Satisfaction in Work
Dear Futurework Subscribers, I am wondering whether anyone out there has seen any good recent macro level studies on the percentage of employed workers who find their work satisfying and the extent to which they find it satisfying. Has anyone seen anything good? I thank you for your responses. Yours, Rob Needham
Re: New Y2K Computer Problem -- Time Dilation (fwd)
I thought I'd better to send you the follow-up (debunking?), too. Eva From the Los Angeles Times Monday, February 22, 1999 The Y2K Bug Has Company in the Form of 'Time Dilation' Computers: Pair who stumbled on the odd phenomenon insist it's a legitimate concern. Others call their warnings a scare tactic. This rubbish from Elchin and Crouch has been around for a while. Here are two of my messages to the Australian Computer Society's Y2K list: 24 February From Mike Echlin... Hi Carl, As you say its not easily replicated, and this is why a lot of people have wrtten it off, they tried a few times, didn't see it, so say, "not gonna hit me." But they are wrong, Every year or two a rumour circulates that a time bomb virus is out there, set to go off on a certain date and do dreadful things. Each time this happens, "current affairs" programs find a few poor people who didn't take the precautions and had computer problems. Warning!!! The PBhaha virus is set to come into operation on 22/9/1999. This evil program hides itself on your computer (it cannot be detected by any anti-virus program) until it detects that the date has rolled to 22/9/1999. When it sees this date, it generates a random number and, based on the value returned, causes either your hard disk or the fan in your power supply to fail. If either of these things happen when you turn on your computer on that date you have probably become a victim. This is a hybrid virus and is equally likely to affect PCs running DOS or Windows (any flavour from 1.1 to 2000), Macs, Linux boxes and HP network printers with hard disks. (A lot of Macs are immune to the fan problem, though.) Do not switch your machine on on that date unless you have adequate backups. But seriously - a couple of dozen computers from the hundreds of millions out there exhibit some non-reproducible anomaly in the BIOS or RTC date and this guy reckons Armageddon is here. Where's the pattern? Where are the large number of machines from the same manufacturer which all exhibit the same symptoms and which do it every time the test is applied? Time Dilation! More like "Brain Dilation". Perhaps we could call it "Brain Shrinkage, or "BS" for short. Crouch's website looks like a definite Quintessence candidate. === 5 March I spend a lot of my time online with people who are fighting quack medicine and other forms of ratbaggery such as those who claim paranormal powers of various kinds or are aware of events occurring through Forces Unknown To Science (FUTS). I was sceptical of Elchin and Crouch immediately, simply because they exhibit all the hallmarks of the mad scientist. Please note that scepticism does not mean immediate rejection, only a desire for truth. Cold fusion was not rejected immediately even though it looked highly probable that Fleischmann and Pons were either mistaken or deluded. It is classic quack or woowoo practice to quote slim anecdotal "evidence" and then demand that everyone else prove the findings to be false. Leaving aside the impossibility of proving a negative, the onus of proof has to be on the claimant, and, as we say in the sceptic business, "extraordinary claims require extraordinary proof". Many of these mad claims can be ignored because they are either obviously impossible (eg perpetual motion machines) or of no urgency. Unfortunately this one addressed a real problem with real urgency. This meant that real scientists had to spend real time and real money investigating the claims of these fools, claims based on the fact that highly improbable random events can happen. (The next time you hear of someone winning Lotto, remember that the win was less probable than your Windows machine running for 1,000 years without a problem.) The public have been scared silly by much of the talk about the Y2K problem and are susceptible to almost any stupid claim of a solution (I will talk about MFX2000 at another time). Like quack cancer cures or stories about planetary alignment, these things bring false hope (or fears) and demands for investigation. Like these other lunacies they waste everyone's time when there are real problems to solve. . Peter Bowditch [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.gebesse.com.au - End of forwarded message from Peter Bowditch -
