Tag Archives: News

March 5, 2011 · 9:21 pm

Random Reads

Saturday I was up at 5:45am. For no, good reason, other than I seem to have to operate on defective corgi’s time clock these days. He has figured out that the doesn’t have to get on the bed to get me up in the morning. If he just scratches at the covers for 20 minutes or so I will get up and do his bidding.

Once again, if a dog had opposable thumbs and could actually get me a damned cup of coffee in the morning, this would go a lot better for all of us. As it is he rules by terror.. “Get up or I WILL crap in you hallway, and you can beat me all you want.”

Having a bad case of the am boredoms I went out to get the paper.

Or weekend paper has been a source for at least three different pieces in this space, because our douchebag weekend delivery lady refused to put on the front porch. No, she has to use the spot on the post where the newspaper bucket used to be, the one I removed two years ago to remind her to put the thing where I can reach it in the nude without offending anyone except my neighbor directly across the street. And, since his kids are all 20 somthings and out of the house, I care not.

So.. some running commentary from the morning paper, I’ve been on a roll the last few days, by other accounts I assure you, I think because the bronchitis or pneumonia or what ever I had that was wiping me out, has finally resolved. This confirms my man sense that no matter what the symptom, if you wait long enough it will resolve with out medical attention. One way, or the other.

Sit down and get a glimpse into my head, as I read the paper.

Jobs

Headline is more jobs are out there, but we have a long way to go. Reported unemployment rate is 8.9%. This is DEEPLY concerning to politicians of the Republican variety because if this trend continues we could see the reelection of the Muslim in Chief.

On a side note I did enjoy Mike Huckabee’s speech on Obama’s growing in Kenya and being tainted by commie relatives who witnessed the MauMau rebellion. Scratching my head I don’t know where to start, I thought it was an Indonesian Madrassa that indoctrinated him. I thought he was born in Kenya, faked the birth certificate in Hawai’i, then went to Indonesia and became a Muslim, then met with the Illuminati to be anointed King of the World. It all makes my head spin and I wish someone would explain it to me.

Tubby Smith and the Demise of Minnesota Nice

Gopher’s Basketball coach Tubby Smith has been upset this year over the chants and taunts that Gopher Fans have leveled against opposing teams in the Barn. Early last week he sent out an email to students and season ticket holders admonishing them to clean up their act. He closed with “I promise to bring our A-Game to the remaining three games at the barn if you promise to bring your A-Game too. Based on the Gophers play the last two, I’m thinking the barn should be rocking on Saturday with profanity. Or maybe a chant of “A-Game” for 20 minutes while the Gophers stink up joint. Again.

Rapist says he deserves freedom

A chronic sex offender with more than 90 offenses on his record says “I deserve another chance”. I’m laughing and barfing at the same time. That hearing should be about 30 seconds long if all is right in the world.

Rocket Falls to Sea

For the second time in two years, and for the same reason, a NASA global warming monitoring satellite has plummeted into the Pacific, a half billion dollars down the toilet. I’m sure that by the time my kids are my age we’ll be watching the Europeans and Chinese in space and remembering when we used to be able to that too.

But at least the greedy teachers aren’t unionized anymore.

Mexico still a hot ticket for Minnesotans

No shock here, beheading at the hands of a Los Zetas operative is faster than freezing to death I think, just say’n. 40 below zero. If you’ve never felt it you should, then you’d understand.

Still better than Padre Island however.

Or anywhere in Florida.

Charlie Sheen

What’s not been said yet? Douchbag.. (BTW I can’t say that out loud anymore, someone objects. What if I went with the gender neutral “enema bag”? No good? Shorten to “fleet”? I like that.. “He’s a fleet”.

No one gets it, Yet.. I may have found a way to leave my mark on the world, introduce a new term to the vernacular.

