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Hello Guys........

by rockylee on Fri Sep 12 00:20:47 PDT 2008

I had a very bad day evening on wednesday without going into details. I guess I shouldn't say it was all bad as a lady from Target HR at one of our local stores loved my resume and me. She forwarded my resume to their investigation department at HQ but told me to apply on-line because I was more than qualified for the job thus i did just that along with applying to Costco & Best Buy. I had one of my best days yesterday 9/11/08 of all days. I went with my brother to find him an apartment and found a great place for him that is like 5 minutes from his work. It was about perfect for his needs. I was called by the border patrol begging me to take the exam but told em' that I would need more time to learn "Spanish" or that so-called "artificial language" thus they asked me to move my exam date to October. I was like I appreciate it sir and heard ya'll need quality people but my god, it's going to be tough finding good people with my skill level that can speak fluent spanish, let alone read and write it in sentences that make sense. He sort of agreed but said he doesn't make the rules. :( So not to jump a head I came home and moved my examination date to October, to give me more time to study. God, only knows if I will pass even getting the extra month to study. I guess my best friend will have to tutor me !!!! I hope she tutors me like Billy Madison !!! :P :D Well my brother signed the lease and at that juncture I had my phone turned off and when we left I turned my phone on and what ya know Best Buy, left me a voicemail and asked I return the call thus I called her back. ;) She says Rocky, you have quite a resume thus I want you to come in for a interview. I asked where I might be working ??? She said you would be part-time with full-time hours but if we like you we will offer you full-time. So I guess I have to take what I can get. I was still excited because it sounds like they might have me working in loss prevention to selling TV's which I guess isn't bad. So now I wait to hear from Target & Costco.........Well I had to rush home because I had to mapquest directions to my 6 p.m. interview for the "Progressive Future" interview. I apologized for being late but those hot chicks were so happy to see me show up they didn't care. I was dressed in all black dress pants and dress shirt with sparkling black leather shoes and kinda looked like one of Himmler's SS officers. So I charmed those women with my knowlege on the issues and told them where I agreed with Barack and disagreed with him but I reassured them I will do my part to help get him elected by getting people our age registered to vote. I said my family is very political, and the majority of them were or currently are union members and we don't need 4 more years of McBush !!!! ;) I felt like a politician in front of them and they said "Rocky, we want to offer you a job" so I agreed to do it part-time because their was no benefits due to limited obvious resources. It was something I felt I needed to do. I have relatives who have ran for office and my 2nd cousin is currently running for senate in Idaho. She has a legit chance to win. I guess politics is in my blood. Barack Obama, has inspired me to get involved and both him and McCain, did a good job talking about "public service" this evening on CNN. :) So yeah I had quite a blessed day. I'm going to call on another job tomorrow my step-mom told me about so hopefully my luck is changing for the better and my prayers are paying off. I wanted to post these articles for ya'll !!!!!!! ;) Today is pension deadline for Delphi Auto parts supplier Delphi has until today to transfer its pension plans for hourly workers to its former parent, General Motors Corp., or the government's pension insurer says it plans to file a claim for another $900 million of Delphi's assets. The lien for missed contributions could be filed as early as today with the Washington, D.C., Recorder of Deeds, said Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. spokesman Jeffrey Speicher. The PBGC has filed $1.6 billion in liens against Delphi's foreign subsidiaries. "PBGC must continue to protect Delphi's pension plan participants and the pension insurance program as the funding deficiencies of Delphi's plans grow ever larger," PBGC Director Charles Millard wrote in a letter Tuesday to Delphi and GM. Closing to be discussed Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle is leading a delegation to Detroit today to talk with General Motors Corp. officials about a planned closing of the automaker's plant in Janesville. The automaker plans to close the plant by 2010 because high gas prices have curtailed sales of SUVs, leaving hundreds of people without jobs http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080912/BUSINESS01/809120302/10- 14&GID=9zgobd9WJcLw6bflQKUvoxF579kNV+75aB7oL4JQUAM%3D Things aren't looking good for Delphi !!!!! :sick: :cry: "The Rock"

