What is News Worthy

  • Is Musk the new Murdoch?
  • .
  • FTX & Bankman-Fried: Is Silicon Valley Responsible?
  • .
  • Google Search Result: A cluttered Maze
  • .
  • Stanford Hospital Acquires Fremont based Washington Hospital - Obamacare effect?
  • .
  • Bond King is Back and Has a message to Powell: STOP RAISING RATES!
  • .
  • Average selling price of GM has reached BMW, Benz Territory- Legalizing Cannabis effect or just another bubble market?

Silicon Valley Vibes!

  • Tesla & SpaceX didn’t listen to WS and Pundits …Should Twitter & Musk Now?
  • .
  • Would you allow Siri to drive you around?
  • .
  • Finally Adobe is Discounting its products and services
  • .
  • SalesForce departure….is it voluntary or…?
  • .
  • Dot Com burst brought Java Programmers to earth…..are we there yet?
  • .
  • Contract Workers: Secret for Google & Apple not reducing headcounts?

FANG News:

  • Not A Royalty …Just the Benefits, Please! Harry, Megan & Netflix
  • .
  • Where is Bezos….enough Romance & Honeymooning..Amazon shareholders need you!
  • .
  • Is Google missing Eric Schmidt?
  • .
  • World minus USA wedded to WhatsApp more than any other platform.. should FB reap the benefits soon?
  • .
  • When Microsoft drops its subscription fees will it feel the pain? As the new generation does not know Office, Really!

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

Rolling Stones & the Golden Squid!

Media business and music world is still struggling with the modern version of human entertainment!

Selling painted bodysuite by Sports Illustrated to politicians womanizing by TVs and publishers alike havent really spurred much of enthusiasm in this internet enabled population...

From Unintended acceleration to late night talkshow street fights dont seem to stick longer..

From Mr summers to Ms Merkel the Golden mantra for their inadequate policies GS has been a boon with an intended acceleration toward financial reforms and market regulations - yet failing to gin much traction..

But, But not the Golden boys and their Greecy business tactics!!

Yes Mr Blank-enstein ala God - May be the Wall Street Version -and His abode Goldman Sachs seems to attract media attention and main street anger and gives incapable policy makers and politicians enough ammunition to garner followers!

We have seen New York Times go after GS with minded focus - maybe to get shareholder attention? And Fox Business News with its newly acquired asset - Mr Gasparino from CNBC doing the same to create an audience....From Wall Street Journal to Financial Times try and do some investigative journalism

Now a these we an understand..

But, But - Rolling Stones on Golden Squid and the Goldman Boys and practies....? Its like Playboy writing on Faith and Religion for intellectual masturbation! And all media giving them an airplay and wasting ink on reproduction?

May be , Just May we have reached the bottom in this Goldman Sach dog and pony show and it should start fding to the background!

Monday, March 1, 2010

Pounding the British is not an Olympian task!

After milking the Germans with the Greecy practice the market movers look to London for another Golden triump!

With the British Pound losing over 25% in this crisis and the value still headed South is it safe to bet against the Brits?

With Modern Economics of Global monetray system still misunderstood by politicians and policy makers alike - it is hardly the time to bet against the English - the master mind of the monetary system that is widely practiced globally!

What Mr Soros failed to do - the rest of the gang may find it even more difficult to achieve - however it might give a temporary opportunity to benefit from the wild swing that the currency market will produce.

Healthcare: Pay for Results & not for procedures - Mr Buffet

Indeed a loaded statement from Mr Buffet on health care practices in America.

Politicians and Practice leaders are tongue tied when it comes to medical compensation and practices are everyone is affected & close to those who provide them the care & are obviously nervous to take an objective view into the healthcare reform.

Everyone talks about healthcare cost running out of control & trying to slice the bread with the wrong end of the knife.

And Mr Buffet in a CNBC interview on healthcare reform made the most profound statement anyone has made till date - A loaded statement which if paid attention to in Washington we will have an affordable and practical healthcare solutions and open up the multi-trillion dollar industry for REAL COMPETITION like every other industry making the cost of services affordable and driven by market pressures!

