Exxon Et al Have Record Profits

Photos, wikipedia.org

From the Seraph Jilli Blog
"Not Your Mother's News"

In the never ending quest for more consumer, business and government dollars, oil companies are reporting record profits for 2008. While almost all other companies are struggling and or going under lately, these companies thrive. One reason, of course, is we all need fuel and fuel bi-products. The other more blatant reason appears to be outright price gouging. If you go to the pumps today you will see increasing prices once again. Those prices are going up even when the cost of crude oil goes down. Reasonable thinking would tell you that if it costs less to acquire a raw product these companies should be able to sell for less. They bring up the cost of refining fuel as an issue. The real cost of refining is actually more of a constant, remaining much the same regardless of the cost of the crude. As an irony, refining costs only go up in relation to the final cost of refined fuel and oil going up at the retailers. I.e, if costs at the retail outlets goes up, then it costs more to transport fuel product, plus, refinery workers want higher pay to offset their own driving costs and on and on. To be fair, oil companies are not entirely to blame for crazy pricing. Wall Street, banks and others are also in the mix of this price gouging/fixing. Folks, greed did not end with the 80s... As a final thought, in a time when taking a bottle of water or a tube of toothpaste onto a plane is considered a national security threat, holding America to the fire with fuel price gouging is passed off as just fine... In other words, huge profiteering during a global financial crisis on a commodity that no one can do without is something that should be considered a national security threat.
More Info Here

The New York Stock Exchange
looking all so "respectful."


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Redoubt Volcano May Erupt

Mt Redoubt, 2005
Photo, USGS


Mt Redoubt Erupting, April 1990
Photo by R. Clucas, April 21, 1990

Click photos for larger.

Once again, Alaska is shuttering at the thought of a very powerful volcano exploding ash, rocks and boiling mud across their land. Just 106 miles south-west of Anchorage this atom bomb like mountain could shower ash on that city. Scientists say it is just a short time before Mt Redoubt erupts again. Click Here For More

In a close to home issue, the ultra huge "super volcano" that encompasses and underlays Yellowstone National Park has been stirring in the last few months. It is said that a medium to large eruption from it would endanger the entire planet. Ash from a super volcano is capable of saturating the earth's atmosphere many times over. That much ash has the ability to trigger a new ice age. As if we did not have enough to think about... USGS.gov has more info and as of this publish they say Yellowstone is quiet. More Here

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Truck Wreck On I-15

Just before 6:30 PM today a truck was reported to be rolled over on I-15 north. All emergency crews were dispatched and they found the truck one mile south of Sunburst, Montana. The truck had come to rest in the middle of the freeway lanes. The driver and passenger seem to be OK. The truck was left for the night due to high wind.

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$100 Wins $1 Million House

Karen McHale, 47, of Idaho Springs, Colorado has won a 6,000-square-foot house with an appraised value of $1.25 million. Karen viewed the $100 she spent on raffle tickets as a contribution to a Maryland charity, not planning to win anything. She was then shocked to find that she had indeed won the house on the coast of Maryland. Karen does not intend to keep the house, instead, she is going to sell it and use the money for her grown children and to pay on her current home.
The house had been the prize in a raffle organized by mortgage broker Tom Walters of Edgewater, Maryland. Tom Walters thought a raffle might be a more lucrative way to unload the Edgewater property than a standard sale during a bad economy. Walters reached his goal of selling 31,500 tickets, said president and founder of the raffle, Larry Griffin. Walters himself only sold about 24,000 tickets, leaving the amount of Griffin's charity cut in limbo. Griffin said he and Walters would figure out how to split the proceeds.


The Walters And Prize House

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Library Book Arrest

Independence, Iowa
An Iowa woman has been arrested because she did not return a library book.
Shelly Koontz was arrested Thursday night on a fifth degree theft charge. She is accused of stealing a book called "The Freedom Writers Diary," which she checked out from the local library in April of 2008.
Police made a visit to her home in September. The library told authorities that they had tried to contact Koontz several times about returning the book. She has been released from jail by a $250 bond. Local police said the book is is worth $13.95.

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Real Flying Car!

