Peter's Viewpoint

Excuses used in the backroom of Apple and other major companies and by their CEO’s are to sooth their own guilt as to why they produce their products overseas.

"It's not about money..." It's because people want to live normal lives with their families.

How many company advertisements quote something like that with "It's not about People.” at the end of the slogan?  They really must believe that people are that stupid.

Maybe it is time for the people to sell off all of their stocks, let the Chinese buy them since they have the money now, and then watch as the big time CEO's get their asses fired by the Chinese who will simply say, "You can work for $3.00 a day!" if they are lucky.

If China and other Eastern – Asian countries are so great then why don't they offer the same benefits and laws to protect their own people?
The answer is:  That is why they have increased their population, the calculated murder of their workers, can be easily replaced.  If this sounds cold and cruel, it is.

A friend of mine says, “I can remember a few times when it was revealed that so called T.V. personalities were having clothing manufactured overseas in so called sweat shops. The popular named clothing lines were being sold in the US and the outcry forced companies to change their manufacturing base or go completely out of business.
Why is their no outcry about electronics or other products and services? 
What is the difference between women's clothing, computers, cell phones, and other electronic equipment when it comes to where and how they are manufactured?  A sweat shop is a sweat shop.  Just initiate a tariff on everything manufactured in China and the manufacturing jobs will begin to return. Or we can set a policy that states that all products sold in the US must be manufactured under humane conditions.
The lower taxes and regulations that the Republicans keep crying about will not achieve anything.  Businesses in the US cannot compete with a $1.00 an hour wage.”

I agree with him, the sweat shops are just an excuse for those who are extreme profiteering.
It is a sad that companies that have been started with the money of the people of the USA and other western countries have abandoned the goals that western society strived to make, namely work, family, life.

The following texts are excerpts from a report, see the link below.
“When one reads about these working conditions--12-16 hour shifts, pay of ~$1 per hour or less, dormitories with 15 beds in 12x12 rooms--the obvious assumption is that it's all about money…”

“Manufacturing an iPhone in the United States would cost about $65 more than manufacturing it in China, where it costs an estimated $8. This additional $65 would dent the profit Apple makes on each iPhone, but it wouldn't eliminate it. (The iPhone average selling price is about $600, and Apple's average gross margin is about 40%. So Apple's gross profit on each iPhone is probably in the neighborhood of $250.)”

“And, lastly, China's workforce is much hungrier and more frugal than many of their counterparts in the United States.
On this last point, Duhigg and Bradsher tell the story of Eric Saragoza, an engineer who began working in an Apple factory near Sacramento in 1995. The plant made Macs, and for a few years, Saragoza did well, earning $50,000 a year, getting married and having kids, and buying a house with a pool.”

In other words, America and other Western countries must give up their way of thinking about family life, their children, and what the men and women who fought and died for the labor laws and rights.  Give up your 8 hour work day, agree to live in sweat shop style company cities, and you will be guaranteed work.

Putting a human cost on the iPad

Why Apple makes iPhones In China and Why the US Is Screwed

Instead of this outcome, foreign nations should learn to respect Western nations, implement similar laws, educate their people, and maybe there would be less corruption, pollution, and wars on this planet.

As for the profiteers, who do you think has been buying those products and services giving and you those bonuses while financing your company?

Apple textbook domination? Not so fast.

Apple's blow-out quarter: Once again, the Street blew it

The Greek people should be enthusiastic about having Troika audit their country.  What a service the EU is providing.  The Greek people have now invented a new service for the general market, Country Auditing.

The audit being conducted by Troika is unveiling the performance management of their own politicians and the mismanagement that has occurred over the years such as: not implementing progress, and creating laws that are absolutely worthless from the beginning of their conception.

The most self-aggrandizing enemies of the Troika are the political parties of the left, the KKE or Communist Party of Greece, the Coalition of the Radical Left but the question is:  If they are the people’s party then why did they allow all of this to happen? They pretend to be surprised by the findings and categorize the ruling parties of Pasok and New Democracy of collusion fueling the pockets of the rich through the abuse of the poor.  In effect they all fuel the pockets of anyone that is willing to share the wealth of corruption.

