Lay Offs

They will be coming for a lot of us I'm afraid. I had a friend get a pink slip recently. She was devastated. This has never happened to her in her entire career. She has always been employed and/or recruited to new work. It was a cold, heartless, and calculated process...which is pathetic. Why? Is it the lawyers? Did someone get sued? Can't the former employer offer some help?
My father; now retired, was CEO of a chemical company. The corporation had huge investments in various assets including; land, plants, equipment, office space, transportation, etc. He frequently said the company's most important asset was its people. We still hear that today, right? Well he put his money where his mouth was. There were times when the company was forced to reduce employment. However, it never happened unless it was a last resort; and then, people who were affected got every consideration that could be afforded. They were offered other placements within the company where feasible. Additionally, in every case employees were given employment counseling, and time with recruiters who were to find them new work. In some cases, new employment coincided with the time they ended employment at the chemical company.
My friend was just shown the door...her former employer has lost their way...I pray for her...that at the end of the day she will find she is better off.

Colin Powell Endorses Barack Obama on Meet the Press

I case you missed it.

Facebook

You know, Facebook is great. I have gotten reconnected to many old friends from high school, churches I have attended, triathlon, and others where our paths don't cross enough. I've even made new acquaintances with people from all over the world. It is really quite remarkable.
My plan was to use this post to complain about some of the bugs on the site...but I don't think I will.
Just this...sorry if I don't respond to requests...I just don't see them, sometimes months after they were sent! I can't find them!
And posts, or uploads??
Tonight I spent half an hour uploading a picture of a cooked guinea pig. (gross, I know...but funny) It uploaded successfully. I have no clue where it is. :-)
Is that complaining? Maybe...but not intended...the site has been a lot of fun... and even a blessing in some ways.

Saturday

I got to watch the Bucks play two weeks in a row. That's rare!
Last week they won, but it was disappointing game...or a better word might be BORING.
This week Michigan St...who hate us by the way...
Woody Hayes turned them in years ago for recruiting violations.
They have never forgiven us. I'm not kidding! Crazy...brooding is so counter productive.
So, this week? We kicked ass. THAT'S MORE LIKE IT!

And the beat rolls on.

OU lost to Texas! Why? Texas brought it to them in the third quarter, and part of the fourth. Consecutively...touchdown, field goal, touchdown, touchdown...That's the game. I don't care how many bad calls there were, and there were several. Texas beat us hands down. It's a tough game every year. So another undefeated team goes down (OU).
But how bout them pokes! I'm waiting to see this weeks rankings.

I got to watch the Ohio State game. They squeaked by Purdue. They do not look like they have any intensity. They are not playing like a national contender (which they are not, I guess). They play flat. I still think it boils down to coaching. I know, I know, everyone loves Jim Tressell...he has a lot of integrity, and class. And that is needed at Ohio State. I just think more motivation, drive and focus are also needed at this point.

I'll tell you what's intense...work! OMG, why did I throw out my xanax? No one saw the current environment coming. No one. In the last big down turn, I had some warning. This time was different. This was a crash. It is going to be more about being proactive, and deciding what to do next. How to best make up ground. There will be some incredible opportunities...it's a matter of determining what they are.

I heard someone joke about the "bailout", or rather "recapitalization plan"...Did you see the G7 using that term? They must have read my blog...leave a comment guys!! :-)
I'm rambling....here's the joke...The bailout is for Wall Street? How can that be? Wall St. is gone! True. Stunning, but true.

I also attended my brother in law's fathers funeral this weekend. They asked me to pray. At the last minute they decided to make it a funeral for his mom as well, (she died many yrs ago...it's a long story). I started the prayer using what I thought was her name. Then I thought...what if that's not it? So I stopped the prayer and asked...I think my prayer kind lost something at that point...I apologized.
Speaking of prayer, I am still praying for leaders to find a solution to this financial mess...unless this the appointed end.

God always wins you know...and we want Him to, right?

Hey Sydney, tell her this!! Maybe...

Of the two million couples who get married each year in the US, nearly half end up divorced. It takes a long time for many of us to realize that the perfect partner-someone who shares our likes and dislikes, and who couldn't agree more with our political opinions, and religious convictions, and sexual preferences; and who would never in a million years want to sleep with the window open when we want the window closed-doesn't exist...

As Leo Tolstoy observed, "What counts in making a happy marriage is not so much how compatible you are, but how you deal with incompatibility."

Sy Safransky
The Sun

Recapitalization Plan

That is more accurate than "bailout", in which case you just basically throw money at a problem. Why is this different than a bailout? The U.S. government did this in 1929, and in the late 1980s. They bought distressed assets from banks, and other financial institutions. This removes bad assets off bank books, thus creating capital. Then the government resold, or collected interest from the assets they purchased. The government made substantial profits both times they recapitalized the financial system.

I called one of my former college professors today. He is very astute; and still does some teaching, as well as consulting work in the banking industry. He thinks the government will make money this time as well. This is not substantially different than past interventions. I also asked him what he thought of Ron Paul's claim that this action will "destroy" the dollar. He disagrees. We are not out of the woods. This should have been done earlier in the game. Of course hindsight is always 20/20. I hope it is not too little too late for the economy in general. We will almost certainly have a bad recession, but hopefully avoid something worse. This recapitalization should help.