FW: Bar Stool Economics

This was sent to me via e-mail, thought it'd be good to think about :D
-Strawboat
 

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Date: Thu, 28 Oct 2010 07:32:20 -0700
From: kenlinda@wavecable.com
To:
Subject: Bar Stool Economics

-From the University of Georgia

Bar Stool Economics

Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer and
the bill for all ten comes to $100 and If they paid
their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this:

The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing.
The fifth would pay $1.
The sixth would pay $3.
The seventh would pay $7.
The eighth would pay $12.
The ninth would pay $18.
The tenth man (the richest) would pay $59.)

So, that's what they decided to do.

The ten men drank in the bar every day and seemed
quite happy with the arrangement, until one day, the
owner threw them a curve. "Since you are all such good
customers," he said, "I'm going to reduce the cost of
your daily beer by $20." so drinks for the ten now cost just $80.

The group still wanted to pay their bill the way
we pay our taxes so the first four men were unaffected...They
would still drink for free...But what about the other
six men - the paying customers? How could they divide
the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his 'fair
share?'...They realized that $20 divided by six is
$3.33...But if they subtracted that from everybody's
share, then the fifth man and the sixth man would each
end up being paid to drink his beer..So, the bar owner
suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man's
bill by roughly the same amount, and he proceeded to
work out the amounts each should pay.

And so:
The fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing (100% savings).
The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33%savings).
The seventh now pay $5 instead of $7 (28%savings).
The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12 (25% savings).

The ninth now paid $14 instead of $18 (22% savings).
The tenth now paid $49 instead of $59 (16% savings).

Each of the six was better off than before...And
the first four continued to drink for free...But once
outside the restaurant, the men began to compare their savings.

"I only got a dollar out of the $20,"declared the
sixth man. He pointed to the tenth man," but he got
$10!" "Yeah, that's right," exclaimed the fifth man.
"I only saved a dollar, too. It's unfair that he got
ten times more than I!" "That's true!!" shouted the
seventh man. "Why should he get $10 back when I got
only two? The wealthy get all the breaks!" "Wait a minute,"
yelled the first four men in unison. "We didn't get
anything at all. The system exploits the poor!"

The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up.

The next night the tenth man didn't show up for drinks,
so the nine sat down and had beers without him. But
when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered something
important. They didn't have enough money between all
of them for even half of the bill!

And that, ladies and gentlemen, journalists and college
professors, is how our tax system works. The people
who pay the highest taxes get the most benefit from
a tax reduction. Tax them too much, attack them for
being wealthy, and they just may not show up anymore.
In fact, they might start drinking overseas where the
atmosphere is somewhat friendlier.

David R. Kamerschen, Ph.D.
Professor of Economics
University of Georgia

For those who understand, no explanation is needed.
For those who do not understand, no explanation is possible.

Things I'm thinking about

Suffering as defined in the Bible Dictionary refers to it as the meaning of enduring and tolerating pain, affliction, or an uncomfortable situation. Not what the random girl in church said it said about dating. I should have known Uncle Bruce would know better than to reference it in that way.

The greatest thing you'll ever learn is just to love and be loved in return. But my roommate says it would be bad to base my love life on a girl who dies in the end. I disagree. Respectfully.

One of my greatest fears is that I will become like the boy in "The Nightingale and the Rose" by Orcar Wilde. I think I am often tempted to do so...ever enticed to be embittered towards the world because of the actions of one person. I think that's why I'm so forgiving...because I don't know who the nightingales are.

Mark Twain's biography comes out soon :D -> "Twain's last work was his autobiography, which he dictated and thought would be most entertaining if he went off on whims and tangents in non-chronological order. Some archivists and compilers have rearranged the biography into more conventional forms, thereby eliminating some of Twain's humor and the flow of the book. The first volume of autobiography is to be published by the University of California in November 2010, 100 years after his death as Twain wished.<sup>[48][49]" -wikipedia :D

Mark Twain is a stud.</sup>

I'm sending candy to my brother tomorrow so he can have a happy halloween. It's only a dollar to send candy to the MTC no matter how big the package :D Box that was used to hold 12oz cups please? ( it's a large-ish box, if you're wondering)

I'm going to be the color pink for halloween. It was the most ridiculous, abhorrent thing I could think of :D

We didn't start the fire...

