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Eleanor Martinez

@northstar1939.bsky.social

2.2K followers 1.9K following 3.3K posts

San Jose, CA native living in VT on 9 wooded acres with husband of 41 years and our 2 elderly cats. NO RED or BLUEMAGA allowed! GOP is batshit crazy. Dems pushing right, making things worse for all of us while they lust for donor $$+ignore their voters.

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Eleanor Martinez @northstar1939.bsky.social · Feb 6

If you are bashing voters who stayed home/voted 3rd party, DO. NOT. FOLLOW. ME.
It's not the voters' fault that the Orange Domestic Enemy won. It's that of Dems doing the bidding of their donors instead of allowing the people to elect the candidate they want. Name-calling will be reported+blocked.

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Charles Keener @charleskeener.bsky.social · 7h

www.dailykos.com/stories/2025...

Trump’s Policies Are Driving the U.S. Economy Toward Structural Collapse

In 2025, the United States has entered a critical phase — not a temporary recession, but a systemic crisis born of the Trump administration’s second-term economic experiment. Donald Trump returned to ...

www.dailykos.com

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(((Sarah))) @smpa.bsky.social · 8h

All sorts of gigwork have the same problems; when freelance writing was still a way to make money I'd spend 45 minutes on 500 words and then get $2. Only way to make it equal to minimum wage was to plagiarize yourself, hey there *very* slightly different product descriptions, long time no see.

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(((Sarah))) @smpa.bsky.social · 8h

Extreme boos to piecework shenanigans. That's some flipping Potato Famine-era nonsense, when women made lace in their own homes so the wealthy could save on both labor costs and overhead and oh yeah, so their impoverished families didn't literally starve to death. And remained on the edge of that.

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Gene Locicero (he/they) @code-kobold.bsky.social · 12h

This also comes up in Miss Taipei's new video about the history of sweatshops in America
youtu.be/EqVb0DEc628?...

The Fabric of Exploitation | how immigrants fought sweatshops

YouTube video by Taipeiqueen

youtu.be

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derek guy @dieworkwear.bsky.social · 14h

It's hard to help Americans left behind because so much of US identity is rooted in individualism. The average American conservative holds all three positions at once:

— Virtue signals about supporting US manufacturing
— Against raising the minimum wage
— Buys foreign imports because they're cheap

HardPass4 on Twitter tweets: "I'm willing to pay more for quality products if they are made in America, by Americans, who are paid a decent income." The tweet shows Norman Rockwell's "Freedom of Speech" painting, which is often used to show the tweeter is expressing a brave opinion.

HardPass4 on Twitter tweets: "MINIMUM WAGE JOBS WERE NOT MEANT TO BE A CAREER. Why does no one understand this? Entry level jobs are STEPPING STONES to better jobs. No one wants to work towards that though."

HardPass4 on Twitter tweets: "Buy $5 gloves instead of $50 ones. Trust me." The tweet shows a box of "Gorilla Grip" gloves.

The label on Gorilla Grip gloves show they're made in China.

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Eleanor Martinez @northstar1939.bsky.social · 3h

When wages have been stagnant for decades, people have no other choice but to demand "cheap". "Cheap" costs, though. Replacing that item over and over again eventually costs more than the original, high price of the item.

Ultimately, low wages prevent people from paying for quality products.

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derek guy @dieworkwear.bsky.social · 14h

But after not getting enough orders, the company closed. Managing partner Kenneth Ragland said: “Lots of people talk about Made in the USA as being so necessary, but when the rubber meets the road, most Americans want cheap goods, which do not make it easy for US firms to survive.”

Excerpt reads: Garland Apparel Group is working to find the next occupant for the town’s long-standing Garland Shirt Company after a lack of orders to meet basic costs necessitate furloughs — and ultimately the closure — of the factory.

“The factory was placed on furlough in November. It was our intention to return to work, however, orders needed to keep the factory open and functional, did not materialize,” Kenneth Ragland, managing partner for Garland Apparel Group, told The Independent. “The factory required a minimum number of orders to meet basic costs and wages. The aggregate total of orders we had were simply far too low to support day-to day operations.”

During the period of November through today, company leaders have been working with several parties “who have a desire to acquire the factory,” Ragland noted.

“One transaction is now close to completion. I cannot opine on the buyer nor their plans, but I know they are North Carolina based and they have need for factory capacity, which Garland can provide,” Ragland stated.

