Woody Allen in Anything else (as David Dobel):
Since the beginning of time people have been, you know, frightened and, and unhappy, and they're scared of death, and they're scared of getting old, and there's always been priests around, and shamans, and now shrinks, to tell 'em, "Look, I know you're frightened, but I can help you. Of course, it is going to cost you a few bucks..." But they can't help you, Falk, because life is what it is.
Thursday, April 06, 2006
Job security and the political trilemma
Protests continued in Paris over the new controversial employment law that facilitates both hiring and firing young new job-seekers for employers. Students and workers, angry about the new law which will eventually put France’s famous and long-established “job security*” in jeopardy, were marching in the streets, blocking rail-roads, traffics and services to force the government of Dominique de Villepin to back off. But do they really have any chance? Does the government of France, have the authority not to make these reforms in today world’s economy?
Well, economists say No! According to Harvard professor, Dani Rodrik, The new rule of the game called “Political trilemma”, states that, out of “Global economic integration, Nation states and mass politics”, no country in the world has the luxury to choose more than two at once.
It means, so simply, people can no longer affect the government’s economical decisions by protest or even strike, since the governments themselves do not have enough room to maneuver due to the necessities of the global economy.
The good! news is, this is just the beginning of a package of comprehensive reforms, France has to make, if she wants to be a part of the global economy in the 21st century and there is no way the government could back down in the first step of the reforms.
So the job security is the first, and certainly not the last, in the series of precious luxuries that French people are going lose. Working 35 hours a week, 5 weeks of vacation and lot more are in the waiting list!
It hurts to have something precious and then lose it, but people of France should realize they are going to have to choose between Job security and No job at all! Like it or not, that’s the harsh reality of the globalization
So, my dear French friends,
Welcome to the new world…I know it sucks, but that’s the way it is...Bon appetit!
* Clarification for my North American readers: Job security is a European term like Vacation, Culture and history that has nothing to do with us, North Americans. It means that you are somehow more precious than a piece of toilet paper! and nobody can throw you away after wiping his ass with! but since from now on, we are all going to be the same, there is no reason to be jealous or worry about!
Well, economists say No! According to Harvard professor, Dani Rodrik, The new rule of the game called “Political trilemma”, states that, out of “Global economic integration, Nation states and mass politics”, no country in the world has the luxury to choose more than two at once.
It means, so simply, people can no longer affect the government’s economical decisions by protest or even strike, since the governments themselves do not have enough room to maneuver due to the necessities of the global economy.
The good! news is, this is just the beginning of a package of comprehensive reforms, France has to make, if she wants to be a part of the global economy in the 21st century and there is no way the government could back down in the first step of the reforms.
So the job security is the first, and certainly not the last, in the series of precious luxuries that French people are going lose. Working 35 hours a week, 5 weeks of vacation and lot more are in the waiting list!
It hurts to have something precious and then lose it, but people of France should realize they are going to have to choose between Job security and No job at all! Like it or not, that’s the harsh reality of the globalization
So, my dear French friends,
Welcome to the new world…I know it sucks, but that’s the way it is...Bon appetit!
* Clarification for my North American readers: Job security is a European term like Vacation, Culture and history that has nothing to do with us, North Americans. It means that you are somehow more precious than a piece of toilet paper! and nobody can throw you away after wiping his ass with! but since from now on, we are all going to be the same, there is no reason to be jealous or worry about!
These British Gentlemen
You can sleep on the bed! Apparently that’s what US’s foreign secretary, Condoleezza Rice offers to her British counterpart Jack Straw, during a seven hours flight to Baghdad. Well, Mr. Straw takes the offer and sleeps on the one and only bed in the plane but as he wakes up, he finds Dr. Rice, sleeping on the floor!
While a story of this kind could be hardly taken seriously anywhere in the world to be even qualified as news, in the land of “Gentlemen” they’ve made quite a big fuss out of it! “Diplomatic ethics aside, How on earth a gentleman could take the bed and let a lady sleep on the floor?!” they say!
In his defense, maybe Dr. Rice has offered the bed to her sleepy colleague insisting that she wanted to keep working and didn’t feel like sleeping at all. But eventually, she felt exhausted and slept on the floor. Considering my deep respect for Jack Straw, I have the tendency to believe my version of the story! :)
And although , it’s more like “much ado about nothing”, considering what’s going on in the world right now, it’s still nice to see there’re people in the world who so profoundly care about these kinds of social etiquettes which are considered by the main stream, obsolete!
Question: How come there are people in the world who demand their leaders not to be less than a gentlemen, on top of all leadership and political skills, and there are others who can’t get their leaders just to shut the hell up!?
P.S. An advice to Mr. Straw: Next time you were in the same situation, you’d better say (read with a posh British accent like that of Mr. Straw!) “I suppose the bed is big enough to hold both of us my dear!” :)
While a story of this kind could be hardly taken seriously anywhere in the world to be even qualified as news, in the land of “Gentlemen” they’ve made quite a big fuss out of it! “Diplomatic ethics aside, How on earth a gentleman could take the bed and let a lady sleep on the floor?!” they say!
In his defense, maybe Dr. Rice has offered the bed to her sleepy colleague insisting that she wanted to keep working and didn’t feel like sleeping at all. But eventually, she felt exhausted and slept on the floor. Considering my deep respect for Jack Straw, I have the tendency to believe my version of the story! :)
And although , it’s more like “much ado about nothing”, considering what’s going on in the world right now, it’s still nice to see there’re people in the world who so profoundly care about these kinds of social etiquettes which are considered by the main stream, obsolete!
Question: How come there are people in the world who demand their leaders not to be less than a gentlemen, on top of all leadership and political skills, and there are others who can’t get their leaders just to shut the hell up!?
P.S. An advice to Mr. Straw: Next time you were in the same situation, you’d better say (read with a posh British accent like that of Mr. Straw!) “I suppose the bed is big enough to hold both of us my dear!” :)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)