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Finally, a real flying car that many can fly and afford. You only need 20 hours of training to fly it and the estimated cost is $194k. This car is drivable on the streets and highways. You can fly up to 460 miles at 115 mph on a tank of unleaded gas and when you land, you simply fold up the wings and drive where you want to go. At the end of the day, you fly back, drive home and park inside your garage. On the ground, the car gets 30 miles per gallon and has a 20 gallon tank. It has front wheel drive and many safety features. You can even order a full vehicle parachute which brings the plane and you down in the event of an emergency. The car/plane is called the Transition and is made by Terrafugia. Terrafugia was founded by some pros from MIT in 2006 and they have been perfecting the design since then. The first Transitions are due to be delivered in 2010 with many already reserving them.
Order Your Own Flying Car Now
Manufacturer's Website

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Barack Obama Assumes Power

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Editor's Comments:
In-spite of the controversy of his eligibility to serve, Barack Obama also known as Barry Soetoro (when he was a resident of Indonesia) has assumed power to the "throne" of the United States of America. Adding to the controversy are the accounts that some of Barack's own family have said that he was born in Kenya, Africa and not in Hawaii as claimed. Also, even though Barack's mother was born in the USA his father was a resident of Kenya. Barack has resisted showing anyone his full birth-certificate, only presenting a very dubious and incomplete Hawaiian copy on his website. The US constitution allows for only natural born citizens to be president. Congress has the ability to look into this, but so far, has neglected to do so... This is an extremely important constitutional issue, NOT a racial one. So don't send me comments about race. Race is never an issue at NBMC...
Above is a photo of "the Beast" (the new pres. limo). There are actually four of them that travel together for security reasons. More Here

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Supermarket Secrets

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1. “Feel the squeeze? Actually, so do we.”

When the economy slows and businesses begin to feel the heat, grocery stores are often exceptions to the rule. That’s because when consumers cut back on frills like eating out, they tend to make even more trips to the supermarket. Still, all bets may be off in the wake of the crash of 2008.

Citi Investment Research analyst Deborah Weinswig forecasts falling same-store sales growth at many of the major chains in 2009; for one, she sees top performer Kroger experiencing a decline in same-store sales growth, from about 5 percent in 2008 to 4 percent in the coming year. Meanwhile, supermarket chain Supervalu forecasts its own flat sales growth through 2009.

Even the big-box stores—now established contenders in the grocery industry—are facing tough headwinds in the wake of the market meltdown. Weinswig says she expects dips in same-store sales growth for BJ’s Wholesale Club, from 11 percent in 2008 to under 7 percent in 2009, and a drop from 8 to 6 percent growth over the same period for Costco. Bottom line, “it’s tough to pass through higher costs when consumers have such a laser-like focus on price,” says Mitchell Corwin, a senior equity analyst for Morningstar.

2. “You’re getting less for the same price.”

When Linda Edwards, a nurse in East Windsor, N.J., picked up her usual $4.99 jug of orange juice at Shop Rite this summer, she was surprised to discover that it contained 7 ounces less than it normally did. A few months later she noticed her Skippy peanut butter and chicken strips were also lighter but not any cheaper. “Everything seems to be shrinking, but my family hasn’t shrunk,” says the single mother of five boys. A spokesperson for Unilever, which owns Skippy, says reducing product size is one way the company is coping with higher food and fuel costs.

Manufacturers know that in a tight economy, consumers are driven away by price hikes, so they quietly shrink products, hoping a few ounces here or there won’t be missed, says Alexia Howard, a senior research analyst for Sanford C. Bernstein. But it’s starting to backfire, says Ben Popken, editor of Consumerist.com, who says he’s getting more complaints from readers about shrinking products. “People are really sensitive to any decrease in their purchasing power,” he says. Popken recommends checking the unit price between brands to see whether you’re paying the same price for less food.

3. “We jack up prices where you’re least likely to notice.”

When times are tough, super-markets know vigilant shoppers notice even tiny changes in the price of foods like milk, cereal, bread and cheese. In fact, there are about 500 such products, and stores raise prices on these staples at their own peril.

So how do markets deal with rising food costs? They tinker with the price of the roughly 45,000 items people don’t buy regularly enough to have a fixed idea of their cost—tacking on 3 to 4 percent to specialty products like, say, gourmet pasta sauce or fresh-squeezed juices, without consumers noticing. “There’s an opportunity to make some margin back on those items,” says Jim Hertel, managing partner of Willard Bishop, a consultant for the industry.

But don’t expect the savings to be passed on to you when costs come down. Many manufacturers lock in prices well in advance, and they often hold off on bringing prices back down to make up for the resulting losses, says Howard. One way to be sure you’re getting the best deal when prices drop: Stick to basics. Products like coffee and meat are likely “to reflect their underlying costs more quickly than most other foods,” Howard says.

