The computer monitor power usage analogy

[manifold]

All this talk about how wefare abuse is rampant, and how even legitimate welfare usage is crippling our economy and should therefore be a top priority for reform and cutbacks reminds me of a short anecdote. Some years ago I worked for a start-up company, struggling to remain cash-flow positive. During one particularly lean and stressful period, our founder and CTO went on a crusade to make sure everyone turned off their monitors when the left work. We need to cut costs he said (and he was right of course) and not wasting power is great place to start. Sounds reasonable enough, and he even enlisted a few minions to enforce his decree...

And then I actually showed him the numbers. We were spending roughly $3million per quarter in operating expenses, of which our utility bill comprised $15K or 0.5%. Even if we managed to cut our utility bill by 100% (down to zero), we weren't going to make a dent in our cost structure.

Since nobody can ever produce real numbers to support their anti-welfare diatribes, I suspect a similar phenomenon could be at work here. It sounds reasonable, it plays right into many a confirmation bias, but alas, it's simply not supported by the actual numbers.

But whatcha gonna do?

 

[Robert]

All this talk about how wefare abuse is rampant, and how even legitimate welfare usage is crippling our economy and should therefore be a top priority for reform and cutbacks reminds me of a short anecdote. Some years ago I worked for a start-up company, struggling to remain cash-flow positive. During one particularly lean and stressful period, our founder and CTO went on a crusade to make sure everyone turned off their monitors when the left work. We need to cut costs he said (and he was right of course) and not wasting power is great place to start. Sounds reasonable enough, and he even enlisted a few minions to enforce his decree...

And then I actually showed him the numbers. We were spending roughly $3million per quarter in operating expenses, of which our utility bill comprised $15K or 0.5%. Even if we managed to cut our utility bill by 100% (down to zero), we weren't going to make a dent in our cost structure.

Since nobody can ever produce real numbers to support their anti-welfare diatribes, I suspect a similar phenomenon could be at work here. It sounds reasonable, it plays right into many a confirmation bias, but alas, it's simply not supported by the actual numbers.

But whatcha gonna do?

You do what he did you get started and you keep cutting until its balanced....The option to do nothing is not an option its a failure.

 

[manifold]

All this talk about how wefare abuse is rampant, and how even legitimate welfare usage is crippling our economy and should therefore be a top priority for reform and cutbacks reminds me of a short anecdote. Some years ago I worked for a start-up company, struggling to remain cash-flow positive. During one particularly lean and stressful period, our founder and CTO went on a crusade to make sure everyone turned off their monitors when the left work. We need to cut costs he said (and he was right of course) and not wasting power is great place to start. Sounds reasonable enough, and he even enlisted a few minions to enforce his decree...

And then I actually showed him the numbers. We were spending roughly $3million per quarter in operating expenses, of which our utility bill comprised $15K or 0.5%. Even if we managed to cut our utility bill by 100% (down to zero), we weren't going to make a dent in our cost structure.

Since nobody can ever produce real numbers to support their anti-welfare diatribes, I suspect a similar phenomenon could be at work here. It sounds reasonable, it plays right into many a confirmation bias, but alas, it's simply not supported by the actual numbers.

But whatcha gonna do?

You do what he did you get started and you keep cutting until its balanced....The option to do nothing is not an option its a failure.

Yeah sure, just get out the hatchet and start swinging.

No need for reasoned analysis of the costs and benefits.

 

[Robert]

All this talk about how wefare abuse is rampant, and how even legitimate welfare usage is crippling our economy and should therefore be a top priority for reform and cutbacks reminds me of a short anecdote. Some years ago I worked for a start-up company, struggling to remain cash-flow positive. During one particularly lean and stressful period, our founder and CTO went on a crusade to make sure everyone turned off their monitors when the left work. We need to cut costs he said (and he was right of course) and not wasting power is great place to start. Sounds reasonable enough, and he even enlisted a few minions to enforce his decree...

And then I actually showed him the numbers. We were spending roughly $3million per quarter in operating expenses, of which our utility bill comprised $15K or 0.5%. Even if we managed to cut our utility bill by 100% (down to zero), we weren't going to make a dent in our cost structure.

Since nobody can ever produce real numbers to support their anti-welfare diatribes, I suspect a similar phenomenon could be at work here. It sounds reasonable, it plays right into many a confirmation bias, but alas, it's simply not supported by the actual numbers.

But whatcha gonna do?

You do what he did you get started and you keep cutting until its balanced....The option to do nothing is not an option its a failure.

Yeah sure, just get out the hatchet and start swinging.

No need for reasoned analysis of the costs and benefits.

He started with the easiest cutting he could do without causing harm to either the business or employees. I would say that a pretty reasoned approach why would you have a problem with that approach when you're calling for

reasoned analysis of the costs and benefits

 

[manifold]

You do what he did you get started and you keep cutting until its balanced....The option to do nothing is not an option its a failure.

Yeah sure, just get out the hatchet and start swinging.

No need for reasoned analysis of the costs and benefits.

He started with the easiest cutting he could do without causing harm to either the business or employees. I would say that a pretty reasoned approach why would you have a problem with that approach when you're calling for

reasoned analysis of the costs and benefits

The amount of productivity lost on this distraction was far more than the few pennies saved.

It's ok that you suck at economic and financial analysis... most do.

 

[Robert]

Yeah sure, just get out the hatchet and start swinging.

No need for reasoned analysis of the costs and benefits.

He started with the easiest cutting he could do without causing harm to either the business or employees. I would say that a pretty reasoned approach why would you have a problem with that approach when you're calling for

reasoned analysis of the costs and benefits

The amount of productivity lost on this distraction was far more than the few pennies saved.

It's ok that you suck at economic and financial analysis... most do.

