Sunday, January 25, 2009

Do You Want to Play a Game?

One of These Things Is Not Like the Other Things!


May 13, 1999
Don't Become a Scientist!

Young Americans have generally woken up to the bad prospects and absence of a reasonable middle class career path in science and are deserting it. If you haven't yet, then join them. Leave graduate school to people from India and China, for whom the prospects at home are even worse. I have known more people whose lives have been ruined by getting a Ph.D. in physics than by drugs.

March 29, 2004
Graduate glut devalues price of a degree

CONTROVERSIAL plans for university expansion threaten to flood the labour market with hundreds of thousands of graduates who will not find jobs that repay their investment in higher education.

August 23, 2007
The most daunting numbers I've seen yet

7,000 students per year casting a covetous eye on a total of 20,000 positions? You're all waiting for me to die, aren't you?

September 24, 2007
Bernanke: Education Is Best Investment

WASHINGTON -- Education is the best investment not only for workers but also for the economy in a time of continuing competitive strain, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said Monday.

December 4, 2008
Millions of Chinese graduates out of work after fivefold rise in university places

The expansion of higher education reflects China's aspirations: the world's factory needs more skilled workers to move up the chain, away from cheap mass production. Yet there are not yet enough higher-end jobs. Four million graduates in recent years have yet to find their first job, according to officials. However, the true figure is probably higher as the current system relies on reporting by universities, who have a vested interest in showing that graduates can find work.

Graduates are now competing with people made redundant. "I've had interviews, but they want people with experience," said Liu Jing, who has been job-hunting for six months. "There are more graduates, so there are more competitors for every post."


January 1, 2009
Chinese graduates ready to work free

After months of fruitless job hunts, Li Yuliang, one of millions of China's fresh graduates, has thrown in the towel. Desperate for a job, any job, he has signed on for the ultimate sweatshop scenario: work without pay.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Stag,

Desperate for a job, any job, he has signed on for the ultimate sweatshop scenario: work without pay.

How did that nursery rhyme go again... all work and no pay makes Jing a desperately poor boy.

A question. If we euthanize incomes, is the permanent income hypothesis still valid?

In case you haven't seen this (I think it is a new demotivator):

http://www.despair.com/innovation.html

Stagflationary Mark said...

mab,

How did that nursery rhyme go again... all work and no pay makes Jing a desperately poor boy.

And to think I have been singing it wrong all these years. I thought the words were all work and no pay makes Jing long for a Po'boy (sandwich). Badum-ching!

A question. If we euthanize incomes, is the permanent income hypothesis still valid?

Only if the euthanasia is contained to the "youths in Asia". Badum-ching!

In case you haven't seen this (I think it is a new demotivator):

It is a new demotivator and I did see it. I'd laugh if it wasn't so funny! Um, I mean tragic. Badum-ching!

Thank you. Thank you very much. You've been a great audience. I'll be performing down at the Holiday Inn off Sunset until it goes into foreclosure later this week, then its one last trip to Tahoe before the next round of peak oil hits us.

http://www.tahoedailytribune.com/article/20090114/NEWS/901139972/1001/NONE&parentprofile=1056&title=Gas%20prices%20could%20help%20drive%20Tahoe%20economy

“The lower gas prices and what our destination actually offers visitors is a great value,” said Carol Chaplin, executive director of the Lake Tahoe Visitors Authority.
“We are affordable in terms of travel, lodging rates and recreation opportunities. You can fill your tank now for less than $25. ... The low gas prices are a compelling incentive to travel.”

Anonymous said...

Stag,

Only if the euthanasia is contained to the "youths in Asia". (ROFL Badum-ching! on that)

I'd be worried if it wasn't CONtained.

Here's a scary thought. What if TPTB have determined that we can leapfrog the evolution of robotics/automation with bio-engineering.

Stagflationary Mark said...

mab,

I'd be worried if it wasn't CONtained.

No worries!

The DJIA is up today. Part of it is WAY down. Part of it is WAY up. Chaos for the win!

Caterpillar (-8.3%) and Pfizer (-8.8%) are crashing!

Bank of America (+7.5%) and Home Depot (+5.8%) are soaring!

They are the table pounding screaming panics/bargains of the depression/century! You simply can't win/lose!

Anonymous said...

People used to pay to do apprenticeships.

Stagflationary Mark said...

dearieme,

People used to pay to do apprenticeships.

I'm trying to picture the following table with negative percentages in it.

http://www.seattlepipetrades.org/AppPay.asp

For what it is worth, I'm also trying to picture it in Chinese.