Hurry up and wait, for medical care in Spain:
MADRID — One out of every 100 people in Spain is on a state hospital waiting list for surgery, the government said on Thursday.
....The figure is nearly the same as two years ago, showing that nothing has improved despite promises to cut delays from the government.
And other figures show the situation is getting worse.
The average waiting time has gone from 81 days to 83 days.
The percentage of people who wait six months or longer for their operation is 9.48 percent – a rise from 9.16 percent two years ago.
Friday, June 30, 2006
Thursday, June 29, 2006
We're in the money...
Indiana seals the deal, and pgl's reputation is further shredded (if possible):
By noon today state bank accounts bulged with $3.8 billion for the lease of the Indiana Toll Road to a foreign partnership.
The money flowed in a series of wire transfers and state officials signed the paperwork completing the deal.
The state, meanwhile, disclosed that the lowest bid for the toll road had been submitted by a U.S. firm, the investment bank Morgan Stanley, which was ready to pay $1.9 billion for the right to lease the Northern Indiana highway.
....The other losing bids came from an Australian consortium that offered $2.84 billion and a Spanish company that was ready to plunk down $2.5 billion.
In other words Macquarie-Cintra overpaid by about one billion dollars.
By noon today state bank accounts bulged with $3.8 billion for the lease of the Indiana Toll Road to a foreign partnership.
The money flowed in a series of wire transfers and state officials signed the paperwork completing the deal.
The state, meanwhile, disclosed that the lowest bid for the toll road had been submitted by a U.S. firm, the investment bank Morgan Stanley, which was ready to pay $1.9 billion for the right to lease the Northern Indiana highway.
....The other losing bids came from an Australian consortium that offered $2.84 billion and a Spanish company that was ready to plunk down $2.5 billion.
In other words Macquarie-Cintra overpaid by about one billion dollars.
Wednesday, June 28, 2006
Kurse of Kwame
Michael Jordan's first official act in Charlotte is to draft Gonzaga's Adam Morrison with the third pick.
For crying out loud?
For crying out loud?
Moi?
Je suis histoire:
PARIS, June 28, 2006 (AFP) - French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin, the target of fierce criticism in recent months, said Wednesday he had no plans to stand as a candidate in presidential elections next year.
"I have no presidential ambitions," he told a regular monthly news conference in response to a journalist's question.
Previously, 52-year-old Villepin has dodged the question even though he was widely seen as President Jacques Chirac's chosen successor.
But in recent months Villepin's popularity has plummeted as he lurched from one crisis to another, prompting Chirac to make a rare televised interview this week to voice support for his embattled prime minister.
A recent voter intention survey credited Villepin with just four percent of the ballots if he contested the elections.
PARIS, June 28, 2006 (AFP) - French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin, the target of fierce criticism in recent months, said Wednesday he had no plans to stand as a candidate in presidential elections next year.
"I have no presidential ambitions," he told a regular monthly news conference in response to a journalist's question.
Previously, 52-year-old Villepin has dodged the question even though he was widely seen as President Jacques Chirac's chosen successor.
But in recent months Villepin's popularity has plummeted as he lurched from one crisis to another, prompting Chirac to make a rare televised interview this week to voice support for his embattled prime minister.
A recent voter intention survey credited Villepin with just four percent of the ballots if he contested the elections.
Back Home in Indiana...
[Update: Couldn't have happened to a nicer bunch of guys (from the comments section at Angry Bear before the Honda announcement):
Well, it will be interesting to see what Daniels does with his Powerball check.
Improve the economy long-term? Not likely.
[and:
... this is a short-term fix based on a long -term lease.
This is like the junkie kid selling the family heirlooms for a fix.
[and:
These new toll road transactions are and will prove to be another hollowing out of our capital base.
[and:
The goal of our Republican politicians is to reduce the level of services provided by the state to the lowest in the nation. They want a plantation economy to out Mississippi, Mississippi.
[and:
By the time this turns sour Mitch will be only a memory.
[Now back to the original post, aka speaking truth to nincompoops]
...is Governor Mitch Daniels, to welcome a new Honda factory. Likely made possible by the new roads the toll road lease financed:
11:34 AM...Gov. Mitch Daniels rushed home from a trade mission in Asia to welcome Honda to Indiana this morning.
