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Night and Day
December 18th, 2008
This is not a column about Cole Porter, the great Broadway composer who wrote the wonderful song “Night and Day”. This column is about climate change and the urgent need for humanity to dramatically alter its’ energy equation.
At a recent global climate change summit in Poland, John Kerry, the ranking U.S. representative told the world community that the difference on the issue of climate change between the incoming Obama administration and the soon to be history Bush administration will be like “night and day”. He emphasized the commitment that Obama will have for facing global warming, creating alternative and renewable …
The Financial Golden Age of Sports 1996 – 2008
December 9th, 2008
We are coming to an end of the greatest financial age of sports in history. The twelve years between 1996 and 2008 were years when the money around sports exploded beyond any precedent era. This also means that, going forward, the economics around sports in general will decline, at least for the next 5-8 years if not longer.
The bookends for these 12 years of explosive financial growth are the Atlanta Olympics in 1996 and the Beijing Olympics of 2008. The Atlanta Olympics were the first post-cold war Olympics and, being held in the U.S. created a huge marketing platform. The …
America’s Automotive Future Goes Beyond the Big Three
December 1st, 2008
The discussion about bailing out the Big Three has been couched in terms that imply that the Big Three represent the complete future of the automotive business in the U.S. As I have suggested, if they are to be bailed out they should be given money based upon measurable metrics. I have also suggested that they represent thinking from the 20th century, the century of the internal combustion engine, which is not the future of automotive transportation this century.
I am for providing help for the Big Three assuming they come up with an intelligent plan for spending tax payer money. …
America’s Automotive Future is Not the Internal Combustion Engine
November 25th, 2008
In the last column here, I suggested that any bailout of the Big Three include alternative energy metrics against which the three companies compete for better loan repayment terms. In the week since that column was published there has been much discussion about whether America can afford to allow its’ auto industry to go down the tubes. This implies that the Big Three represent the totality of America’s automotive production.
Of course there are the U.S. based factories of the German and Japanese manufacturers, which, while they produce cars here, are controlled and largely owned by other countries. These factories have …