Good Riddance 2009
Last year saw a lot of ups and downs. We started off watching the car industry with some disgust, questioning the culture of mediocrity that allowed the situation to spiral out of control. We say: Too big to fall? Too big to exist. Get on top of your credit and take control of your life. [...]
The King of Pop Passes Away – Everything Else Stops?
photo credit: Current News Stories The American media in particular takes a lot of flak about it’s worship of celebrities when the rest of the world is just as obsessed (I’m thinking in particular of the tabloid journalists in the UK and their constant hounding of royalty, Lily Allen, etc). When Twitter is the most [...]
Venture Capitalists are Crashing the Party
Apparantly venture capitalists are considered part of the larger economic problem, posing a significant risk to the stability of the financial system; even though the average VC doesn’t use debt and draws its funds from wealthy investors (e.g. the way companies are supposed to work. Conspiracy theory: maybe this re-arrangement is the beginning of the [...]
Obama Aims to Battle Debt
photo credit: achichi Obama has a plan in the works for battling the deficit that will see it shrink from $2 trillion this September to around $500 billion by 2013, according to the Washington Post. Although the target debt ratio is high – around 3% – according to the White House that number would be [...]
Culture of Mediocrity
Let’s talk about mediocrity. We are a society of followers (ever hear the phrase ‘Monkey see, monkey do’?) We are trained to do what the leader does and to act like the cool kids. We want flash, style, appeal, and success. There are phases we go through – when we follow, when we adapt, and [...]
Bailout Money Could Have Come From Executive Bonuses
What happened to the idea that “the captain goes down with the ship”? According to a post at Factesque, the Associated Press took a look into how much of the federal bailout money was spent on paying for the salaries of those. As it turns out, the money used for that purpose was relatively small [...]
Automakers Get Bailout
This morning the White House announced $13.4 billion in loans to the Big Three automakers in Detroit, with an additional $4 billion handout waiting in the wings for February. In return the automakers will let the government inspect their books and promise not to fly their executives around in fancy jets. There is a satirical [...]
The eBay of Pigs
Remember those junky flea markets that used to pop up in small towns on Saturdays, selling everything from sports cards to handmade clothes? There was that toothless old lady with a table of home-made treats; don’t worry, there isn’t any danger of food poisoning here. Remember the guy with the van of electronics? If he [...]
Canadian Coalition Weakens
In a stunning development (can you feel the sarcasm?), MPs involved in Canada’s Liberal-NDP coalition have gone on record speaking about dissent and mistrust within the ranks. Apparently the Liberal party does not trust the NDP membership. Now that Parliament has been suspended and the government cannot be toppled until January, these power-hungry children don’t [...]
American Car Manufacturers Cry Foul… Again
Is there a year that goes by without North American car companies crying wolf? The newest excuse is the economic downturn is causing the companies to go belly-up. Give me a break, please! The automotive industry has been suffering for a long time and will continue to do so whether or not they are “bailed [...]