Some of the statistics that have been released to the Greek press include approximately 1200 new laws have been voted into effect by but only 30% or 400 are actually implemented, as reported in the video newscast (below).

Greek politicians love to pass laws, any law, even laws on the whim of nonsensical ideas.

14 new laws of the Tax Authority over the last two years have not been implemented and therefore have not prosecuted any tax evaders.

Closed Professions that the government was told to open in 2009, and again in 2010, and again in 2011 were authorized on paper but never applied.

A system that is intended to record the ownership of property such as land, buildings, and apartments is in total disarray due to the fact that it was never modernized to use technology over the past 20 years.  This in turn increases the cost of legal fees when performing a title of ownership searches.  I was speaking with a friend of mine who gave me a clearer indication of how much time was involved to complete a title search, one year!

Inefficiency and bureaucracy applies to all areas of the Greek government. Years ago I remember doing a search for a new business name for a client.  When I asked the Ministry of Commerce to verify that the name was available, they informed me that there were already ten companies with exactly the same name and entity.  When I asked them how that can be, their answer stupefied me because legally all of those companies would be liable in the event of a law suit.  Their quick answer was that most businesses looked for the company name in the telephone book but during the antiquated telecommunication period of Greece (up to 1990) companies were forced to use telephone numbers that were registered to people because they couldn’t attain one through normal channels, therefore many company names were not listed.

Troika should publish the statistics that they discover to set an example for all countries and provide the people with the ability to produce objective evidence on the real value that they receive for their votes.

List of Political Parties in Greece

Unfortunately some of the news casts are only in the Greek language.  Maybe it should be said that if they were in English, people around the world would be shocked at the outrageous misuse of government funds.

Ant1 News Report on Political Regression  (video in Greek)

Here is my new year’s toast to the cohorts of the corruption game, the monkey see, monkey do politicians that sadly cannot put together one or more ideas to bring the economy into stability.

The President of Germany
Christian Wilhelm Walter Wulff accepting a personal loan with low interest from “a rich friend” and vacationing at the summer villas of other rich friends. 

French President Nicolas Sarkozy
A separate judicial inquiry is already looking at whether Nicolas Sarkozy or his party members took cash from the billionaire L'Oréal heiress Liliane Bettencourt for illegal party funding.

I guess that the couple must be desperate to cover the expenses of their child.
Carla Bruni in controversy over source of Aids charity money paid to close friend.

The ex-Prime Minister of Italy, Silvio Berlusconi, a.k.a. il Cavaliere, finally resigns as Italy's prime minister, to cheers from supporters and jeers from foes.

Greece’s ex-Prime Minister George Papandreou, is hopefully the last of the Pasok dynasty.

Greece’s ex-Prime Minister Kostas Karamanlis

Greece’s ex-Prime Minister Kostas Simitis

American Congressman
"Congressional benefits ---- free healthcare, outrageous retirement packages, 67 paid holidays, three weeks paid vacation, unlimited paid sick days, now that's welfare, and they have the nerve to call my social security retirement entitlements?"
“We're "broke" and can't help our own seniors, veterans, orphans, homeless.”
Written by unknown

If I left any politicians out, I’m pretty sure that we’ll be seeing more news headlines this year.

The World Bank Institute, $1 trillion is paid every year in bribes worldwide.  We, the people pay for the losses that our politicians fail to avert through our taxes.

World leaders are sending the “tree of liberty…” message by Thomas Jefferson to the people.

In a world where technology rules, old styles of governing and laws must change to adapt to the future.

“Politicians should wear uniforms like NASCAR drivers so that we can identify their sponsors!”
Written by unknown

People that use the Internet regularly know where to shop and find the best bargains but the cost of those bargain prices are sometimes not what we think.

