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   Vol.66/No.22            June 3, 2002 
 
 
Great Society
 
BY HARRY RING  
Hope he gets to try it--Under the welfare "reform" act those deemed impoverished and able-bodied are required to accept sweep-and-mop jobs in return for a welfare pittance check. Says a federal workfare director: "Before welfare reform many people expected you could sit and do nothing and get benefits for the rest of your life."

You don't despise capitalism?--"When you talk to employers they will tell you they are not looking for people with ready-made skills....What they need are people that have the 'soft' skills--[Those] who know it's important to get up every day and go to work on time.... They know how to react to a supervisor's suggestion to get on to another task."--Same sick mouth as previous.

Safety second, whatever--Voicing concern for safety, 200 nurses went to Trenton, the capital of New Jersey, demanding limits on the number of patients to be cared for by each nurse. For the intensive care unit, the state mandates a limit of two patients per nurse. But in emergency units, medical-surgical wards, and others, no number. The state Hospital Ass'n said it opposes limits.

No hiding place--To fill in the blank space on cellular phones, Disney and rivals will be transmitting TV and audio material. Declared a Disney exec: "We see it as an opportunity to reach customers anytime, anywhere."

....meanwhile--It's anticipated that over the next three years, U.S. cell phone users will toss them on the junk heap--a guesstimated 65,000 tons including toxic metal. When they switch services ("One million free calls a month") they get a new phone.

By divine right--The queen of the United Kingdom won't be required to pay inheritance tax on the estate of her recently departed mom. The estate included racehorses, jewelry, and artworks valued at some $73 million. Someone with ordinary blood inheriting that amount would be taxed 40 percent. A 1993 deal exempted kings and queens from the inheritance tax to assure "an appropriate degree of financial independence." Royal rulers, it's noted, can't supplement their income by getting a job or engaging in business activity.

Careful probe--The FBI announced May 2 that it will check whether Orange County, California, sheriff's deputies beat prisoners and then falsified jail records to cover up the crime. The beating allegedly occurred March 14 and was the fifth in 15 months. All five are still "under investigation."

'Sorry, wrong soup'--To regain sagging sales, Campbell will market "Soup at Hand." Once heated (the container is microwave friendly), you can sip it "on the run" through a hole in the lid. Now, if they can hook it together with the cell phone and Mickey Mouse...

'Terrorists,' big time--According to the latest figures we saw, the U.S. war machine had 363 "suspected terrorists" in the animal-type cages they have built at their naval base in Guantánamo, Cuba. In 1903 U.S. imperialism ripped off the seaport area on which the base was created and, to this day, defies yielding it. The current prison area is being expanded to hold "detainees" from a host of countries.  
 
 
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