tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5322921171545547266.post7581278995456852308..comments2024-03-25T15:05:05.299-03:00Comments on Progressive Comrades: Stock markets, Oil prices and misc doom and gloomComrade Onehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16699361419958081444noreply@blogger.comBlogger36125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5322921171545547266.post-29264647876518271802009-01-16T18:43:00.000-04:002009-01-16T18:43:00.000-04:00No Herb, I would prove to be an independent minded...No Herb, I would prove to be an independent minded Trunk Monkey. Maybe start a Union. <BR/><BR/>The United Brotherhood of Trunk Monkeys. Or we could call it the Coalition of Rank Ass Primates, or CRAP for short. <BR/><BR/>It's a joke, it was all a joke. I admit it. Politics and doom and gloom do funny things to the psyche.....Comrade Onehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16699361419958081444noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5322921171545547266.post-32532616921821109372009-01-16T17:20:00.000-04:002009-01-16T17:20:00.000-04:00HerbChrist, man, I was trying to be funny. I know ...Herb<BR/>Christ, man, I was trying to be funny. I know there is great sailing in them thar parts.<BR/>=======<BR/><BR/>lol, that is funny. everything you`ve posted so far I`ve taken as a joke, the first time I take you seriously,,, you`re joking.<BR/><BR/>lol, ya got meAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5322921171545547266.post-33502189002898330542009-01-16T17:10:00.000-04:002009-01-16T17:10:00.000-04:00C.O.,why would you want to be a Trunk Monkey at H...C.O.,<BR/><BR/>why would you want to be a Trunk Monkey at Harper's beck and call to defend the SOB?<BR/><BR/>Poppavox,<BR/><BR/>Christ, man, I was trying to be funny. I know there is great sailing in them thar parts.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5322921171545547266.post-30995987921080938932009-01-16T13:20:00.000-04:002009-01-16T13:20:00.000-04:00Shoot, that last post was in response to William @...Shoot, that last post was in response to William @11:03 p.m.Comrade Onehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16699361419958081444noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5322921171545547266.post-42723853355201536052009-01-16T13:19:00.000-04:002009-01-16T13:19:00.000-04:00Hello Herb"Is there any sailing on the West Coast?...Hello Herb<BR/><BR/>"Is there any sailing on the West Coast?"<BR/>========<BR/><BR/>Nanaimo has excellent sailing although Victoria and West Vancouver have the mega yacht clubs.<BR/>Out here Nanaimo isn`t considered the west coast though, neither is Vancouver as they are inside waters. Great day sailing anywhere on the inside and if you`ve a taste for adventure you could sail the outside to Alaska and back and never run out of amazing sights and times.<BR/>You really have to see the west coast to understand why eco groups put their lives on hold to save some of the more incredible places.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5322921171545547266.post-20669461789998460642009-01-16T13:18:00.000-04:002009-01-16T13:18:00.000-04:00Your thoughts on Magna, Ford and Zenn would certai...Your thoughts on Magna, Ford and Zenn would certainly be boost for Zenn and sounds like such a practical idea, that it wouldn’t likely come to pass. It’s just too logical. I worked at a Magna facility for a while some years ago, and like most big corporate entities, they were a lot of improvements they could have made. Product quality and management attitudes are what come to mind foremost.<BR/><BR/>I had similar thoughts on the money Ottawa is providing. What a great opportunity to promote companies like Zenn and other facilities here in Canada. Instead, they ignore a truck plant here in this country and give the contract for the new Military trucks to a US firm. I mean, I thought Conservative beliefs supported free enterprise and promoting the same here at home when possible. I don’t expect them to take over the running of a plant, but surely they could have used the influence of this contract to gain more favorable terms. <BR/><BR/>Good points about the corporate entity too. Now I believe there are corporations whose efficiency exceeds that of others and are in fact viable, but I don’t agree with this too big to fail mentality. Firstly, any corporation I have worked with or around suffered from employee apathy and generalized waste. Both of those things are greatly reduced in smaller scale enterprises. Employee’s performance is critical in small ventures and almost always better supervised. Similarly, expenditures, waste and theft are more closely monitored. Budgets of smaller companies generally don’t allow for such laxity, and therefore tend to be much more efficient.<BR/><BR/>Another bone I have with the corporate entity is the political power they ultimate come to wield. The combination of influences of Corporate ownership is in my view, the largest deterrent to small and medium sized business which tends to have it’s roots more localized and thus provides better long term job security. Off the top of my head, the lumber industry comes to mind. Here in the Maritimes, we have had a great number of closures of facilities owned by International corps., both recently and in the not to distant past, yet all of the small independent mills and vendor combinations in my area have survived. Another bug I have is the corporate tendency to do business without regard for responsibility to the overall Canadian economy. They don’t care what Country their supplies come from, or how far/how much fuel it takes to transport, the price is what matters.