I was asked by my cousin to search for an inexpensive plane ticket.  I used a few of the website links that I had and told him that the least expensive round trip flight was 400 euros for the time period and the to and from departures cities.  He called me back and told me of another company that someone had told him about claiming that he could get the flight for 150 euros.  I told him that was nonsense and proved it to him.  Upon doing an initial search, the site (not mentioned) displayed the round trip information just as asked with a total of, yes 150 euros.  After clicking on the reservation button and providing (his) credit card, the full flight information appeared with an overnight lay over in a city.  He was furious of course.  The cancellation was immediate but the company that operates the website charged a 10 euro fee.

Many people assume that this is trickery of the trend known as Dynamic Pricing but in the case of this travel site, I believe that it is outright theft.

The Dynamic Pricing trend is a method that companies are using to adjust prices according to variables such as increased costs that are beyond their control, holidays, etc..  The integrity of its use rests with the company that implements this strategy.

Some examples of this are airlines, hotels, and taxis.  You probably have heard complaints from a friend about how they were charged extra because they stayed at a hotel that charged them extra on the weekend nights of a holiday, or how airlines impose a fuel surcharge because some country decided to tweet an increase in oil prices due to whatever.
For the consumer this is an unfair situation but for the business it is logical.

The following is a quote from the New York Times article. “Sure it’s about the regularity, but someone who is driving a car on a regular occurrence deals with dynamic pricing all the time: it’s called gas prices...”

The article that this is based on was about the complaint that taxi drivers charge “exclusive rates” for working on New Year’s Eve.  Having worked as a taxi driver while attaining my degree, I don’t see why a taxi driver shouldn’t charge exorbitant rates for that night.
CEO’s of major corporations receive millions for running a company while playing golf, why shouldn’t a taxi driver make a bonus for working one or two nights a year that others don’t.

Dynamic Pricing will become a standard because of market instability and the availability of technology that allows the immediate integration of increases and decreases in cost to product and services.  The key here is the integrity of the companies to actually allocate decreases in costs thereby also reducing prices.

Taxis charging exclusive rates to make their bonus

During the economic crisis of the PIIGS of Europe, Germany has been the first country to criticize the countries for their role in corruption while they have enjoyed economic growth by using the same methods.

It is not the first time that evidence of corruption has been found and the players are international German companies offering both products and services globally.
Executives of Siemens, which I have written about in the past was found guilty of bribery in many countries and in different sectors.

A personal loan of about 500,000 euros with low interest from “a rich friend” and vacationing at the summer villas of other rich friends are what Mr. Christian Wulff considers “legal but morally illegal” while casting stones on the corrupt countries of Europe for the same offenses.

Mr. Christian Wulff is a discredit to the Germany people and is not fit to be an example of moral leadership.  This is another blatant example of inadequate leadership that reveals the weakness in the decision making of choosing the best individuals to guide countries and their people today.  Where are the human resource analysts when you need them?

I think that Mr. Christian Wulff, a Roman Catholic according to wikipedia, does not recall the Bible saying "If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone….", or “with great power comes great responsibility.”

President of Germany silences newspaper

Mr. Christian Wulff aligns subversion with morally correct behavior

It looks like I will find myself writing more and more about iniquity in the new year of 2012 whether it will be for people or countries or the world in general.  The latest news regarding the taxation of the “Greeks without representation” is another vindication for the removal of the current group of Greek politicians from their role in government.

Attempting to save a nation does not mean that people should be taxed to death.  The inept politicians of Greece are still draining the blood of the people now by swaying their ideas of taxation are so extreme that they are punishing those who have been the pillars of the country while the tax evaders continue to roam freely.

The Sunday newspaper, TO BHMA Jan. 1, 2012, of Greece published (on the last page of course) an article with a few examples of the taxation that is to be used this year.  In the three examples that they depict, all incomes are yearly, and the use of virtual income is now in use again.

Virtual income is an estimated amount of income based on what you own and also includes a amount per living breathing person whether you work or not,  e.g. it can be the market value of an airline ticket that you won because you have theoretically received that amount in value and is taxable in many countries.

Notes on Virtual Income:
This year virtual income has been increased by 30% with the increase for cars at 71%.

Based on current proposals for next year, the minimum deduction of 5,000 euros will be eliminated thereby increasing everyone’s taxes based on the virtual taxable amount.

