| Obamacare in Action: Retail Workweek Hits 3-Year Low Posted: 02 Feb 2013 05:26 PM PST Hooray! The economy is adding jobs (supposedly). However, few look at the quality of the jobs, and whether or not they are part-time. Jed Graham has a nice post on Investor's Business Daily that describes what I have been saying for months: Obamacare has accelerated the trend towards part-time jobs. There are more jobs, but fewer hours in them. Please consider Retail Workweek Hits 3-Year Low In ObamaCare Shift by Jed Graham. The fly in the ointment of January's jobs report was the apparent shift to part-time work ahead of a key ObamaCare deadline.
 Although retail payrolls grew by 32,600, total hours worked in the industry dipped, Labor Department data out Friday showed.
The explanation? Rank-and-file retail workers logged the shortest workweek since early 2010: just 30.1 hours, on average, vs. 30.4 in December.
Remarkably, aggregate hours worked in the retail sector fell below their January 2012 level, even though industry payrolls are up 200,000 over that period. A similar trend showed up in leisure and hospitality: January payrolls rose by 23,000 even as aggregate hours dipped 0.3%. Not Unexpected This Obamacare-sponsored shift toward part-time jobs is certainly not unexpected, at least in this corner. Last Hurrah? I challenge the notion the economy added 157,000 jobs last month. I also challenge 23,000 leisure and hospitality jobs, and I challenge the claim that retail payrolls grew by 32,600. For three straight months the household survey is way out of line with the payroll survey. This past month the household survey showed a net gain of only 17,000 jobs (please see Last Hurrah for Jobs? for details) Yes, many prior months were revised up. But where are we now, going forward? If the economy really did add 157,000 jobs on the "strength" of part-time hiring, then this was the last hurrah. If not, then I expect those BLS revisions to be re-revised away and October or November was the last hurrah. Mike "Mish" Shedlock http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com |
| Yum! The McRib is Back, Get Yours Today (After You Find Out What's In It); The Secret's in the Sauce! Posted: 02 Feb 2013 07:48 AM PST McDonald's does an excellent job at promoting sandwiches on its menu. Top on the list is the "McRib" which comes and goes in "limited time" offers. You can even use a McRib Locator to find out which chains have the delicacy. Before you rush out of your house to get one, you may be wondering "What's in a McRib". That's a good question and the Natural Society has the answer in McDonald's McRib Sandwich a Franken Creation of GMOs, Toxic Ingredients, Banned Ingredients. The McRib is the result of intensive marketing by McDonald's. Utilizing the basics of supply and demand through creating scarcity over the McRib by only unleashing the culinary abomination for a fraction of the year that is only known once it is released, McDonald's fans have been known to 'hoard' McRib sandwiches and eat them in extreme excess.
But what's really inside the McRib specifically that makes it such a food abomination? Containing over 70 ingredients, the McRib is full of surprises — including 'restructured meat' technology that includes traditionally-discarded animal parts brought together to create a rib-like substance. Here's some of the disturbing substances found within the McDonald's McRib sandwich:
A flour-bleaching agent used in yoga mats
Out of the 70 ingredients that make up the 'pork' sandwich, a little-known flour-bleaching agent known as azodicarbonamide lies among them. At first glance, this strange ingredient sounds concerning enough to look into. After a little research, you will find that even mainstream media outlets have generated content revealing how azodicarbonamide is actually used in the production of foamed plastics. Foamed plastics like yoga mats and more.
What's more? In Australia and Europe, the use of azodicarbonamide as a food additive is banned. In Singapore specifically, use of this substance in food can result in a $450,000 fine and 15 years in jail. Thank you McDonald's for supplying the nation with such healthful ingredients.
'Restructured Meat' from Pig Heart, Tongue, Stomach
McDonald's McRib is famous in some circles for utilizing what's known as 'restructured meat' technology. Since McDonald's knows you'd never eat a pig heart, tongue, or stomach on your plate, they decided instead to grind up these ingredients and put them into the form of a typical rib. That way, consumers won't know what they're putting into their mouths. As the Chicago Mag reported, the innovator of this technology back in 1995 said it best:
"Most people would be extremely unhappy if they were served heart or tongue on a plate… but flaked into a restructured product it loses its identity. Such products as tripe, heart, and scalded stomachs…"
So in other words, it's not actually a rib. Instead, it's a combination of unwanted animal scraps processed down in major facilities and 'restructured' into the form of a rib. Then, 70 additives, chemicals, fillers, and GMO ingredients later, you have a 'meat' product that tastes like ribs. Whopper Horsemeat Surely Burger King is not tainted with such tactics. Or is it? For the answer, let's take a look at another report from the Natural Society: Burger King Admits Burgers Contain Horsemeat In a piece of highly disturbing news, Burger King has now admitted after continuous denial that it has actually been selling UK customers both burgers and Whoppers that contain horsemeat. This admission comes just after The Guardian reports that Burger King reps offered a round of 'absolute assurances' to customers that it did not ever use horsemeat in its products.
A series of tests done on the burger products now reveal that Burger King has been issuing completely phony statements, with burgers made for the fast food chain from the Irish company Silvercrest containing measurable levels of horsemeat. It's important to note this is the same company that processes meat for Tesco, Asda, and the Co-op. The managers at Silvercrest have been revealed to be utilizing non-approved ingredients within their burger assortment – even for 'household brands'. Burger King Admits Error The Guardian reports Burger King reveals its burgers were contaminated in horsemeat scandal. Burger King has revealed that some of its burgers were contaminated in the horsemeat scare, as the tainted food crisis threatened to undermine the confidence of consumers, and major retailers tried to protect their reputations.
As governments in Ireland, the UK and Poland, where a supplier used by Silvercrest for a year is thought be the source of the contamination, continued their investigations, Burger King admitted that, contrary to previous assurances made to it by Silvercrest, it too had now been linked to the scandal. Authorities insist there is no health danger to consumers.
Meanwhile Aldi UK became the first major retailer to suspend its contract with a British plant, Dalepak Hambleton in North Yorkshire, which, like Silvercrest, is part of the ABP Food Group, pending further investigations into why three of nine newly tested burger samples had traces of horse and pork DNA. The products were from stock withdrawn in recent weeks as a precaution but made since October, the company said.
Burger King said: "Our independent DNA test results on product taken from restaurants were negative for any equine DNA. However, four samples recently taken from the Silvercrest plant have shown the presence of very small trace levels of equine DNA. Within the last 36 hours, we have established that Silvercrest used a small percentage of beef imported from a non-approved supplier in Poland. They promised to deliver 100% British and Irish beef patties and have not done so. This is a clear violation of our specifications, and we have terminated our relationship with them."
Diego Beamonte, vice-president for global quality at Burger King, said the company was "deeply troubled by the findings of our investigation and apologise to our guests, who trust us to source only the highest quality 100% beef burgers. Our supplier has failed us and in turn we have failed you". Surprise? What Surprise? Is anyone surprised by this? I certainly am not. Indeed, after reporting on the "Extra-Value" Horse-Burger at grocery chains in the UK and Ireland, I would have been surprised to find out that burger chains were not contaminated as well. Heck, even before reading articles on contamination I would have been surprised. The Secret's in the Sauce! Inquiring minds might wonder "Just how does McDonald's get the McRib to taste so yummy?" That's a good question too, and I have two answers. Some simply like azodicarbonamide, bleaching agents, tripe, heart, scalded stomachs, tongues, and other unwanted animal scraps restructured into the form of a rib. For everyone else, "The secret's in the sauce!" (Just don't ask what's in it). Mike "Mish" Shedlock http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com |
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