Excerpt reads: Despite bringing back a majority of the workforce, and enjoying success for a couple years, the factory was fighting an uphill battle in the long run.

“The factory suffered from Brooks Brothers owning it too long, from Brooks not investing in basic upkeep or in better systems, and ultimately, the lack of interest in Made in the USA,” Ragland stated bluntly. “Lots of people talk about Made in the USA as being so necessary, but when the rubber meets the road, most Americans want cheap goods which does not make it easy for U.S. firms to survive.”

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derek guy @dieworkwear.bsky.social · 14h

I interviewed one of these factory workers in Los Angeles. She gets paid three cents to sew a zipper, five cents for a collar, and seven cents to prepare the top part of a skirt.

This is how fast fashion brands like Fashion Nova can put "Made in USA" tags on dress shirts that retail for only $25

"Every day at 6 am, Bilma boards a bus that shuttles her to downtown Los Angeles’s Fashion District. When she reaches the garment factory an hour later, she starts working immediately, without punching in. Like thousands of other garment workers in the United States, Bilma’s wages aren’t tethered to the clock but rather to the quantity of operations she executes. Three cents for a zipper or sleeve, five cents for a collar, and seven cents to prepare the top part of a skirt before she passes it onto the next sewing operator in line. Assembling an entire dress earns her a mere 15 cents. Bilma toils away on garments primarily for fast-fashion labels such as Fashion Nova, Lulus, and Lucy in the Sky, who prioritize quickly stocking on-trend items over the quality of materials. These companies peddle things like $80 maxi dresses, $25 poplin dress shirts, and $5 crop tops, all modeled by beautiful people and bedecked with the tantalizing promise of low-cost glamor."

"This worker payment system, known as “piecework” in the garment industry, is how US-based manufacturers can sidestep labor laws that require companies to pay at least the minimum wage. Rather than compensating Bilma for the exhausting 12-hour shifts—a regimen that, according to LA County’s minimum wage requirement, should yield $202.80—her pay is determined by the individual tasks she performs, which can fluctuate daily. Despite her adept handling of hundreds of garments a day, Bilma’s earnings typically linger around $50 per day. That’s $300 weekly for the standard six-day grind and $350 if she opts for Sunday labor. Doing what she can with this modest income, Bilma spends $400 a month to live in a two-bedroom apartment with six other people, some of whom are day laborers. In this crowded arrangement, two occupants squeeze into each bedroom, while two more lay claim to the living room. Bilma sleeps in the corner of the bustling kitchen."

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Eleanor Martinez @northstar1939.bsky.social · 3h

I know. I worked in a factory like that about 25 years ago. Those that made good money doing "piece rate" got the quick, easy operations b/c they were buddies with the boss. The rest struggled along. I don't miss it.

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derek guy @dieworkwear.bsky.social · 14h

As he puts it, a 3x mark-up "barely covers" the new costs he has to take on as an online retailer.

So the $45 shirt now retails for $135 instead of $180 — some savings for the consumer, but not massive.

Jacob Hurwitz in an American Trench shirt.

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derek guy @dieworkwear.bsky.social · 14h

Earlier this year, I interviewed Jacob Hurwitz, co-founder of American Trench. They mostly sell directly to consumers. To pay for the marketing, packaging, customer service, and other costs associated with retailing, Hurwitz says direct-to-consumer fashion models have to mark-up at least 3x.

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derek guy @dieworkwear.bsky.social · 14h

This is how a $45 shirt becomes $90 and then $180. This 2x multiplying through the chain is called keystone pricing.

So why can't the brand just sell it to a consumer for $90, cutting out the retail markup? Because if they become a retailer, they will need to raise prices to cover their new costs.

A clothing store with suits on the rack and bags on the shelf.

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derek guy @dieworkwear.bsky.social · 14h

The store is also in the business to make a profit. Their typical mark-up is 2x (many stores nowadays operate on 2.2x or 2.5x). This covers their cost of rent, utilities, maintenance, packaging, visual merchandising, fixtures, payroll, etc.

That means the consumer will pay $180 for the shirt.

A clothing store. There are some shirts hanging on the wall.

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derek guy @dieworkwear.bsky.social · 14h

Of course, you're in a business to make a profit, so you have to sell it for more than you paid. Typical mark-up for a brand is 2x (some can be 2.5x). This will help cover your other costs, such as design, warehousing, worker benefits, etc.