“Honda is going to feel right at home in Indiana, and you are going to love Greensburg and this part of our state,” Daniels said.The $550 million auto assembly plant will be seen at the place where Indiana’s economic comeback began, Daniels told a press conference in Greensburg.
11:41 AM...The Honda auto plant will take 24 months to build and begin production in 2008 of a 4-cylindar car. The model wasn't revealed. The plant will pump $1.5 billion in the midwestern economy, as Honda buys auto parts and other supplies needed for the new plant.
Government will kick in at least $134 million in incentives to the project. That includes money for wastewater treatment and new or expanded roads.
Well, it will be interesting to see what Daniels does with his Powerball check.
Improve the economy long-term? Not likely.
[and:
... this is a short-term fix based on a long -term lease.
This is like the junkie kid selling the family heirlooms for a fix.
[and:
These new toll road transactions are and will prove to be another hollowing out of our capital base.
[and:
The goal of our Republican politicians is to reduce the level of services provided by the state to the lowest in the nation. They want a plantation economy to out Mississippi, Mississippi.
[and:
By the time this turns sour Mitch will be only a memory.
[Now back to the original post, aka speaking truth to nincompoops]
...is Governor Mitch Daniels, to welcome a new Honda factory. Likely made possible by the new roads the toll road lease financed:
11:34 AM...Gov. Mitch Daniels rushed home from a trade mission in Asia to welcome Honda to Indiana this morning.
“Honda is going to feel right at home in Indiana, and you are going to love Greensburg and this part of our state,” Daniels said.The $550 million auto assembly plant will be seen at the place where Indiana’s economic comeback began, Daniels told a press conference in Greensburg.
11:41 AM...The Honda auto plant will take 24 months to build and begin production in 2008 of a 4-cylindar car. The model wasn't revealed. The plant will pump $1.5 billion in the midwestern economy, as Honda buys auto parts and other supplies needed for the new plant.
Government will kick in at least $134 million in incentives to the project. That includes money for wastewater treatment and new or expanded roads.
A woman's work is never done...
...in the Netherlands, thanks to the trade unionists:
AMSTERDAM — The chairwoman of the largest trade union group in the Netherlands has made a "moral appeal" for women in part-time jobs to work more hours.
Agnes Jongerius of the FNV confederation said the approaching greying of society justified making such a call.
To many women in the Netherlands, Jongerius told Christian daily newspaper 'Trouw', are in part-time employment. As a result a significant portion of the potential work capacity in the country is being lost, while all hands will be needed in the coming years.
Jongerius said policy-makers, employers group and trade unions must call on women to work more hours.
.... The union leader said she did not support the idea of penalising highly-educated women financially for not working enough. Labour Party MP Sharon Dijksma controversially suggested that female college graduates who choose not to work should be compelled to repay study grants to the government.
AMSTERDAM — The chairwoman of the largest trade union group in the Netherlands has made a "moral appeal" for women in part-time jobs to work more hours.
Agnes Jongerius of the FNV confederation said the approaching greying of society justified making such a call.
To many women in the Netherlands, Jongerius told Christian daily newspaper 'Trouw', are in part-time employment. As a result a significant portion of the potential work capacity in the country is being lost, while all hands will be needed in the coming years.
Jongerius said policy-makers, employers group and trade unions must call on women to work more hours.
.... The union leader said she did not support the idea of penalising highly-educated women financially for not working enough. Labour Party MP Sharon Dijksma controversially suggested that female college graduates who choose not to work should be compelled to repay study grants to the government.
Fly 'em, if ya got 'em
Smokers, from Germany to Japan and back:
DUSSELDORF, GERMANY - A smokers-only airline said Tuesday it hopes to be airborne next year, flying a route between Tokyo and the German city of Dusseldorf where there are connections onward to European destinations.
Alexander Schoppmann, founder of Smoker's International Airways (Smintair), told Deutsche Presse-Agentur he would be leasing two Boeing 747 jumbo jets and fitting them out entirely with just 138 roomy first-class and business-class seats each.
Schoppmann described Smintair as the world's first airline just for smokers. Most other airlines have banned smoking.