I could care less, artists, composers, actors, bloggers.. we’ve been self destructive for years. I can’t tell you the pressures that writing this blog has brought down on me. If wasting money on comics and indie band MP3’s were a drug, I’d be right there with Charlie. Train wreck.

Minneapolis Baby treated for measles

While we’re tracking Obama’s sorted past, same folks are not vaccinating their kids because.. again massive confusion for me. Global Warming is a hoax BUT vaccinations causing autism is not? We were so close to eradicating measles until Lisa Bonnet and her ilk, starting telling us that we were killing our kids.

Blows me away who we trust and we don’t in this society.

From the Sports Dept-

Oldest kid, Michigan Tech.. the Tech Hockey team lost their game vs. North Dakota last night, by the typical 5 goals. The might Huskies will finish the season at the bottom of the WCHA. The HATED North Dakota Fighting not mentioning Native American mascots here, especially the tribes have asked them to change it green guys have won the regular season. A-Gain. Tech finishes the season with 6 points, or 11 behind the next team with a 2-23-2 record.

Oh well, we saw them play twice, enjoyed ourselves, and tried to be supportive for a team that sucks as bad they do, I’m good and supporting losers. Which reminds me, better let the wife know I have three Timberwolves games next week.

Now, that being said this trend of crappy sports teams and my family may be coming to an end. We’re on the hunt for colleges for our middle kid now. Top of his list, Auburn. Which reminds me, I have to tell the Wife that Auburn is in the great state of Northern Florida… Southern New England?  She wasn’t aware that it is in fact in Alabama.

We’ve never been to Alabama, that will change this spring when go for a college tour. Lets see how this plays out.

 

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December 15, 2010 · 9:15 pm

Shameless Plug for MinnPost

I’m sort of done with blogging about snow, at least for a while.

I wish I was done with the snow traffic. Tonights edition I was stuck in Uptown Minneapolis, for HOURS. Gotta think about something else.

MinnPost- there you go.

For those of you who aren’t aware, especially those of you who live in Minnesota, Minnpost is news for newsies. Some of Minnesota’s best columnists and writers are trying to make a go of a new media model for folks like me, who like opinion and in-depth reporting.

MinnPost is also responsible for much of my expanded readership this year, thanks to Editor Justin Pihowski’s creation this year of Minnesota Blog Cabin.. and double thanks for Justin picking your’s truly as the top new blog to follow in Minnesota earlier this year. Not to mention that I’ve also had a couple of my postings be featured on this year on Blog Cabin.. it’s been a great ride and I have a lot to thank Justin and folks who took a risk two years ago to start MinnPost and attempt to make a go of a a new media model.

This is the time of year when MinnPost needs some help, the model calls for reader supported news. Just like we paid for the newspapers, and still do in my case. I’m doing my part in turn, and asking you to check out MinnPost, check in and read the content. And, if you enjoy it and find it worthwhile, consider helping them out.

 

 

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June 16, 2010 · 9:13 pm

End of Papers? Hold the Phone

Some great news in the Economist this week, the demise of the newspaper was premature. Last year at this time there was real concern that my former favorite paper, the San Francisco Chronicle was about to go under, yet another victim of the internet and the our addiction to instant information, coupled with our attention deficit issues that keep us from reading anything more than 144 characters.

Turns out, according to the Economist anyway, that end of my morning paper was a particularly American phenomenon. Who knew, but apparently papers in Europe and Japan are doing well, well better than they are here anyway. What gives? Is it that that our Euro-pals have more time on their hands to lounge around coffeeshops and pour or over newsprint for hours on end, courtesy of their welfare states? Maybe their standard of living doesn’t afford them access to electronic media, no laptops and flatsreens in the Czech Republic? Doubt it.

Turns out the issue there is how newspapers are run. In the United States, newspapers depend on ad revenue for something like 85% of their operating income. In Japan for example, that number is closer to 35%, the difference being subscriber revenue, a more sustainable model, which made them more recession proof than our newspapers, advertising budgets being especially susceptible to cuts.