Re: rocky and cooter [lemko]

by rockylee on Mon Sep 01 21:50:50 PDT 2008

Lemko, That's exactly it pal !!! Remember, when I applied for the American Axel, job oh about 6 weeks ago ??? I found out just a few weeks ago that those workers were locked out and were on strike and they were trying to hire scabs. No mention of this anywhere. I assumed it was for new openings at the 2-tier wage scale to replace all the workers who took the buy-outs. I didn't take the job because it only paid $10 an/hr. and a 70 mile drive and I of course would of been even more furious to show up my first day of work and see UAW members holding up picket signs as there isn't a chinamens chance in hell I Rocky, would ever cross a picket line. I don't care if it was the last job on earth. I'd rather starve or die than go against my core belief's. We had a job ad from a employer in like Wisconsin, trying to find replacements for striking workers. Hey I hated their guts but at least they were honest in their job description and tell you that you were going to be a scab. My grandmother, use to tell us grandkids, that scabs live in sewers and well they might not literally but character wise she wasn't far off !!!! ;) -Rocky

Re: rocky and lemko [gagrice]

by rockylee on Fri Aug 29 09:56:06 PDT 2008

GM, in 1998 had a lot of good reasons to go out on strike !!! I could sit here and list them all like I've done in the past but it wouldn't matter to you !!! You think because your union never was forced to go out on stike because they were always making a killing on their profit margins and throwing you your $40 bucks an hour was like bread crumbs to big oil !!!! Your CEO's have always ate steak and we tax payers put the mushrooms on top with tax susidizes. I never hear you cry foul about the billions your republicans give big oil each year. What is it this year $18 billion ???? You gripe because GM, ruled the world with UAW made TRUCKS and SUV's under William Jefferson Clinton, and I took trips to a lot of different places in the 1990's with my grandmother. Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, Ohio, Indiana, were a few of the states I visited with my IUE grandmother !!! Remember, I wasn't just playing video games and sports, but was lucky to do a lot of traveling because again of my grandma. I also visted my family in Utah, Idaho, Oregon, Florida, during these times. I stayed the summer in Salt Lake City, with my great aunt and got a good eye opener at the ultra religious mormons and their republican, non-union way of thinking. Most of them drove imports, and thought they were a little better than everyone else :confuse: As far as you imidazol97, go buddy ol' pal :P I will tell you first hand that don't blame Slick Willy, for China's missle technology advancements. If you turn back a page or two in time you will see that Raytheon, was building parts to the Patriot Missle over-sea's during the Reagan administration. The Chinese have 6,000 known front companies here in the U.S. and if Clinton, was giving them secrets like you and Rush Limbaugh, claim well why hasn't your favorite president Dubya Bush, cracked the whip ??? I know this to be factual lets just say from prior employment !!!! ;) Lou Dobbs, spoke about it in one of his broadcasts and I shook my head up and down because I already knew !!! Look at where our military equipment is made now imidazol97 ??? Can you say China, China, China, China, and what has Bush, done about it ??? What will your Mises, candidate McCain, do about it ??? Where is the armored plating made ???? China, China, china, China, and as Duncan Hunter, said only one U.S. company that could make it for the military survives and their days are numbered. Gagrice, and I obviously don't agree on much but we do agree on the illegal alien/border issue, I think :surprise: and that at least our military equipment should be made here which was two staples of Duncan Hunter's, campaign and why he is still a MySpace friend of mine. Both he and Ron Paul, earned enough respect from me that I would of voted for either one of them. Ron Paul, had the edge because of his stance on the war and thus this socialist-democrat crossed over and voted for Mr. Paul. ;) I'd will admit it would be very hard for me to say in the general election that I wouldn't vote for Paul or Hunter. I disagree with them both on a lot of issues but some of the core issues that are important to me they have my support. Getting rid of the 30-40 million illegal aliens in this country and us citizens taking back our once high-paying union jobs like in the beef plants would be a blessing. I know Obama or McCain, will not address that issue as it would cost them the election. Maybe I will just have to run to fix all of it !!!! :P :P :P :P :P :P I know I can count on Marsha7's vote !!!! :P :P :P :P :P "The Rock" :D