.... Schoppmann said he also chose Dusseldorf as a destination because it has a large Japanese business community that would be willing to pay Smintair's high seat prices, but currently has no direct connections to Tokyo.
DUSSELDORF, GERMANY - A smokers-only airline said Tuesday it hopes to be airborne next year, flying a route between Tokyo and the German city of Dusseldorf where there are connections onward to European destinations.
Alexander Schoppmann, founder of Smoker's International Airways (Smintair), told Deutsche Presse-Agentur he would be leasing two Boeing 747 jumbo jets and fitting them out entirely with just 138 roomy first-class and business-class seats each.
Schoppmann described Smintair as the world's first airline just for smokers. Most other airlines have banned smoking.
.... Schoppmann said he also chose Dusseldorf as a destination because it has a large Japanese business community that would be willing to pay Smintair's high seat prices, but currently has no direct connections to Tokyo.
Tuesday, June 27, 2006
Go East, Jung Mannschaften
German youth find employment and are cut some slack in India:
...some German graduates, frustrated by the tight job market back home, are taking up positions in India.
Germany's Federal Labour Office has already placed three German economists with Evalueserve, a business consultancy in Gurgaon, near New Delhi and the company now plans to expand the pilot project.
Ten-hour workdays are normal for the German "guest workers," who sometimes even put in 14 for salaries that no university graduate would lift a finger for in Germany. But the Germans say they are content in India, where a booming economy has generated a general mood of excitement.
Marcel Lee, Andrea Demsic and Marita Birschke are the names of the young Germans at Evalueserve, which carries out market research for corporate clients worldwide.
....all three were unable to find suitable jobs in Germany - or any jobs at all.
...."The German job market is exasperating," Birschke said. "People without prior experience have little chance."
"If you set your sights lower, you can find a job in Germany," Demsic conceded. "But I didn't study economics for that."
Another benefit of coming to India, she said, was getting away from the "lousy mood" back home. "In contrast to Germany, things are really happening here," she said. "There's no time to complain."
...some German graduates, frustrated by the tight job market back home, are taking up positions in India.
Germany's Federal Labour Office has already placed three German economists with Evalueserve, a business consultancy in Gurgaon, near New Delhi and the company now plans to expand the pilot project.
Ten-hour workdays are normal for the German "guest workers," who sometimes even put in 14 for salaries that no university graduate would lift a finger for in Germany. But the Germans say they are content in India, where a booming economy has generated a general mood of excitement.
Marcel Lee, Andrea Demsic and Marita Birschke are the names of the young Germans at Evalueserve, which carries out market research for corporate clients worldwide.
....all three were unable to find suitable jobs in Germany - or any jobs at all.
...."The German job market is exasperating," Birschke said. "People without prior experience have little chance."
"If you set your sights lower, you can find a job in Germany," Demsic conceded. "But I didn't study economics for that."
Another benefit of coming to India, she said, was getting away from the "lousy mood" back home. "In contrast to Germany, things are really happening here," she said. "There's no time to complain."
Berkeley Unfair to Poets
And that used to be a good thing, say the arts and crafts guys:
Potters still throw pots, glassblowers still blow glass, woodworkers still plane wood, and sculptors still chisel away, not in virtual space, but in real time immemorial, just as they have always done, in industrial-type studios. The very concept of an art/craft studio is to make space available for uses that cannot be done in an office setting. The definition determines what uses are eligible to be in an arts/crafts studio, and the current definition includes only those arts/crafts that actually need an industrial-type space. There have always been types of artists, such as poets for example, who do not need industrial-type studios, and these were purposefully not included in the West Berkeley definition. But to open the definition to all creative work, inclusive of that ordinarily done in an office, means doom to numerous working artisans and artists.
The new computer media are practiced in an office environment, and can afford it.
Computer art functions on a higher financial level than traditional arts/crafts, which generate only industrial-level rent. Office rent is double that of industrial. To include computer art in the definition means doubling the rent on arts/crafts studios, pushing working artisans and artists out of town, and converting all the arts/crafts studios into offices.
It is actually no joke, poets being made eligible for arts/crafts studios. That’s what the city actually put in the shameful use permit of Strawberry Creek Center, a formerly industrial building located at Addison and Bonar, that was supposed to become arts/crafts studios, but which instead was converted into offices.