Thursday, February 25, 2010

Old Cool Aid in a New Bottle!

How long does it take to rebrand , repackage and sell the same stuff after getting slapped and bailed out?

Not Very long!

GMAC & Ditech - know for predatory lending and aggressive marketing campaigns in attracting every one who fell in the Sub prime category!

After getting a very sweet deal - which not many realised - which is being currently questioned and investigated with little or no traction - is back at it!

Same aggressive tactic & predatory campaigns!

Under a new name!

Ally!

Yes Ally Bank! What the hey!

Who is sleeping on the wheels when so much has been talked about learning from the past!

Well now that Ally Bank is part owned by the Tax payers like every other major Banks , Autos & AIG ....one wonders if we will ever learn from the mistakes if the Government keeps intervening to protect failures and prevent the market from self correcting!

Drive to Washington wasn't bumpy for Mr Toyoda!

A long journey!

And a long ordeal in Washington!

Absolutely Positively Mr Toyoda has the right Answer for all the questions and humiliation:

I am Sorry- Mr America & Mr Consumer! We will do better!

Several Hours several questions - Same Sincere and sorry face!

Good Work Mr Toyoda!

The press has turned soft & has started showing the good side!

New York Times and Goldman: Who will win?

Another day and another missile and another attack!

From bail-outs to derivatives and everthing in-between!

From V#$kerrule to Propreitary trading

From Executive bonuses to H1N1 flu shots

From lobbyists to conspiracy theories

From Sheila Bair to Big Ben

From AIG to Greece......

From every angle New York Times has a story and investigative reporting- weaving in and out on Goldman Sachs and how it and it only played the most damaging role in this Financial Whatever we are experiencing!

Is NYTimes trying to get recognition in the gobal Financial market- like WSJ and FT? Looking at the approach and the flimsy nature of the investigation it certainly looks like a Financial Tabloid trying to smear at Goldman Sach and its dominance of the Wall Street activities and their influence in Washington!

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Does Greenspan support his co-workers at PIMCO?

Mr Greenspan correctly pointed to the recession before anyone did and got bad mouthed for the premature predictions & eventually got the blame for it as well.

In a recent comment about the American economy his catch phrase is on exuberance but "extremely uneven" and an extended period of elevated unemployment with not so visible growth in areas of high impact business areas - like housing and autos and small businesses-

sounds like PIMCO's preaching of "NEW NORM"....if this is an independent assessment by Mr Greenspan and not influenced by his affiliation to Germany's PIMCO then it might be something we should pay attention to!

Privacy PLEASE...Finally Italians spank Google!

Nude beach in a private corner...

Pay to keep your name off the telephone books...

Fence to keep your neighbor off your property...

dress to shield your skins....

speak softly to keep a secret....

And on and on and on....From time immemorial mankind has always paid a premium for privacy & keeping it close and tight until some one found a way to make money out of exposing them..GOOGLE!

Is it fair for a company to expose what is others and belongs to others and profit out of it? How is this diferent from Papparazi and the TMZs of he world?

Mapping your private quarters and detailing information that are kept aside precisely and instantaneously...locally and globally all at a price for teh affected and for a profit to the Google shareholders!

Now someone wised up and is ready to slap the hands of Google for not getting the consent of thosse affected before broadcasting them not to mention profitting from it!

Whose responsibility is it to get the PROPER consent before capturing, storing & broadcasting them?

Is it the person who initiates the process or the entity who stores and broadcasts them & promotes such activity?

If ditribution is an intrical part of the activity - then the peddler have a responsiblity to share the bame!

What the Italian court did may not be enough to stop the Google juggernaught...however sooner or later a modified version of "PRIVACY LAW" will take over and people will have the opportunity to enjoy their PRIVACY once again!

PIMCO's New Normal...

What is NEW NORMAL according to Mr El Erian of Germany's PIMCO:

> Greater Government Regulation

> Lower Consumption

> Slower Growth

> shrinking global role for US economy

And Resulting in

Lower Than Average Returns!

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Toyota & the Art of Japanese Management!

