i.want.world |
my project & life in vienna |
"Globalisation allowed the US to suck up the savings of the rest of the world and consume more than it produced." George Soros, FT.com January 23 2008.
Seismograph. The line indicates the daily volatility of the Dow Jones index, between 1901 and 2009.
ZARA
Sad but true. The NGO ZARA (Zivilcourage und Anti-Rassismus Arbeit), which is famous for its fight against racism in Austria, is also fighting for its survival.
The org just celebrated its 10th anniversary last month. Unfortunately, the 1000 or more people who attended the party couldn’t save the org as 200 people supporting members are missing. There’s also lack of donations coming in. Due to lack of funds several projects have been turned down or simply cancelled.
Can we blame it on the recent financial crisis where many workers either lost their jobs or businesspeople losing faith in the economy. For many of us who earn the minimum wage it is pretty hard to part our hard-earned money. But somehow it is strange and dreadful to think that the Austrian government tried to save banks and reluctant to punish large firms that made a fool out of the people. Non-government organisations like ZARA and co. don’t receive any penny nor other means of support from the establishment except from the Greens and the socialists and other groups and individuals that promote the same ideals like ZARA. Because of the org’s mission to eradicate racism and help the victims of racist attacks in the country, the conservative politicians don’t see it as useful to their aims.
A huge bulk of ZARA staff is made up of volunteers. If we want ZARA to continue its work we must help the org to survive. If not now, then when? Or else it would be all too late.
David Reilly at Bloomberg notes that the pricing of credit default swaps on both the US government debt and Campbell’s is the same...
Here is the link. Hat tip goes to TheBrowser.
The idea is simple. French artist Sébastien Bouchard embellished an African calabash bowl with hand-painted Louis Vuitton monograms then took pictures of it.
Following up on yesterday's post about quantifying political speech, Dartmouth's Michael Herron - who is a first-rate political scientist and data hound - points out that Obama was the first president to speak about "data" in his inaugural address, and only the second to mention "statistics."
The shoe hurled at President George W. Bush has sent sales soaring at the Turkish maker as orders pour in from Iraq, the U.S. (!, AT) and Iran.
The brown, thick-soled “Model 271” may soon be renamed “The Bush Shoe” or “Bye-Bye Bush,” Ramazan Baydan, who owns the Istanbul-based producer Baydan Ayakkabicilik San. & Tic., said in a telephone interview today.
“We’ve been selling these shoes for years but, thanks to Bush, orders are flying in like crazy,” he said. “We’ve even hired an agency to look at television advertising.”
Hat tip: Mahalanobis.
via Marginal Revolution by Alex Tabarrok on 12/20/08
From the WSJ: Chrysler Hires Law Firm Jones Day as Bankruptcy Counsel
Chrysler's move suggests the auto maker is preparing for imminent financial failure should its efforts to persuade Congress to deliver federal rescue funds fall short.
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Click on cartoon for larger image in new window. Rerun of a great cartoon from Eric G. Lewis, a freelance cartoonist living in Orange County, CA. |
The association community has always been enamored with the Jim Collins idea of creating “stop doing lists,” so here is my brief stop doing list for association community leaders feeling frazzled by a steady diet of negative information about the state of the global economy.
1. STOP reacting to each daily dose of bad news–It’s appropriate to be serious and sober about what’s going on today, but don’t overreact to every wild stock market gyration or new government report. Focus on integrating today’s data into your long-term view.
2. STOP looking for shortsighted ways to retrench–It’s appropriate to conserve resources by eliminating unnecessary expenditures, but investments in building staff and organizational capabilities do not fall into that category. Focus on value creation as your top strategic priority.
3. STOP redoubling your efforts as a defensive strategy–It’s appropriate to concentrate on serving members well when they most need us, but the overused “doing more with less” rallying cry is a tired and unrealistic approach. Focus on your ability to deliver what’s most important.
