Arizona immigration law

I put together some coverage for The Packer today on the troublesome immigration law in Arizona, which became effective Jan. 1. In the process, I found a couple of resources for those Fresh Talk readers seeking insight on Arizona's immigration law. First, here is the pdf of the federal judge decision denying a temporary restraining order that business and ag interests wanted. Here is the Web site from Arizona Employers for Immigration Reform, which provides a lot of background on the law and the legal points at issue.

Economy to shape immigration debate

Is the fading economy going to have a chilling effect on the push for comprehensive immigration reform and the tone of the immigration debate among candidates for the White House? Not much chance existed anyway for comprehensive reform in 2008, but my gut instinct tells the quivering economy will make the "pathway to legalization" for illegals harder yet to sell, as Americans are strapped for cash amid rising fuel and food bills at the same time the economy slows. Sounds like stagflation all over again.

I searched the Web for stories that might pick up on this angle and it wasn't hard. Here is one. From that piece:

`It's very good to talk about immigration, be tough on immigration while the economy's doing well," said Dawn McLaren with the W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University, adding that immigration remains in the spotlight ``because we have not gone into that territory yet where it says, okay, we are just in very bad shape. Everybody's losing jobs and we're in a terrible recession."

McLaren said the bottom line is that the economy will play a critical role in the immigration issue.

``The immigration problem is solved if you don't have the jobs for people to come here, and if the economy is doing badly, you don't have the jobs," she said.

TK: I kind of get mixed messages from McLaren; is he saying that it is easier to be tough on immigration in a strong economy or a struggling economy? My instinct would tell me it is easier to be tougher on immigration enforcement in a struggling economy. Here is another piece about the economy and politics, and another about what is doable in Congress next year.

Tomatoes - ready to rise

South Florida feeling the chill

Dodging a bullet

Apparently little damage to Florida citrus after cold temps this a.m. From Florida Citrus Mutual:


LAKELAND, Fla. (January 3, 2008) – The Florida citrus industry dodged a bullet early Thursday morning as low temperatures across the state failed to cause significant damage to the crop. There may be isolated areas that have minor fruit damage, however, temperatures did not dip low enough for long enough duration to create substantial problems.
“This is good news for growers, good news for consumers and good news for the state of Florida,” said Michael W. Sparks, executive vice president/CEO of Florida Citrus Mutual. “Mother Nature cut us a break this time and now we can continue to produce the quality citrus crop Florida is known for.”
“As reports come in, we fully expect to hear about pockets of fruit damage but as a whole the industry came through this in good shape.” According to grower reports, Arcadia reached 27 degrees, Wauchula hit 28 degrees, Sebring came in at 29 degrees and Vero Beach dipped to 33 degrees.
The United States Department of Agriculture has forecast a 168 million box orange crop which represents a 30 percent increase from the 2006-2007 season.

On shoplifting - no heroes wanted

The incident of the Whole Foods employee being fired after physically confronting a shoplifter draws some interesting responses.
First, the report from The Ann Arbor News:

John Schultz says he lost his job at Whole Foods Market in Ann Arbor after he tried to stop a shoplifter from making a getaway. But the company says he went too far and violated a policy that prohibits employees from physically touching a customer - even if that person is carrying a bag of stolen goods.

Schultz says he had just punched out for a break at 7 p.m. on Sunday when he heard a commotion at the front door of the store, 3135 Washtenaw Ave. He said he came to the aid of the manager who yelled for help in stopping a shoplifter. Schultz, the manager and another employee cornered the shoplifter between two cars in the parking lot.

Schultz said he told the shoplifter he was making a citizens arrest and to wait for the police to arrive, but the shoplifter broke away from the group and ran across Washtenaw Avenue and toward a gas station at the corner of Huron Parkway.

Before the man could cross Huron Parkway, Schultz caught up and grabbed the man's jacket and put his leg behind the man's legs. When the manager arrived at the intersection, Schultz said, the manager told him to release the shoplifter, and he complied, and the shoplifter got away.

