CEO greed at its worse…a disgusting examination of who we really work for

January 23, 2009 · Posted in Featured, Finance, Financial Crisis, Government, People in the news, Personal Blogs, Politics, Rant, Social Change, Society, Things to think about, Thoughts on the economy · 1 Comment 

The news is ghastly and literally makes you sick to your stomach.   Once again, a large corporate CEO has been exposed and details are coming forward concerning John Thain.  Thain is the recently ousted chief exec at Merrill Lynch after news of his extravagant spending has come to light.   We need people to lead and companies need quality CEOs to guide the culture and direction of its employees, but this is grounds for a free range turkey shoot.

I don’t know how to react to this but I’m almost forced to pull at heart strings because I don’t know how our system will change.  If you analyze what this man did and what potential repercussions it has on other people, it is completely and utterly criminal.  I mean in the same category as a masked gunman robbing a bank, robbing an elderly couple on the street, or simply robbing hard working human beings of their dignity.

He’s not the only one who has plundered corporate finances on meaningless and material objects.   Dennis Kozlowski, former CEO of Tyco, was jailed for his elaborate spending.  He once arranged a birthday party for his wife in a tropical location, hired Jimmy Buffet to perform, had a fountain with flowing vodka, waiters dressed in togas, and had a life size cake of his wife made with exploding candy breasts, no kidding.  He used company money.  At times, the stories are humorous but only so if the economy is good and people have jobs.

Considering the economic struggles of Americans right now – this hits home with me.  It hits home with me because my family has been impacted by the economy and we’ve been impacted by health issues.  This is not a sob story or an attempt to make someone feel sorry for another person, but rather a look at how this man’s actions actually have a trickle down effect to others – as if he actually pulled out the financial rug himself.

Here is a lay out of what he did and theoretically how it impacts the rest of us paupers:

Hires White House decorator guru Michael  Smith to decorate his corporate office at $800,000, which is about the same as sixteen Merrill Lynch analysts making $50,000 who were laid off when ML announced a 10% workforce reduction in 2008.

Area rugs valued at $131,000, which is roughly the value of a first time home for a young family which are now left with a mortgage payment and no income.

Guests chairs valued at $87,000, which equates to the salary of a highly skilled network administrator losing his IT job.

Wall sconces at $2700, which equates to about six months of the average COBRA payments for a laid off worker who has no other health coverage.

A credenza valued at $68,000 – another salaried employee – gone.

A $1400 trash can – again another mortgage payment- gone.

Do not forgot the $4 billion in executive bonuses which he paid out as Merrill Lynch was being purchased by Bank of America.    This was billions (billions!) of dollars handed out to individuals who didn’t even have the leadership capability to keep ML afloat.   BofA has just recently received $25 billion in bailout funds just prior to the take over of Merrill Lynch.  Thank god our government stepped in and helped with the financial burden caused by that huge ass $13,000 chandelier hanging in Thain’s office !

This rant could go on and on.  The damage has been done and it is most likely Thain will get a nice pension payout from BofA execs under the table unless it becomes public news – which if he does – it will.   If he does- it may be time for me to run naked down the street because apparently you can get away with anything in this country.  Hopefully, it does not happen and the man slithers back into his life outside of his corporate crime spree.   It’s nothing more than a crime spree considering Merrill Lynch was a sinking ship and pink slips were being handed out.

A CEO is hired based on his or her credentials and seemingly a perfect fit for the organization –  so they are compensated nicely.   The problem is that the methodology of “salary” is relative to all employees within the company.  The assembly line worker making $40,000 still wants to be paid if the company does not do well.  The same goes for the CEO as they don’t want their value depreciated by a falling stock price just as much as the worker in the office.   Hell, if you had $40 or $50 billion in stock value – you’d probably not even wink at someone walking in with a chair valued at more than a car.  Board of Directors are creating invincible, highly compensated money churning robots with no regard for those people who hold very fragile roles within the framework of a corporation.   It’s a reality, we work in an At Will employment environment which is dictated by the behavior of the market.  Good market= jobs, bad market= layoffs.   But, can the spending be justified when employees are being escorted out the door, salaries are lost, and families forced to suffer a little bit until something better comes along?  Many people never get that second chance to recover, but this slimy pig will.