4. “You can’t always believe our nutrition claims.”

It seems people are more concerned with their health these days, but nutrition labeling on most foods can be tough to decipher. Hoping to bridge the gap, grocery chain Hannaford Bros. developed a program called Guiding Stars, which posts nutrition ratings of one to three stars on the shelf tags of some products. “We’d like to see the FDA adopt the program nationally,” says Bruce Silverglade, legal affairs director at the Center for Science in the Public Interest.

Sounds great, but according to a Government Accountability Office report, the FDA hasn’t randomly checked the accuracy of nutrition labeling in over a decade, and of those products it has tested due to obvious red flags, more than 20 percent had errors. (An FDA spokesperson says random sampling isn’t necessary; the FDA tests products according to guidelines set by its Office of Regulatory Affairs.) With so little oversight, consumers can’t fully trust manufacturers’ nutrition labels or any ratings system based on that data.

“It’s the manufacturer’s responsibility to provide accurate information—that’s all we can use to assess products,” says Julie Greene, director of healthy living for Hannaford Bros.

5. “We won’t take your coupons.”

The Sunday paper used to be the source for grocery coupons. But now they’re increasingly available online, from sites like Coupons.com as well as manufacturers’ and supermarkets’ own Web pages. The problem is, they aren’t always easy to use. Over 10.6 million Internet coupons were redeemed last year, according to Carolina Marketing Services. While that amount is expected only to increase, it’s still a fraction of all coupons redeemed, and many stores are still unfamiliar with them.

That’s what 61-year-old retiree C.J. Shearrer discovered when he printed out about $30 worth of coupons and took them to a Wal-Mart in Midwest City, Okla. Shearrer says the manager told him the store didn’t accept online coupons; only when he showed him a printout of Wal-Mart’s coupon policy, says Shearrer, did the manager agree to take them. (A company spokesperson says Wal-Mart accepts one Internet coupon per item per customer, as long as it’s legitimate and scans at the register.) Stephanie Nelson, founder of information site CouponMom.com, suggests doing what Shearrer did: Bring along a copy of a given store’s coupon policy, which should be found on its Web site.

6. “Our loyalty cards help us cater to our biggest spenders...”

Many supermarkets offer shoppers loyalty cards that get scanned at checkout for savings on specially marked products. But saving money isn’t what these cards are really about. Whenever you use your card, stores record your purchases in vast databases that contain years’ worth of your purchasing information. That means they know what you buy year after year, how often you shop and when a coupon influences your purchases. And they use
this information for everything from promoting new products to deciding what to stock.

More important, stores tap this data to target customers who buy lots of groceries on a regular basis. Woolf says that as much as 65 percent of a store’s sales are derived from these core shoppers, who make up just 12 to 25 percent of its customers. Loyalty-card programs allow stores to cater to these folks by sending them free samples, offering special bargains other shoppers don’t get and structuring discounts to reward them for their regular, expensive shopping trips. “Those customers who contribute more profits, you look after them better,” says Woolf.

7. “...but they’re not always your best bet for big savings.”

Stores that use these loyalty programs want you to think you’ll save big by participating. But that’s not always the case: Wal-Mart, which has no such program, undercuts competitors on price, and most stores without these programs match their regular prices to competitors’ discounted card prices. In many cases, these retailers may even be able to offer lower prices than stores with elaborate loyalty-card programs, says David Livingston, managing partner with industry consultant DJL Research. “Loyalty-card programs do add an expense for stores,” Livingston says. “And stores can offer the same bargains without the card programs.”

In the end, what do consumers get for handing over their data? It depends. According to Stephen Hoch, a marketing professor at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, loyalty-card discounts really just shift higher prices onto those without cards. And even the best rewards don’t always amount to much. Supermarkets have a tight profit margin of about 2 percent, making it “hard for supermarkets to give customers big rewards,” says Hoch.

8. “Big sales may not mean lower costs for you.”

Supermarkets know you want bargains. And they’ll use bargains to get you through the door, via promotional flyers and advertised discounts. But the key is to make sure they don’t give away too much once you get inside.

How do they do it? For starters, atmosphere. Supermarkets know the first thing you see when you walk in sets the tone for your shopping trip. If it puts sale items or highly discounted products near the entrance, it can create the impression there’s real value to be had, whether that’s the case or not, says consultant Hertel. That’s also why space at the end of aisles is often used to display a small number of sale items. Stores know that you’re likely to buy lots of other products while you’re shopping—many of which will not be on sale or will be store brands—helping to cover the discounts on promotional items. Indeed, studies show that supermarkets have been effective at limiting giveaways, says K. Sudhir, a professor at the Yale School of Management. “Stores want to create the perception that customers are getting a good deal,” he says. “But they don’t want everyone to get the lowest prices.”

