Essential

Must-reads from the Bubbler

I hate people who hate people

Last Saturday, members of the “Proud Boys,” a group of men pledged to refusing to apologize for creating the modern world, were protested out of a Los Angeles bar by a group of democratic socialist protestors.  The Southern Poverty Law Center, a decidedly liberal organization focused on calling out hate groups, lists the Proud Boys among it’s inventory of “alt-right” hate groups. But ironically, this is what the democrat socialists, along with two other liberal/socialist groups, had to say as they were running them out of a bar in which they were peacefully meeting: “*uck you fascist!” “Get out…

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Please be patient, student driver

I was riding my bike today, when I passed a car with a “Please be patient, student driver” bumper sticker. A sticker like this is asking people around them to behave differently than they otherwise might. How is this helping the new driver? Anyone driving a car is going to be subject to all of the unknown and mysterious whims, habits, rages, and peculiarities of every other driver on the road. The only way to prepare a driver for that is to throw them in and let them start experiencing the joy of driving first-hand. Obviously, the sticker is…

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There’s no such thing as equal, so there’s no such thing as equal pay

One of the reasons the Bubbler exists is because we were frustrated having points of view on the news that we were never hearing in the coverage. And so it goes with the equal pay movement. The premise of equal pay is that men and women should be paid equally for doing the same job. But no part of that idea holds up to scrutiny. Start with “the same job.” There are no “same jobs.” Not in the same company, and especially not across different companies. Every job has its own nuances. You work with different teams or individuals….

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Soccer: the end of America

While most of my office, along with the workforces all over America, are watching the World Cup on television instead of doing the work they’re being paid to do, I decided it was the perfect time for me to wrap up this post to document some of my thoughts on soccer. And before I get too far into it, let me just start by saying I played soccer for two years and have been to two professional matches – both while in England. With that out of the way: With the World Cup upon us, now is the perfect…

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Always mad at the consequence, never the action

Want to know how to avoid police brutality? Cooperate with a police officer. Want to know how to avoid being separated from your children when you’re in the country illegally? Don’t be in the country illegally. Trying to stay out of jail? Don’t break laws. Want to keep your right to vote? Avoid committing felonies. Don’t want to deal with road rage? Perhaps stop giving people the finger. Want to find a safe place to inject heroin? Don’t inject heroin. It’s the only safe way to deal with heroin. Don’t want to have to choose between an abortion and…

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Lessons from high school

It’s amazing sometimes what you do and do not remember. Yesterday, I was talking with a friend about what he remembers from his high school teachers. One thing I remember distinctly is a Business Law teacher, Mr. Kraft, who often made a big point of telling all of us that we were not going to be rewarded for doing what we were supposed to do. His example? You will never get pulled over by a police officer and be thanked for driving the speed limit. It’s expected. That’s what you’re supposed to be doing. You will get praised for…

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Bag your own groceries

The other day, I went in to our local grocery store to get some milk ‘n stuff. When I finally selected what I thought would be the quickest line, I ended up behind this guy in his mid-30s who had a fair amount of things. When it came time for the cashier to ring up his items, he just stood there with his arms at his sides as she just pushed one item after another toward the bags and the end of the conveyer. Once she finished with his items, he pulled out his wallet, as if he thought…

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Island of misfit professionals

We can debate whether things are getting better or worse as a society. But one thing we can all agree on: people are becoming more charitable with their time and money than ever before. With school systems and some colleges requiring community service hours, and corporations getting more involved, it’s becoming part of the culture. The Bubbler is doing our part by announcing the Bubbler Home for Bad Businesspeople House (BHBBH). We’ve all experienced it. We’ve all worked in places where there was plenty of talent, but just a few key people who’s presence insured that the company would…

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The circle of public union life

Unions were created to keep businesses from exploiting and mistreating the workforce. The unions took off because there were not effective laws in place to prevent poor labor practices. The first public union in the US, the Post Office, formed about 10 years after private sector unions started taking off. The first teacher’s union, the American Federation of Teachers, formed about 10 years after the postal workers. The government finally stepped up and started creating laws protecting workers in the late 30’s with the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938. Since then, there have been plenty of laws and…

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