Rotundus.com

The Big Three automakers are forced to pay 85- to 95-percent of union wages and benefits to members of the United Auto Workers union who aren’t working – even if their plants have been closed.

... “Right now if a plant closes in St. Louis and a new one opens in Kansas City, the workers don’t have to move from St. Louis to Kansas City; they can opt to get a $105,000 payout or go on Jobs Bank where they can collect 95 percent of pay for the rest of their lives,” Morici said.

(More at CNSNews.com)

Ms. Yamamoto says she has long adored pink and wanted to dress in feminine clothes, but felt shy about her plump figure. After losing about 33 pounds in recent years, she got hooked on Diamante's tight-waisted dresses adorned with huge rose patterns, and estimates she may be spending $2,000 or $3,000 a month. Her husband, an architect who loves Europe, pays for most of her purchases. Her parents, who live nearby, send the couple food so they have more money for Ms. Yamamoto's shopping sprees.

"I figure it's OK as long as what I'm buying is pretty," she says.

(In a Wall Street Journal article on Japan's latest fashion trend)

Yeesh... if you live in the first world and your clothing purchasing habits leave you unable to afford your own food, that might be a hint that you're out of control.

Talk about enabling behaviour by the parents...

Why not reward them for it? I was reminded of that by a story today:

Canada's two largest airlines must give disabled and morbidly obese passengers an extra free seat on domestic flights, beginning in January, after the Supreme Court of Canada refused Thursday to consider the carriers' appeal to a federal order. (In the Calgary Herald)

On the one hand I don't have a problem for there to be accommodations for the disabled or for those obese due to glandular issues. On the other hand I have a large problem (pun intended) with accommodating those who are obese due to lifestyle choices.

Of course, Britain has managed to do things in a slightly more ridiculous fashion:

Overweight parents will be paid to walk their children to school under plans to tackle the obesity epidemic. Those who attend keep-fit classes, weight-loss clubs or even go for a run in the park would also be eligible for rewards. They will collect points on supermarket-style loyalty cards which would be redeemed against healthy food, sports equipment or gym sessions. (In the Daily Mail)

I've been trying to find back the original article that I read on this plan a week or two ago, which had a few more details. Basically the government will pay you if you're obese, to try to get you to eat healthy foods and exercise. Of course, how much incentive is there then to lose weight when the payments stop as soon as you're no longer obese.

You can't behave in a calm, rational manner. You've got to be out there on the lunatic fringe. — Jack Welch, retired CEO, GE

One of the books that I'm currently reading through is entitled The Myths of Innovation. Here's a brief excerpt of what the author has to say:

In his book Creativity in Science: Change, Logic, Genius and Zeitgeist, Dean Simonton point out that "persons with low associative barriers may think to connect ideas or concepts that have very little basis in past experience or that cannot easily be traced logically". Read that last sentence again: it's indistinguishable from various definitions of insanity. The tightrope between being strange and being creative is too narrow to walk without occasionally landing on both sides, explaining why so many great minds are lampooned as eccentrics. Their willingness to try seemingly illogical ideas or to make connections others struggle to see invariably leads to judgment (and perhaps putting some truth to stereotypes of mad scientists, and unpredictable artists). Developing new ideas requires questions and approaches that most people won't understand initially, which leaves many true innovators at risk of becoming lonely, misunderstood characters.

(p. 12 / 13)