Montebello E-News

April 3, 2008  

So convenient a thing it is to be a reasonable Creature, since it enables one to find or make a Reason for every thing one has a mind to do.
 Benjamin Franklin, 1706 – 1790, 
was one of the most important and influential Founding Fathers of the United States of America.  A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author and printer, satirist, political theorist, politician, scientist, inventor, civic activist, statesman and diplomat.  

[I have read that Thomas Jefferson, concerned that Franklin would inject humor into the Declaration of Independence, did not let him draft the document.]

We have noted many deficiencies in the capitalism which we practice.  The purpose behind such a look has been to encourage thought and action about how to make capitalism work better.  We are now looking at possible solutions.  

In the previous essay part, we looked at ESOPs as a possible solution to the deficiencies of present-day American capitalism.  An ESOP is a corporation owned in whole or in part by its employees.  But while an ESOP bring fairness to employees, it does not necessarily do the same for the community where the business is located or engages consumers.  So, can an ESOP be a better solution than what it now is?  

Yes, if one or more of the following takes place.  

·        The employees come from the same community where the business is located or engages consumers.  Thus, the employees, being part of the community, make business decisions with the community in mind.

·        The employees create an open forum, either in a community hall or online, for their neighbors to regularly opine on the business.  A bonus is that, staying continually in touch with the community builds consumer loyalty.

·        The employees agree to create voting rights for the community in decisions of the business which have an impact on the community, but without the community having a stake in profit.

·        The employees enable the community to buy shares in the business, with a share of profit then going into the community.  By “community” here, we refer to individuals, organizations, and government agencies. 

A retail establishment, a wholesaler or a factory can become an ESOP.  

What can accelerate the use of ESOPs?  When licensing a business to operate in its community, a municipality can require that the business operate as an ESOP.  On the assumption that consumer loyalty would build for ESOPs, businesses already established in the community might want to become ESOPs in order to stay competitive.  

But what about small businesses which have but a couple of employees or whose employees are, for the most part, students wanting a part-time, short-term job?  What can be done so that those businesses overcome the deficiencies of present-day American capitalism?

FOR EVERYONE. City-council meeting.  The next regular meeting of the Montebello city council will be in the council chamber at city hall on Wednesday, April 9, 2008, at 7:30 p.m. If you wish to speak during orals, come before 7:30 p.m. and sign up. If you have more to say than there is time allotted, prepare a one pager, make copies, and hand out before you speak. For more information, 323.887.1363. 

FOR YOUTH AND THEIR PARENTS. Free skate night. Wednesday, April 9, 2008, from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the skate park in Montebello City Park. All ages, bring your own gear, but if you do not have gear, it will be provided. Competition for different age groups. Music, raffle prizes, free food, adult supervision. For more information, 323.887.4540.

FOR EVERYONE.  Betty Boop event.  Heavenly Choice Betty Boop Collector’s Club cordially invites you to join us for the 15th Annual Betty Boop Champagne Brunch, Sunday, April 13, 2008, 11:00  -  3:00 pm.  Brunch served from11:00 - 1:00, new-item presentation at 12 noon, bring a “show and tell” item at 12:30, and a raffle prize drawing at 2:30.  Please RSVP by phone or email by Friday, April 11, 2008, ( 323 ) 728 – 2728 or weddingplanner@msn.com.

FOR EVERYONE.  A growing problem.  The average woman worldwide is giving birth to fewer children than ever. Nonetheless, an estimated 136 million babies were born in 2007, bringing the global population to about 6.7 billion. Governments must improve access to good health care and family planning to see further declines in childbearing and increases in life expectancy, writes Worldwatch Vice President Robert Engelman in the latest Vital Signs Update.  From Worldwatch Institute newsletter, March 13, 2008.  For more information, www.worldwatch.org.  

FOR MOTORISTS.  Three hundred miles to the gallon.   …[Aptera] looks to be taking the next step on the long road to availability, with it accepting pre-orders for the car, which apparently now boasts a range of 300 MPG in typical driving conditions. What's more, the company says its also readying an all-electric version of the vehicle in addition to the plug-in hybrid model, with promising to last for around 120 miles before needing a recharge. … October 10, 2007. http://www.engadget.com/2007/10/10/apteras-300-mpg-car-available-for-pre-order/ .

Of the thirteen original colonies, New Hampshire was the first to declare its independence from Mother England, a full six months before the Declaration of Independence was signed.

New Hampshire is the only state that ever played host at the formal conclusion of a foreign war. In 1905, Portsmouth was the scene of the treaty ending the Russo-Japanese War.  

The first potato planted in the United States was at Londonderry Common Field in 1719.  [The potato was not native to the United States?]  

Alan Bartlett Shepard Jr., the first American to travel in space, is from East Derry, New Hampshire.  

On December 30, 1828, about four hundred mill girls walked out of the Dover Cotton Factory, enacting the first women’s strike in the United States.  The Dover mill girls were forced to give in when the mill owners immediately began advertising for replacement workers.  [We think of strikes beginning in the late eighteen hundreds, not this soon.]

Daniel Webster was a politician and statesman, born in Franklin in 1782. He was known in his day as a mighty orator, a reputation preserved in the Stephen Vincent Benet story The Devil and Daniel Webster, in which Webster beats the original lawyer, Lucifer, in a contract case over a man’s soul.  

America’s Stonehenge is a four thousand year-old megalithic site located on Mystery Hill in Salem and presently serves as a leisurely, educational tour for the whole family.  [That old in the New World !]

Alexandria was the birthplace of Luther C. Ladd, the first enlisted soldier to lose his life in the Civil War.  

The Christa McAuliffe Planetarium in Concord is a state-of-the art planetarium dedicated to the memory of New Hampshire teacher Christa McAuliffe, who died in the explosion of the space shuttle Challenger.  [Strange that today’s high schoolers were born after the disaster.  How time flies.] 

As leaders in the revolutionary cause, New Hampshire delegates received the honor of being the first to vote for the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776.  

It takes approximately forty gallons of sap to make approximately one gallon of maple syrup.  [Taste aside, is this a good or bad thing?]  

New Hampshire has a changeable climate, with wide variations in daily and seasonal temperatures. The variations are affected by proximity to the ocean, mountains, lakes or rivers. The state enjoys all four seasons. Summers are short and cool, winters are long and cold, fall is glorious with foliage. The weather station on Mount Washington has recorded some of the coldest temperatures and strongest winds in the continental United States.  [Can we artificially create some of the conditions in order to generate electricity?]