excerpted posts from Edmunds Honda Accord Maintenance & Repair 2003-2007

by duke23 on Tue Jun 10 19:18:31 PDT 2008

I wanted to wait for a response from my last post before contributing this but darnit the forum just doesn't move fast enough. Most likely because this is one of the few forums where the naysayers outweigh those with actual experience. Btw, TY sparkland for your real world story regarding your camry alternator.So naysayers, please respond with your actual length of ownership ( some in the past have done so) And whether or not it was a lease. The following are posts to an edmunds forum on repairs. I went only back to April '08. By and large the Honda Accord is a fine vehicle and many had no problems. And note as well it excluded 8 years of ownership which would have included 2001-2002 and possibly some 1999. It's long, a-steve, no way around it . I tried to include all points of view, adding to it's length. Summation; in the real world crap doth happen. Own Accord EX 2003 (4 cyl, auto) with 112K (km) mileage. After 100K as Dealer recommended changed tranny liquid (at Honda dealer shop). Four months later discovered red color spots on my garage floor- tranny dripping (still not much as tranny liquid level is OK). Do not have any problems with tranny- smooth and responsive. Honda technician recommended to replace (not funny!) transmission ($4.5K) as "diff bearings worn". Really appreciate any advice what I should check for. Thanks Hi Everyone: Anyone encounter this before? 75k miles. I have lubed all the applicable pivot points (they're only on either end of the clutch mechanism since it's a hydraulic clutch) and it went away for a while, but now it is back with a vengence. More lube does not help. Very irritaing. Hope I do not need to replace the clutch master cylinder. Any insight would be very much appreciated. Okay...I bought my lovely little '05 EX-V6 sedan in July of '05. I now have 53k on the odometer, and all of a sudden my AC cut out. Now, if I lived in Chicago, or Wisconsin, it wouldn't really be of any concern, but I'm in Panama City, Florida. It's already in the upper 70s to lower 80s during the days here, and to my avail no AC. Being as handy as I could, I went to my local auto parts store and picked up some R-134A with a gauge. Went home to fill it up, and presto, my pressure was too high (~95). Took it to the Honda service despite the $123 diagnostic fee just so they could tell me that I needed a new compressor. $1550!!! This car isn't even 3 years old! A compressor?!?!?! So I call Honda of NA to see if they'll cover the repair. I've heard before that even after your warranty has worn out they'll still cover some items that are deemed to be defective, or just prematurely go. I called them Thurs. and the guy on the other end of the phone takes down all of my information, asks me a few questions about my Honda-owning history (Wife has an '07 Pilot), what the problem is, etc. He kept asking me what they said was wrong with the compressor. I have NO CLUE! I wish I knew and I'd just fix the damn thing myself! He tells me I'll be contacted in 1-2 business days by a "Regional Claims Manager". In the meantime, my local dealership has agreed to leave my bill for the diagnostic open in lieu of the decision from Honda of NA. Well the 2 days have passed, I have re-contacted customer service and they sent the dude an e-mail, but still nothing. We hit 