divineirony:

I’m no economist, but… It seems that the sole reason for a business to hire is because of demand for the product or service that business provides. If you own a widget factory, how does a tax cut on your widget profits spur job creation when nobody is buying widgets to begin with? Wouldn’t it be better to put more money in the hands of widget consumers? Maybe some incentives for widget usage?

At my job, when the boss gets a tax break, he doesn’t say “Oh! Now I can give my employees a bonus or a raise! Or hire someone to stand around, just to help them out with a job”; he says “Honey, let’s go to Paris for 10 days, and take the kids!”

theeconomist:

“We will tell you the recommended price for your meal, but it is up to you if you want to pay that, a bit more, or less.”

— A greeter at the door of Panera’s restaurant in St Louis explains the company’s unusual business model. The goal is to let customers who are feeling the strain of the weak economy dine with dignity among regular customers, with none of the stigma of the soup kitchen.