When Akio Morita ruled the Management World - Japan was peaking! From Harvard to Silicon Valley the rage was Japanese style Management!

From Quality circles to pull systems - the world was amazed! Every market that the Japanese entered the eventually dominated the market - from consumer electronics to industrial automation!

That is yester years! Or yester Decades ago!

After 20 years of struggle from its peak- is Toyota incident an aberration or just the kind of symptoms that leads to systemic collapse of a developed economy?

The largest market for Toyota till date - the North American consumers - have kept Toyota and Lexus in a pedestal and they have maintained an impeccable image.

The last three months of events are exposing a style of Management that Japan is used to when it comes to markets outside Japan!

Mr Lentz - a poor choice for Toyota t send to the fire storm - doing more damage than an average Joe blow could have done in a similar set up!

No Preparation!

No recollection of case data!

Fumbling on details and communications!

An air of arrogance - a typical used car sales attitude till he was put in his place!

An about turn to accommodate and apologise - and surrender - an attempt at crying - yes its an emotional narration - but hardly believable!

This certainly exposes the Japanese style of management that the World hasn't been exposed to - where the domestic market and operations are nothing but a bunch of puppets who cannot think and act independently!

Sony and Nissan - have been handed over to non Japanese executives to turn around their businesses as they have failed to survive under Akio Morita's Art of Management!

If Toyota does not change its style of Management it will be very difficult to handle their dominance with manufacturing alone!

Mr Toyoda - Good luck with your Washington encounter! Hope your legacy and openness will leave a believable impressions - which Mr Lentz failed to accomplish!

Italy latest to gamble in derivatives..!

Italy has made over $10 Billion investing and speculating in the swaps market over the last decade!

Bravo for disclosing their winning streak on the heals of the Olympian failure by the Greeks and getting spanked for their Roman indulgences!

In the name of hedging and spreading risks more and more economies are following the path of least resistance to making money without disrupting their political affiliations and maintaining their populist stand!

This could pose a serious advantage to the Fixed Income players as they find more and more sophisticated mechanism to manipulate and manage smaller economies to favor their investment objectives. Euro in its current form poses a major structural danger that could help people with access to sophisticated financial instruments to disrupt smooth flow of capital while playing God and spanking any player defying their rule book!

Monday, February 22, 2010

Toyota - A good buy in a bumpy road!

Mr Toyoda goes to Washington while Consumers drive to Honda and Ford dealers!

While the Dealers look to Paris for her winning tricks- it sure looks like hell for Toyota motors and its crashing stock!

Saving $100 Million dollars in negotiating with NHTSA is hardly an ethical flaw to break the company given billions and billions are spent in Washington by Lobbyists to manage and swing the policy makers.

Auto market is still licking its wound form the Financial Whatever..and the consumers are ready for the upgrade cycle. With China and India grows at blistering speed the current nightmare might pass as another dream in achieving Toyota's global dream.

Toyota share is a good buy and if it crashes/falls during the Washington reddericks on Toyota - it will be great opportunity to load up on Toyota for long term investors.

Is Euro a Risky proposition?

Greece is on everyone's mind and now that everyone knows where Greece is...its a logical extension for people like Soros to question the existence of Euro.

The unwinding of Euro and going back to national currency system will be a major nightmare given its role in the global capital market.

Growing pains and structural inadequcies might be adjusted to accomodate the inequalities in still developing and not so sophisticated EU countries while the fixed income players harvest and feat on the swiss holed currency!

Yet - the failure or fracture f the currency is hardly a case for the demise of Euro!

Euro II will emerge better and stronger and will pose a major threat to Dollar a few exits down the Currency Bahn!

Thursday, February 18, 2010

Washington Invites Mr Toyoda!

Finally a formal invite to Mr Toyoda!

Should Mr Toyoda drive to Washington?

Ms Merkel spanks Goldman for Greecy Behaviour!

And ofcourse supports EURO's solidarity and claims EURO's help in managing the Financial Whatever!

Germany benefiting the most from Euro and the Maastricht Treaty in its various evolution cycle- till date.

