In this day and age it takes alot of work to be an unrequited, ummm, lover of the philosophies of yore. Like rascism. But Charles Murray, "fellow" (does that mean ignoramus?) at the American Enterprise Institute manages to prove he's both inept and lazy in one paragraph. Inept, because the use of Google is obviously beyond him. Lazy, because if he could use Google, he'd have found the answer to one of his "insightful" questions for John Kerry.
You promise to create millions of jobs, but many people who run businesses say that nothing in your life has taught you how much effort, risk and sometimes heartbreak goes into creating one real job. Could you describe your experiences when you last had to meet a payroll, or when your boss had to meet a payroll?
A quick (.32 seconds) Google search finds this:
The Kerry camp would argue that their man has some of the best Main Street business credentials since Truman. In 1976, Kerry and his friend K. Dun Gifford opened a cookie business in Boston under their mothers' maiden names, Kilvert & Forbes. It was intended to sound, Gifford says, like "a pretty snooty upscale company."
Though Kerry also had a law practice at the time, Gifford says his partner proved to be a hands-on operator, reviewing sales data daily. They started with two types of cookies based on family recipes, selling for $1.25 each because of costly ingredients. Kerry insisted on the Lindt chocolate he remembered from his Swiss boarding-school days and the same butter used in traditional croissants.
Political ambitions cut short Kerry's cookie-mogul dreams; when he ran for office in 1982, he bought out Gifford, then sold the business. "I could've been Mrs. Fields," he joked with reporters in May, but "I thought it was smarter to earn $23,000 as lieutenant governor."
Fellowship that, Murray. Honestly, people like Murray think they're so smart. Someone should ask him "What one thing of value have you ever produced as a paid beltway-bandito "thinkerati"?" The answer, would of course be: Nothing. Ever.
posted by Jo Fish on 10.13.04 at 12:09 PM
Comments:
We all know Bush's failed background as a businessmomma'sboy. I would like to know of one instance where Bush did the real work required to increase headcount for an organization with which he was involved. I have hired in my positions in other companies. Heck, we had someone, a colleague, starting where I work today, and I am the guy my supervisor asked to run around and make sure the new hire had network access and building access, and all those other little picky details that go with a new hire. When I look at the two candidates, detail-oriented, smart, and caring Kerry strikes me as the one who could do that without missing a beat. Bush wouldn't have a clue where to start and wouldn't know who to ask.
Maybe one good thing to come from Murray: Stephen J. Gould's excellent "The Mismeasure of Man", an excellent book about the misuse of statistics, was largely a response to Murray's work.