This irresponsible corporate spending is virtually untouched by any current laws governing corporate responsibility.    How does this type of criminal “free” spending not fall under any Sarbanes Oxley guidelines?  There is no accounting oversight even though , based on the books, this spending looks certified.    The legislation apparently only concerns itself with whether or not the spending is reported as “complete” and “accurate”.     I do not understand how the SEC can’t hold the power to freeze the payment for outlandish office decor – is this not considered a “large” or “unusual” payment?

A road warrior consultant can’t spend over $30 on an out of town dinner, but John Thain can do this.

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The modern medical establishment helps save lives but do you know everything you should?

January 15, 2009 · Posted in Big Business Ripoffs, Featured, Government, Health Care, Social Change, Social Issues, Things to think about, Topic Blogs · 1 Comment 

A bold statement but after all the media, studies, and bullcrap science out there- I’m starting to believe it.  There is a myth in this country that the medical establishment is 100% completely committed and focused on the health of Americans.  This is not an all out assault on those who practice medicine, work late hours in ER’s, or show a genuine passion for those patients who they care for.  The issue lies with the over marketing, over hype, and over bombardment that Americans are subject to from the drug companies.   Drugs can be good, drugs can save lives, but they also can hurt people.  

Big pharma is a multi- billion dollar industry that thrives off the fear it instills in people.  The fear is disguised as “empowerment” and disguised behind such statements as  ”backed by clinical studies”  or seeing normal everyday people on TV who are suffering from such a debilitating condition that they are forced to “ask their doctor”.   I frankly get sick and tired of all the targeted advertisement hour after hour after hour that reminds me how sick I am and how I need to take control of my health, take control of my life, beat my cholesterol (which by the way there is a huge establishment which believes this is junk science),  and control my symptoms of depression.  The depression commercials are my favorite simply for the list of side effects alone…no thanks.  I have been through a lot of shit in the last two years, believe me and I would never pop this garbage in my mouth.  I’d rather be a little blue and snap out of it on my own.

 There is no financial benefit to curing a disease and there is no reward in medicine any greater than the ability to treat someone for a condition and profit highly from it.  Don’t get me completely wrong here; I do believe there are medications out there that serve a valuable purpose in a sick person’s life.   Conditions like Parkinson’s, Leukemia, Sickle Cell, and other inherited diseases have very focused courses of treatment.  You noticed I left cancer off the list and I am not going to haul off and act like I know everything there is to know about cancer, however, there is a very very strong opposition out there to chemo therapy and unfortunately this is the standard course of treatment, that’s it!   There is no other alternative if you are treated by conventional medicine.  Whether you or a loved one chooses to receive chemo for treatment is a purely personal decision and it’s a decision made under a horrendous amount of stress, emotional pain, and financial burden.  Cancer can be prevented in many cases if you learn about food and how food intake effects your body.   You hate to see people struggle with cancer so maybe down the road in a not so distant future, there will be methods to prevent and abort it for good.  A woman who is newly diagnosed with breast cancer is scared out of her wits and will take any course of treatment recommended to her, and frankly, I probably would too.

There are websites out there if you only look for them and believe me, do not think that the old saying “don’t trust everything you read on the internet” rings true all the time.  In fact, there is a wealth of information that is at your fingertips when it comes to medications, supplements, and the healing properties of FOOD!  

Let me get back to my rant earlier about how we get bombarded by drug ads and how big pharma has laced the pockets of the mainstream medical community and worse, our government.   First of all, I wish doctors would get back to their roots and begin the art of being a doctor again.  I get sick of sitting in an exam room and seeing fifty different cardboard displays, poster ads, and little trinkets on the counter with drug names and drug marketing.  You telling me you haven’t noticed?  How come you don’t see anymore pictures of fruits and veggies?  Why can’t there be a poster that lists the benefits of drinking water?  You see my point?   Sadly, doctors, nurses, dentists, and the like are surrounded by an empire.  A business to peddle legal substances in every corner office, every clinic, and every office cabinet.  It has turned Americans into hypochondriacs.  The drug companies unleash millions of dollars into their advertising campaigns and use the false sense of “health empowerment” to making you think that if you mention a drug to your doctor, then you are being very proactive!  Way to go Joe Acid Reflux, make that move and ask your doctor about Prilosec.  Keep eating spicy Mexican food three times a week, but at least you are making the right choice.   

