In one of his last journal entries, TorgoX provides a link to an interesting article.
It is encouraging to see that there are people working in that area, but at the same time it strikes me as sad that people would need research to figure out that happier, healthier, more educated, more relaxed people work a hell of a lot better, and are sufficiently more efficient than tired, bored, stressful people that work so much they have no time to stop and think about what they're doing.
In the past few years a fair number of european countries have drastically reduced the maximal weekly work hours, and often accompanied that with measures to make parental leave easier, and more equitable (eg fathers are entitled to it as well).
Most of the criticism that was to be heard was that it would "wreck the economy". The sheer stupidity of such a statement shows once more that the strongest proponents of capitalism are those that least understand it. It should come accross as obvious to any production-orientated mind that the better your production-force -- in this case the employees -- the better your profit.
And not without some irony, the very same people will claim that such enforcements are against democracy, which leaves one wondering where ignorance is to be found in such supplies as to foster such levels of stupidity.
All good political systems function on the premises that tbe "best" should rule, and vary on the way in which the "best" is/are selected. Democracy (to make a long argument short) works on the premise that a multitude, or at least some form of majority amongst a multitude, will be best qualified to elect a team of "best people".
How one can argue that a multitude of uneducated, sick, tired people that don't have the time to look beyond the wall of their cubicles will be qualified to elect the best is beyond me. A democracy is quite obviously as good as the education, health of its citizens, and as lively as the time they have to stop and ponder what's best.
Extremist work breeds the same people as extremist idleness: vegetable-brained morons with far more potential for good than they use.
Stupid White Men. It takes no prisoners and has no friends and, most of all, we all have something to feel shame about. It has a bit to say about work and education or lack thereof in America.