The Weaker economies and countries are strapped and stripped of their economic prosperity as Germany and to a lesser extent France enjoying prosperity during the last decade. Heading into its teen can Euro be s=distracted by the fixed income players who have remarkable found a loop hole to benefit from the Germany backed EU policies?

As Ms Merkel voices more and more of her iron fisted opinion about Greece has found Goldman Sachs as another scape goat to eat the cake and keep it too!

During the last few years we have seen many scandals and bribery come out of Germany from Siemens to Mercedes Benz which some slapping from US and very little from Ms Merkel's administration - and yet when it comes to slapping Goldman Sachs and Greece , which obviously benefits German interest , Ms Merkel is quick on the draw!

How long can Ms Merkel play this charade before the local communities rebel against the Big Brothers who are stealing their future?

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

What NEXT...Mr Ellison?

America's Cup is not a dream anymore!

After spending close to a decade and may be more than a Billion Dollars Mr Ellison won the America's Cup with Style & Elegance and by more than a mile!

Oracle has been winning on its own under the able leadership of the Dual Personalities of Ms Safra and Mr Phillips...with Mr Ellison looking from above!

Now that America's Cup is in his locker will MR Ellison focus more on the Corporate World and really make Oracle the leader of the heap beating the likes of IBM and HP?

It is a tall order to scale that wall of Technology- there is no personalities to fight like Mr Gates or Mr Bertarelli from his past brawls - only vision and execution! With IBM and HP close to four times in size by revenue - it will take more than a dozen Peoplesofts and Siebels or Sun Microsystems to beat them in revenue-

However if Mr Ellison has the tenacity and the execution capability - which he has - and focuses in bringing his Thin Client with fat Oracle in the back office - he can make it happen without too much of acquisition. As his vision from over 15 years back - of thin client is slowly taking shapes under a different name - Mr Ellision can conquer the World of Technology if he can execute and deliver on his recent acquisitions.

Oracle is a steal at this price based on the Sun synergy!

M & A is back and might help the recovery!

2010 might turn out to be a big year for M&A and might not just help Wall Street firms but will certainly aid the recovery and have a huge impact in the ailing economy!

BIG DOGS of Europe!

First it was Barclays; Now it is BNP Paribas - slowly the Phoenix is rising!

Yes after almost two years the winners are emerging and resoundingy!

The Investment bankers are licking their - well not their wounds - but their preys and loading up on profits and bonuses!

Can this trend help them fight the PIMCO's of the world and maintain their superiority and bring the economy back to life?

Ms Merkel and the likes while eating the Cake under an EURO umbrella are also attempting to keep it at the expense of the weeklings of Europe - which will aid the PIMCOs f the world and make it difficult for the Barclays of the world.

Ms Merkel might lose the War as London and NY rise from their ashes - may be with a couple of more quarters of profit!

FOXy Moves!

Arrogant , Full of attitude & Great Reporting!

No not Mr Murdoch!

Charlie Gasparino & he has left a blazing record of his character and his ability to bring sensation to an otherwise boring Wall Street Media!

Fox Business has been shooting blank bullets since its inception and missed the Almost Depression opportunity entirely - which was a great opportunity!

Then again WSJ under its umbrella has become a partisan play - another bold bet by Newscorp! Which might help Financial Times gain market share in the US market which has been a WSJ & Barrons world for over a century!

Mr Murdoch has always been a slow started in every asset he has purchased - including FOX - which has become the most watched network after being ridiculed for years to imitate and steat the BIG THREE!

May Be , Just May Be - Mr Gasparino joining his peers - Yes Arrogant , Bold & Opinionated individuals - who have been dominating the viewership - like Mr Oriely , Mr Beck and the likes , is only the beginning and will change the FBN fortune!

Friday, February 12, 2010

Greecing the Market with Chinese Legs!

Moving from Financial Whatever to a more stable economic environment is still a complicated process and might be several ones for several books for several years to come!

Even before the stage lights are off from the Greece and EURO play - here comes China and their tightening measures!

And ofcourse the market getting jitty on that!

