I think this is a classical case of 'differentiation
on a dis-continuous function' and one can therefore
interpret what small slice of the 'problem' they
see on the news in any context they wish.

The wage these people earn as well as the conditions
under which they earn that wage MUST be considered
in historical relationship to the period *prior* to
their present condition and employment -

- and examining these conditions usually reveals that
conditions were MUCH MUCH worse than those under which
they now *choose* to live under now.

It goes along the lines of a truism a friend of mine
and a buddy of his once concluded several decades ago:

   "One man's floor is another man's ceiling."

I also believe that those who would consciencably
choose to rectify these perceived social 'evils'
would have to do so by allowing substantial gov't
intervention and further erosion of the rights of
ALL those involved and to the detriment of everyone
except those in gov't positions of power and control ...

"Free Trade" - it's not just a slogan, it's a way of
life ALL people naturally seek unless repressed ...

_Jim



----- Original Message -----
From: "Jinx" <joecolquitt@CLEAR.NET.NZ>
To: <PICLIST@MITVMA.MIT.EDU>
Sent: Monday, June 03, 2002 8:02 PM
Subject: Re: [OT]: $1-a-day wages


> > Isn't that guy (or gal) probably glad to HAVE that job?
>
> I can't vouch for how any employee feels, except to say
> that having a job is better than not having one, especially
> in any country that does not have a social welfare system
>
> > And you would want to abolish it?
>
> Of course - by improvement, naturally. I recall the story of
> the Director General of British Rail, listening to complaints
> about the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Class tiering. Complaints were
> along the lines of "It's so unfair that 1st Class passengers
> are treated so well". So he said "Alright, I'm going to abolish it"
> "You're getting rid of 1st Class ?" "No, I'm getting rid of 3rd Class"
>
> However, that's not to say that there are undoubtedly international
> players who exercise social engineering in other countries to
> keep profits up by keeping wages down. I'd cite the well-worn
> examples of Nike, who it's said pay Tiger Woods (an individual)
> more than their entire factory work force (many thousands)
> combined, and The Gap's sweatshops. They say one person
> can make a difference, but for most of us this is all out of our
> league, and at the end of the day, the consumer is the one who
> throws a wobbly when prices go up
>
> As I mentioned in a previous post, I try to buy the best I can afford.
> Not based on 'label" entirely, although that does have some bearing,
> but price often does reflect the quality of a product. As an example,
> personally I do not generally buy electrical goods made in China,
> to name a name, as I've had and seen many problems with products
> from that country. That said however, I'm sure that some consumer
> products or parts thereof I have were in fact made in a country I'd
> perhaps think twice about (see paragraph above)
>
> This has nothing to do with the workers of course - it's a quality
> control issue at management level
>
> An interesting consumer report a few months back though did
> a comparison of clothing from various sources. The conclusion
> was that for clothing at least, an expensive brand name is no
> guarantee of quality. All of us want value for money - you buy
> cheap, you get cheap. You pay a bit more, you want something
> better
>

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