We are one of the few countries on the planet which allows direct TV to consumer marketing of pharmaceuticals.  The article is from 2002 and god only knows what the figures are for today’s ads.   The FDA is also to blame, I personally think this organization is a joke.  Not because a lot of other naysayers think it is too, but based on all the side effects of drugs, the lawsuits, the recalls, the need for new studies, and the non-disclosure of information, it’s a worthless organization that does not protect the people in this country.   Here are examples of how absurd and dictatorial the FDA policies are, which are not designed to benefit you.

  • Have you seen this on bottles? – “This statement has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.”   It’s a catchy little phrase that producers of supplements are forced to put on a product that is not deemed a “drug”.  A drug means it has gone through intensive and long clinical studies to confirm it’s safety, reliability, and effectiveness in the treatment of disease.   These studies are performed by who else other than…the drug companies…tada!   
  • These are the same clinical studies which gave us – Vioxx (pulled off the shelves for invoking heart attacks in people), Baycol(a cholesterol drug pulled for causing fatal rhabdomyolysis, a muscle disease that can be caused by any cholesterol lowering drug), Ketek (an antibiotic found to cause acute liver damage after it was released) Trust me, there has been more, Actos, Avandia, and Celebrex which got major heat a few years back, but is still being pimped!  Celebrex is an NSAID, and studies (outside of the drug companies) have shown that they can cause fatal cardiovascular events.  This commercial by far takes the cake and if you watch and listen carefully, you can decipher what they are really trying to tell you.  Phizer is basically rubbing in your face that whatever information is out there has to be false, or unclear, because their study didn’t find anything wrong!!   They use the guidance of the “FDA” to instill a sense of relief in consumers that it is still OK to buy Celebrex,  because both Phizer and the FDA have acknowledged on the bottle with a “warning” that there is a slight chance it could kill you.  (which of course makes you feel better that the FDA is aware of this, wheeew!)   They place Celebrex on a level playing field with other NSAIDs (like over the counter stuff) and because its an FDA approved drug with a long ass’ commercial, then it can be considered the best of the worse.  People- you’ve seen this and it is sickening and an utter insult to your intelligence.  This is targeted towards people who already have RA or the elderly who will unfortunately believe anything.  

  • A doctor can prescribe a medication called Niaspan, which is a large dose of Vitamin B3 or also called Niacin.  If you get a prescription for Niaspan it will run you around 20 bucks, because it’s a large large dose of a clinical studied medication – this is bullshit.   You can buy Niacin right off the shelf at GNC for a hell of a lot cheaper and it’s the same fucking thing, Niacin.  Oh, and that statement from up above is clearly written on the bottle informing you that this cant be considered a “drug”.   Hmmm, that’s funny – when a doctor gives it to you as Niaspan, it’s a drug.  (Niaspan is made by Abbott Labs)  Interesting, it’s a company!
  • If you buy a huge ass bottle of Vitamin C, the bottle has that silly statement on it again…remember it’s not a drug and not intended to cure anything.   Again, I can buy an orange and there is no warning label.  Ahhh, but if I squeezed that orange into a bottle a made mention of how healthy it was.  The FDA can knock down my door at gunpoint and arrest me for selling something not clinically tested for safety.    But Vioxx has been !?!?!

