Potential Employers Check Social Networking Sites

A recent survey found that one in five employers checked out job applicants on networking sites like Facebook before hiring them. What do you think?

Cara Blumenthal,
Systems Analyst
“I should hope they do. I didn’t put the Zoolander quote generator application on my profile for nothing.”

Jason Shapiro,
Accountant
“Then I should probably remove ‘embezzling’ from my list of favorite activities.”

Jake Appelbaum,
Clothing Store Manager
“That’s fine, but what if you are trying to hire someone under 14?”

Today’s photo of the day is a promo picture for VH1’s latest show, Real Chance at Love. For those who don’t know, the show is a spinoff of I Love New York, which is a spinoff of Flavor of Love, which is a spinoff of Strange Love, which is a spinoff of The Surreal Life. They have officially jumped the shark!!! While I must admit that I recently watched I Love Money and Charm School, which are competition-driven spinoffs of the aforementioned shows, I am officially done! At some point, dignity and self-respect must come into play…

Today’s video of the day is a Barbershop classic. Enjoy!!!

Today’s video of the day is “Move” by Q-Tip, which comes from his new album Renaissance What do you think???

In his first major appointment, Barack Obama selected Rahm Israel Emmanuel as his chief-of-staff. For some, this is a brilliant strategic move. To me, this is a disturbing choice that may be a window into how the President-elect will govern.

In many ways, Emmanuel is the perfect choice for Obama. Emmanuel’s knowledge of Washington and his experience in the Clinton White House will undoubtedly prove to be valuable. Also, given his well-known reputation as a partisan attack dog, Emmanuel will be able to play the perfect “bad cop” for the new commander-in-chief. That said, this pick is quite disturbing.

Based on recent history, Rahm Israel Emmanuel is by far one of the most conservative politicians on his side of the aisle. As a member of the New Democrat Coalition, Emmanuel and his comrades have been major allies to the Right-wing’s efforts to undermine fair trade, disempower unions, and disregard environmental considerations. For example,  policies like the Clinton Crime Bill and NAFTA, which was heavily critiqued by Obama, are directly attributed to Emmanuel’s influence. For a president who got elected by distancing himself from Bush, Obama’s selection of a powermongering Lieberman Democrat wreaks of contradiction.

While most Democrats are attempting to responsibly reduce military spending, Emmanuel has repeatedly voted in favor of, and resisted attempts to limit, George W. Bush’s reckless and dangerous military expenditures. Also, Emmanuel was a hardcore supporter of the Iraq war, arguing that he would have supported the invasion regardless of whether or not weapons of mass destruction really existed. Today, Emmanuel continues to instigate military action against Iran by overstating its nuclear capacity.

Perhaps most disturbing about Emmanuel is his stance on Israel. As a fervent Zionist, he is further to the Right than President Bush on all  issues related to Israel. From Israel’s assassination policy to well-documented human rights abuses, Emmanuel has failed to offer the slightest critique of America’s most coveted ally. Of course, it is not difficult to find the filial source of Emmanuel’s stances. His father, Benjamin Emmanuel, was a well-known gun-runner for Irgun, a pre-Israel terrorist organization that launched a series of vicious attacks against Palestinians and British civilians. In 1991, Emmanuel himself volunteered for the Israel Defense Forces during the Gulf War.

To be sure, Obama’s choice of Emmanuel will allay the anxieties of many Americans who worried that he would govern from the far-Left. However, as someone who had deep wariness about Obama’s progressive bona fides, this choice leaves me feeling shocked and disappointed. For the legions of pro-Palestinian (or even pro-peace) activists who supported Obama’s candidacy, Emmanuel is unsettling. For the many Middle Eastern nations who celebrated the dawn of a new moment in diplomacy, his selection was provocative. For the millions of people who pushed the Obama-Biden button in hopes of choosing jobs over jails, peace over war, dialogue over destruction, the move was quite sobering.

Of course, it is no certainty that Emmanuel will be particularly influential in an Obama White House. While my gut says that he will be as powerful as Donald Regan and James Baker, he could turn out to be more like Andrew Card, who was notably impotent against Cheney, Rumsfeld and Rove. Still, purely on symbolic grounds, the selection of Rahm Emmanuel does nothing to inspire confidence that a progressive era is on the horizon.