The pity of it!
Potters still throw pots, glassblowers still blow glass, woodworkers still plane wood, and sculptors still chisel away, not in virtual space, but in real time immemorial, just as they have always done, in industrial-type studios. The very concept of an art/craft studio is to make space available for uses that cannot be done in an office setting. The definition determines what uses are eligible to be in an arts/crafts studio, and the current definition includes only those arts/crafts that actually need an industrial-type space. There have always been types of artists, such as poets for example, who do not need industrial-type studios, and these were purposefully not included in the West Berkeley definition. But to open the definition to all creative work, inclusive of that ordinarily done in an office, means doom to numerous working artisans and artists.
The new computer media are practiced in an office environment, and can afford it.
Computer art functions on a higher financial level than traditional arts/crafts, which generate only industrial-level rent. Office rent is double that of industrial. To include computer art in the definition means doubling the rent on arts/crafts studios, pushing working artisans and artists out of town, and converting all the arts/crafts studios into offices.
It is actually no joke, poets being made eligible for arts/crafts studios. That’s what the city actually put in the shameful use permit of Strawberry Creek Center, a formerly industrial building located at Addison and Bonar, that was supposed to become arts/crafts studios, but which instead was converted into offices.
The pity of it!
Monday, June 26, 2006
Chardonnay Deadhead
Ann Coulter explains why she and Jerry Garcia are kindred spirits:
[Q]: What exactly do you love about the Grateful Dead?
[Coulter]: ....Oddly enough, I like the music. ....
Moreover, I really like Deadheads and the whole Dead concert scene: the tailgating, the tie-dye uniforms, the camaraderie – it was like NASCAR for potheads. You always felt like you were with family at a Dead show – a rather odd, psychedelic family that sometimes lived in a VW bus and sold frightening looking “veggie burritos.”
But whatever their myriad interests, clothing choices, and interest in illicit drugs, true Deadheads are what liberals claim to be but aren't: unique, free-thinking, open, kind, and interested in different ideas. Also, excellent dancers! Watching a Deadhead dance is truly something to behold.
....[Q]: What's your favorite Grateful Dead show, and why? Were you there?
AC: They were all my favorites – especially the shows at Shoreline. It's a beautiful outdoor amphitheater, the Dead's home field, with California chardonnay for sale by the glass (in addition to not being a pot-smoker, I'm not much of a beer-drinker), and I often ran into my college Deadhead friends there. We'd go sailing during the day and see the band at night.
I fondly remember seeing the Dead when I was at Cornell. It was the day of the fabulous Fiji Island party on the driveway “island” of the Phi Gamma Delta House. We'd cover ourselves in purple Crisco and drink purple Kool-Aid mixed with grain alcohol and dance on the front yard.
Wait – I think got the order reversed there: We'd drink purple Kool-Aid mixed with grain alcohol and then cover ourselves in purple Crisco – then the dancing. You probably had to be there to grasp how utterly fantastic this was.
[Q]: What exactly do you love about the Grateful Dead?
[Coulter]: ....Oddly enough, I like the music. ....
Moreover, I really like Deadheads and the whole Dead concert scene: the tailgating, the tie-dye uniforms, the camaraderie – it was like NASCAR for potheads. You always felt like you were with family at a Dead show – a rather odd, psychedelic family that sometimes lived in a VW bus and sold frightening looking “veggie burritos.”
But whatever their myriad interests, clothing choices, and interest in illicit drugs, true Deadheads are what liberals claim to be but aren't: unique, free-thinking, open, kind, and interested in different ideas. Also, excellent dancers! Watching a Deadhead dance is truly something to behold.
....[Q]: What's your favorite Grateful Dead show, and why? Were you there?
AC: They were all my favorites – especially the shows at Shoreline. It's a beautiful outdoor amphitheater, the Dead's home field, with California chardonnay for sale by the glass (in addition to not being a pot-smoker, I'm not much of a beer-drinker), and I often ran into my college Deadhead friends there. We'd go sailing during the day and see the band at night.
I fondly remember seeing the Dead when I was at Cornell. It was the day of the fabulous Fiji Island party on the driveway “island” of the Phi Gamma Delta House. We'd cover ourselves in purple Crisco and drink purple Kool-Aid mixed with grain alcohol and dance on the front yard.