81 today, and my 2 year old isn't really digging riding in Daddy's oven. Are they stonewalling me? What should I do? I know what I really want to do, and that's send them 5 certified letters, as well as a copy of the ad for my Accord and my wife's Pilot up for sale! Hopefully Honda will come thru on this one, otherwise I'll go on to Nissan, Toyota, VW, or someone else! 2003 Accord transmissions are failing in many cars. You can google 2003 accord transmission and you will find site(s) with problems. Honda had a recall in 2004 to fix something with the 2/3rd gears but it didnt do squat. I think they knew it will fail at 70-100k mi well above warranties to protect themselves. My car is in the dealership almost had a wreck. Trying to Honda to replace their junk. The transmission failures seem very common. My radio also went dark but was replaced as 'goodwill'. Its another common problem. Be safe and I recommend not driving until transmission is fixed. Good luck I have a 2005 Accord EX-L sedan (4 cylinder / AT). I'm starting to hear what I'd call a "metallic sound" coming from the from end of the car when I turn left or right. The sound isn't constant when turning; it's rapid. I don't hear the sound when travelling in a straight line, only while turning. I don't think it's the brake pads...I've had no trouble stopping the car. Nor have I noticed a problem with the car's handling. I don't think it's the transmission either...I don't feel any problems like a missed gear or anything. It's just annoying because it sounds like the car is an old beater when in fact it's only going on 3 years old come this June. Any thoughts as to what this might be? Has anyone else experienced this? Alright...I got my 05 Accords compressor replacement fully covered, out of warranty, by Honda. They initially only agreed to cover the parts, but after prompting repeatedly, decided to cover the entire $1550 bill. So, if you need to deal with them, be stern in your expectations, and don't accept their initial offer! I swear it was just like buying a new one. That's why I bought ext warranties for my Honda & Lexus. One repair like this will pay for the warranty cost. You never know when & what parts are going to fail. Didn't he just give an example of how the extended warranty is not necessary? I think what he is saying is that even if you never have to use it it's nice to know that it's there. Like he said you just never know. It's better safe than sorry. Say the transmission blows out, the warranty, at least in my case cost $1700 and change, while the tranny costs about $4000, which would more than make up for the paltry $1700, and the warranty would cover the tranny. Money well spent in my opinion. To each his own I guess. Honda took the bill because his car is less than 3 yrs old even though the mileage exceeded 36K. Did you see how much hassles he went through to have it repaired free of charge? #3757 of 3944 Re: Dealing with Honda... [chucko3] by elroy5 Apr 09, 2008 (5:27 pm) Save | Reply Replying to: chucko3 (Apr 09, 2008 4:49 pm) I guess each person's experience with extended warranties is different. I made the mistake of paying $600 for a 7 year/100k mile extended warranty on my last car. That $600 payed for 1 $5.00 knob, so I actually wasted $595. Needless to say, I didn't buy an extended warranty for my current car. The head unit display circuit board went out at 49k miles, well after