9. “We may carry local produce, but we’re no farmer’s market.”

When former Chicago software engineer Michael Morowitz wants to buy strawberries, he waits until summer and looks for those grown locally. “Strawberries shipped to Chicago in February are never going to be as good as those grown nearby in June,” says Morowitz, who runs The Local Beet, a Web site about locally grown food in Chicago. Like Morowitz, more people are looking for goods from nearby farms as a way of getting better, fresher foods and supporting local growers, not to mention cutting down on pollution from transportation. And supermarkets have heard the call—so much so that megaretailer Wal-Mart now touts locally grown produce.

But it’s not as clear-cut as it sounds. For one thing, there’s no agreement on what local means. For example, Wal-Mart defines local produce as that grown within the same state, but in a large state like California, that doesn’t mean much. Also, it’s tough for big chains to find enough local farms to fulfill their needs, and smaller farms can struggle to keep up with a large chain’s demands, says Julia Stewart, a spokesperson for the Produce Marketing Association. In the case of Wal-Mart, some of its local suppliers are the same massive farms that normally provide its produce. “It just makes for a positive press release,” Livingston says. A Wal-Mart spokesperson says the company works with farms of many sizes and doesn’t preclude its local farmers from selling their produce elsewhere.

10. “We’re experts in human behavior.”

Marketers know a lot about how you shop and what’s likely to make you pick up a product. For example, stores have discovered that shoppers are more comfortable staying to the right as they move through a store, says Ron Larson, associate professor of marketing at Western Michigan University. How much difference does it make? According to market-research firm Sorensen Associates, shoppers moving counterclockwise spend
$2 more per trip than those who go the opposite direction.

How to avoid getting psyched out by savvy marketing? Know what you want to buy before you enter the supermarket. Livingston recommends planning meals for the week and sticking firmly to your list once in the store. Also, grab the smallest cart that will hold all your items, and heed the old saying, "Never shop when you’re hungry".

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Circuit City To Close Down

Bankrupt electronics retailer Circuit City Inc. said Friday it has asked for court approval to close its remaining 567 U.S. stores and sell all its merchandise.

The company said it has 30,000 employees.

"We are extremely disappointed by this outcome," James Marcum, acting CEO for Circuit City, said in a statement. "We were unable to reach an agreement with our creditors and lenders to structure a going-concern transaction in the limited timeframe available, and so this is the only possible path for our company."

In a filing with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, Circuit City - the No. 2 electronics retailer after Best Buy (BBY, Fortune 500) - said it had reached an agreement with four companies to start the liquidation process.

The company said the sale would begin Saturday and run until March 31, pending court approval.

"This is very significant. It shows you how bad things are for the the retail industry," said George Whalin, president and CEO of Retail Management Consultants.

Whalin said management mistakes over the past few years combined with the recession brought down Circuit City.

"This company made massive mistakes," he said, citing a decision to get rid of sales people and other mismanagement.

What's more, given the credit market freeze, Whalin added that no manufacturer wants to sell to any retailer who doesn't have money to pay for the merchandise.

At the same time, Whalin said there's still a very slim chance that one or more firms that have expressed an interest in buying Circuit City could still buy it out of bankruptcy over the next few days.

"I wouldn't say it's completely over yet for Circuit City, but it's almost over," Whalin said.

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Clean Air Act

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Montana Sen. Jerry Black of Shelby had intended to draft a bill to permanently exempt Montana taverns and casinos from the Clean Air Act. That would then allow smoking in such establishments to continue. In a reply email to NBMC, Jerry told us that he now has NO intention of introducing any legislation. Quote: "Although I do agree with the tavern owners and casinos that this is a personal property rights issue and that people should have a choice to go to non-smoking or smoking establishments, I have NO intentions of introducing any legislations exempting them from the Clean Air Act. The public overwhelming supports the Act and there is no sense in pursuing it further".
In 2005, taverns and casinos were given until October 1, 2009 to get ready for the state wide smoking ban. Restaurants and many other places including many bars, went non-smoking in 2005 and have done quite well. Many tavern and casino owners that still have smoking are worried that going non-smoking will "kill" their business. The forward looking ones are making plans for the smoking ban and are constructing areas outside their business location to accommodate patrons who smoke. They are including comfortable outdoor lounge areas with gas heaters for winter.