Schultz said he was called to the store's office the next day, on Christmas Eve, and was fired because he violated a company policy prohibiting employees from having any physical contact with a customer.

Kate Klotz, a company spokesperson, said the policy is clear and listed in a booklet that all employees have to acknowledge that they received before they can start work.

"The fact that he touched him, period, is means for termination," said Klotz.

Schultz said he acted as a private citizen on property that isn't owned by Whole Foods, but Klotz said where the incident happened doesn't change the policy.

"He is still considered an employee of Whole Foods Market regardless of where he was and what was happening," she said.

TK: Over 50 comments were posted on this story. I'm with those who say firing the guy was the wrong thing to do. Here are a few comments from the crowd, posted to the Ann Arbor News story:

I didn't know shoplifters were customers either. I hope he sues them. Fired him on Christmas Eve! I hope he sues and wins!

Well lets see. according to the story, it implies that the "customer" was off of company property. How does that make him a customer anymore ? So because i have shopped there i am considered a customer, and none of their employees can physically touch me, regardless if i am on company property or not ? ala fark.com LAWSUITALARITY heading their way !

I

"He said he came to the aid of the manager who yelled for help in stopping a shoplifter" It appears the manager himself was acting in a way to breach company policy and even worse conspiracy other employee's to help him. I say fire him too! Lets be real...You fire an employee of 5 years, on Christmas eve for coming to the aid of a store manager off of the store grounds when he's on this break? There is so much wrong with the actions of this company I do not know where to begin. Shame on you Whole Foods Market!

Whole Foods market is said to be coming to a town near me. Since the corporate policy wonks seem to lack the intelligence to distinguish between 'customers' and criminals; since their 'no contact' policy led to the firing of an employee who was only trying to help -- at the direction of the manager, no less -- I plan on having no contact with Whole Foods. Anyone care to join me and make it an official boycott?

It costs more to eat healthy

A recent study delivers findings that don't exactly shock us, particularly with news that Wendy's just rolled out a 99 cent double cheeseburger on its value menu. The gist of a recent study published in the December Journal of the American Dietetic Association is that it costs more to eat healthy. From the journal's Web site, this abstract about the study, titled "The that Rising Cost of Low Energy Density Foods," by Pablo Monsivais and Adam Drewnowski.

Background

Consuming lower-energy-density foods is one recommended strategy for management of body weight. This cross-sectional study used retail food prices to test the hypothesis that low-energy-density foods are not only more costly per kilocalorie, but have increased disproportionately in price as compared to high-energy-density foods.

Design

For a list of 372 foods and beverages belonging to a food frequency questionnaire database, retail prices were obtained from major supermarket chains in the Seattle, WA, metropolitan area in 2004 and 2006. Energy density of all items was calculated and prices were expressed as $/100 g edible portion and as $/1,000 kcal. Foods were stratified by quintiles of energy density and the differences in energy cost and in percent price change were tested using analyses of variance.

Results

High-energy-density foods provided the most dietary energy at least cost. Energy cost of foods in the bottom quintile of energy density, beverages excluded, was $18.16/1,000 kcal as compared to only $1.76/1,000 kcal for foods in the top quintile. The 2-year price change for the least energy-dense foods was +19.5%, whereas the price change for the most energy-dense foods was −1.8%.

Conclusion

The finding that energy-dense foods are not only the least expensive, but also most resistant to inflation, may help explain why the highest rates of obesity continue to be observed among groups of limited economic means. The sharp price increase for the low-energy-density foods suggests that economic factors may pose a barrier to the adoption of more healthful diets and so limit the impact of dietary guidance.

TK: Coverage of this story suggests the need for changes in government policies to help people eat more fruits and vegetables. The WIC food package rule and the expansion of the fruit and vegetable program is a start, but much more needs to be done. "Little Debbie" - she of the 99 cent sugar-infused snack fame - continues to rear her winsome head in discussions of nutrition and affordability of food.