Do you ever have those occurrences in life were something happens and you just become LIVID over it? Well, one of those events that happened today was an e-mail I received that just...lit a flame in my soul. And not a happy flame either.

Backstory: I've worked at Catering for 3 years, I've been an opener for 1, and at work they are currently being VERY strict about not going over 20 hours in a week period.

Here's the e-mail.

"You have been scheduled as the captain on an event for this Friday. It is important that you use your time Opening efficiently so that you will have enough time to do the rack-up and be the captain for this event."

Firstly, I realize it's probably not the most professional thing to be doing, sharing an e-mail. I always like to think of myself as professional. If you want to know the real reason why I'm sharing it, it's because it is a foreshadowing of things to come (not more frivolous e-mails)...which things I won't reveal just yet. Secondly, I don't want to vent. I usually do vent but I'm trying to be better at not doing so. So instead I pose questions, mostly rhetorical, in order to express my frustration. Are you ever condemned to suspect those people you have hired to not do their job correctly, especially under the constraints you have established for them? Are nominal reminders that are often excessive in their use, but lacking in poignant purpose, useful to incite action in your employees? Are the marked past efforts of a worker fruitless in predicting how they will act in the future? These things I ask do not seem to me TOO much to ask of any one person, even my superiors, and especially for myself.

Maybe it's my pride. Maybe I feel entitled to too much in my work place. Maybe I have imagined to gain some measure of respect in those I work for where none was actually gained. Maybe I should take the advice of my fellow co-workers and stop caring. But that's now how I work! Truthfully, this e-mail is just the spark that fell on a pile of newspapers, fireworks, and dried evergreen pine branches that have been doused in Gasoline. You can expect an explosion.

Zombies and Prejudice and Pride

So I'm doing a little reading group with a friend of mine, Mar-bar :), and taking a break from another book I'm reading, just finished the newest assignment. It was "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies" by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith. Now I must admit, I had avowed not to read this book. But I suppose my avowals are flighty, at best. My overall review for the book was that it amused me greatly as a parody. That, however, was it's main merit (it being 65% the original novel). However, as for "The Count of Monte Cristo", there is a Readers Discussion Guide at the end of this book that I must needs make fun of (10 questions total).

Enjoy.

1. Many critics have addressed the dual nature of Elizabeth's personality. On one hand, she can be a savage, remorseless killer, as we see in her vanquishing of Lady Catherine's ninjas. On the other hand, she can be tender and merciful, as in her relationships with Jane, Charlotte, and the young bucks that roam her family's estate. In your opinion, which of these "halves" best represents the real Elizabeth at the beginning--and end of the novel?

Firstly I want to apologize for these overly long questions. Just typing them made me want to stop reading my own answers to them. Secondly, I really hope the author didn't come up with these questions. "Why does it seem that there are two sides to Elizabeth's character? It couldn't POSSIBLY be that there are two competing ideas of her stemming from two separate authors in one book!" But seriously, Mr. Smith has no ability to merge the two worlds of Zombie invasion and the Pride and Prejudice era. May I now be added into the class of "Many critics", all of which are ambiguously referred to in the upcoming discussion questions.

2. Is Mr. Collins merely too fat and stupid to notice his wife's gradual transformation into a zombie, or could there be another explanation for his failure to acknowledge the problem? If so, what might that explanation be? how might his occupation (as a pastor) relate to his denial of the obvious...(question excluded to avoid spoiler).

Oh yeah, insulting the characters is a good idea. Let's just allow ample time here in discussion groups across America to bash this ever so obviously useless character. I also thought Mr. Smith's dealings with the Collins' poorly done. He abused them needlessly in the book and I didn't...appreciate his ferver in turning their lives in the way he did.

