Day 2: Doing the math

Had a little trouble connecting earlier, I wondered if I was going to end up missing my second post!

But now that LJ is back up, I want to talk about a very basic skill--arithmetic.

I've been following the Occupy Wall Street protest, and was appalled by some of the quotes I've seen. One of the most ignorant ones was Herman Caine:  "If you don't have a job and you're not rich, blame yourself."

Herman Caine obviously needs a math refresher.

Let me explain by way of an example.

I have 100 free hickory nut pies to give away. I announce it in the local paper and 430 people show up to claim a pie.

Now, some may have done some things to try to improve their odds, like showing up really early, dressing well, projecting a positive attitude and so forth. And these things may in face increase their chances of getting a pie.

However, reality is we have 430 people and 100 pies, meaning 330 people, more than 3/4ths of them, aren't going to get a pie no matter what they do..

Make sense?

Is it a moral issue? Did those 330 people not get pie because they were shiftless, lazy, and looking for a handout? Or was it because there weren't enough pies to meet demand?

THAT is the current employment situation. 4.3 job seekers for every job. For every 100 jobs that are available, there are 430 people who want one.

Simple math tells you that no matter how fantastic this group of people is,  330 of them are going to end up without a job.

Somehow, I'm not convinced they should blame themselves.

Day 3: Fuzzy wants wet food.

Fuzzy is getting up there in age.

We aren't exactly sure how old he is, but he is at least 12 and possibly as much as 17.  We'll have a better idea where he fell on that range depending on how many more years he lives.

We started supplementing his regular cat food with wet food about three months ago when he'd lost some weight after a bout with an upper respiratory infection. It wasn't a serious amount of weight, but he's always been a bit on the skinny side, so it was noticeable. Not only did it help him regain the lost weight in a reasonable amount of time, but we noticed his fur was a lot nicer too. Given that he may well be quite old, we decided to keep supplementing him.

So of course he spends the ENTIRE day getting hopeful every time one of us walks into the kitchen.  He's stooped so low as to actually MEOW at me (Fuzzy is at least half Maine Coon, and Maine Coons are pretty quiet cats and have a teeny, quiet meow).

I was talking to one of my friends on the phone just before I sat down to post this, and Fuzzy decided enough was enough.

He climbed up on the chair beside me and is now impatiently observing as I type this. His message is clear. "Get off your ass, woman, it's time for WET FOOD!"

I think I'd better go before he drags me away....