FW Jobs Research Website March 99 Update
Comments: Authenticated sender is [EMAIL PROTECTED] From: "vivian Hutchinson" [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: "The Jobs Research Website" [EMAIL PROTECTED] Date: Wed, 10 Mar 1999 11:55:20 + X-Distribution: Bulk MIME-Version: 1.0 Subject: Jobs Research Website March 99 Update Reply-to: "The Jobs Research Website" [EMAIL PROTECTED] Priority: normal A n U P D A T E f r o m T H E J O B S R E S E A R C H W E B S I T E - March 1999 a New Zealand - based internet resource for employment action ... http://www.jobsletter.org.nz/ Hi We've updated our website, and you might like to check out our latest work! Our site is now getting hundreds of visits each week -- not just from NZ, but from many other countries in the world. We love hearing from you! And we hope that our free website resources continue to prove useful in your work. Shirley Vickery for The Jobs Research Website N E W N E W N E W N E W N E W N E W ON THE JOBS RESEARCH WEBSITE --- Take a look at these recent Jobs Letter features now freely available on the Jobs Research Website. -- * A Rifkin Reader. Special Workshop Edition by the editors of The Jobs Letter. In his compelling, disturbing, and ultimately hopeful book, The End of Work, author Jeremy Rifkin argues that we are entering a new phase in history - one characterised by the steady and inevitable decline of jobs. http://www.jobsletter.org.nz/art/rifkin01.htm * Who is training the young? John Fraser, chairman of Youthskills NZ looks at how young people are able to get a leg up on the skills ladder in todays economy - and what is happening to industry based training for young people. http://www.jobsletter.org.nz/jbl07810.htm * The Unfolding Economic Crisis. The Jobsletter presents a special summary of recent commentaries by Peter Harris, economist to the Council of Trade Unions, on the effects of the crisis on workers and employment http://www.jobsletter.org.nz/jbl08010.htm * Debating the Community Wage. Peter McCardle and the Auckland Unemployed Workers Rights Centre present their differing views on the community wage scheme. http://www.jobsletter.org.nz/jbl08110.htm * Keith Rankin on the Community Wage. Keith Rankin urges "subversive compliance" and suggest that the Community Wage can be a form of Universal Basic Income http://www.jobsletter.org.nz/jbl08200.htm * Rich Poor in NZ. edited highlights from the research of Professor Srikanta Chatterjee and Nripesh Podder in which they look at alterations in household income distribution from 1983 -- 1996. How are we sharing the national cake in post reform NZ? http://www.jobsletter.org.nz/jbl08310.htm * Alliance discussion paper on full employment. Alliance leader Jim Anderton calls for monetary policy to be coordinated with social, environmental and fiscal policies and looks at why unemployment is not inevitable. http://www.jobsletter.org.nz/jbl08410.htm * The Hikoi of Hope - by the Jobsletter editors. The Anglican Bishops call for a walk to Wellington from all corners of NZ to focus attention on growing levels of unemployment and poverty in NZ. http://www.jobsletter.org.nz/jbl08510.htm * Jobs from the Land - by the Jobsletter editors. Topoclimate South Trust undertakes a major infrastructure project which will provide essential information on Southland and South Otago soils and climate and will open up new land use opportunities. http://www.jobsletter.org.nz/jbl08610.htm * Biographies of Department of Work and Income new Regional Commissioners. http://www.jobsletter.org.nz/jbl08700.htm * One Billion Jobless - the International Labour Office reports on a grim world employment situation and looks at training trends. http://www.jobsletter.org.nz/jbl08810.htm STATISTICS FOR THE JOBS RESEARCH WEBSITE -- February 1999 Unique Visitors during the month 4,057 Homepage Hits during the month1,528 Total Webpage Hits overall 50,119 [Source -- OpenWebScope Website Statistics] OUR TOP TEN WEBPAGE HITS 1. Internet Hot-Links recommended by our Editors http://www.jobsletter.org.nz/hot/hotlinks.htm 2. Statistics That Matter homepage http://www.jobsletter.org.nz /stt/stathome.htm 3. Index to our Articles and Key Papers http://www.jobsletter.org.nz/art/arthome.htm 4. James K. Galbraith and Global Keynesianism http://www.jobsletter.org.nz/art/artg0002.htm 5. About the Jobs Research Trust http://www.jobsletter.org.nz/jrthome.htm 6. Strategic Questioning by Fran Peavey and Vivian Hutchinson http://www.jobsletter.org.nz/vivian/stratq97.htm 7. Sixty Years of John Maynard Keynes http://www.jobsletter.org.nz/jbl04610.htm 8. Vivian Hutchinson on the 1998 Anglican Hikoi for Hope