<BR/><BR/>On the auto industry, I agree with what you wrote, except for the $1,000 margin. It has been my sentiment for a long time that the industry was far too concerned with costly trinkets and built in obsolescence. Plus the fact that they have forced their retailers into far higher overhead costs which also have a significant impact on the final sticker price. . Even the way provincial governments have structured their educational approach has an effect. Once upon a time in a land far away, a young person could take motor mechanics in school and one year at Tech and go to work as an apprentice general mechanic. If they wanted to do front end/suspension or brakes and related or half dozen other areas, they could go to work right out of school. But not now in many provinces. At least one more year has been tacked on, and that represents additional education costs that the young person has to cover or repay. The more costs are added, the more expensive the final product. <BR/><BR/>So now, a very large segment of society will suffer because of corporate vision, and the creation of bubbles and unrealistic expectations. And this is where our wise government leaders fit? I put the question mark on purpose. I’ll try not to get wound up to much here. Take my province, N.B. for example. We have a Premier who is just another professional politician. Same as the last one. The only significant difference is this one’s Father was a long-term professional provincial politician before him. Young Mr. Graham’s resume is not impressive, yet he leads a government? Horseshit. He’s a friggin’ shiney face, rubber stamp man. The last guy, Bernard Lord got himself a big fat plum after being booted from office, and headed up some multimillion-dollar study related to the French language and related stuff. Fer Christ’s sakes, the French language has been studied inside out and backwards for decades now, and in my mind these types of things are the root of our problems. Now our Gart wouldn’t go into this stuff, but I will. Not everything I know mind you. There are some things that are best left unsaid.<BR/><BR/>Thanks again for your thoughts. Hope to see you regularly.Comrade Onehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16699361419958081444noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5322921171545547266.post-60782737606651400832009-01-16T13:12:00.000-04:002009-01-16T13:12:00.000-04:00Comrade HerbIs there more than one?If so,I want th...Comrade Herb<BR/><BR/>Is there more than one?<BR/><BR/>If so,I want the one that has the tire iron in it. I was thinking about testing it on some melons.<BR/><BR/>Did you see Charles Trunk Monkey videos that I posted earlier?Comrade Onehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16699361419958081444noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5322921171545547266.post-40564922402782624192009-01-16T12:36:00.000-04:002009-01-16T12:36:00.000-04:00Comrade One, lest I question your sanity, Trunk Mo...Comrade One, lest I question your sanity, Trunk Monkey in which PM's car?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5322921171545547266.post-50469311911503881962009-01-16T12:04:00.000-04:002009-01-16T12:04:00.000-04:00To Charlesius One, A little story. Some moons back...To Charlesius One, <BR/><BR/>A little story. Some moons back when I was living close to the 905 and 416 areas, and still interesting in dating women and such, I met this lovely and very interesting woman of Russian ancestry who worked at several things including being an aspiring artist/actress. She spoke at length of her ambitions and aspirations.<BR/><BR/>We were having a lovely evening getting to know one another and sharing something similar to the Chardonnay you spoke of. I had in turn told her of some of my varied experiences and the many fields of employment I had been engaged in over the years. I also spoke of my being on something of a break and involved in learning all about computer wizardry, networking etc. As visions of sugar plums and other miscellaneous orbs danced in my head, and feeling she had me sufficiently relaxed to pop the big one, ever so coyly she asked, "so.....what do you want to do when you grow up?" (Bet you thought it was going to involve sex. Didn't you?) <BR/><BR/>So there I was. Stammering incoherently, and in of those very rare occasions, at a loss for words. <BR/><BR/>Well, I told you all of that because I have finally decided.<BR/><BR/>I want to be a Trunk Monkey in the Prime Minister Limousine. <BR/><BR/>I wonder if it has a Bar?Comrade Onehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16699361419958081444noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5322921171545547266.post-19313644118746028122009-01-16T11:28:00.000-04:002009-01-16T11:28:00.000-04:00Hopefully the Nortel employees have enough savvy ...Hopefully the Nortel employees have enough savvy not to tell EI about the supposed severance that will never be. I had a go with them when I wuz a just youngstar. Got a Lawyer and took it to an appeal board. That was funny, as the lawyer got out the Book of Jobe, otherwise known as the UI regulation book at the time, and the miracles began. I discovered that for every rule in that book there were 2 more that concerned the exact same thing but took completely contradictory positions to each other. In other words, they had justification for whatever the whim of the hour was. On pointing out the contradictory regulations, the appeal came to a swift conclusion and found in my favor.