Electric cars to save the automobile industry

General Motors announced last week repayment of the company's government loans well ahead of schedule.  The world's largest automobile manufacturer will now focus on expanding production of their Chevrolet Volt and other electric models.  The Volt is scheduled to be available to dealers in the fall of this year.

Not surprisingly, Nissan and other automobile manufacturers will also be introducing electric cars this fall.  According to industry experts we should see full scale marketing and manufacturing on a global basis by 2012. Including models from Porsche and other luxury brands.

Last year, when I purchased my Honda Civic using the Cash for Clunkers program, there was a great deal of skepticism regarding the program's possible impact on the automobile industry as well as the overall economy.  However, recent studies show that 90% of participants in the Cash for Clunkers program (including myself) would not have bought a new car if not for the rebates offered by the program.  I  am very happy to have increased my fuel economy by 20 mpg via Cash for Clunkers.  Reducing the money I personally spend buying oil from people who want to kill Americans is, in my opinion, an important benefit of the program.

Regardless of your personal assessment of the stimulus effects of the program, by keeping automobile manufacturers afloat during the recession, it appears that Cash for Clunkers succeeded in at least giving them a little time to retool their operations to produce the cars of the future.


I for one, can't wait to take my used Civic down to the Chevy, Nissan, Honda, etc. dealer in 2012 to see what they'll give me on a trade-in for an electric car.  It will be great to no longer have to purchase gasoline.  Whether the electricity I use to charge my new car comes from coal, wind, solar, etc. at least it will be produced here in America.

Interesting Facebook stats comparing 2009 and 2010

Apple's success helps power economic recovery

A recent cover story in Newsweek magazine proudly proclaimed, America's back!  The article referenced the success of companies like Apple as evidence of our economic turnaround.  However, I must admit I was more than a bit skeptical.

This morning on my way into work I listened to a story on NPR about Apple's record increase in net income for the first quarter (their fiscal 2nd quarter) of 2010 which does not include iPad sales.

Apple shares rose $14.68, 6 percent, to $259.27 in morning trading Wednesday. Earlier they hit $259.85, a new all-time high.

I wonder what next quarter's earnings will look like when they count all the iPad revenue?  Maybe we are on our way back after all......

Historic Tweets

MSNBC posted an interesting article on their list of historic tweets.

Send gifts to your Twitter friends

There's a new service available called Twegistry that allows users to send gifts of candy, flowers, Teddy Bears, etc. to their Twitter friends.  The service is in beta and not that impressive at first glance.

But, consider the possibilities.....

What if you were able to view a friend's online registry or wish list including products sourced from Amazon and/or eBay, etc.? How convenient would it be to have the ability to click on an item and have the product shipped directly to your friend using the information from their Twitter account?

No more wandering aimlessly through Bed, Bath, and Beyond with one of those crappy scanners!

Web publication wins Pulitzer Prize

The Pulitzer Prize for investigative journalism was awarded to Sheri Fink of ProPublica.org.

Excerpt from the NPR story on the awards.

ProPublica, a nonprofit investigative-journalism service, won one of two Pulitzers awarded for investigative reporting for a story on the life-and-death decisions made by doctors at a New Orleans hospital during Hurricane Katrina. The story was a collaboration with The New York Times Magazine.

Surfing v Swimming (Internet v Magazines)

Pages 3 and 4 of the April, 15th 2010 issue of Rolling Stone magazine contain 2 full pages of advertising for magazines in general.  The ad boasts that traditional magazine sales have not been negatively effected by the popularity of online publications.

That may be true, however if it is, why would magazine publishers spend their money on prime ad space just to toot their own horn?

(click on the photo below to read the full text of the ad)

Price Cutter Flag update

I stopped by the Price Cutter on East Battlefield this morning.  I am pleased to say that they have removed the tattered flag.  I just hope they don't wait too long to replace it with a new one.

Business should always keep spare flags on hand for times like these and should educate store managers regarding proper flag etiquette.  The US Code provided here by The Cornell University School of Law  provides very specific guidelines governing flag handling and display.

Price Cutter flies tattered flag

Nothing gets me more upset than when I see a tattered flag flying over a local business.

I photographed the flag below at Price Cutter Plus located at 3260 E. Battlefield, Springfield, MO on Monday April 5th, 2010.

I encourage everyone who reads this Blog to contact Price Cutter and register a complaint.

Great Moments in Viral Video

In September 2007 during a town hall forum, Andrew Meyer a University of Florida student,  asked Sen. John Kerry (among other queries) if he had ever been a member of the Yale University secret society known as  Skull & Bones.  UF security personnel felt that Meyer was being disruptive and decided to forcibly escort him from the hall.  The ensuing melee was captured on hand held video by members of the audience and found its way onto YouTube and other video sharing sites.  The video quickly went viral and the story was picked up by the major networks.

The video caused such a sensation that when The Yale Book of Quotations released its list of the 10 most notable quotations of 2007, Meyer's plea, "don't tase me bro" was chosen as the top quotation of the year.