Shopaholic Reform: Thursday's Loot

Thursday, February 18

Thursday's Loot

So today is a special day...it is a day for all of us to celebrate the date of my birth some 29 years ago (soon enough I will be lying about my age just like my Nana Juice, but for now I'm okay with it).

Really isn't this all we can ask for in life?

In honor of this blessed day I have received a number of fabulous and very much appreciated gifts from friends and family. So since the do quality as new "stuff" in my life, I suppose I should list them off, right?

Gifts

Wii Active (WAY more intense than regular ole' Wii Fit)
3 Pandora Charms (a dog, little shamrocks, metal spacer with birthstone)
The Green Book, Rogers and Kostigen (You guys will be reading excerpts from this little gem for quite some time!)
A Dunkin Donuts giftcard (furthering my addiction to coffee)
Delicious brownie cupcakes with lime green frosting! Yum!
Breakfast at Elm City Bagel on the way to school (egg & cheese bagel)
Cards from a variety of lovelies (some with a little $$$ stuffed inside...even more lovely)
Dinner waiting for me (salad, a cannoli, Cadbury mini eggs...AKA little pieces of heaven and wine)

Here is one of the best ecards I received...

and now wrongcards has become another of my favorite ecard sites.

So in summary...I didn't spend a dime! :)

Thank you and goodnight.

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Something to Chew On...

The downside to Globalization

1. “The general complaint about globalization is that it has made the rich richer while making the non-rich poorer. It is wonderful for managers and investors, but hell on workers and nature.”¹

2. Multinational corporations are accused of social injustice, unfair working conditions (including slave labor wages and poor living and working conditions), as well as a lack of concern for the environment, mismanagement of natural resources, and ecological damage.

3. Multinational corporations which were previously restricted to commercial activities are increasingly influencing political decisions. Many think there is a threat of corporations ruling the world because they are gaining power due to globalization.

4. Opponents say globalization makes it easier for rich companies to act with less accountability. They also claim that countries’ individual cultures are becoming overpowered by Americanization.

5. Anti-globalists also claim that globalization is not working for the majority of the world. During the most recent period of rapid growth in global trade and investment, 1960 to 1998, inequality worsened both internationally and within countries. The UN Development Program reports that the richest 20 percent of the world's population consume 86 percent of the world's resources, while the poorest 80 percent consume just 14 percent.

6. Some experts think that globalization is also leading to the incursion of communicable diseases. Deadly diseases like HIV/AIDS are being spread by travelers to the remotest corners of the globe.

7. Globalization has led to exploitation of labor. Prisoners and child workers are used to work in inhumane conditions. Safety standards are ignored to produce cheap goods. There is also an increase in human trafficking.

8. Social welfare schemes or “safety nets” are under great pressure in developed countries because of deficits and other economic ramifications of globalization.

As manufacturing continues to decline, so does our ability to innovate. In the long term, this means fewer well-paid jobs, lower productivity, declining wages, declining living standards and low economic growth. Globalization is a big part of this decline and will affect all jobs and all sectors of the economy. From the point of view of multinational corporations and Wall Street investors, globalization is probably viewed as a wonderful phenomenon with many opportunities. But from the point of view of American manufacturers, manufacturing workers, the middle class, professional service workers and overall economic growth, I think the disadvantages far out weigh the advantages.

-Mike Collins, The Pros and Cons of Globalization (2010)