Tag Archives: Community development

Progressive vs. Practical

Posted on by

Hot Air posted a story today about a pizza place in Boston that has gone bankrupt. That in itself is probably not all that unique, but there are some special circumstances here.

The article reports:

In the Roxbury neighborhood of Boston back in 2015, the people at the nonprofit organization Haley House came up with a novel idea. They would open a pizza shop based on the principles of economic justice and fair wages to support the community. Named Dudley Dough, the shop would pay wages far above the minimum which many people in that industry earn, with added incentives for training and community development. It was an inspiring idea.

Unfortunately for them, only two years later the place is closing down. It turns out that operating a for-profit business on the principles of a nonprofit social justice operation results in an undesirable side-effect. They were literally not producing a profit.

One of the most difficult parts of starting and running a business is balancing the cost of doing business with the cost of the product. There has to be enough of a gap between those two things to earn the money to keep you in business. The people who started this pizzeria started it with a noble goal in mind. Unfortunately, they did not start it with sound business practices.

The article concludes:

Labor costs are a major driver in the business model of any such operation. Once you’ve accounted for the standard expenses of kitchen equipment, ingredients, utilities and the cost of your site (which are fairly standardized), labor costs may turn out to be the margin of error which makes or breaks you in terms of profitability and controlling your prices. Everyone in the neighborhood may love your social justice oriented, woke attitude, but if your pizza costs three bucks a slice when everyone else is selling them for two, you’re not going to last long.

Dudley Dough may prove to be a cautionary tale for everyone engaged in the debate over minimum wage rates and so-called “economic justice.” What they experienced was the sort of justice which the real world administers to the overly idealistic in a capitalist system.

It’s called reality.

Governmental Insanity

Posted on by

The Daily Beast posted a story today that illustrates what happens when bureaucracy divests itself of all common sense. The story takes place in the City of Philadelphia.

The Daily Beast reports:

Ori Feibush owned a business next to a vacant lot filled with broken glass and weeds.  The lot, unfortunately, was owned by the City of Philadelphia, which refused to do anything about it.  (In the city’s defense, Philadelphia has always been under tremendous budget strain).  So Ori Feibush took matters into his own hands.  He claims he paid more than $20,000 out of his own pocket to haul away more than 40 tons of debris, plant trees, and put in benches.  The neighbors are excited.  The city, naturally, is very angry and has demanded he put the garbage and the broken glass back where it was.

This is definitely a new level of governmental insanity. The article brings up a number of good points. Does the city want the original trash back or will any 40 tons of trash do? Does the broken glass have to go in the exact same place?

America used to be a place where everyone in the neighborhood would have pitched in to help salvage a neighborhood eyesore. The burden would have been shared, everyone would have been better off, and the city would have celebrated. What happened?

 

Enhanced by Zemanta

Isn’t Massachusetts Part Of The United States ?

Posted on by

Sometimes I wonder if Massachusetts is really part of America. The latest incident to cause me to question this occurred in Wrentham, Massachusetts, over the 4th of July holiday. I really enjoyed the 4th of July. I was in a parade with flags, marchers, patriotic music, and political candidates. There were a lot of flags around. Well, the Daily Caller reported today on a problem with residents of public housing in Massachusetts who decide to fly their American flags.

The article reports:

The Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development is claiming that a memo distributed to some public housing residents announcing a ban on public displays of the American flag was a mistake that is “being corrected.”

“Due to a tenant’s repeated complaints reported to the Department of Housing and Community Development over the July 4th holiday, Wrentham Housing Authority has been informed that the public display of the American flag in common areas is not permitted,” said the memo, which was posted on residents’ doors in the Garden Lane public housing complex.

The memo goes on to say that visible flags could be displayed within a resident’s home. Thanks a lot. Does the state now control how people decorate their homes?

Today I received teh following email:

The Wrentham Republican Town Committee is gathering at 6 pm on Friday July 13th on the common to protest the Patrick administrations original ruling that said American’s didn’t have a right to express their patriotism in public at public housing.  Please join us if you want to make sure this doesn’t happen again when no one is looking.

These are my kind of people!

 

Enhanced by Zemanta