Plaidboy

So what do you suggest? No cars allowed at all? Even in European countries with strong public transportation cars are still useful and allowed (except in crowded city areas). It's hard to imagine life out in the boonies without access to a car...

I think we should pursue better public transportation primarily, but I also think efforts to make electric vehicles better are an important piece of the puzzle to transporting ourselves sustainably.

I think there may be more to Ukraine's abstention than being "too busy with their own shit," probably they don't want to annoy the US govt and risk having military aid further reduced.

Don't understand why anyone was still on the masts when they hit the bridge...

They had lost power and all sails were furled, so they couldn't have been moving very fast. And according to this article the ship was taller than the maximum clearance under the bridge. So it seems like someone fucked up big time not getting crew out of harms way.

Sure, I can agree that division of labor is crucial. But I work in a factory where what I suggest is somewhat of a reality. Cross training is a purposeful practice because it creates a more flexible/robust workforce. Jobs that are the worst to work are typically shared amongst a large number of people so that nobody has to do it all day, which promotes worker wellness and thereby efficiency. Ergonomic and safety concerns are addressed so that workers stay healthy and can work more efficiently.

The place I work is a B corp.

Your implied stance that people should only do one thing ever doesn't make sense to me. For the more specialized roles at my facility that are potentially odious, they generally have a much easier workload, and they aren't doing only that one task anywhere close to all day most days.

So let's not say that people should give up on making factories places where workers can be happy. You can have efficient workers who know how to do more than one thing.

I think we are generally in agreement that standing in front of a blast furnace all day would suck pretty badly. But I am not sure such work must always be miserable. To be fair I have never worked with a blast furnace, but I don't see why someone's job should be to do the same thing every day for years on end. Management should switch up worker roles frequently, perhaps multiple times a day if the task is particularly odious. And if there are ergonomic or environmental reasons it isn't tolerable or safe, those reasons should be addressed, such as providing better PPE or custom built tools.

Adding extra incentives is part of making factory work sustainable in the long run, but it's going to take more than an extra $(insert number)/hour to make workers safe and happy. And I really don't think we should give up on trying to make factory workers safe and happy.

Fair to point out that Trump and Lutnick suck bad and aren't really going to do anything to help factory workers. I guess that point feels obvious to me so I gloss over it in my comments. When I read an article like this, my takeaway may not always be the author's intended point.

I still resist the idea that it must always be better to "escape" the factory and work elsewhere.

You say you aren't shitting on factory work. But you also seem to feel that the ability to exit the factory is fundamental to having a good life. I agree that people should be able to choose what field they work in, so no I don't think that every person should feel locked in to factory work, but I do think that we should focus on how to make factory work appealing, unlike it is now.

We need to be talking about more than just worker protections (although that is where policy needs to start and I agree they are the foundation for any further progress). We need to talk about government recommendations for management practices, grants for labor research, and possibly incentives for progressive management styles. We need to make factories into places that people don't want to escape.

And as consumers, we need to push for the reality we want to see. If we have the ability, we should do our best to support companies with better labor practices - for example, the B corp and the Well certifications require certain employee wellness minimums, so when buying mass produced goods, prioritize ones with a certification like that.

So then it would seem more productive to bash the Trump administration's labor policies than to bash the idea that there should be factory workers. The take away from this article for me is not that it is crazy for people and their children (once grown) to work in factories, but that we need to advance the policies you point out to make that into a reality that is sustainable.

Alright folks, I agree that this dude is tone deaf. Buuut...

Coming from a factory worker - life in the factory doesn't have to be as shitty as it currently is in my opinion. I see it as a failure of management that factory work is so soul sucking.

And as a society we rely on the efficiency that factory production brings - my understanding is that without factories, an economy is generally less able to support artists etc.

I feel like the core idea that many people will be working in factories isn't necessarily bad...

I too was curious about this contraption. Here is a video of some people using one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H5nQ3CpFCl8&t=12m39s

If you keep dabs in a clear glass container, make sure you store it somewhere dark (preferably in your fridge). I believe UV exposure accelerates cannabinoid decomposition.

This is awesome! Are these all from "I Kissed Dating Goodbye" or were there other sources for the text?

Brought to mind the song "Radio Silence" by Zella Day

I wonder what she ate...

Maybe locals were leaving out food for her? It sounds like they knew she was around and just couldn't catch her.