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BNSF Gives $500k For Glacier's 100th

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Taco Bell Wedding

NORMAL, Ill. – Wedding bells meant Taco Bell for Paul and Caragh Brooks.
Customers inside the fast-food restaurant continued to order tacos and burritos as the couple sat Friday in an orange booth at Taco Bell and exchanged vows.
"It's appropriate," groom Paul Brooks said. "It's an offbeat relationship."
Employees displayed hot sauce packets labeled with the words "Will you marry me?" They decorated the restaurant with streamers and balloons.
The bride wore a $15 hot pink dress and the entire wedding cost about $200. Several dozen guests looked on as the couple's friend, Ryan Green of Normal, administered the vows while wearing a T-shirt. He was ordained online.
"This is the way to go — there's no stress," said the groom's mother, Kathy Brooks.
Caragh Brooks, 21, of Australia, met Paul Brooks, 30, on an Internet dating Web site. They already had the same last name.
The couple wrote back and forth and talked on the phone for nine months before Caragh Brooks moved to the United States.
"We have the same brain, just in two bodies," Paul Brooks said. "We think alike in virtually every manner. We have the same interests, viewpoints."
He proposed on New Year's Eve and, because they like to spend time at the local Taco Bell, they decided to wed there.
"I would never have expected in my life in working here there would be a wedding," restaurant manager Carl Hamlow said.

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Obama To Ride In "The Beast"

2009 Limo Before Paint

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Barack Obama's new ride has arrived -- and it's a "beast".

A new model of limousine built by General Motors Corp. has been delivered to the Secret Service and will make its debut in Washington, DC on January 20, 2009.

The vehicle, referred to by the Secret Service as "the beast," will reportedly feature heavy armor that is at least 5 inches thick and comes complete with run-flat tires, bulletproof glass and a completely sealed interior to ward off a chemical attack, among many other high-tech security features.

One news agency, noting its 8-inch-thick doors, said the limo can withstand a "direct hit from an asteroid." But GM spokeswoman Joanne K. Krell laughed off the comments.

The new limousine also includes larger windows and better visibility for the president, a spokesman for the automaker told the paper.

Cadillac has previously disclosed that the limo's interior is made of hand-stitched leather and includes a 10-disc CD player.

The Secret Service and GM say they'll reveal more about the custom vehicle's specifications next week after training with the new limousine at a facility near Washington.

Older-model presidential limos will remain in use for the vice president and traveling world leaders. The previous model, a modified Cadillac DTS, was introduced at President George W. Bush's second inauguration in 2005.

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Man Wins $240k From Airline, Et al

An airline passenger forced to cover his T-shirt because it displayed Arabic script has been awarded 240,000 dollars in compensation.

Raed Jarrar received the pay out on Friday from two US Transportation Security Authority officials and from JetBlue Airways following the August 2006 incident at New York's JFK Airport, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) announced.

"The outcome of this case is a victory for free speech and a blow to the discriminatory practice of racial profiling," said Aden Fine, a lawyer with ACLU.

Jarrar, a US resident, was apprehended as he waited to board a JetBlue flight from New York to Oakland, California, and told to remove his shirt, which had written on it in Arabic: "We will not be silent."

He was told other passengers felt uncomfortable because an Arabic-inscribed T-shirt in an airport was like "wearing a T-shirt at a bank stating, I am a robber," the ACLU said.

Jarrar eventually agreed to cover his shirt with another provided by JetBlue. He was allowed aboard but his seat was changed from the front to the back of the aircraft.

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Montana "Pennies for Peace"

From a 1990s promise to help build one foreign school and with no money for it, Greg Mortenson's dream finally came true when one US child opened his penny jar. That one boy's penny jar snowballed when more and more children and then their adults opened their penny jars. A year later, Greg had the money to build a school for kids who really had none. It took another year to actually start the first school because money was also needed for a walk bridge across a river. Greg and his people have now helped to construct over seventy schools.

From Pennies for Peace:
"Pennies for Peace educates children about the world beyond their experience and shows them that they can make a positive impact on a global scale, one penny at a time.

Our best hope for a peaceful and prosperous world lies in the education of all the world’s children. Through cross-cultural understanding and a solution-oriented approach, Pennies for Peace encourages children, ultimately our future leaders, to be active participants in the creation of global peace". For more click here.

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Happy 2009!

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