Yes I'm so very sure that "Turning off a Monitor" is a Huge Imposition to the users who are not using the monitor in the first place.

I deal with whining like this all day long I've heard every possible combination of complaint that could possibly be muttered and in the end it doesn't matter Productivity isn't harmed and wasn't harmed and in the same circumstance ten's of thousands have been saved by making simple changes.......all that was required was to start the process. Doing nothing is a failure.

 

[manifold]

He started with the easiest cutting he could do without causing harm to either the business or employees. I would say that a pretty reasoned approach why would you have a problem with that approach when you're calling for

The amount of productivity lost on this distraction was far more than the few pennies saved.

It's ok that you suck at economic and financial analysis... most do.

Yes I'm so very sure that "Turning off a Monitor" is a Huge Imposition to the users who are not using the monitor in the first place.

I deal with whining like this all day long I've heard every possible combination of complaint that could possibly be muttered and in the end it doesn't matter Productivity isn't harmed and wasn't harmed and in the same circumstance ten's of thousands have been saved by making simple changes.......all that was required was to start the process. Doing nothing is a failure.

When a person who costs the company more than $1,200 per day spends three days on a crusade that ultimately saves the company $67, that's a negative return skippy.

 

[Robert]

The amount of productivity lost on this distraction was far more than the few pennies saved.

It's ok that you suck at economic and financial analysis... most do.

Yes I'm so very sure that "Turning off a Monitor" is a Huge Imposition to the users who are not using the monitor in the first place.

I deal with whining like this all day long I've heard every possible combination of complaint that could possibly be muttered and in the end it doesn't matter Productivity isn't harmed and wasn't harmed and in the same circumstance ten's of thousands have been saved by making simple changes.......all that was required was to start the process. Doing nothing is a failure.

When a person who costs the company more than $1,200 per day spends three days on a crusade that ultimately saves the company $67, that's a negative return skippy.

Well Skippy you have yet to suggest any other solution in fact if we are to understand your stance on the matter nothing should have been done because in your view it wasn't worth the effort yet the effort was quite small and the return over time is quite large. Never run a business have you?

 

[manifold]

Yes I'm so very sure that "Turning off a Monitor" is a Huge Imposition to the users who are not using the monitor in the first place.

I deal with whining like this all day long I've heard every possible combination of complaint that could possibly be muttered and in the end it doesn't matter Productivity isn't harmed and wasn't harmed and in the same circumstance ten's of thousands have been saved by making simple changes.......all that was required was to start the process. Doing nothing is a failure.

When a person who costs the company more than $1,200 per day spends three days on a crusade that ultimately saves the company $67, that's a negative return skippy.

Well Skippy you have yet to suggest any other solution in fact if we are to understand your stance on the matter nothing should have been done because in your view it wasn't worth the effort yet the effort was quite small and the return over time is quite large. Never run a business have you?

Epic strawman fail.

I never said nothing should be done. But I suspect you know that already and are being intentionally obtuse.

But whatcha gonna do?

 

[Robert]

When a person who costs the company more than $1,200 per day spends three days on a crusade that ultimately saves the company $67, that's a negative return skippy.

Well Skippy you have yet to suggest any other solution in fact if we are to understand your stance on the matter nothing should have been done because in your view it wasn't worth the effort yet the effort was quite small and the return over time is quite large. Never run a business have you?

Epic strawman fail.

I never said nothing should be done. But I suspect you know that already and are being intentionally obtuse.

But whatcha gonna do?

Nice Dance.....but I would suggest keeping your day job.

 

[manifold]

Well Skippy you have yet to suggest any other solution in fact if we are to understand your stance on the matter nothing should have been done because in your view it wasn't worth the effort yet the effort was quite small and the return over time is quite large. Never run a business have you?

Epic strawman fail.

I never said nothing should be done. But I suspect you know that already and are being intentionally obtuse.

But whatcha gonna do?

Nice Dance.....but I would suggest keeping your day job.

Thanks for the advise... and the dance.

And the next time someone backs up their anti-welfare diatribe with actual facts and figures will be the first. I thought maybe you were gonna be that person but alas you're JAFA.

But whatcha gonna do?

 

[Ravi]

I bet Robert is one of the dolts that melted down with laughter when Obama suggested people should check their tire pressure because properly inflated tires save money.

 

[Two Thumbs]

How-Your-Tax-Dollars-Are-Spent: Personal Finance News from Yahoo! Finance

The biggest single chunk of that so-called nondiscretionary spending -- more than 20 percent of the total budget -- is used to pay Social Security benefits to existing retirees.

Another 15 percent pays the tab for Medicare health benefits. An additional 7 percent goes for Medicaid, 3 percent for veterans benefits and 1.3 percent for supplemental security income used to assist the aged, disabled and blind.

In fact, all government payments to individuals amount to about 58 percent of the budget. That's twice the share of the budget such payments claimed 40 years ago. And the percentage continues to climb -- giving those pushing reform of such entitlement programs a powerful argument.

Interest on the debt claims about 10 percent of the budget. When President Bush took office, the national debt was $5.6 trillion, but deficits have pushed that number closer to $9 trillion today.

The military gets the biggest piece of what's left -- the 30 percent of the budget called discretionary spending because it's the part of the budget that Congress and the White House can control from year to year


SS = 21%
Defense = 20%
welfare = 16%
medicare = 15%
intrest on the debt = 10%

So based on your analogy. We should be sticking it to senior citizens and then to Vets, again.

The people that produced all thier lives and the people that die in our stead should be first to take hits over people on welfare.

Awesome dude.

 

[manifold]

I bet Robert is one of the dolts that melted down with laughter when Obama suggested people should check their tire pressure because properly inflated tires save money.

A fast horse indeed.