electronics at the nanoscale. He serves as an associate professor at Georgia Tech's George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering.

In 2015, Cola and his team were the first to overcome more than 40 years of research challenges to create a device called an optical rectenna, which turns light into direct current more efficiently than today's technology. The device could lead to highly efficient solar cells with the potential to power new generations of cell phones, laptops, satellites and drones.

The technology uses carbon nanotubes that act as nanoantennas to capture light. Light is then converted into direct current by miniature rectifier diodes. The research has the potential to double solar-cell efficiency at one-tenth the cost, according to Cola."

Anybody want to give odds on how much attention this gets as compared to the usual nonsense and head patting that we are force fed by the MSM about black people?

HEY LOOK.......A RAP STAR.......Gotsta goes!

http://www.laserfocusworld.com/articles/2017/04/optical-rectenna-creator-baratunde-cola-gets-nsf-s-alan-t-waterman-award.html?