The Slow Bleed

The (Waterford) Glass is Half Cracked

Godfather — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 10:12:21 +0000

Perhaps now the right people will realize we are in a down economy (globally). Waterford Crystal (actually the company is called Waterford Wedgwood PLC) has filed for bankruptcy.

Waterford has been an iconic name for over 250 years. It is the crème de crème when it comes to glassware. It seems people are cutting back on the high-end pottery (I wonder if they are selling more Dixie Cups?).

The dirt?

Waterford is hoping to sell the company. The stock is at one-tenth of one cent and certainly its 7,700 employees are hoping for a positive outcome other than a nice dinnerware set for severance.

Waterford is just one of many British companies feeling the pain lately. Woolworths (department store), Whittard of Chelsea (tea maker), and Royal Worcester (ceramics) are already in bankruptcy protection.

As priorities and expendable incomes change, I suspect this is only the beginning of high-end product manufactures going out of business.

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What I Learned in NYC on New Years…

Godfather — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 13:45:34 +0000

Call it a “Wish List,” “Bucket List,” or just a plain “Crud-I-want-to-do-before-I-die” list. No matter what you call it sometime in late October the idea of hitting New York City’s Times Square for New Years Eve seemed like the thing to do.

Granted it is not the same as saying “I want to see a sunset in Greece” or “Flying a Stunt Plane” but it was worthy of something to do. Besides, how many things can you really do on New Years Eve anyway?

We purchased tickets, reserved a hotel in the heart of the action, and watched the weather as the departure day arrived. Although we have been to NYC before (never in the winter), here is what I learned on this trip.

Seven Things I Know About New York…

1. New Yorkers are the only people on this earth that, as a whole, walk faster than I do.

2. You can’t eat cheap anywhere near Times Square – so don’t try.

3. The Tree and Ice Rink in Rockefeller Square are much smaller in person.

4. The Metropolitan Museum of Art is open almost every day of the year -but was closed on the day we went.

5. The “Ball” in Times Square is much smaller in person.

6. Paying $23 for a Rueben at Carnegie Deli is worth every penny.

7. In winter it can be cold. Not the “Hey, do I need a jacket cold” more like the “Hey, will I still be able to walk normally when I lose a couple toes to frostbite cold.”

So how was the weather? Here is your 12:13am (2009) weather clip just after the ball dropped in Times Square. Of course it does not take into account the 45-50 mph wind gusts.

Was it worth the trip? Well, it is one of those things you need to do at least once…or just watch it on TV.

A few more pics…

MMMMMM, worth every penny!

Times Square Ball...up close and personal

The tree and ice rink are much smaller in person!

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The Canoe Race

Godfather — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 22:20:12 +0000

Ok, as Detroit gets billions for a bailout I am reminded of the analogy below. Sure it is suppose to be a joke but it hits the mark more than it does not. The argument that “you can not build a car in the U.S.” does hold true when many other car makers (other than the Detroit 3) are doing just that.

The Canoe Race…

A Japanese company ( Toyota ) and an American company (General Motors) decided to have a canoe race on the Missouri River . Both teams practiced long and hard to reach their peak performance before the race.

On the big day, the Japanese won by a mile.

The Americans, very discouraged and depressed, decided to investigate the reason for the crushing defeat. A management team made up of senior management was formed to investigate and recommend appropriate action.

Their conclusion was the Japanese had 8 people rowing and 1 person steering, while the American team had 7 people steering and 2 people rowing.

Feeling a deeper study was in order; American management hired a consulting company and paid them a large amount of money for a second opinion.

They advised, of course, th at too many people were steering the boat, while not enough people were rowing.

Not sure of how to utilize that information, but wanting to prevent another loss to the Japanese, the rowing team’s management structure was totally reorganized to 4 steering supervisors, 2 area steering superintendents and 1 assistant superintendent steering manager.

They also implemented a new performance system that would give the 2 people rowing the boat greater incentive to work harder. It was called the ‘Rowing Team Quality First Program,’ with meetings, dinners and free pens for the rowers.

There was discussion of getting new paddles, canoes and other equipment, extra vacation days for practices and bonuses. The pension program was trimmed to ‘equal the competition’ and some of the resultant savings were channeled into morale boosting programs and teamwork posters.

The next year the Japanese won by two miles.

Humiliated, the American management laid-off one rower, halted development of a new canoe, sold all the paddles, and canceled all capital investments for new equipment. The money saved was distributed to the Senior Executives as bonuses.

The next year, try as he might, the lone designated rower was unable to even finish the race (having no paddles,) so he was laid off for unacceptable performance, all canoe equipment was sold and the next year’s racing team was out-sourced to India

Sadly, the End.