<BR/><BR/>I still remember the sight of their red cheeks, and the 1967 Pontiac Parisiene that I bought with the back pay. Every time I drove it, I smiled like a Cheshire Cat.Comrade Onehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16699361419958081444noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5322921171545547266.post-27503639760803269232009-01-16T09:03:00.000-04:002009-01-16T09:03:00.000-04:00The latest Nortel indignity:The 1,300 who were giv...The latest Nortel indignity:<BR/><BR/>The 1,300 who were given their lay-off notices in November have just discovered that they will not get their severance packages. Due to bankruptcy protection, they will have to line up with Nortel's other insecured creditors and wait for a year to see how much they will get on the dollar.<BR/><BR/>How will this affect their EI entitlements in the interim?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5322921171545547266.post-23638329270671886502009-01-16T08:54:00.000-04:002009-01-16T08:54:00.000-04:00Chuxster, made my wife read your Island of Civiliz...Chuxster, <BR/><BR/>made my wife read your Island of Civilization weather emergency report. She has been trying to move us to Nanaimo for years, and I've been hanging on in tropical Ottawa brandishing the excuse that our kids need us.<BR/><BR/>Well, in two years First-Born will be 40, Darling Daughter 30, and I will have a problem. I don't golf, so that's an attraction I don't need. Is there any sailing on the West Coast?<BR/><BR/>Now ready to face the D&G of the day.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5322921171545547266.post-61550232253898850792009-01-16T07:58:00.000-04:002009-01-16T07:58:00.000-04:00William 11:03 p.m.Welcome and excellent post. I wi...William 11:03 p.m.<BR/><BR/>Welcome and excellent post. I will write more a little later when I have time.Comrade Onehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16699361419958081444noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5322921171545547266.post-58240221608832470892009-01-16T03:02:00.000-04:002009-01-16T03:02:00.000-04:00Hello Charles"One should keep in mind that layoffs...Hello Charles<BR/><BR/>"One should keep in mind that layoffs, permanent job losses thruout the world are happening at an ever-increasing speed, and no one seems to be able to figure out why."<BR/><BR/>Garth gave us the answer about a year ago. <BR/>Under saved over spent over mortgaged consumers.<BR/>Consumers globally have over spent their ability to even keep up the rate of spending and most importantly spend more. Spent consumers is primary reason massive deficit spending will, like the 40/0, only delay and intensify the inevitable hard landing. <BR/>Herb posted an expert opinion that Parliamentary reform as far as 5 years out is `unrealistic`. Obviously reform is out of the question when government is willing to spend our childrens future on propping up this failed system.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5322921171545547266.post-91521712301660472772009-01-16T02:29:00.000-04:002009-01-16T02:29:00.000-04:00Dee and / or Poppavox said... 'The rest of the pop...Dee and / or Poppavox said... 'The rest of the population seems to be going through a phase of frustration closing in on anger as the disgust has been rung out of them.'<BR/><BR/>It seems that an awful lot of people are angry now (see link) -- http://tinyurl.com/82sllo<BR/><BR/>One should keep in mind that layoffs, permanent job losses thruout the world are happening at an ever-increasing speed, and no one seems to be able to figure out why.<BR/><BR/>It's easy to blame somebody else for one's own misfortunes in life -- the ultra-rich, super-wealthy, politicians and the like -- but is someone in Canada to be held responsible for the fight between Russia and Ukraine? Of course not.<BR/><BR/>People will be a lot angrier in the very near future -- two years or less -- and those ultra-wealthy are also going to be affected, one way or the other. Money, in and of itself, is no more of a tool to be used carefully than a garden hose. If people can handle a garden hose, why can't they treat money properly?<BR/><BR/>Does it boil down to a love of power, which includes a love of money instead of respect for one another? Right now, and into the future, the first answer takes precedence, and ultimately the vast majority of sheeple will have to endure their own consequences, until they have a much broader view of life.<BR/><BR/>That's what tough times are for -- to teach folk lessons.