The Daily Graphic: McDonald’s Or Starbucks?

This is from the Pew Center for the People and the Press.  Thought it was intersting, self-exlpanatory.  My answer is: Starbucks!

Dow 7000?

Back on October 6, I predicted – well sort of predicted by writing a headline on some market news aggregation – Dow 8,000.  Based on the economic and financial industry news of that day just 2 1/2 months ago (seems longer) the Dow dropping to 8,000 and staying in that vicinity for some period of time seemed reasonable.

At the time we had been through Fannie and Freddie, Lehman was failing, more banks were failing and the federal government and media began explaining things like credit default swaps to America.  Things looked bad, but some were still touting the “fundamentals” of the U.S. economy and the publicly traded companies on our major stock exchanges shouldn’t pay too high a price (with dropping share values) for the excesses of the financial services industry.  Also at that time, I was reading Kevin Phillps’ book, Bad Money.  If you want a better understanding than the average bear – or bull – of the current U.S. financial system Bad Money is a must read.  At any rate, under the influence of that book, it was just obvious that as stocks dropped sharply that day there were probably many more shoes to drop, hence the market wasn’t at the bottom yet.

Now I’ll revise my estimate.  On top of the crisis in the financial system and all that it entails, from failing banks to a still too tight credit market there are many more economic indicators pointing to the final quarter of 2008 just being the beginning of a difficult economic downturn.  Here are a few things that immediately come to mind: Read more

Friday – Bob Dole for Veep, Starbucks releases closing list, Chester Finn Eats It, Strickland

• McCain spending more time on money than votes – Los Angeles Times

What was this guy doing for the three months he was the presumptive nominee and Barack and Hillary were still battling it out. My suggestion for next bad decision from McCain campaign: Bob Dole for Veep.

Starbucks to close nine stores in Ohio

The list is out and the Columbus metro area will lose six Starbucks out of a total nine for Ohio. I haven’t figured out if the six stores are the ones built next to or across the street from the Cup O’ Joes all over town, but I can report state workers and lobbyists will still be able to frequent the location on Third Street downtown. For the entire list of closed stores, go here.

• Editorial: Strickland trying to make business at home in Ohio – Cleveland Plain Dealer

Dear Naysayers: (Chester Finn) Eat it.

• Strickland: Federal agencies asked to look into DHL related antitrust issues – Wilmington News-Journal
• Satellite radio merger closer – Associated Press

Tuesday Evening Clips and Comments

• Starbucks closing more stores – Wall Street Journal

Ahhh, the promise of the “service economy.”  As for my local Starbucks(s) I love that Pike Place roast.

• Strickland’s Education Forums – Columbus Dispatch

Ohio Governor Ted Strickland has announced a series of 90-minute forums on reform of the state’s education system.  You can find more information from Strickland here.  Some may deride Strickland’s holistic look at education – but it’s not just about funding.  Oftentimes, derision is simple small-mindedness cloaked in “knowing” sarcasm.  After all, in Ohio we’ve gone basically a generation knowing we need reform of school funding.  In that time one thing has been addressed well: school building, through the Ohio School Facilities Commission.  Other than that, previous administrations and legislatures are rolling snake eyes.

When Ted Strickland holds a statewide conference on innovation and creativity in education, it’s not psychobabble it’s part of a different approach.  This latest move to hold forums, open to the public, throughout the state is another part of a different approach.  The forums are also classic Strickland – public involvement and transparency of government process. 

About the only thing naysayers have to hit Strickland with is what they seem to believe is foot-dragging on education.   It’s not foot-dragging, it’s also classic Strickland: a careful, reasoned, studied approach that includes stakeholders.  I can’t wait to see what he comes up with.

• D.C.’s Gang of Four on Peak Oil – Wall Street Journal

It’s heartening to see national media outlets begin covering the Peak Oil debate over the past couple of years.  Academics and oil companies have been struggling with whether or not or when the world will reach the peak of its ability to economically produce oil.  As the years go by, it seems that it’s no longer a debate of whethers or nots, but rather the whens.  In 1956 M. King Hubbert predicted the U.S. would reach its peak of production in the early 1970s — it did.

Current thinking by many who believe we are reaching the world production peak is that sometime in this first two decades of this century civilization will be there.  Past that point, it’s declining production, declining supply, and much higher prices.  The energy “Apollo Project” should have begun long ago. 

If you’re new to this subject or have just never seen the Chicago Tribune’s special report – Oil: A Travelogue of Addiction, it’s good stuff.  A great, although arguably a bit over the top accessible book on the subject is James Howard Kunstler’s, The Long Emergency.