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To: TobagoJack who wrote (49793)	4/18/2006 10:34:39 AM
From: shades	Respond to of 116555

Dear General, why are you still flying around in REALSPACE - virtual reality is the future eh? 8 million active subscribers and growing - they have grown tired of the real world - fantasyland is much better. mmogchart.com games.slashdot.org Where are the big ASIAN online games? India has all the IT people - can't they make something?

To: TobagoJack who wrote (49793)	4/19/2006 9:42:58 AM
From: shades	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 116555

DJ Wage Talks In Germany's Bavaria Collapse - Union (Chen, workers of the world are coming for your wealth - Run AWAY! - hehe) . BERLIN (AP)--Wage talks between Germany's largest labor union and industry leaders in the state of Bavaria collapsed Wednesday, amid warnings the country's 3.4 million manufacturing workers are moving toward a major strike. The IG Metall union in Bavaria declared talks with industry representatives had failed and suggested the union could decide as early as next week on whether to call a strike vote. IG Metall is seeking a 5% raise this year and has threatened full-blown strikes if no progress is achieved in talks going on in several states this week. Employers so far have offered 1.2% increases this year and next, plus variable one-time payments. Industry leaders expressed disappointment over the breakdown of talks after only half an hour. "We realize with disappointment that IG Metall does not want to take any new or innovative steps with us," said Helmut Keese, who is leading talks for employers in Bavaria. Ahead of the collapse of the Bavarian talks, the leader of the Gesamtmetall employers' federation suggested a strike was possible, though he held out hope of a breakthrough in talks in North-Rhine Westphalia state, which are to resume Friday. "I hope that we can snag a deal on Friday, but I'm not absolutely sure," Martin Kannegiesser told ARD television. Union leaders were expected to await the outcome of negotiations in several other of Germany's 16 states before deciding how to move forward during a conference early next week. If talks fail, the industry could see its first full-blown strike in four years start as early as next month, union officials said. In Germany, a settlement in one region generally sets the tone for the rest. Negotiations in the southern state of Baden-Wuerttemberg - home to U.S.-German giant DaimlerChrysler (DCX) and the dealmaker in the last round of talks - entered the sixth round Wednesday with industry leaders insisting they wouldn't make a better offer. "We will discuss what a resolution could even look like," Otmar Zwiebelhofer told reporters in the southern city of Boeblingen, where talks were being held. Talks were also continuing in Lower Saxony and a grouping of three other south and central states. The union argues workers deserve a bigger slice of healthy corporate profits and raising their spending power could underpin the economy, Europe's largest. Employers have dismissed the union's demands as unrealistic in view of tough international competition. The union already has staged brief warning walkouts over recent weeks, a common tactic aimed at demonstrating resolve but not seriously disrupting production. (END) Dow Jones Newswires April 19, 2006 09:40 ET (13:40 GMT)