<BR/>------<BR/>THOUGHT FOR THE DAY! (Courtesy wrh.com)<BR/><BR/>"In general, the art of government consists in taking as much money as possible from one party of the citizens to give to the other." -- Voltaire (1764)<BR/>------<BR/>In case y'all didn't know -- http://tinyurl.com/7rmbv6I, Charlesiushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08268692075837624448noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5322921171545547266.post-71073502773976504622009-01-16T02:15:00.000-04:002009-01-16T02:15:00.000-04:00No thanks necessary DeeI posted it on Garth.ca as ...No thanks necessary Dee<BR/><BR/>I posted it on Garth.ca as to how reliable or even accurate the governments glowing statement on the health of our banking system when toxic assets of undetermined origin or value will only show up in bankruptcy. It seemed extremely unusual to both pump in $75B and bury bad debt yet still say our banking system was in better shape than others. How did they arrive at that conclusion?<BR/>Obviously it`s not true, lying is only minor infraction government is willing to do to protect itself within its operating mantel of dismiss distract deny. I didn`t repost it among the din of bashing the opposition as most informed investors know the true shape of our economy. I thought massive deficit spending as a political gimmick was much more worthy of multiple posts, oddly it didn`t garner any more notice than the banks using Nortel accounting methods.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5322921171545547266.post-46231534742224507702009-01-16T01:12:00.000-04:002009-01-16T01:12:00.000-04:00poppavox?All I can say is 'OMG!' and thank you for...poppavox?<BR/><BR/>All I can say is 'OMG!' and thank you for posting the link.Deehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12906652442341250613noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5322921171545547266.post-80760757917066797842009-01-16T00:32:00.000-04:002009-01-16T00:32:00.000-04:00Dee said..."the dilution is hurting the stock pri...Dee said...<BR/><BR/>"the dilution is hurting the stock prices and may hurt the dividends too"<BR/>=========<BR/><BR/>Since I read this article last fall I`m curious as to how investors even calculate stock value. Currently Cdn banks stocks seem more tied to how much cash government will pump into the banking system than profit and loss.<BR/><BR/>Toxic assets hid in the banks books, how is the government able to say our banks are in better shape than all others.<BR/> <BR/>Does hiding toxic assets makes them better or is it a government backed scam?<BR/> <BR/>I`d recommend avoidance.<BR/>-----------<BR/><BR/>http://ca.news.finance.yahoo.com/s/17102008/6/finance-canada-banks-relief-toxic-assets-report.html<BR/><BR/>Canada banks to get relief from toxic assets: report<BR/>Fri Oct 17, 8:55 AM<BR/><BR/>Under a ruling expected on Friday, the country's biggest banks and insurers will be able to postpone recording losses on assets that have become hard to sell <BR/><BR/><BR/>This will give them the ability to move the instruments from their trading books, where they must be priced at current market values, to their banking books, where they can be held in anticipation that they will return to value.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5322921171545547266.post-52630237812446502342009-01-15T23:44:00.000-04:002009-01-15T23:44:00.000-04:00Good post William. In Mr. Garth's defense he ...Good post William. In Mr. Garth's defense he does have to earn a living and d&g sells books.<BR/><BR/>I think corporations in N.A. have to rethink on how they do business. William's mention about the Japanese company cutting back work hours in not just that particular company but the overall culture of Japanese companies. CEOs of Japanese companies take pay/perk cuts just as much if not more than the people who work on the 'floor'. <BR/><BR/>Anyone concerned about the all the charters issuance of common shares/share dilution? I know they have to get their capital up but the dilution is hurting the stock prices and may hurt the dividends too. Any thoughts?<BR/><BR/>//business.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20090115.wtdnotes0115/BNStory/Business/homeDeehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12906652442341250613noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5322921171545547266.post-87366264179456367352009-01-15T23:03:00.000-04:002009-01-15T23:03:00.000-04:00There are so many positives out there if you look ...There are so many positives out there if you look for them.<BR/><BR/>The best example is the car industry where Magna on its own is going to team with Ford on the new electric cars. Now if only Zen joined in and used its production capacity to jump start the production of practical electric powered vehicles. Chrysler is being dismantled and the few vehicles worth producing will be produced by other companies in the near future includng once again Magna.<BR/><BR/>Compare this to the government who only talked to the Detroit three and then gave them billions with few strings attached to continue running companies that think the next great breakthrough after GPS and home entertainment systems in your car and fridges is get this, a car that parks itself. These companies are so out of touch with reality they deserve to die. In fact most of the doom and gloom is something I have waited for years to happen. The collapse and breakup of those dinosaur huge corporations that ceased to function twenty years ago when the only growth they had was to absorbe smaller hungry and successful companies to suck them dry of cash and spit them out. I doubt any of the biggest thousand corporations have made more than 1% of their profits over the last twenty years by inovating anything with microsoft excepted. This day had to come.