Unlike Greece - China is a large economy and could potentially have an impact - BUT, Yes BUT like Japan and every other closed market China is also less open to gloabl corporations! Currency is a managed instrument in China! Its a very very Export economy!

A wild swing in teh market only demonstrates that we are still being shunted around the poles byt he handful managing and manipulating hte direction - May be this is what Mr El Elrian call the "New Norm" - where a manipulated and fragile financial system is very pportunisitic f you know who is the Director is for the current stage and know the script - as it gets layed over and over again!
Slowing to Smell....!

After going through several blogs I came to the conclusion that it is very difficult to write about your day to day life!

Fascinating to see how creative people are and how so many people around the world are able to choose a variety of topic and pour their heart out and paint something so wonderful- full of life and color!

Need Humor! Need Depth and more than anything need perspective! I found it is easy to write about something substantial in which a person is well versed in. It made me think - I went around the last few days looking around and paying attention to everything from nature to relationships!

Now curiosity started posing a question - what is more important to writing? Chosing a topic or having the patience to research and articulate about the impressions that every day events brings to a person?

I thought I will try this every day! For 30 Days!

Impulsive and spontaneous
!

No research - just type as the feelings flow and as the words can portray! Thanks to the Blackberry - now I can try doing that the moment the urge happens without waiting!

As I was deciding on this I found myself in a shop - decided to pull my Blackberry and type what I saw around me...so begins my first piece.

PS. Since Blog has major restricitons on how many posting and what kind of flexibility one can have using the standard template I will try to find a work around using a couple of gadgets to display a couple of days posting at any given time till I figure out a way to display the history!

To avoid dilution of this site I have moved the experiment to another blog under

http://dailylifesigns.blogspot.com

The following is a sample on content with no photos- the Daily Life Signs posting will be more of a pictorial experience!






Walking around a woman's shop!

Looking at the colors in a woman's shop is like peeking into a kaleidoscope. However, one doesn't have to change to feel the vibrant mood.

Amazing styles and fascinating fashion! Trying to coordinate gives the several option that is needed to meet the day to day lifestyles of varying moods and differing ages.

Age appropriate colors! Shades for fading moods!

Bold red!

Sober red!

Flashy red!

Bland red!

Blood Red!

Romantic Red!

Decisions! Decisions! and Decisions!

Deciding the color at the time of shopping gives the option to choose and refine to the various rainbow moods that a person possibly can go through in a fast paced connected world!

Sizes and fits to match every form and need.

Having a choice helps in refinement!

And helps!

In Decisions! Decisions and Decisions!

Startup Wisdom!

May be there is a reason they want a Money Man to run the venture- but the following tip will save a buck or two! This will list a couple of grey hairs to keep!

  • Success is contageous- start it immediately!
  • Share the Vision but not Leadership!
  • Smart money is great - but Lucky Money is even better. Get some!
  • Being passionate is essential - but only after motivation to make money.
  • Establish the TRUE Pecking Order!
  • Let Sales be part of your core strategy- everything else can be bought!
  • If you havent done Selling START DOING IT NOW!

Building your 2nd Million!

Skip the first million and go straight to the second- as the first one is the most difficult one to bring home! The second one can be as tough as the first one but is never tougher than the first one! You can make money - working - investing in stocks/etc - real-estate - starting a business - others Choose your area of interest first as this will help you identify the opportunity and make you easily motivated to work on the 2nd million!

Not in any particular Order!

  • First lets know the facts: 1) Your work life is 40 something years (even at conservative estimate) so lets make sure we plan that Properly
  • 2) Lets identify opportunity to make money with out too much effort- living for Today is Good but lets not lose today's free money in the process like - benefits, tax breaks, sale,coupons,etc
  • 3) Lets not try to make ALL THE MONEY in the same way! Lets break the objective into smaller chunks and assign different ways to make them individually
  • 4) Put the 1st Million in Auto-pilot and set a 10 Years plus Time table
  • Convince yourself that you need the Money
  • Set a time line to achieve the goal.

Relationships - Learning to enjoy them!