Earth's system as a whole-US Public Broadcasting TV series
Financed by NASA, US Dept of Agric., an airline, some foundations (incl business), but appears positive to me. Of course, I haven't seen it yet. :-) The second segment focuses on urbanization, population growth, their impacts! Co-ordinated educational materials are available for free as well. Steve JOURNEY TO PLANET EARTH - Tuesdays, April 6-20, 1999 - JOURNEY TO PLANET EARTH, a bold new PBS miniseries, encourages viewers to adopt a fresh perspective on the delicate relationship between people and the world they inhabit. Narrated by Kelly McGillis (Witness, Top Gun, The Accused), the three one-hour programs, airing on PBS Tuesdays, April 6-20, 1999, 10:00 p.m. ET (check local listings), cut across the traditional disciplines of earth sciences, providing information about processes that govern the Earth's system as a whole and illustrating interactions between land, ocean and atmosphere. Shot on location throughout the world, the programs focus on river systems, sustainable farming and rapid urbanization. Working closely with computer visualization artists to develop stunning new images, JOURNEY TO PLANET EARTH's Emmy Award-winning producers bring audiences a sweeping panoramic view of Earth from space. Political boundaries fade and natural geographic patterns emerge to reveal landscapes in an exciting new light. Viewers see the breathtaking vistas of the Bosphorous strait in Turkey, the Mississippi River basin, Mexico's Popocatépetl volcano and the Valley of Mexico. Other images include a mosaic of nighttime shots that reveal a majestic view of city lights outlining the continents and views never before seen of the Amazon and Jordan rivers. JOURNEY TO PLANET EARTH also studies the Earth from eye level, focusing on the important issues that affect global change. Through intimate portraits of communities and people on different continents, viewers see the magnificently diverse life that shapes the land, from grasslands to deserts, from tropical forests to modern urban centers. Each episode in JOURNEY TO PLANET EARTH explores the economic, political and historical perspective of the increasing pressure from a burgeoning human population on planet Earth. "Rivers of Destiny" (4/6) The first program, shot in Brazil, Vietnam, Israel, Jordan and the United States, looks at four major river systems around the world and the problems they face: the floods of the Mississippi; the habitat destruction of the Amazon; the politics of the Jordan; and the management of the Mekong. This episode also features local case studies, as well as interviews with renowned scientists and world leaders. "Urban Explosion" (4/13) The second episode of JOURNEY TO PLANET EARTH travels to four great cities of the world: Mexico City, Istanbul, Shanghai and New York. The show explores a major dilemma of the 21st century: how to shelter and sustain the world's exploding population without destroying the delicate balance of the environment. "Land of Plenty - Land of Want" (4/20) The final program examines the fundamental problems facing all farming communities around the world: how to feed the world's growing population without destroying natural resources. The film travels to the diverse farming locations of Zimbabwe, France, China and the United States. Each program in the JOURNEY TO PLANET EARTH miniseries explores new ways for individuals around the world to help their communities cope with serious environmental threats. The programs are accompanied by an extensive educational outreach initiative. Underwriters: NASA, Kellogg Foundation, Arthur Vining Davis Foundations, Continental Airlines, Rockefeller Foundation, American Honda Foundation, Department of Agriculture and Public Television Viewers. Producer: Screenscope, Inc. in association with South Carolina ETV. Producers: Marilyn and Hal Weiner. -- "To teach how to live without certainty, and yet without being paralyzed by hesitation, is perhaps the chief thing that philosophy, in our age, can still do for those who study it." Bertrand Russell, "A History of Western Philosophy"
Chic Tribune on debt (fwd)