Newspapers in this country however have reinvented themselves and returned to profitability in many cases. For an old guy like me this is great news. I don’t care how sexy the iPad is, it doesn’t leave ink on my fingers, and it doesn’t “read” like a newspaper. The bad news about this.. the newspapers have balanced their budgets by cutting expenses, many journalists and a lot of operations people. That and some content, not to mention they’ve Today’s newspaper is a shell of what it once was. This whole discussion was especially timely given that I’d just made the comment to my bride about our paper this morning, the Wednesday edition. Typically, when newspapers ruled, the Wednesday paper was a pretty thick one. It had a couple extra feature sections, the food section for example came on Wednesday. Saturday was the smallest paper of the week. These days.. with the exception of Sunday, they all kind of look like Saturday.

Our local papers have eliminated content all over the place, had to be done, I get that. I don’t, for example, believe that every paper in the country needs an movie critic. Back in the dark ages, when I was in Journalism school Tip O’Neil made the comment “All news is local”, the future of this medium is in local coverage. I consume local news much differently than I do big national or world stories. I like to browse my local news. There’s an awful lot that goes on around here that really don’t care about, a few things that I do. However, if you ask me on any given morning what I want to read about, I can’t tell you. That’s the beauty of a newspaper, I get to scan headlines and dive in on what interests me. Even the best news reader in the world has yet to be able to serve up news to match my mood on any given morning.

But, we’re changing too. Clearly the content management part of this business has to change. How does a great paper like the LA Times or Washington Post compete with “free”? How to they market to a country where most people don’t have the attention span to even read the paper. and finally what about all the great journalists out there, the reporters and columnists I love, where can one guy pay a reasonable amount for content and still see that they have get enough royalties to make a living.

I’m thinking the future for newspapers may not be bright, but its not as dim as was even a year ago. I do think we have a better idea of what its going to look like in the future. Like books I’m guessing we’ll have a solid core of readers who will cling to the newspapers, people like me. For me; coffee, a scone and a newspaper are a religious experience.

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November 20, 2008 · 11:24 pm

Sign of the Times

I can’t get in the car and turn on the radio these days with out putting myself through hours and hours of depressing talk about the state of the economy, the world on and on.. But before you stick your head in the oven and turn on the gas.. a soothing thought I’m sure lets put some thoughts out there. The world is confusing, but you have Dear Old Mr Sank here to pat your hand and guide you…

So, a few thoughts from your special friend Sank, I’m not the brightest guy in the world but here’s what I see/think…

Bailouts I could make the argument that the scope of these bailouts is a big part of the problem, I could also argue that things would be alot worse if it hadn’t been for the bailouts. At the end of the day I’m not comfortable with the government stepping in and supporting failed businesses. Just as I’m not going to be in favor of the government bailing out my over-extended neighbor by forgiving their home loans. Then again. I don’t know that I want to live next door to a house that’s going to be empty for a year or more.

Here’s my bottom line on the automotive bailout… I find it appalling that it took until day three of these hearings for someone in Congress to ask the f#’n car execs for a business plan. If it were me, I’d say no bail until the following occurs 1) Top execs at all three companies are replaced. By who? Hell, bring in Honda execs, they seem to have had the foresight to have understood how to make a car that makes money instead of being $1400 in the hole the day they roll off the line. 2) The existing UAW contracts are null and void, to be renegotiated. This Ron Gettelfinger dude is claiming that the UAW’s has already given blood, it’s managements turn. He’s right about it being managements turn, but he’s wrong about concessions. This is an industry that’s sick, the patient has cancer, and has had a heart attack. We’re treating the heart attack to keep them alive, but there’s a bigger problem. A MUCH bigger problem and both parties in this case have to decide is getting laid off permanently at $23.00 an hour better than keeping a job at $15.00 or so? Man, we’re all taking hits these days.

