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The Market Got Its Excuse To Crash

The financial markets have been taking a hit lately, with the Russell 5000 falling by more than a quarter over the course of the last month, with markets experiencing the biggest single-day hit since 1987. The corona virus and the related fears has led to a dramatic decline in business sentiment, recognizing that lack of customers will lead to a lack of profits, or even losses. How long the virus panic lasts is anybody’s guess, and markets, and business in general, hate uncertainty. If, as some professionals have expressed, the rapid spread stabilizes relatively soon, the economic ...

Biden’s Super Tuesday Surprise Was No Groundswell: It Was A Corporate Merger

Let’s not kid ourselves about the meaning of Joe Biden’s Super Tuesday surprises. It was not the sudden imprimatur of a man buoyed by a groundswell of support. Biden is no runaway viral sensation. Rather, his win is the result of establishment Democrats’ cynical attempt to funnel voters into a center-left box, quarantining the establishment against the left-wing insurgence of Bernie Sanders. While the average Joe might not be fooled by the Democrats’ shenanigans, it’s less obvious that the establishment has not managed to fool itself. After all, the quest for growth by any ...

Regular Brushing May Become A Necessity

Ah, spring, when a dog owner’s thoughts lightly turn to dog hair. It may not be officially spring, but the dogs think it’s time to get rid of their winter undercoat. Gael, especially, grows a very dense coat and it’s hard to get it all out. Regular brushing becomes a necessity if I don’t want dust bunnies to turn into dust mastodons. Currently, our grooming table is permanently set up in our laundry room. It’s a tight fit, and the table needs to be shifted every time I want something from the freezer, but it’s still easier than putting the table up and down. At one time I ...

Welcome, Sweet Springtime

“Why does anyone go on spring vacation? It seems odd to fly to a tropical destination at the very moment one of the greatest astonishments of life on Earth is taking place right at home.” I’m quoting now in the Wall Street Journal from George Ball, chairman and CEO of Burpee. “When friends tell me their spring-vacation plans, they mention ‘escape.’ Really? You want to escape spring? That’s like fleeing paradise.” I confess to having no desire to travel during the darkest days of winter. The weather seems to have improved over these last couple of years but who ...

Enjoy The Upcoming Baseball Season

In a couple of weeks, the smell of hotdogs will be wafting slowly past our noses, and we’ll be dressed in our mukluks, fur-lined gloves, and Inuit parkas, excited for the sounds of the crack of the bat, the roar of the crowd, the chattering of teeth, and the call of “play” from the umpires as the 2020 baseball season begins its campaign. Somebody, please tell me why baseball seems to keep starting earlier, often beginning in cold weather cities, that have open stadiums. Being a retired teacher, I was often under the constraints, if you will, of the alphabet, having begun my ...

Making The Right Preparations

The news is aflutter with updates of this new virus, COVID-19. I can’t turn on the TV or look at my phone without seeing some new update on how many cases there are or where the virus has spread to. The constant updates are driving anxiety up in our country and across the world, so much so that stores are limiting toilet paper and hand sanitizer sales. I won’t lie — I ran out and bought some extra canned goods and paper products myself. “Better safe than sorry,” I said to myself as I loaded my pantry with canned tuna, vegetables and other goods. Tonight, as I was sitting here ...