If anyone wants to back the FDA and support the overall health value of medications that we see on TV, feel free to comment.    Like I said before, drugs do save people’s lives in certain circumstances, there are drugs that help control conditions which people suffer from.  They do the job because they target certain metabolic processes with synthetically produced chemicals.  You bet they do a good job because that’s what they are designed to do.  The problem is that too many of these drugs are profitable and are also hurting and potentially could kill people over time.   I take some drugs that I don’t want to be taking.  I have had some health issues hit me but I still believe firmly that I need to protect myself.  Supplements are good for you!  Don’t let anyone tell you any differently…a drug curves a symptom, that’s it.   Use your noggin and don’t place all your faith in what others sell you.  Doctors are smart people and I wish more of them would not be hesitant to discuss the real science behind the human body and how nutrition, natural substances, supplements, and food can have more of an effect on your body than a drug.   I don’t want to hear about the safety issues of supplements, or the safety issues of herbal substances.   You want to know why their safety is questioned?  It’s based on how they could potentially interact with a…you got it…drug.    It’s based on the fact that natural substances are not deemed worthy of medical study and I am a FIRM believer in this.   I don’t walk around outside popping evergreen trees and crab grass in my mouth with the thought it might cure a headache…but you know what..it fucking might!  This is not a radical viewpoint, it’s based on what goes on in our society today.  If the benefit is not financial, it has no benefit.   This is a disgusting reality.

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Auto makers are failing and the car business has always failed us!

January 15, 2009 · Posted in Big Business Ripoffs, Featured, Financial Crisis, Social Issues, Things to think about, Thoughts on the economy, Topic Blogs · 2 Comments 

I don’t think the failing automakers is totally a result of poor management, lack of innovation, or lack of faith in American made vehicles.  I think the issue goes deeper than that.  It starts at street level where the real dealing and car buying experience takes place.  With the advent of an internet market place, the car lot mentality is losing its appeal and frankly- I think savvy consumers are f**** tired of dealing with an archaic and crooked method (and might I add one of the main ways) of purchasing a car.    I do know people who have bought cars online through Ebay and Cars.com. The problem is that you rely entirely on the description and faith in the entity selling the vehicle, granted there are warranties involved, but you don’t get to see it, smell it, and sit in it.  I personally would have a tough time buying a vehicle online for that fact alone – I need to feel the controls.

I know this is an old cliche, the slimy car salesman, that pushy odd feeling when you walk onto a car lot hunting for a new vehicle.  It sucks, it really does.   It’s almost a science to learn the correct way to barter and deal with salespeople.  The cars are always marked up from their invoice price, if you didn’t know that you need to learn.  Besides the invoice price always being this hidden top secret price, most car dealers will always act like they are one step up the ladder on you.  What I mean is that no matter how much research you do, how much you learn about the car you are buying or trading, the dealer will somehow try to refute the information or pass off what they have to offer as being much better than anything you discovered yourself, it’s quite frustrating and makes you want to leave.   Which by the way, is a great tactic since the last thing a dealer wants is for you to walk out the door, they outright lose you and the potential sale.

Car dealers are a breed many will not understand.  There is a local example of a Kansas City family who has been in the car business for years- and most of that time it has been spent breaking the law, defrauding customer, and spending time in jail.   The Franklin family has been screwing over KC car buyers for a long time and their methods are quite humorous – and in the same light sad and pathetic.   To keep this short, the father’s name is Pete Franklin and he started this family legacy of filth.  He was famous for airing these 60 minute infomercials, yeah, 60 minute infomercials on local KC stations to sell his cars.  It apparently worked because he opened multiple locations throughout the city and raked in about $45 million in sales each year.

His legacy continues with his sons, Jeremy and Chad.  Now this gets downright ugly and exemplifies all that is wrong with the business.  They say the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree and this proves that saying.    The sons of Pete Franklin continued on the business of selling Suzuki vehicles which makes me wonder if Suzuki’s are a perfect fit for sub-prime buyers.  This is exactly the market that the Franklin family targets, they pimp low low monthly payments with nothing down, which is exactly the hook line that thousands of car dealers use to suck people in.

Quick lesson- you don’t buy a car based on how much it will save you monthly- you buy a car based on whether or not you can afford to have it paid off in 5 years !  That is the rule of thumb for financing.
Warning:  a dirt cheap monthly payment = longer financing term (6-7yrs) = you are seriously upside down and paying on a depreciating car for years! Back to the story.