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Bailout Bandwagon Full…Please Catch Another

Godfather — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 17:24:58 +0000

The bailout soup line is getting longer and longer. Heck, it is around the block. It seems since the automakers got their chuck of bailout cash that more and more groups are getting into the action.

Now property developers and managers are letting the government know that thousands of hotels, shopping malls, and commercial buildings are headed into foreclosure and bankruptcy unless the government steps in and helps.

The industry is looking for a piece of the $200 billion the government set aside for car, student loans, and credit-card debt.

We got it. We are all hurting. But does this qualify you for a government bailout and just when did this “you owe me” mentality start anyway? Certainly the country was not founded on it.

If this is the new mentality than everyone should get in line…

Starbucks Barista’s – With coffee sales down 100% and no one buying mocha-frappa-asiago coffees, your tips are way down – get in line!

Movie Ticket Taker – Come on. Blockbuster, cable and downloading off the Internet are cutting into your action in this time of cut backs – get in line!

Wal-Mart Greeter – Hell, your position is downright dangerous as people push each other to find a deal on a Beanie Baby – get in line!

Fur Coat Maker – Between the political incorrectness of buying a fur coat and the damaging economy, you must be hurting – get in line!

Santa Claus – Gift giving is down a bazillion percent this year. That puts unforeseeable pressure on the North Pole to deliver gifts – get in line!

I suppose I could go on and on but in light of the holiday season I will stop at this point. I just don’t get it. I don’t like the situation any more than anyone else, but I don’t think we should be bailing out those groups that couldn’t save for a rainy day.

Feel free to ad your favorites to the list!

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So Long VHS, I Will Miss You

Godfather — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 22:39:57 +0000

Consider it an end to an era. 8-tracks, cassette tapes, and now the VHS tape are all going the way of the dinosaur. The last of the VHS suppliers, Distribution Video Audio Inc, is shipping the last of its VHS inventory and closing its doors.

The last major film released on VHS was “A History of Violence” in 2006 (get ready for that to be a Trivia question in the future). Ironically enough, this year’s comedy with Jack Black, “Be Kind Rewind,” was all about a VHS rental store – the funny part is that it was only available on DVD and Blu-ray.

I still have some VHS tapes lying about. The problem is that I don’t actually have a VHS player. Holding the tape up to the light and flying through the tape does not appear to be an option.

First three tapes on my VHS shelf? Funny Bones, Shawshank Redemption, and George Lucas in Love.

So, what is on your VHS shelf?

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Clinton’s Donor List Revealed…

Godfather — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 21:22:31 +0000

The secret is finally out. Where did all the money come from? Bill Clinton has disclosed the 208,000 donors to the Clinton foundation and presidential library. This was largely a requirement for Hillary to take the Secretary of State position and show no “outside influences.”

In total Clinton’s foundation raised at least $41 million from foreign governments (good to know when you are about to be Secretary of State).

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia alone looks to be close to $20 million. That includes the Saudi royal family, the governments of Kuwait, Qatar, and Dubai. Additionally, there are three Saudi businessmen that donated over $1 million. Here are some of the heavy hitters…

Over 10 million dollars…

AUSAID

Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Stephen L. Bing

COPRESIDA-Secretariado Tecnico

Fred Eychaner

Over 25 million dollars…

The Childrens Investment Fund Foundation

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The Real Cereal Killer Revealed…

Godfather — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 21:22:58 +0000

I think I have to turn my wife in. I am puzzled about what action to take or even what entity I am suppose to report her actions to. You see my cereal has been replaced.

I am a sucker for sugar cereals. Not just for breakfast, they make an excellent afternoon snack. Lucky Charms is a good stand by. As is Captain Crunch. I have to give the edge to Lucky Charms because you can have three times as many bowls before you destroy the roof of your mouth (Captain Crunch is a killer in that department).

You normally wouldn’t think much of it if someone had replaced your cereal with a slightly healthier cereal; you know, something with bark, twigs, and berries. But that is not the case here.

We typically keep the sugar cereal in a big Tupperware bin. Ok, not really “big,” it is about twice the size of a cereal box. Yesterday I poured a bowl of what I assumed to be Lucky Charms.

The moment the first bit hit the tongue I knew something was amiss. Not in a bad milk or stale cereal sort of way, with those things you can make an immediate assessment to continue on or not. No, this was something “wrong” with the cereal. The marshmallows did not have the same sugary bite. The non-marshmallow part of the cereal (we will just call it useless “filling”) also tasted a bit off.