Children of any age that have a bank account in their name are taxed 3,000 euros whether they earn income or not because once a tax identification number is issued to them (required to open a bank account) then the ministry of taxation theorizes them as taxpayers.  The amount for the child in their example was omitted because the child would be required to file a tax return in accordance with the law.

Homes are separately virtually taxed based on location, age, square meters, and whether it is an apartment, single family home, or a country house.

Automobiles are virtually taxed based on the cost of the car and/or the engine cc’s, and age.

Boats, planes, or other “luxury” items are taxed on cost and age, e.g. a row boat with a small engine has a virtual income of 4,000 euros.

Prepayment of income tax is for the next year and is 55% unfairly based on virtual income rather than actual income taxes. Additionally, assuming that the newspaper, TO BHMA, has reported on the subject correctly, double taxation is being levied.

Who will be paying more taxes in Greece for the tax year ending in 2011?
Based on the chart above, retirees followed by business owners and then salaried employees will support the economy of Greece once again in 2012.

Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable.
John F. Kennedy

Prudence ... will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.
THOMAS JEFFERSON, Declaration of Independence

Over the years that I have lived in Greece, I have learned that the Greeks dislike the authority of the military and the police and it can be seen on every 17th of November.  I believe that this is a mistake due to the abuse of power by the dictator Colonel Georgios Papadopoulos.

My first trip to Greece was in August 1973 and I was a typical American hippy with long hair and blue jeans.  Entering into Greece just before the junta in September of 1973 was a major wakeup for me as I had never been outside the USA.

Greek politicians make laws that exempt them from punishment thereby putting them above the law, while a recent case involving the sentencing of a priest to prison for involvement in the illegal sale of land in the Mount Athos did not include any of the politicians that were also involved.  Even the legal system in Greece is questionable, 2 judges resigned and declared that their work was interfered with by politicians.

A recent uproar began when a situation occurred at a military school in Greece.  An officer and some military students played a musical tribute that was once used by the junta.  Immediately after, the ministers of Pasok reprimanded the military and had the officer removed and replaced along with others.

News reports insinuated the possibility of a new military regime coming to power at the same time that a new political party comprised of Greek military veterans emerged.  The Greek military veterans named their political party, the Association of National Unity, and it appears that the Greek politicians consider it a threat or competition.

The fact is that the majority of the people of Greece are fed up with the mismanagement of the country and the Association of National Unity concurs with the people by saying that “the country is governed by the actions and omissions of the political establishment.”

While I understand and respect the feelings that the Greeks have toward the idea of a junta ruling Greece, I have to ask a question.  Can a military government reform a country without the threat of becoming a dictatorship?

Many people either do not know or have forgotten that the United States began under military rule by George Washington.  Back then, George Washington took control over the 13 colonies to bring order and unity that made the USA into a great nation.

If the Greeks really believe that they have democracy, then why do they continue to vote for the same corrupt political parties?

Given the new choice of the Association of National Unity are there any other real alternatives to Pasok and New Democracy?


A news report about the new political party of Greek military veterans

Prosecutors claim interference by politicians

A dictator of Greece, Georgios Papadopoulos

Here is a person that I have read about lately, and hope that he is sincere in his latest efforts to help restrain the banking industry.

In an effort to give credit where it is due, I think that this is a banker with the foresight to see that the banking industry is a major parameter in the role of the economic crisis and his ideas can help lasso an economy out of control.

Like many underdogs, you can always tell when someone stands out in the crowd.

They don’t have to wear anything unusual because it is the people around them that give them away.  The bankers have become a consortium over the years and now they possess not only large bonuses in addition to their salaries but they are a threat to the world markets.
In the case of Philipp Hildebrand, the bankers are now hoping that Mr. Hildebrand will royally flop while creating measures to insure that the Swiss Franc remains safe so that they can be rid of him or they may have to find other ways of having him removed from his position because of the threat that he has become to their financial lifestyle.

According to the Swiss newspaper Der Sonntag, an unnamed high-ranking banker was quoted as saying “He’ll never find another job in Switzerland” referring to Mr. Hildebrand in 2010.

