Posted on 01/28/2003 9:47:16 AM PST by Pokey78
Yep. (Statement corrected to re-insert the relevant context, in such a way as to foreclose irrelevant observations about the days when people often married at 15 and died at 40.)
Another great one from Steyn.
Hey, conservative movement/celebrity lurkers: Steyn makes a good point above. At the NARAL convention, 'Dr.' Dean made the comment, "partial birth abortion isn't even an issue". In other words, it's a nonsensical point.
Why doesn't someone ask Dean if he'd be willing to perform a PBA. Maybe send a camera crew along to film it live? Maybe Dr. Dean could show us why it's such a great thing?
As someone who spent 4 years working in a restaurant, and now tends bar part-time for extra cash, here's my take. I think steve-b is one of those patrons that goes out with the calculator running in his head. His evening consists of running his waiter/waitress/bartender in circles to calculate the level of service. However, no matter how many times you promptly fill his coffee cup, wipe the wet spots off his table or perfectly pour his beer, his high point is 15% while ticking off every real or imagined slight in service so he can feel justified leaving a $1.50 tip on a $30.00 bill.
Do us all a favor and stay home.
That's because it's not conservativsm, it's neo-Bolshevism, er libertarianism.
How does:
THANK GOD FOR MARK STEYN!
sound?
Only when I encounter foolishness.
Harumph.
I suppose that's one way to read Steyn's piece. A strangely Statist idea of Steyn's intent, but I suppose if that's the way you read it...
Personally, I read Steyn as saying that Western Civilization -- the font of individual liberty and the rule of law -- is killing itself off, and he thinks that's a bad thing. It would be "enough", demographically speaking, if we as a culture simply refused to Murder the infants whom we are already conceiving -- not that more conceptions in the aggregate "must" be encouraged.
What a simpleton you are to actually read an article to get the main point.
Woops! My bad!
Waiting tables is hard work. When I get bad service, I tend to assume that the waiter or waitress in question is simply overworked and not able to give all his/her customers their full attention -- which is generally the case. Most chain/fast-food restaurants are understaffed in order to save money; understaffing insures lower labor costs, since fewer workers are on the payroll. Understaffing also guarantees high employee turnover rates, thus getting rid of higher-paid senior staff in favor of low-paid new employees. Restaurant workers are easily replaced, employers find it more attractive to hire and fire them rather than to promote people from within and raise their wages -- and, since they get paid the same (low) base wage no matter how hard they work, there is no incentive (other than tipping) for your average waiter or waitress to work harder. Thus most restaurant workers (sensibly) do the bare minimum required to maintain their jobs.
These problems are intrinsic to all service-industry jobs. The fast food/chain business model is dependent upon low-wage, easily-replaceable workers to keep prices low. Tipping encourages good waiters and waitresses to work harder; stiffing them for poor service just encourages them to care less.
The solution to the Bad Service problem is not in being niggardly with the tips.The solution is to turn away from chain/mall/freeway restaurants with their armies of low-paid interchangeable workers and eat at family-run/owned neighborhood joints where Mom and Dad do the cooking and the Kids serve and clean up. The food (and service) tend to be better in a place where the cooks and staff have a personal stake in the business' success.
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