So you sell this shirt to a store for $90.

A bunch of plaid flannel shirts from Gitman Vintage. They were made in the USA.

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derek guy @dieworkwear.bsky.social · 14h

Let's say you pay $10 for the shirt fabric. Now your manufacturing cost is $45 per shirt ($35 CMT + $10 fabric). For simplicity, I have not included the cost of trims, grading, samples, or shipping.

Note, all this assumes you're using a factory that pays people fairly (more on this later).

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derek guy @dieworkwear.bsky.social · 14h

This two-parter below is exactly why it's hard to make clothes in the United States.

Let's look at how much it costs to produce a button-up shirt in the US. 🧵

Someone on Twitter replies to me: "meh. buy american or stfu."

Two hours later, in a separate thread, the write: "$30 for a single button-up is ridiculous unless it is decent quality silk."

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Sal @sal-m.bsky.social · 7h

Wouldn't have made a difference with Elon Musk and Peter Thiel interfering with the election.
They knew they were going to win months beforehand, and Elon Musk and Joe Rogan even bragged about it.

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Eleanor Martinez @northstar1939.bsky.social · 3h

So sad, too bad. He's getting the punishment he deserves. His "pro-prison reform" attitude only happened because it affects him. If he had avoided prison, he'd be the same evil SOB he's always been. He can rot there.

onion person @junlper.beer · 7h

just found out that about a week ago, while george santos has been in solitary confinement, that he wrote that due to the inhuman conditions he is facing he is now pro prison reform. just unreal stuff honestly

Twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, I paced in circles like a restless ghost.
The windows were frosted, allowing only a faint suggestion of daylight and nightfall, enough to remind me that time was passing, though I had little sense of how.
The shower water was always cold, and my only amenities were the steel toilet and sink fused together in the corner. It was a miserable existence. Yet, as I soon learned, misery can always be deepened
On September 7th, the warden's office saw fit to move me into something far worse, an even smaller cell, no more than seven by nine feet, coated in filth, reeking of neglect, and utterly devoid of natural light or ventilation.
In that suffocating shoebox, there is no room to walk, no hint of the sun, no trace of humanity. The silence is crushing.
The air feels stale. The walls themselves seem to close in. I keep asking myself: will this barbaric confinement ever end? Is this legal under our Constitution, or have I simply been erased from the protections of due process?
Most haunting of all, will I survive it? With no access to my family, no calls, no emails, and with letters that may never leave this building, I live in total darkness, cut off from the world I once fought to serve.
Let me be blunt: I find Warden Kelly's so-called "protection" not only unpalatable, but cruel and unjustifiable. My time here has opened my eyes to a truth far too many ignore: America desperately needs prison reform.

Eleanor Martinez @northstar1939.bsky.social · 3h

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tweety @bluskypolitics.bsky.social · Jul 29

📌 Hope this soul follows him

everywhere . A true hero 🐥

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Rylynne @amisfitnamedbri.bsky.social · 13h

Really wish Governors would step up and order their police officers to arrest the Jack Booted Gestapo agents when they do shit like this. I'd love to see them try to draw down on a state cop and see WTF happens then.
#AbolishICE
#ICEareStateSanctionedTerrorists
#Antifa

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Gregory Pratt @royalpratt.bsky.social · 13h

ICE/Border Patrol held a weapon on a guy who was demanding they show him their face in Rogers Park today

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Wajahat Ali @wajali.bsky.social · 7h

The only way we save our country is through our numbers.

Trump and MAGA don't have the majority, not even close.

Overwhelm them with numbers. Resist everywhere. They are too reckless, incompetent, and self-destructive.

Also, divide and conquer. Many fissures, especially around Epstein.

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Opinionated Bitch 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️🇺🇦🇵🇸🇺🇳🇪🇺🇫🇷🇸🇪🇦🇺🐈🦋🌈☮️❤️ @opinionbitch.bsky.social · Jul 12

#USA #UnitedStatesOfAlcatraz

#Trump #GOP #DOJ #SCOTUS #ICE

Rotten from the top down.

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The Japan Times @japantimes.co.jp · 3h

Teachers in Japan are paying out of their own pocket to prepare teaching materials and other supplies that are supposed to be covered by the schools’ budgets, according to a nationwide survey.

Many public school teachers pay out of pocket for work-related costs

Payments for expenses related to classes made up 58.8% of the cases, the highest rate.

ebx.sh

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