While I have completed several consulting projects for different banks, I consider my opinion to be objective based on my knowledge of the banking industry.

In view of my own opinions about the banking sector, I think that Mr. Philipp Hildebrand, President of the Swiss central bank, deserves the support of the people.

Hildebrand Says Swiss National Bank Ready to Act to Counter Deflation Risk

A Fight to Make Banks More Prudent

Cutting public worker salaries is a necessity as is dehiring them but reducing and eliminating funding for those who are disabled and handicapped is unethical.

Some teachers that I know work with special or handicapped children.  They recently told me that the government has decided to cut all funding to the facilities of these less fortunate members of society.

I decided to hold off writting about this until today because one of Greece's newspapers has verified it.

The politicians of Greece are ruthless scum of the earth.
Recently they decided to squabble over funds that they insist they are due in the form of bonuses in the amount of 530 million Euros while at the same time they are reducing the salaries of public and private workers and retirees with every chance that they can.

MPs claimed about 530 million

In one of Greece’s newspapers “H Bradini (The Nightly)”, the bold headlines read “Cut 60,000 Handicapped from the public and private sector” and the story says that the Greek politicians are using the excuse of Troika to cut costs by removing the handicapped from their jobs and reducing their disability and retirement instead of removing other workers who are in the guidelines of age and near retirement.

The tactic of the Greek politicians is comparable to that of the ancient Spartans throwing the less fortunate to their death in their effort to reduce the country’s costs.

Troika should audit the finances of every Greek politician from the last 30 years.  I’m sure that they will find an enormous amount of hidden treasure that would probably save Greece!

Silly me, I thought that the banks were global institutions but I found out today that although someone can receive a check to be paid in Euros from Citibank Ireland they cannot cash the check at a Citibank in another country.  Is this international banking?

This is a prime example of disorganized banking operations that contributes to the bureaucracy of banking service problems and unwarranted increases in service charges.

Why is it that banks are allowed the privilege of extreme profit margins that are causing society so much grief?

Banks decide what they charge as interest on the loans made to you and they are usually at extremely high rates compared to the interest that you earn from the money that you deposit in their banks.

The vagueness that banks are masking their service with not only for checks between banks or countries but even with wire transfers.  Anyone that sends an email to anyone around the world knows that it takes less than 10 seconds to complete the digital transfer.
So why is it that we have to wait for ridiculous value date that still exists along with an unbelievable number of fees?

Why don’t governments simply set a maximum profit margin of two (2) percent on banks, yes that’s right,  because there is no reason that bank should be earning any more than that.

Historically, banks earned money by using your money as loans.
Therefore, taking into consideration that there are three parties to a financial transaction:
The bank, the depositor, and the borrower, and the financial aspect of the agreed interest rate for depositors, and the interest rate for borrowers, the difference between the depositor’s interest and the borrower’s interest could be 5 percent with a profit of 2% for the bank.  The 2% is generous considering the number of loan transactions that banks average.

Banks are abusing their power asking for bailouts because they are risking our money for loans that they are greedily and unnecessarily giving money to people and businesses that are higher risks than should be allowed.  They should not be risking our money and then demanding that the government saves them by taxing us more.

Banks are charging everyone and for everything these days in their product portfolios of checking, credit cards, loans, and are now considering charging us for the security of storing our money along with fees for processing, lawyers, and even engineers when the loan is for buying a house.

Demand an action by your government officials to stop the abuse now caused by over profiting of banks and excessive bonuses that banking management is earning using our money.

"There are two ways to conquer and enslave a nation.
One is by the sword.. The other is by debt."
John Adams, 1826

Here are just a few of the thousands of links that provide a glimpse about banking fee abuse.

Pew group find more than 54 banking fees

ACS charged unemployed $1.12 million in fees

Debit Fees on Unemployment Benefits

Bank payment clearing now eliminates cash floating

The preoccupation of adults with child pornography committed by children these days is as ridiculous as looking at a copy of Playboy during the days of my own childhood.