Wait – I think got the order reversed there: We'd drink purple Kool-Aid mixed with grain alcohol and then cover ourselves in purple Crisco – then the dancing. You probably had to be there to grasp how utterly fantastic this was.
Mamas don't let your babies go up to South Bend...
...for an education. That is, if Professor of English William O'Rourke is typical of the faculty (and, gee thanks, pgl for more material). O'Rourke, commenting on the impending turnover of the asset know as the Indiana Toll Road in exchange for nearly $4 billion, asserts:
... the Toll Road takeover is a triumph of ideology over economics.
Supporting his argument with such ironclad logic as:
I've always been amused by Daniels' invented campaign persona -- decked out as one of the hicks, wearing wool, plaid or flannel and some ridiculous hat, looking like some character out of a "Saturday Night Live" skit poking fun at Canadians, usually accompanied by many shots of his RV rolling through the Indiana hills. Mitch Daniels, man of the people, not....
Now that the former Eli Lilly executive has put most of the state on Eastern Standard Time's daylight-saving time (Eli Lilly time!), and Hoosier parents experience the fun of trying to put their children to bed while it's still light out ....
Yeah, we really have to wonder about people who are slaves to ideology. Especially when it gets in the way of seeing scarce resources being directed to more highly valued uses. In this case valued only by the Cintra-Macquarie consortium at anything like $3.8 billion.
... the Toll Road takeover is a triumph of ideology over economics.
Supporting his argument with such ironclad logic as:
I've always been amused by Daniels' invented campaign persona -- decked out as one of the hicks, wearing wool, plaid or flannel and some ridiculous hat, looking like some character out of a "Saturday Night Live" skit poking fun at Canadians, usually accompanied by many shots of his RV rolling through the Indiana hills. Mitch Daniels, man of the people, not....
Now that the former Eli Lilly executive has put most of the state on Eastern Standard Time's daylight-saving time (Eli Lilly time!), and Hoosier parents experience the fun of trying to put their children to bed while it's still light out ....
Yeah, we really have to wonder about people who are slaves to ideology. Especially when it gets in the way of seeing scarce resources being directed to more highly valued uses. In this case valued only by the Cintra-Macquarie consortium at anything like $3.8 billion.
Divorce, Spanish Style
Just in time for Gay Pride Week, tenemos una batalla custodia:
MADRID — A year after legalising gay marriages, comes Spain's first gay divorce, complete with a custody fight over the couple's dogs, it was reported on Monday.
The Spanish daily El Mundo reported the claimant was asking for the right to stay in the marital home and to take custody of their pets.
The suit added that his ex-partner would be granted visiting rights to see the animals.
.... The claimant said in a petition that he had dedicated his life to the relationship, giving up a modelling career and abandoning his dog hairdressing business to follow his partner who had found work in France.
Algo puedes hacer, puedo hacer mejor?
MADRID — A year after legalising gay marriages, comes Spain's first gay divorce, complete with a custody fight over the couple's dogs, it was reported on Monday.
The Spanish daily El Mundo reported the claimant was asking for the right to stay in the marital home and to take custody of their pets.
The suit added that his ex-partner would be granted visiting rights to see the animals.
.... The claimant said in a petition that he had dedicated his life to the relationship, giving up a modelling career and abandoning his dog hairdressing business to follow his partner who had found work in France.
Algo puedes hacer, puedo hacer mejor?
We Love a Parade
Because of the bucks:
Of course there were the drag queens, the marching band playing "YMCA" and the inflatable homage to the male anatomy atop a flatbed truck -- all the stuff that veteran Minneapolis GLBT Pride parade watcher Kirby Moore called "the silly glitter element."
But with thousands of people lining Hennepin Avenue, Sunday's 34th annual parade celebrating the metro area's gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered (GLBT) community was possibly more about business than pleasure. ....
Volunteers riding in the Wells Fargo stagecoach tossed candy and beads to the crowd. A fleet of Saturn vehicles followed with water bottles and Frisbees. Ikea, General Mills, Chipotle, United Parcel Service and Affordable Granite and Stone of Minnetonka all had contingents in the parade.
