Twinkie: Whodunnit?
News blogs, sports blogs, entertainment blogs, and more from Philly.com, The Philadelphia Inquirer and the Philadelphia Daily News.
Twinkie: Whodunnit?
The killer of the Ring Ding is not whom the "lamestream media" would have you believe:
But while headlines have been quick to blame unions for the downfall of the company there’s actually more to the story: While the company was filing for bankruptcy, for the second time, earlier this year, it actually tripled its CEO’s pay, and increased other executives’ compensation by as much as 80 percent.
At the time, creditors warned that the decision signaled an attempt to “sidestep” bankruptcy rules, potentially as a means for trying to keep the executive at a failing company.
The New Yorker has a smart and fair-and-balanced (no, this time, really) take on who killed the Twinkie (h/t Atrios):
The real issue here is that people’s image of unions, and their sense that doing something like going on strike is legitimate, seems to depend quite a bit, in the U.S., on how common unions are in the workforce. When organized labor represented more than a third of American workers, it was easy for unions to send the message that in agitating for their own interests, union members were also helping improve conditions for workers in general. But as unions have shrunk, and have become increasingly concentrated in the public sector, it’s become easier for people to dismiss them as just another special interest, looking to hold onto perks that no one else gets. Perhaps the most striking response to the Hostess news, in that sense, was the tweet from conservative John Nolte, who wrote “Hostess strikers had pension. PENSIONS! What is this 1962?” It was once taken for granted that an industrial worker who worked for a big company for many years would get a solid middle-class lifestyle, and would be taken care of in retirement. Today, that concept seems to many like a relic. Just as Wonder Bread does.
And finally here's a look inside "the Hostess Bankery."
There's a lot to be thankful for this Thanksgiving holiday, but I know I'll be thankful for the men and women who fought so hard in the past for a decent middle-class lifestyle, and for the courageous people -- like these workers at Wal-Mart fighting for basic fairness -- who continue the fight today, at enormous risk to themselves and their family. Make a wish and I'll see you next week.
- I'm not comparing anything.
I'm simply calling attention to a specific example of greed and entitlement RIGHT HERE amongst our happy little Attytood group. You can go ahead and pivot, deflect or whatever... but the fact is - you took the copyrighted art for your own use. My question is... did you pay for it? If not, you might want to put a sock in it when the accusations of greed and entitlement start flying.
Nice try, though.— michael_b - This has got to be the falsest of eqivalents I've ever heard. Entitlement? Lol. Nice try, clown. You and your party are greedy.
— wokmaster - How do you explain it, then?
Illustrator creates image.
You think it's "cool"... so you take his property without compensation.
THen you justify - "it's only for a few days"...
and I'm the greedy one?— michael_b - "and I'm the greedy one?"
Yes, you are. I've already spent too much time on this ridiculous argument. Have a nice day.— wokmaster - I wonder if Ben Wiseman - the person you stole the image from - thinks of it as a "rediculous" argument?
Pointing fingers at everyone else - with your rightous indignation... meanwhile, you're stealing whatever it is you want.
You leftists crack me up.— michael_b - Whoever Ben Wiseman is, is probably loving the free publicity. it's not like wok is making money of his work. this is ridiculous and if you think it is any kind of an argument then i would suggest you don't have the mental capacity to live in a world without unions who provide the protection at the job that you obviously will need. how did america get so dumb? blame it on nixon and his war against intellectualism.
- Repubs and Dems are both greedy. The difference is Repubs are willing to work and educate to improve and obtain. Dems and unions expect it to be handed to them. Is it really necessary for the two dozen union VP's to make well over $150k? Check the link previously posted. The average base salary of union administrators is close to $100k with 31 of 58 over $75k. Gee sounds like management salaries to me. — habitualloser2
- "Nice try, though."
Man, here's why this board has become so boring lately, when this is suppose to pass for intelligent argument. Isn't there any right wing sixth graders willing to log in here?
— Hamlet - Tell me about it. So...how do you like my new avatar? — wokmaster
- I'd love Ben Wiseman to log on and tell you how HE likes "your" new avatar.
You really are delusional.... or maybe just a common thief.— michael_b - Assuming that's Karl Rove, I love it!— Hamlet
- It is. — wokmaster
- Didn't Walmart just move up it's dividend payout to Dec to avoid a hike in the capital gains tax? More proof who corporations work for.— meteo30
- Where is the outrage over the exorbitant raises the "job creators" (executives)at Hostess gave themselves while demanding givebacks from the non-executive workers? Just another example of management "getting theirs" before anyone else can. But I'm sure that's the union's fault also.— philharmonic55
- Where is the union outrage over their leaders "getting theirs" at the expense of the union worker. Two dozen union leaders making well over $150k in base pay with the average union management salary close to $100k at the bakery workers union. 31 out of 58 union management workers making over $75k in base pay. Where's the outrage union sheep that were led to slaughter by union management? — habitualloser2
- Andrew Sullivan
- Blinq
- Blogorrhea
- Blonde Sagacity
- Free Republic
- Instapundit
- James Taranto
- ScrappleFace
- The Corner
- Buzzmachine
- Eat the Press
- Editor and Publisher
- Media (Huffington Post)
- Media Bloodhound
- Mickey Kaus
- Pressthink
- Romenesko
- The Inksniffer
- A List of Things Thrown Five Minutes Ago
- Above Average Jane
- BlankBaby
- Citizen Mom
- Keystone Blog
- Metroblogging Philadelphia
- Phawker
- Philadelphia - America's Hometown
- Philadelphia Will Do
- Philebrity
- Philly Future
- Phillyblog
- Phillyist
- The Clog
- The Next Mayor
- Welcome to Phillyville
- Young Philly Politics
- Afro-Netizen
- All-Spin Zone
- Atrios
- Bad Attitudes
- Billmon
- Booman Tribune
- CorrenteWire
- Fables of the Reconstruction
- iFlipFlop
- Kiko's House
- MyDD
- Philly (Dragonballyee)
- Rowhouse Logic
- Slacktivist
- Suburban Guerilla
- Tattered Coat
- upyernoz
- AmericaBlog
- Andy Borowitz
- BuzzFlash
- Crooks and Liars
- Cursor
- Daily Kos
- David Sirota
- Drudge Report
- Echidne of the Snakes
- Fire Dog Lake
- Glenn Greenwald
- Hullabaloo
- Jesus' General
- Jon Swift
- Josh Marshall
- Juan Cole
- Kevin Drum
- Mad Kane
- Majikthise
- Matthew Yglesias
- Oliver Willis
- Raw Story
- Swing State Project
- Talk Left
- Taylor Marsh
- TBogg
- The Carpetbagger Report
- Think Progress
- War and Piece
- Wonkette
- A Citizen's Blog
- Balls, Sticks and Stuff
- Beer Leaguer
- Dick Polman
- Phillies Nation
- Philling Station
- Shallow Center
- The 700 Level
- The Good Phight