Studies are being done wasting countless amounts of money to determine if children are future perverts or pedophiles, children are being arrested because they happen to have a “semi-naked” or naked picture of a classmate on their cell phone.
How American it is to immediately create criminals from the sex industry while America happens to be a world leader in the sales of pornographic materials.

I remember going to Cape Cod and lying on a beach while another couple with their children nearby enjoying the sea.  One of their children was a toddler and the couple allowed it to play without clothes.  While the child played on the beach, an elderly couple walking above on the board walk peered over the rail and began shouting to the parents to put clothing on their child because it was revolting to them.

We are now living in the year 2011 and Americans are wasting the time and money with ridiculous accusations that are reminiscent of living in the dark ages with regards to sex.

Isn’t it time that Americans grow up and accept that what children do today is nothing more than an extension of what many of us did when we were young with the technology that we had.  I’m sure that there are many who used their parents Polaroid camera that produced instant pictures to do something similar and many of them are parents of the same children that are being scared for life by ridiculous sexting scandals.

Stop living in a retarded world people.  Children are not perverts or pedophiles!


An article from the NYT

Sending of Sexual Images by Minors Isn’t as Prevalent as Expected, Study Finds

"Amanda Lenhart, a senior research specialist at the Pew Research Center in Washington, noted that the report’s findings dovetailed with Pew research released last month. In that study, which involved 800 minors between 12 and 17, only 2 percent said they had sent nude or almost nude pictures to someone they knew. In contrast, the center found that 17 percent of adults between 18 and 29 had sent sexually suggestive pictures, and that 5 percent of 30- to 49-year-olds admitted sending them."

While many criticize the Greek people as being tax cheats, I commend them on how they have managed to outsmart the governments of Greece over the past 30 years.

Many foreigners and news reporters claim as if they know that Greeks do not pay taxes while not looking at the number and amounts of taxes that the government charges.
I hate to say it but if someone says that this is so then they have been comparing apples to oranges.

The fact is that taxation in Greece but also throughout Europe has remained similar to what amounts to a multitude of smaller taxes levied upon the people.

Summary of taxation for the year ending 2011
Yearly, Income tax based on an average income of 20,000 Euros, 125 Euros
Yearly, Road tax based on 1600 cc engine size, 265 Euros
Yearly, Social Responsibility or Solidarity tax based on income, 450 Euros
Yearly, Special tax on Supplemental Retirement, based on income, 200 Euros
Yearly, Special tax on Retirees younger than 60, based on income, 100 Euros
Bi-monthly Special tax on the electric bill KW hours by .00195, averaging 5 Euros
Bi-monthly Local City tax, on electric bill by sq. meters of living space, averaging 50 Euros
Bi-monthly Television tax, on electric bill by sq. meters of living space, averaging 17 Euros
Monthly, Apartment Rental tax based on stamp tax, 3.6% based on rent
Daily, Sales tax, currently 23%, including food taxed at 11%
Note: many of the special taxes are a percentage by monthly income.

With the exception of the Solidarity tax, the Special taxes on Retirement, and the Bi-monthly Special tax all of the others have been effective over the last 30 years that I have lived here.

This does not include the multitude of taxes paid by business owners that have had to pay kick-back to the government through the tax agents over the years or face the threat of being shut down.

The difference now is that 80% of small and medium businesses are now closed down meaning that the government will suck the money out of the blood of those who still have a job and the retirees.

Why the Greek government impedes the competition of Greek businesses
Wage earners pay 16% towards social security taxes while employers pay 28% towards social security taxes, totaling 44% towards social security.

Manufacturing taxes at time of production, e.g. medicinal alcohol is charged different taxes during production and then sales taxes are added.

They also charge businesses with a so called Assessed tax that is calculated without any physical proof of audit basically a number that is magically conjured up by the tax agent and which can be anywhere from 500 to 1,000,000 Euros based on “how they how they like your face or the size of your business” as is said.

Apart from the facts that Greeks DO PAY TAXES, they have never received the services that they should in reciprocation from any of the governments to date.

What’s worse is that the taxes that we are currently paying to hopefully save the country may in fact become a worthless effort if the country formally declares bankruptcy.

Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.
MARTIN LUTHER KING JR.