The biggest part of this story is Chad Franklin.  His car dealerships were recently sued by the Kansas Attorney General for “unconscionable and deceptive business practices relating to an advertising campaign.”  I feel partly sorry for the buyers in this video because they should have known better!  That being said, they still got scammed.

You’ll notice the video mentioned that Chad Franklin changed the name of the dealership to Legend Susuki, which is the icing on the cake.  The guy is so crooked that his own NAME can’t be associated with the dealership HE owns out of fear that they won’t sell cars!  His brother Jeremy is somewhat more “legit” and has never been investigated but once had dealerships under the name Jeremy Franklin Suzuki and were recently changed to Showcase Suzuki to avoid association to his brother’s troubles.  How sad is that?

Granted, there are larger more reputable dealerships out there.  (reputable used lightly).  The problem is that car dealers are completely independent brokers of cars.  They buy cars from the automaker and turn the car right around to flip a profit on it and trust me- they always turn a profit!  Even the business of fixing your car is a business and the guarantee that parts and service are honored everywhere is a myth as well.

When your car breaks down, not only does the dealer run tests to find what is wrong, but they also run tests, punch in your VIN, and check their “databases” to see what else on your car needs to be “repaired” or is “due for maintenance”.  This is not a service, it’s a sales tactic.   This also ties back to how poorly cars survive the test of time and how auto makers covers themselves when they sell it to you.  If you actually followed the manufacture suggested maintenance schedule of your car – you would end up paying thousands and thousands of dollars to maintain your car over its lifetime.  This is pathetic considering you just paid some people’s yearly income for that shiny new sports-car.    Most people can only afford oil changes and occasional 30K maintenance which can still run you $400-500 bucks because of the labor costs.  Sadly, service managers are often reprimanded in dealerships for not pushing replacement and maintenance of specific parts on your car EVEN if there is no reasonable explanation of why you need it replaced.   In fact, the entire service bay is a sales arena in itself.  I know this and if they tell you differently –  they are lying.

A car dealer will not honor someone else’s work unless you outright force them to.  What I mean is that if you have two different dealers look at your brakes, they could give you two different assessments of what is wrong – and if you told a third dealer about it, they would still run their own tests and give you their own view.   They don’t act as a singular network representing the brand (Ford, Nissan, etc).  This is the facts!  A car dealership for the most part makes it’s own rules of engagement.  The only thing that is shared between the dealers are the national offers or services put out by the manufacturer themselves.  If you see a national Ford sale, or national “Toyotathon” event – then you’re going to see those details advertised at the dealers simply because they are the “face” of that car maker.  For all other intents and purposes, a dealer is on their own until they get caught doing people wrong  – which is often the case.

You don’t see this type of independent robbery techniques in a lot of other businesses.   If I buy pants at an Old Navy store in California and have issues and take my receipt to a location in Alaska, the store will make every possible concession to help you.  They will make some phone calls and might even allow you to exchange your items in that store.   Not so with auto dealers.  In fact, most don’t even talk to each other in the same metro area, seriously.  If you’re transmission was tested, estimated and confirmed broken at a car dealership – you can’t take your car to another dealership and have them call the other location to verify the issue and fix the transmission for you.  Wanna know why and you know the answer?  Money !!  The dealers love to check out your car, run tests, open the hood, move shit around, pull out cables, unscrew caps, hook up diagnostic laptops, and poke and prod.  They are no different than the doctor’s office – everything they touch is charged to you!  Sooo, that is why they don’t listen to what you tell them, if they did, they wouldn’t profit from your car !!!   I do have a soft side and realize that many have no choice.  The system has forced dealers to make money by employing these practices- they have to!  Dealers have to make money to pay bills and their people and it does not translate to a positive experience for the consumers.