Is it GW or just a normal cycle of nature

by gagrice on Fri Jun 13 06:41:58 PDT 2008

IF the floods in the Midwest are the 500 year floods. That means the area was under water about 500 years ago. That means the events happening in Cedar Rapids and Wisconsin are NOT a result of GW. They are just a natural cycle of weather. See Map http://www.kcrg.com/features/19877224.html

Unions Are Good for Business, Productivity and the Economy

by rockylee on Sat Jan 12 09:36:10 PST 2008

According to Professor Harley Shaiken of the University of California-Berkeley,[1] unions are associated with higher productivity, lower employee turnover, improved workplace communication, and a better-trained workforce. Prof. Shaiken is not alone. There is a substantial amount of academic literature on the following benefits of unions and unionization to employers and the economy: Productivity Competitiveness Product or service delivery and quality Training Turnover Solvency of the firm Workplace health and safety Economic development Productivity According to a recent survey of 73 independent studies on unions and productivity: “The available evidence points to a positive and statistically significant association between unions and productivity in the U.S. manufacturing and education sectors, of around 10 and 7 percent, respectively.”[2] Some scholars have found an even larger positive relationship between unions and productivity. According to Brown and Medoff, “unionized establishments are about 22 percent more productive than those that are not.”[3] Product/ Service Delivery and Quality According to Professors Michael Ash and Jean Ann Seago,[4] heart attack recovery rates are higher in hospitals where nurses are unionized than in non-union hospitals. Another study looked at the relationship between unionization and product quality in the auto industry.[5] According to a summary of this study prepared by American Rights at Work: “The author examines the system of co-management created through the General Motors-United Auto Workers partnership at the Saturn Corporation…The author credits the union with building a dense communications network throughout Saturn's management system. Compared to non-represented advisors, union advisors showed greater levels of lateral communication and coordination, which had a significant positive impact on quality performance.” Training Several studies in have found a positive association between unionization and the amount and quality of workforce training. Unionized establishments are more likely to offer formal training.[6] This is especially true for small firms. There are a number of reasons for this: less turnover among union workers, making the employer more likely to offer training; collective bargaining agreements that require employers to provide training; and finally, unions often conduct their own training. Turnover Professor Shaiken also finds that unions reduce turnover. He cites Freeman and Medoff’s finding that “about one fifth of the union productivity effect stemmed from lower worker turnover. Unions improve communication channels giving workers the ability to improve their conditions short of ‘exiting.’”[7] Solvency Labor’s enemies assert that unions drive employers out of business, but academic research refutes this claim. According to Professors Richard Freeman and Morris Kleiner, unionism has a statistically insignificant effect (meaning no effect) on firm solvency.[8] Freeman and Kleiner conclude “unions do not, on average, drive firms or business lines out of business or produce high displacement rates for unionized workers.” Workplace Health and Safety Employers should be concerned about workplace health and safety as a matter of enlightened self-interest. According to an American Rights at Work summary of a study by John E. Baugher and J. Timmons Roberts: “Only one factor effectively moves workers who are in subordinate positions to actively cope with hazards: membership in an independent labor union. These findings suggest that union growth could indirectly reduce job stress by giving workers the voice to cope effectively with job hazards.”[9] Economic Development Unions also play a positive role in economic development. One good example is the Wisconsin Regional Training Partnership, “an association of 125 employers and unions dedicated to family-supporting jobs in a competitive business environment. WRTP members have stabilized manufacturing employment in the Milwaukee metro area, and contributed about 6,000 additional industrial jobs to it over the past five years. Among member firms, productivity is way up--exceeding productivity growth in nonmember firms.”[10] --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [1] Harley Shaiken, The High Road to a Competitive Economy: A Labor Law Strategy, Center for American Progress, June 25, 2004, pp. 7-8. http://www.americanprogress.org/atf/cf/%7BE9245FE4-9A2B-43C7-A521-5D6FF2E06E03%7- D/unionpaper.pdf [2] Christos Doucouliagos and Patrice Laroche, “The Impact of U.S. Unions on Producivity: A Bootstrap Meta-analysis,” Proceedings of the Industrial Relations Research Association, 2004. See also, by the same authors, “What Do Unions Do to Productivity: A Meta-analysis,” Industrial Relations, Volume 42 Issue 4 October 2003: [3] Charles Brown and James L. Medoff, “Trade Unions in the Production Process.” Journal of Political Economy, vol. 86, no. 3 (June 1978): 355–378. [4] Michael Ash and Jean Ann Seago, “The effect of registered nurses' unions on heart-attack mortality,” Industrial and Labor Relations Review, Vol. 57, No. 3 (Apr. 2004), pp. 422-442. [5] Saul A. Rubinstein, “The Impact of Co-Management on Quality Performance: The Case of the Saturn Corporation.” Industrial and Labor Relations Review, Vol. 53, No. 197 (January 2000). [6] Harley J. Frazis, Diane E. Herz and Michael W. Horrigan, “Employer-Provided Training: Results from a New Survey.” Monthly Labor Review (May 1995): 3–17. [7] Harley Shaiken, cited earlier, quoting Richard Freeman and James Medoff, What Do Unions Do? New York, Basic Books, 1984. [8] Richard B. Freeman and Morris M. Kleiner, “Do Unions Make Enterprises Insolvent?” Industrial and Labor Relations Review, vol. 52, no. 4 (July 1999): 510–527. [9] John E. Baugher and J. Timmons Roberts, “Workplace Hazards, Unions and Coping Styles.” Labor Studies Journal, Vol. 29, No. 2 (Summer 2004). [10] Annette Bernhardt, Laura Dresser, and Joel Rogers, “Taking the High Road in Milwaukee: The Wisconsin Regional Training Partnership.” Working USA, Vol. 5, Issue 3 (January 31, 2002). -Rocky