Date: Wed, 10 Mar 1999 13:36:32 -0500 From: Robert Weissman [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: Multiple recipients of list STOP-IMF [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Chic Tribune on debt The Chicago Tribune POOREST NATIONS MIRED IN BIG DEBT By Merrill Goozner Washington Bureau March 10, 1999 WASHINGTON -- The devastation wrought by Hurricane Mitch in Central America is giving new impetus to a movement to help the world's poorest countries by granting them large-scale debt relief. Advocates contend that debt forgiveness wouldn't be that costly for the industrial countries owed most of the money but would enable fledgling democracies to redirect their sparse budgets to socially and economically productive uses. A coalition of not-for-profit organizations and church groups has organized a worldwide movement called Jubilee 2000 to press for debt relief, not just in Central America but also in sub-Saharan Africa and other parts of the world still burdened with high interest payments on old loans. Debt relief would reduce or eliminate their large interest payments to the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the industrialized countries that had extended development loans over the past quarter-century. Most of the money went for failed development projects, and some of it was siphoned off by corrupt regimes, few of which are still in power. The movement has been endorsed by Pope John Paul II and retired Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-Ill.) has introduced a bill with 44 co-sponsors that would cancel the U.S. portion of the $230 billion owed by the 31 African countries that are ranked among the poorest in the world, with per-capita incomes under $500 a year. Lending governments have balked at blanket debt relief, preferring an IMF-World Bank program that links debt reduction to changed economic policies in what they call Highly Indebted Poor Countries, or HIPCs. Donors, led by the U.S., Japan and Germany and organized in what is called the Paris Club, have offered to stretch out their portion of debt repayments in exchange for meeting these so-called structural adjustment policies. These adjustment policies are similar to conditions set by the IMF in countries receiving bailouts in recent years. The global lender of last resort requires balanced or near-balanced budgets, monetary controls to avoid inflation, and dismantling government-owned monopolies and policies that protect domestic industries. The IMF-World Bank program also requires the countries to stick to the adjustment policies for as long as six years before getting debt relief. The program seeks to bring payments below 20 percent of export earnings. The IMF says 41 countries qualify for its program because their total debt is at least twice their annual export earnings. So far, only two, Uganda and Bolivia, have used the program. Another five are in the process of being qualified. An IMF program brochure confidently states that "the initiative should eliminate debt as an impediment to economic development and growth and enable HIPC governments to concentrate on the difficult policies and reforms for achieving sustainable development." Jubilee 2000 officials scoff at such suggestions. They say there are 52 countries around the world owing a combined $370 billion that desperately need immediate debt relief. "It's an Orwellian use of the word `sustainable,' " said David Bryden, coordinator for the Jubilee 2000 campaign in
Conference on the Environment (Interdisciplinary)
CALL FOR PARTICIPANTS. The 5th International Interdisciplinary Conference on the Environment will be held in Baltimore, Maryland, June 23-26, 1999. You may participate as session organizer, presenter of one or two papers, chair, moderator, discussant, or observer. The early deadline for abstract submission and participation is February 15, 1999; the late deadline is May 1, 1999. All papers will pass a peer review process for publication consideration in the Conference Proceedings.For more information, please contact Demetri Kantarelis or Kevin L. Hickey through Regular Mail: IEA/Kantarelis-Hickey Assumption College 500 Salisbury Street Worcester, MA 01615, USA Tel: (508) 767-7557 (Kantarelis), (508) 767-7296 (Hickey), Fax: (508) 767-7382 E-mail: (Kantarelis) [EMAIL PROTECTED] (Hickey) [EMAIL PROTECTED] or the World Wide Web at: http://champion.iupui.edu/~mreiter/iea.htm
No Subject