So what do you do?  Be forceful because most car dealerships are staffed with push overs.  They are push overs because the more you fight, the more they give in.  You can make the car experience better by pursuing a second opinion, or questioning what they found, or simply saying ”I don’t need that fixed right now.”  It’s a bad deal no matter how you look at- and it won’t change unless the basic platform of dealerships changes.   CarMax is a step in the right direction but I have never been to one, so I don’t know that much about them – maybe time to research a little.

There is a positive side with a bad economy- they need the sales!  Now could be a great time to wiggle and waggle your negotiating skills and land a cool car at a great discounted price because dealers are hurting big time.  I know it’s tough for people to make big ticket purchases right now, but you can’t ask for a better time to do it.  In fact, my wife and I are about to start because god knows nobody else is looking for cars right now !   I can’t wait to go bully some dealers.

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Are the days of big business and big government over? Part 1

November 12, 2008 · Posted in Big Business Ripoffs, Politics, Social Change, Society, Things to think about, Thoughts on the economy · 5 Comments 

I am not a scholar nor am I an expert on anything, so I am sure this question gets asked every few years by someone, and every few years they are proved wrong. Having said this, and having already accepted the fact that I am probably wrong I still feel the need to ask the question, and to try and defend the question.

It seems to me that in the modern era of technology it is less and less critical for information to be consolidated into an elite group of thinkers hands, and at least for the younger generation (say under 40ish) multiple streams of data is often the preferred method for receiving and for digesting information.

Take for instance the recent election.  Some observers of the election may say that the people who voted for Barack Obama from the younger generation were actually voting for a “We” society instead of the traditional “Me”.  I too believe this to be the case.  We is the new Me, just as bold colors are the new pink or whatever the people who follow that stuff say these days. The point is there is a psychological shift taking place in the world, and when leaders of any ilk say they are the “decider” it makes us cringe.  In today world we want all the facts so we can make up our own minds about a topic.  We further want to feel like all people who are educated on a subject will have a chance to comment and perhaps even influence the direction “We” as a nation are going to take.

Some businesses have grasped this concept and embraced it thoroughly to make their business more successful.  Take for instance Google.  I know everyone takes for instance Google, but darn it they are a good model and I am using them.  Google takes a “We” approach to nearly everything they do. Whether you are discussing the on campus gym, dining room or their search techniques “We” is always at the center of their thinking.  Recently in the news Google announced they are tracking illness searches by users across the country in order to flu outbreaks and other contagious illnesses.  This is truly a “We” concept. We are saying the data is out there in multiple places, and in multiple hands, but We the people also do our own research and often lookup flu like symptoms to see what may be the cause of our ill feelings.  This self driven desire to understand our symptoms could have left Google to profit on the information and sell the information to pharmaceutical companies or other industries that profit on the ill feelings of their customers, but instead Google is just putting the information out there so anyone can take it and do with it as the please.

Other examples of Big Business vs. We Business are auto manufactures whom for the most part have ruled the Earth with complete autonomy until recently.  Auto manufactures are now faced with a society that is more educated and well informed, which causes them to lose margin and also meet certain performance and reliability standards that in the past were always a bit of a mystery.  Honestly, who didn’t know what the new Camero was going to look like 2 years ago, or who goes to a dealership now without knowing the cost of the vehicles they are interested in and the probable price they are going to pay for a lease or a purchase?  Well unfortunately I can admit that I know plenty of people who still do not know these things, but my point would not be bolstered by my admitting it so I won’t. The real point is why not open up concept cars and concept fuel alternatives and let the public educate themselves and then help you decide? We are all not idiots and we may be able to give some valuable design and demand data to you for free, just ask.

Now some big businesses will probably always be big businesses.  Take for example Exxon, Shell, BP and the other giants in the energy world.  These guys don’t care one bit what we think, because they already pay for the data that matters to them and they have no intention of sharing it with anyone, and honestly I am not sure I blame them.  If you have a captive market why not keep it, but brother don’t we all wish we could crack that code and find a way to replace them.

I find this post is running a little long, so I will simply call this Part 1, and I encourage all contributors to hearditinabar.com to add to it or disagree.  I am not sure I have even conveyed my thoughts fully in this first post, but I feel the concept is worth discussing.

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