3.The strange plague has been the scourge of England for "five-and-fifty years." Why do the English stay and fight, rather than retreat to the safety of eastern Europe or Africa?

Because Mr. Smith is a poor story writer and doesn't think things through (and by things, I mean plot lines)? Rationally, in the real world, what would anyone do against zombies? Haven't the British always fought tooth and nail for their home country?

4. Who receives the sorrier fate: Wickam or Lydia (edited to avoid spoilers)?

I think I pity them both equally really.

5. Due to her fierce independence, devotion to exercise, and penchant for boots, some critics have called Elizabeth Bennet "the first literary lesbian." Do you think the authors intended her to be gay? And if so, how would this Sapphic twist serve to explain her relationships with Darcy, Jane, Charlotte, Lady Cathering, and Wickham?

Eh? Where did this come from? Did we read the same book? Oh right. I forgot. ANY woman who participates in any of those activities is obviously lesbian. Silly me. Especially since there isn't a single line in the whole book about her admiring anyones boots. That flaw in this question's logic aside, I'm 99% sure this was put in a readers discussion in order to be provoking and an attempt to make it interesting. Thank you "Some critics" for this ample opportunity for discussion.

6. Some critics have suggested that the zombies represent the authors' views toward marriage-an endless curse that sucks the life out of you and just won't die. Do you agree, or do you have another opinion about the symbolism of the unmentionables?

This. made. me. laugh. Anyone can take anything to be symbolic if they want to. To me, the zombies were simply an intrusion on the original plot line because of the author's inability to merge the two ideas. If the zombies were meant to be symbolic as an anti-marriage sentiment, they showed up in the wrong book seeing as the original story line sees all the main characters happily (if not serendipitously) married in the end. As much as I'd love for this question to have been asked by "Some critics", I'm going to say that this is the view of the person that wrote the question.

7. Does Mrs. Bennet have a single redeeming quality?

Do YOU!? Let's just throw around some more insults! WhoooOOOooO! Hey person coming up these questions, did you notice that half the plot line in the book is determined by Mrs. Bennet? You've OBVIOUSLY studied Pride and Prejudice very well to come up with the conclusion that she has none whatsoever.

8. Vomit plays an important role in Pride and Prejudice and Zombies...Do the authors mean for this regurgitation to symbolize something greater, or is it a cheap device to get laughs?

I'm going with cheap device. But at the same time I thought it an appropriate emphasis of the discomfort of the characters in a way more understandable to people of our day and age. I remember when I read this book in my English class back in high school...The delicacy of feelings in old England are sometimes hard to discern.

9. This is a stupid question and I tire of it. Man...I think I'm being just as biased as the person who wrote these questions. Or should I say...prejudiced?

10. Some scholars believe that the zombies were a last-minute addition to the novel, requested by the publisher in a shameless attempt to boost sales. Others argue that the hordes of living dead are integral to Jane Austen's plot and social commentary. What do you think? Can you imagine what this novel might be like without the violent zombie mayhem?

I think you know what I think considering what I've responded before. But I'm quite certain I can imagine what this novel might be like without the violent zombie mayhem...but I'm glad the writer of these questions recognizes the possibility of this book being a parody of gain and not of literary significance.

Ode to a Truck Lift

I wrote the following Ode whilst at work the other day. I don't want to lose it but I want to throw the paper away, so here it is in all it's glory. Enjoy. (also goes to the music of this song (by Josh Groban! I didn't even know!))

You raise me up, so I can stand level with the truck bed,
You raise me up, so I can be lazy,
I feel strong, when i can lift you by myself,
You are the platform beneath my feet.

You raise me up, along with an estimated 200 ten and three quarter plates,
You raise me up, Oh! What majesty of strength!
When you break, it kinda really sucks (insert choice curse word),
Because then, I can't leave my event.

You raise me up, cause Joe told me to load the truck,
You raise me up, to noises that sound like somethings dying,
I feel strong, because you as a mechanical device do all the hard work for me,
You've yet to crush my toes beneath your weight.