Since there was no box around I had to address the issue with her face-to-face. Apparently, times are tough. Secondary “off brand” cereals are much cheaper…you can practically “buy twice as much.” I heard the words but they were falling short. Apparent ramblings of someone who clearly had no clue as to the integrity of sugar cereals or the loyalty that goes with them. They all had been replaced…

Lucky Charms had been replaced by Rucky Marms

Captain Crunch had been replaced by Flight Attendant Crackle

Fruit Loops had been replaced by Tropical Figure Eights

Sugar Smacks had been replaced by Sweetened Butterfly Kisses

Frosted Flakes had been replaced by Ice Igloos

This type of behavior is simply not acceptable. Hopefully, when she gets around to reading my blogs she will find this and realize the error of her ways.

She is a great person. Sure she is my best friend. Sure we have years of history together; but I now understand how the “friends and neighbors” never see cereal killers like this coming – it is always the nice, unassuming people that surprise you.

****Godfather Update 12/22/08****

As you can see by the photo, the situation has been, for the time being, resolved. The Godfather personally visited the store to acquire a stockpile (ok a weeks worth) of “Godfather Approved” cereals.

This was no small step. It required hitting the $1.99 sale and maneuvering a faulty DOT cart throughout the store. Did you know they sell other foods in the store as well? I could have been easily distracted, and certainly a lesser man would have, but I succeeded in my mission.

Now, if I could just find out where milk comes from…

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Fed Lowers Rates…So Much For Natural Selection

Godfather — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 20:01:21 +0000

The Federal Open Market Committee decided today to establish a target range for the federal funds rate of 0 to 1/4 percent. Now if that seems low to you that would be because it is. If that seems “too low” to you, you would once again be right…it is.

Basically, we are running out of room to lower rates. We are continuing to try and find a quick fix to what needs to be a correction.

Capitalism is like survival of the fittest. Or, at the very least natural selection. Weak animals disappear, stronger ones survive. Companies are the same way. Those that are well run survive; those that fall apart are supposed to fail (and let the next company step up to the plate).

That is the way it has always been…until now.

Now we are trying to manipulate a free market. We want the market to function by itself (free trade, etc) but now we are trying to “help” the ones that should fail. So what happens when you do this?

1. The “saved” company that should have failed will most likely still fail - you will have just wasted your money. Unless the company undergoes radical changes (which is typically unlikely) it will not survive - it is merely on life support for a while. Unfortunately, those funds supplying that life support come at an expensive price to the taxpayers.

2. The “next in line” companies do not get their shot. Matter of fact, since they are not being helped in a newly manipulated market, they may fail.

I still believe that we should not have done the bailouts. I think it would have been a difficult and painful decision to not bailout some companies, but it is going to hurt even more when we can’t keep feeding them money and we are a trillion dollars into it.

If you truly believe in capitalism, you have to let it correct itself.

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Relief for Credit Card Holders?

Godfather — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 15:36:27 +0000

Ok, I think I have had enough. The Federal Reserve is looking at taking a new tactic on repairing the economy by addressing credit card use (and debt). The Fed will vote on Thursday “on sweeping reform of the credit card industry.”

I am not going to get into a “who is responsible” debate but I am going to say, for the most part, excess credit card debt is a choice. Yea, yea, I know, plenty of people have it rough and had to turn to credit cards - but that is the minority. Go back five years and there were plenty of big screen televisions and vacations thrown on those cards. Now you bail them out?

While some of the Fed’s ideas on the table are pretty good and protect the consumer, what about those people that don’t have credit card debt? It seems more and more everyday the people that are not going to get any kind of break are the ones that lived within their means and saved for a rainy day.

I see it every day. Hardworking people falling deeper and deeper behind. Not because they abused the system, far from it - Because they tried to prepare for it and did the right things; just came up short.

Would you have been better off taking a bunch of cash out of your house, buying toys and traveling, then giving the house back to the bank or getting a “forced” mortgage write down? Sometimes I wonder.

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Can Detroit Hire a Drug Lord?

Godfather — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 15:14:44 +0000

Let’s face it, we need help. Detroit needs someone with innovation. You know, someone with new ideas. Let’s take a bad guy, give him some legitimate responsibility and watch the automakers in Detroit sore (or surf) to new levels.

My nomination?

Colombian drug dealer, Enrique Portocarrero. He designed and built over 20 fiberglass submarines for smuggling drugs. Known as “Captian Nemo,” Portocarrero created such innovations as a bow that produced very little wake and a valve system that enabled the crew to sink the sub in as little as 10 minutes.

Recently arrested, this is the guy we need in Detroit, maybe even the new automobile Czar. Bad guy turned good. Give him enough incentive and Detroit could have cars that get 200 miles per gallon, fit in your wallet, and change colors based on your mood. The downside is that there may still be drugs in the spare tire.

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