Friday Water Cooler

Only 7.7 million people have ever done 50 or more posts on Google+. Hard Numbers for Public Posting Activity on Google Plus (stonetemple.com). Various stats show Google+ to be, far and away, the biggest social network no one ever uses. But it lives on, because Google.

Meanwhile, neuroscience shows there are many reasons we keep returning to Facebook. The Secret Psychology of Facebook: Why We Like, Share, Comment and Keep Coming Back (blog.bufferapp.com).

Americans are spending $153 billion a year to subsidize McDonald’s and Wal-Mart’s low wage workers (wahsingtonpost.com). Ken Jacobs, Chair of the UC Berkeley Center for Labor Research and Education, writes about the fact that in the U.S., most social-program spending (52%) goes to people who already work for a living. Minimum wage is thus corporate welfare, plain and simple.

Warren Buffett, meanwhile, says raising the minimum wage "will hurt the poor" (bloomberg.com). And also war is peace, freedom is slavery, ignorance is strength.

By the way, that magical, mythical world in which McDonald's pays workers $15 an hour? It's called Australia.

Foxconn buildings are surrounded by netting to prevent suicide.

At Apple's Foxconn sweatshop supply facility in Shenzhen, China, suicides (totalling 19 in 5 years) seem to have subsided now that buildings have been completely surrounded by netting to keep workers from jumping to their deaths. Apparently the netting is a cost-effective alternative to, say, paying people more, or providing more humane work conditions. Where Apple Products Are Born: A Rare Glimpse Inside Foxconn’s Factory Gates (recode.net).

In 50-49 vote, US Senate says climate change not caused by humans (bangordailynews.com). I feel so reassured now. Don't you?

In Wisconsin, a bill to prevent Food Stamp recipients from buying shellfish (thinkprogress.com). What's with this creepy punish-the-poor fetish lately?

7 reasons why ‘I’ve got nothing to hide’ is the wrong response to mass surveillance (amnesty.org).

One Nation, Under Guard (NYTimes.com).

When A Rising Tide Sinks Most Boats (jacobinmag.com).

Why Are US Special Operations Forces Deployed in Over 100 Countries? (thenation.com)

In addition to well-known military bases around the world, the U.S. has around 11,000 Special Operations ("badged") personnel in 70 to 100 countries at any one time.

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