winterbadger | (no subject)

thank you, Ron Reagan

Edit: Reagan says "In Bush's economy, his world, friends relocate offshore to avoid paying taxes. Taxes are for chumps like you. You are not a friend. You're the help. When the party Mr. Bush is hosting in his world ends, you'll be left picking shrimp toast out of the carpet."

I ran into someone the other day while I was waiting to get my car fixed. He works for a catering firm in the area, and is planning on relaocating; he can't stand dealing with Washington anymore, especially, he said, the wealthy Republicans who his firm serves.

A woman, the wife of a cabinet official, had particularly incensed him. He had been in charge of catering a dinner party for her and her husband recently; when the hour started getting late, he pointed out that the service contract they had set up ran until a certain hour, with a per-hourly fee after that. Nonsense, the woman said, we've paid you, and you'll stay here until all of our guest leave. And we're not paying you any extra.

Ma'am, he pointed out, I have a staff of waiters, bartenders, and busboys I have to pay. They've been paid for a certain number of hours; if we go over that, I need to pay them for the rest of tehir time as well.

Don't be ridiculous, she replied. They've already been paid for the evening; what is it to them if they have to work a few more hours? And she muttered something about "illegal" under her breath.

I'm sorry? he asked.

She glared at him. I said I'm sure they're all illegal. They should just be glad they have jobs!

Ma'am, I'm sorry, but the contract you signed very clearly spelled out the extra fees for extended hours.

Well, I'm certainly not using your company again, she snarled, and strode off.

As he watched her walk away, he told me, he caught sight of some of the woman's own domestic staff, all staring at her and at him with expressions of horror and dread, clearly anticiapting that this was all going to comeback to them one way or another.

I'm sure that arrogance and miserliness are not confined to one political party, but for this exchange to take place in the home of one of the leaders of the administration, he said, just summed up for him what the last four years have been like. His company is moving him to London, he said, and if they weren't, he'd find some other place to work. He's had as much of DC as he can stomach.