Presidential Transition So far Obama has been judicious in his cabinet selection. No radicals, no socialists, looks like we got Hillary at State, I like that pick. We got Dashale at Health and Human.. good choice there. Eric Holder is a solid choice at AG. Only blemish on his record, that stupid Marc Rich pardon. Sounds like Robert Gates will stay on at Defense.. I like that play a lot. Seriously. The one thing I’m curious about is where the change might be. We’re bringing back a lot of Clintonista’s, but then again the Clinton administration wasn’t bad.. I do really like Rahm Emanuel, or as we liked to say in the days of West Wing- Josh Liman, who was modeled after Rammie.

World Events Imports into US ports are down 10% in September. Chinese factories are shutting down left and right, production is slowing down big time. This creates a big a problem in that country. China has modernized by embracing capitalism but not a level I think they understand. There’s pretty good evidence to indicate that they Chinese have been lying for years about the rate of growth. Chinese fiscal year ends in January and in 4 weeks they have their year recapped and reported on? It takes the best accounting firms in the United States 2 months to generate the same information about their clients. The Chinese have been manipulating their currently, moving peasants from the country to the cities. Building away, being the factory for most of the products sold in this country…

Now that the Chinese are facing an economy with an employment deficit they won’t know how to handle. What do you do with 6% unemployment in a country of 1.3 Billion? That would be 78 million people without jobs in a country with little or no safety net. 6% is probably seriously understated should the economy continue to be in recession. Demand for Chinese products in the United States continues to erode, the Chinese economy does so faster and harder. For the Communists this has to be a big concern. These are people who have been told where to work and what to do for generations. Now you’re going to have them on the streets? The media has already reported the first job riots in China. 65000 factories have shuttered in China this year. The good news, this is creative destruction that capitalism creates. This may, more than anything, bring about profound regime change to China. This is the cost of engaging in the global economy.

Now, China is in peril. India on the other hand… I’m thinking they’re going to come through this much easier. For one thing, the Indian economy is built on the basis of free markets. While there is corruption and government intervention, Indians have a history of business acumen in government missing in Communist China. India is enjoys a better model for self sufficiency than China. I sort of attribute that to India amazing spiritual traditions. People in India haven’t been existing on government directives their whole lives, they’ve been free to make their own choices (mostly), and they recognize that there is something bigger than themselves and generally aren’t out screw thy neighbor in the same way I see Chinese business. 

Markets Seems like heady times just a few months ago when we were all worried about inflation. Gas was $4.00 a gallon. Some dumbshit Russian oil guy was thinking $200 a barrel oil by this year.. The market was at 1400.. those were the days. And just like that the crash of crashes. The Market gives up 43% of its value YTD… This is ugly no question.. I happen to believe that were not quite done sinking yet. There still some carnage left in the market. Citigroup will go down and no question that’s to rattle us. We’re going to see some old names in manufacturing cease to exist. Retailers are going to seriously thin the herd. Real estate companies are going to consolidate… and then.. it’s going start getting better. I think you’re going to see manufacturing jobs coming back to the United States. Agribusiness will be strong, there’s going to be a seriously pent up demand for homes and properties when people start feeling better about their own jobs. I don’t think that’s going to happen for another year or more. Again, the destruction cycle of our economy can be brutal.

On a lighter note, this pirate thing in Somalia is most amusing to me. Here you a non-functioning country of entrepreneurs who have found a way to bring millions of dollars into their communities. And while we don’t like their objectives, you have to respect their methods. Personally, I think using some of their ill-gotten gains to hire caterers and support services for their hostages and captured ships makes you think they’re the new modern pirate, Robin Hoods, ripping the da man to pay the local poor. If we really wanted to stop this shit we’d follow the direction of the Russian defense minister and put together multi-task force and invade the pirate stronghold and wipe’m out on the ground. Kudo’s to the Indian navy for sinking the other ship earlier this week.

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