March 23, 2008

One Liberal Latte, Venti with Extra Hypocrisy
Starbucks likes to pander to liberals with its Italian themed brews served from Pacific Northwest themed stores. Often partnered with bookstores to give it that high-brow appeal that liberals love, it also is in practically every grocery store and street corner in America.

Liberals have been in a funk with this corporate giant. Then again, liberals are always in a funk, but this really has them torn, too. Starbucks sets up shop right next door to the mom & pop coffee shacks and shops for the sole purpose of driving them out of business.

TLG is all for fair competition. Let the demand drive the market place. However, Starbucks, being a company run by liberals, hates competition. So, they will keep opening stores, sometimes three or more within a block, until there is no competition.

With the US economy failing since liberal democrats regained control of both houses of congress, Starbucks has seen their stock price plummet. Add to that, other corporate giants, such as McDonald's, have gotten into the gourmet coffee business.

It's to the point where Starbucks has actually begun to close stores and lay-off employees. That is a typical business move. Just as the mom & pop java joints closed so goes Starbucks. However, that belt-tightening wasn't enough for Starbucks.

No, Starbucks are liberals, but they don't have the power to tax like the government. So, they do the next best thing. They steal. No, not by their overpriced coffee and CDs. They actually steal...from their employees!

One of their now former baristas, as they call them (that's the same as a soda jerk from the fifties, but they pour coffee, not soda), Jou Chou, complained that his employer was taking money from the tip jar and giving it to Starbucks' managers. Not only is this immoral, but it is also illegal in California. He sued.

It turns out that the practice wasn't only isolated to the Starbucks where he worked, but all Starbucks. It was a corporate practice to steal tips from the baristas and give it to managers as a bonus. The lawsuit grew into a class action lawsuit.

On March 20, 2008, San Diego County Superior Court Judge Patricia Cowett ordered Starbucks to pay $100 Million to settle the lawsuit. Of course, Starbucks plans to appeal. They can't understand what is wrong from taking money from their lowest paid employees, the ones that actually do the work, and giving it to their managers.

To put this into perspective, Starbucks has an annual revenue of about $6.5 Billion with hundreds of millions of dollars in profits. Yet, they felt they needed to steal.

So, liberals, think about all the times you had an overpriced cup of Joe while you peruse your favorite tome at the bookstore after feeling good about tipping your barista. It's the same way the liberals in government try to make you feel good while they steal your money under the guise of taxes. You may "do it for the children," but the money goes into some democrat's pocket.

TLG

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