<BR/><BR/>Now instead of our incompetent governments doing what they are doing now just imagine if they set aside billions of dollars and went to these dying companies and bought up sections or divisions put shares on the market equal to the amount paid and only sold the to Canadians or Americans depending on the country to get smaller companies going again which will actually compete! they can re-use that same money over and over again to do the same thing until we run out of dying corporations. Part of the buyout should include the elimination of at least 90% of the management of the company so as to brng in new blood to get the it moving again.<BR/><BR/>The big dagger hanging over the Detroit three is the entry into our market of large numbers of $10,000 cars from China and elsewhere. Our paper ysterday had an ad for a ten thousand doller KIA at 0% financing. This is the tip of the iceburg. Unfortunately while our companies kept ading crap to their cars to boost profitabiliy to over ten grand a vehicle while letting quality go down the tubes they have a long way to go if they want to survive. While wages need to be lowered a bit cutting half the executive salaries, cutting profits to a grand a vehicle and getting rid of frills like power windows and air conditioning etc. to get the cost down to something reasonable while working on quality to justify the higher price due to wages. <BR/><BR/>For those looking to invest in stocks, look at how companies treat employees to see which ones are interested in long term survival over short term profits. One of the Japanese car companies put their employees on 4 day work weeks which says to me they will be a surviver.<BR/><BR/>Comrade this is a post I have been waiting for about six months to respond to. Unfortunatly Garth went all negative and my other favorite blogs aren't interested in looking outside the box. If this is still up when I get home from work at 5am I'll do a bit on housing along the same lines. It isn't all doom and gloom but we are in for some tough times, ALL of us.<BR/><BR/>WilliamAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5322921171545547266.post-28580376428057572902009-01-15T21:44:00.000-04:002009-01-15T21:44:00.000-04:00'The rest of the population seems to be going thro...'The rest of the population seems to be going through a phase of frustration closing in on anger as the disgust has been rung out of them.'<BR/><BR/>Perhaps I'm one of them? I don't know.;) I do know that I've been avoiding the television except for BNN but even they annoy me sometimes.<BR/><BR/>I like the blogs. For political info I go to the Maclean's blogs. Kadie is a delightful read. Sometimes I find more insightful info in the comments sections then the entries themselves.Deehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12906652442341250613noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5322921171545547266.post-3870201333773375832009-01-15T21:14:00.000-04:002009-01-15T21:14:00.000-04:00Msm is toxic because they hedge or dodge around th...Msm is toxic because they hedge or dodge around the truth. I find after I listen to a broadcast it makes me angry. I don't think it's healthy to walk around being angry all the time do you?<BR/>=======<BR/>No I don`t think that`s a good idea especially if you`re anger at federal politicians and you are one. It seems most of the anger at present remains well within the partisan community. Those of us on the fringe of the political peripheral would be better described as disgusted with politicians selling used hay packaged as third cut, often mistaken for anger. The rest of the population seems to be going through a phase of frustration closing in on anger as the disgust has been rung out of them.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5322921171545547266.post-78746958449100107092009-01-15T20:10:00.000-04:002009-01-15T20:10:00.000-04:00Thanks for your report Charlesius! ~Linda.Thanks for your report Charlesius! ~Linda.LKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10042340044944563568noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5322921171545547266.post-31543096551213191122009-01-15T20:07:00.000-04:002009-01-15T20:07:00.000-04:00Don't have your email so snitch it for a topic if ...Don't have your email so snitch it for a topic if you want to. What do you think of this story??<BR/><BR/>http://www.elpasotimes.com/ci_11444354?source=most_viewed<BR/><BR/>Caught the brief blurb on bnnDeehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12906652442341250613noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5322921171545547266.post-8116904944612362182009-01-15T19:44:00.000-04:002009-01-15T19:44:00.000-04:00poppavox:'A few tried it with Garth with 0 success...poppavox:<BR/><BR/>'A few tried it with Garth with 0 success but I`m willing to listen to the rose coloured view.'<BR/><BR/>Dude, chill. You either misunderstood my post or I didn't communicate effectively. All I'm saying is people listen to 5 second sound bites and believe what's being spoon fed to them have rose coloured lenses. Msm is toxic because they hedge or dodge around the truth. I find after I listen to a broadcast it makes me angry. I don't think it's healthy to walk around being angry all the time do you?Deehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12906652442341250613noreply@blogger.com