The attached seems to signal a potentially significant development in thinking about a post neo-liberal approach to global governance. A stray ray of sun doesn't make a spring morning but but it does suggest that winter may not be eternal. M WHO SHOULD DEVISE AND OWN THE PROPOSED GLOBAL SOCIAL POLICY CODE? The UK government, through the intervention of the Chancellor Gordon Brown, has made a significant contribution to the debate about how to regulate the global economy not only in terms of financial flows but also in terms of the social dimension of globalization. He has argued for a GLOBAL SOCIAL POLICY CODE. This would be a "code of global best practice in social policy which will apply for every country, will set minimum standards and will ensure that when IMF and WORLD BANK help a country in trouble the agreed programme of reform will preserve investments in the social, education, and employment programmes which are essential for growth" Moreover this code "should not be seen in narrow terms as merely the creation of social safety nets. We should see it as creating opportunities for all by investing more not less in education, employment and vital public services".(Speech entitled Rediscovering Public Purpose in the Global Economy, Harvard, Dec 15th 1998.) It is suggested by him that this code should be agreed at the next meeting of the World Bank meeting in spring1999. The question, therefore, is posed as to who and how will this code be devised. It has fallen to Robert Holzmann as Director of the newly created Social Protection division of the Human Resources Network of the Bank to formulate this. Some initial thinking was provided by the Social Development Section of the DFID of the UK government. It suggested that best practice in social policy involved a)equitable access to basic social services health, education, water and sanitation, shelter; b)social protection enabling individuals to reduce their vulnerability to shocks: and c)core labour standards. Two questions arise. First what does the track record of Bank policy making in this field suggest might be the slant of this new global code if left to them? For a final answer we must await the articulation within the next few months of the World Bank's Social Protection sector strategy paper. Some clues as to its orientation already exist. The social protection section, in the terms of its own publicity material, says it is meeting the challenge of inclusion by focusing on risk management by 'helping people manage risks proactively in their households and communities'. Within this remit it is working on labour market reform, pension reform and social assistance strategies including supporting NGO and community social funds in many countries. This suggests a strategy which emphasizes individual responsibility to insure themselves against the increased risks and uncertainties of globalization rather than one that puts emphasis on governmental responsibilities to pool risks and to universalize provision. Holzmann concentrates on pension policy (1997a,1997b,1997c,1997d) and has lent his support to the multi-pillar approach to pension reform (1997b) which would reduce the state PAYG schemes to a minimal role of basic pension provision, supplemented by a compulsory and fully funded and individualized second pillar and a voluntary third pillar. Second how should other global actors with a right to a view on this code: ILO, UNICEF, WHO, UNESCO, UNDP, the UN Economic and Social Secretariat, global trade unions, global civil society etc. have their say? If we are to build a global economy that takes the social dimension seriously then we need forms of global social policy formulation that stand in the tradition of consensus politics and tripartism. The initiative by the UN Social Policy and Social Development Secretariat to formulate a policy for the social dimension of globalization needs to engage with this GLOBAL CODE OF SOCIAL POLICY . The ILO and other UN social agencies need to make their input. A wide ranging discussion is needed , not a quick fix at the next meeting of the Bank. A code owned by all could be agreed at the Copenhagen plus 5 meeting scheduled for June 2000. A code for best practice in social policy should not slant too far in the direction of targeting and privatisation. It would have to explicate what the alternative poles of universalism and public responsibility might mean for countries at different levels of development. At the same time such an approach of universalism appropriate to the level of development needs to be coupled with explicit pro poor development polices to avoid the charge that the poor countries should settle for less. Chen and Desai (1997, pp 432) reminded us recently, having reviewed the positive experiences of those countries that combined economic growth with conscious social development (Botswana, Mauritius, Zimbabwe, the Indian State of Kerala, Sri Lanka, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia,