Do we retain relationships? Expectations out of frienships vary from society to society & age group to age group. How long do we carry them? Some of them bring fond memories- and some not so pleasant! Here you can expect to see nuggets from my experiences and analysis!

Family & Friends: We spend less time with family than with friends- yet we feel more comfortable with family than friends- Why? Is it because we dont have expectations with family members but we have some on friends?

Allowing the other person to finish their train of thought builds a very long lasting relationship - as it makes you understand the other persons point of view fully & also to respond being aware making even an opposing point of view reasonable.


  • Cherry Pick your arguments - Left or Right Brained!
  • Make every encounter a transaction - this will make leaving baggages behind easy!
  • Qualify the type of relationship - however strange it might be
  • Chasing friendship is not always helpful as it leads to compromise.
  • Family circles - define it and accept it whether you like it or not!
  • Its ok to do different activities with different people!
Prof Dr Peik A Monie's Corner

  • if being number two is not enough go to a lower market
  • .
  • proceeds from a street dog dont bark
  • .
  • shooting the papparazi dont break cameras

DIGITAL IRIS - An inexcusable view of the photograpic world!

Let me see if I can add a few lines every week highlighting my 2 cents on photography- my experiences and desires

Things that make good photos -

- excellent and expensive set of lenses; in this digital era spend less on the body and keep investing in the high end lenses as the lenses will not lose value and the body is still under construction!

- accessories and the right tripod; never underestimate your advantage with a tripod

- plan & choose the subject and the location

- know your subject well!

- look and follow the calendars; simple things like a night with a Full moon- we dont realise that it does not happen every day - if you narrow it to the summer when the sky is still blue - I guess it becomes a couple of times a year- and if you factor n the location and your availability at that location and time...so Knowing the calendar and season helps for a good but not so common picture

- Take some luck with you!

  • Print and Enlarge Some Too
  • Delete Bad Pictures from Storage
  • Isolate Subject's color
  • Assess various profile
  • Add a subject to the frame
  • Take Nature after rain - they look better
  • Transparent Objects like flowers have creative effect with light behind them
  • If you want to enjoy the trip - leave the camera behind!
  • Define the subject for the shoot out trip
  • Take a survey trip before the real shoot out
  • Learn & Buy the Best Tripod
  • Always take a handy utility camera
  • Use Multiple exposure & shots in action oriented moments- this will help you pick the ideal snap - as even a fraction of a second makes a HUGE difference in photos.
  • Know your camers settings!
  • Understand Shutter Lag
  • Understand the camera shakes

AfterMarket Pulse- The boring Services Industry!

Keeping it inefficient is good for every one- A success story and why it will be restricted to a handful in the services Industry- A serious look at the Service Industry and my views on improving them. As a society we have accepted that everything breaks down and needs periodic maintenance. We are willing to pay both money and time to accomodate such services. What we have not done is define what is the service level that is needed for every such incident. From household appliances to industrial equipments we are forced to accept the cost and quality that the market offers. In such a sellers market room for mediocracy is enormous- giving way for opportunities. Yes predicatability is not always easy when it comes to failure or repair - or for that matter to identify what is wrong once the item is broke as it is not always possible to run the equipment ot see what is going wrong! And there are companies that can afford stupidity & those that cannot- if you want to change choose wisely!

  • Three steps: 1) Localize Failure 2) Response to Events 3) Time to Life
  • Inter-dependency at a higer level accelerates return
  • Resposiveness is rewarding - even if it is just to show on site of event!
  • Failure Prevention is difficult - yet possible
  • Know your Industry problems: Inventory, Turn time, Forecasting Failure, Estimating Cost, Finding Talent, Automation tools
  • Know your industry Practices- Swapping parts, using refurbished items, penalty
  • Define Quality of service
  • Attract talent - as service industry does not attract fresh talents
  • Innovote service packages

About Me

Seen me go through cycles driven by Age, Money, Deception, Affection, Success, Failure, Fear- etc. The current cycle puts me in a middle aged bucket with sculpted bitterness trying to tame it to embrace the sweet crime of success and affection.