Unemployment in America

[Boojatta]

Do Americans who have above average income have enough personal assistants? I'm not talking about anything degrading, such as being there to get slapped around by a Hollywood celebrity who has low tolerance for life's unavoidable frustrations and who wants a scapegoat.

Consider work such as keeping someone's personal computer system and library organized and operating smoothly; communications, maintenance of communications archives, and maintenance of tickler files for communication with professional associates, potential clients, tax officials and other government bureaucrats, etc.

In some countries, it's not unusual for a middle class family to have a few assistants and/or servants. Such jobs aren't easily outsourced.

[Donnachaidh]

1. you're assuming that all unemployed people have computer skills

they don't.

And how do you propose they pay these assistants? Because most middle class families haven't the first clue as to withholding taxes, etc. Or are they to be the latest *fad* in hiring people *off the books*?

[Boojatta]

3. "you're assuming that all unemployed people have computer skills"

Where did I assume that? Not every unemployed American who has the desire and ability to work has two legs. Is it not worth any effort to think of possible employment opportunities for unemployed Americans who have two legs? Concidentally, some unemployed Americans who do have computer skills aren't able to walk.

Anyway, some unemployed people have computer skills, and some don't but can learn them quickly. Also, I doubt that all personal or family assistants would need computer skills.

[Donnachaidh]

6. umm, right here --

"Consider work such as keeping someone's personal computer system and library organized and operating smoothly; communications, maintenance of communications archives, and maintenance of tickler files for communication with professional associates, potential clients, tax officials and other government bureaucrats, etc."

the majority of that (these days, of course) are on computer.

You're advocating that a QUOTE "Middle Class Family" hire unemployed people as a sort of personal assistant. Why the backpeddle? Or is the MC family you are musing over not exactly true middle class, but actually the upper middle class sort that would need this kind of help?

HOW do those people get paid? Valid question - is there an answer?

[Boojatta]

8. As you quoted, I wrote "such as" in "Consider work such as ..."

How many examples do I have to provide before you can start thinking for yourself? I see no "backpeddle."

[Boojatta]

11. Do you want to continue this discussion?

You're advocating that a QUOTE "Middle Class Family" hire unemployed people as a sort of personal assistant. Why the back-peddle? (...)

DU doesn't allow me to use square brackets for my editorial comments, so I used round brackets above to indicate that the ellipses are mine, not yours. In other words, I have in effect interrupted you there.

You made the word "quote" all capitals, which I take to be a kind of emphasis, but you followed that word with an ad lib variation of what I wrote. In future, you ought to instead quote a whole chunk of my actual message.

Now consider the meaning of my words. First, my words weren't "advocating" (your word, not mine) that an American middle-class family hire unemployed people as personal assistants. I raised, in the form of a question, the idea of "Americans who have above average income" hiring personal assistants. A question could be raised as part of a strategy of advocacy, but exactly how complex the strategy is, and exactly what is being advocated remains to be seen. You shouldn't tell me what I'm advocating any more than you should tell me what idea I was trying to express. If you want to know something happening in my mind, then you can try interrogation or polite questioning, but simply creating a position for me isn't an option, unless you are to veer dangerously close to committing what is known as a "straw man" fallacy.

The burden is on you to show that "above average income" implies "middle class" if you want to claim that I so much as focused attention on American middle-class families as doing hiring of personal assistants. Never mind advocacy. We're looking at one component of a question, but we don't yet have a meeting of the minds on what question I asked about Americans.

Here's where I made reference to middle class families: "In some countries, it's not unusual for a middle class family (...)" See? I didn't specify that America is included in the set of countries that I have in mind. Maybe some of the families are ex-pat Americans, but I made no comment about what proportion of them might be American or whether or not they would be considered middle class if they were living in America.

[ZombieHorde]

13. Boojatta = awesome. nt

[Boojatta]

14. Thank you.

But I have one concern. Those who see what you see and arrive at a diametrically opposite evaluation might make accusations against me rather than against my messages. So, to set a good example, perhaps it would be best for you to praise a particular post that happens to be a Boojatta post, and not make any comment focusing on me as messenger.

[ZombieHorde]

15. All of my posts are good examples.

Some of my posts are good examples of how to post, and some of my posts are good examples of how not to post.

Those who see what you see and arrive at a diametrically opposite evaluation might make accusations against me rather than against my messages.

All that is not Boojatta = awesome. Boojatta = http://thesaurus.com/browse/awesome?">unamazing. Boojatta =/= awesome. These are only three diametrically opposite horrors which may be in your future. Dark times.

[Boojatta]

16. "These are only three diametrically opposite horrors which may be in your future. Dark times."

Are you sure that you aren't conflating an evaluation with reactions motivated by the evaluation?

[ZombieHorde]

17. No, I am not sure. I am sure I enjoyed writing those examples.

Will you offer some examples of the types of posts you are concerned about? What would the worse case scenario be?

[Boojatta]

7. "most middle class families haven't the first clue as to withholding taxes, etc."

Perhaps this company can help give them a clue

[Edweird]

22. There are numerous payroll companies that exist for this very purpose.

http://www.paychex.com/

http://www.advantec-hr.com/

Even temp/staffing agencies like Manpower will act as a payroll company.

http://localsite.manpower.com/localhome/content.jsp?id=1764&site=270

It's easy.

[Orrex]

2. In college, I dated a woman who was really good at gelato.

[DJ13]

4. I thought that started with an "f".......

[Orrex]

5. Oops! You're right: "F once dated a woman in college who was really good at gelato."

Thanks for the correction!

[DJ13]

9. Good one!

:hi:

[petronius]

10. And if you'd spent more time on your cannellini, maybe she'd still be around...

:P

[Boojatta]

12. Kick

[Boojatta]

18. Kick

[jp11]

19. I'd imagine the more 'professional' type of assistance work, they contract out

over hiring actual regular assistants since the need for such things would likely be intermittent or easily done by a 'basic' personal assistant who manages schedules, travel arrangements and the like. I think only people who make well above average income, say several hundred thousand a year and up, can afford to regularly employ 'extra' personnel and only if there is a real need to do so, ie if you own several dozen cars you might employ a mechanic part time to maintain and care for them, unless you break them everyday there wouldn't be 'work' for them all the time. Just like if you had a large property you don't need landscapers or people to tend to it everyday, a coupe of visits a week would be fine, only if whatever 'it' is requires daily work would there be a regular job and if that is the case it is more of a business than a 'personal' assistant type of job.

[Boojatta]

20. Do you need to earn at least $100,000 per year to employ a nanny?

I think only people who make well above average income, say several hundred thousand a year and up, can afford to regularly employ 'extra' personnel and only if there is a real need to do so (...)

Of course, I'm talking about nannies to care for children who are a result of unplanned pregnancies. There isn't a real need to have children in the first place.

Thus, another function of a personal assistant could be to manage the household budget, including spending on supermarket food, restaurant food, and birth control. After all, spending on birth control can in the long run more than pay for itself, provided that it is managed in such a way that it doesn't fail.

[Boojatta]

21. Kick

[Boojatta]

23. Kick