"It's about the homosexual dollar," said Robert Lindquist, 40, of Minneapolis.
In the park, American Family Insurance, 3M and ING financial services had booths, as did Accurate Home Loans of Bloomington.
Julie Appel, owner of Accurate Home Loans, said she tries to get to several gay pride events every year. She said she makes more contacts at the Minneapolis GLBT Pride events than at any of the other events where she has displays, including the Women's Expo and the Minneapolis Convention Center's home and garden show.
"I've always thought it was a great community to be involved with," Appel said. "The most important thing is that they're very supportive of businesses that are supportive of them. That's why everybody comes to this event -- to support each other."
Show her the money.
Of course there were the drag queens, the marching band playing "YMCA" and the inflatable homage to the male anatomy atop a flatbed truck -- all the stuff that veteran Minneapolis GLBT Pride parade watcher Kirby Moore called "the silly glitter element."
But with thousands of people lining Hennepin Avenue, Sunday's 34th annual parade celebrating the metro area's gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered (GLBT) community was possibly more about business than pleasure. ....
Volunteers riding in the Wells Fargo stagecoach tossed candy and beads to the crowd. A fleet of Saturn vehicles followed with water bottles and Frisbees. Ikea, General Mills, Chipotle, United Parcel Service and Affordable Granite and Stone of Minnetonka all had contingents in the parade.
"It's about the homosexual dollar," said Robert Lindquist, 40, of Minneapolis.
In the park, American Family Insurance, 3M and ING financial services had booths, as did Accurate Home Loans of Bloomington.
Julie Appel, owner of Accurate Home Loans, said she tries to get to several gay pride events every year. She said she makes more contacts at the Minneapolis GLBT Pride events than at any of the other events where she has displays, including the Women's Expo and the Minneapolis Convention Center's home and garden show.
"I've always thought it was a great community to be involved with," Appel said. "The most important thing is that they're very supportive of businesses that are supportive of them. That's why everybody comes to this event -- to support each other."
Show her the money.
Sunday, June 25, 2006
More Wailing and Gnashing of Teeth...
...can be expected from the precincts of Angry Bear, when pgl gets word of this:
Chicago Mayor Richard Daley ...secured a landmark $1.8 billion lease of the Chicago Skyway in late 2004, and now he's considering handing control of Midway Airport over to private operators.
Likewise, state officials soon could be presented with an offer to privatize the Illinois tollway they simply can't refuse.
....Illinois lawmakers are exploring what likely would be an even more lucrative long-term lease of the state's 274-mile northern tollway system.
"There's clear evidence of the emerging trend for public-private partnership in infrastructure," says state Sen. Jeffrey Schoenberg. "I strongly believe that Illinois should be on the front end of that curve."
The Evanston Democrat ....
So, even to the Democrats it makes sense?
Chicago, meanwhile, is serious about making Midway the first major U.S airport to be put under private control. A multi-decade lease could bring in billions, which Daley would use to build infrastructure, such as schools and libraries, and to shore up four city employee pension funds that face a combined deficit of at least $5 billion.
Of course! Gotta protect those public employee pensions.
"The mayor absolutely is on the forefront of this concept by virtue of the fact that, up until the Skyway, there had never been a privatization of a tollway in the U.S., while it's, frankly, very commonplace overseas," says Dana Levenson, Chicago's chief financial officer.
"I think, clearly, the Indiana tollway proved what we knew all along — that the Skyway was not just an isolated incident. I think you'll now start to see cities and municipalities across the country start to examine their 'portfolios' for what can be done, from a practical and political viewpoint."
Show them the money!
Chicago Mayor Richard Daley ...secured a landmark $1.8 billion lease of the Chicago Skyway in late 2004, and now he's considering handing control of Midway Airport over to private operators.
Likewise, state officials soon could be presented with an offer to privatize the Illinois tollway they simply can't refuse.
....Illinois lawmakers are exploring what likely would be an even more lucrative long-term lease of the state's 274-mile northern tollway system.
"There's clear evidence of the emerging trend for public-private partnership in infrastructure," says state Sen. Jeffrey Schoenberg. "I strongly believe that Illinois should be on the front end of that curve."
The Evanston Democrat ....
So, even to the Democrats it makes sense?
Chicago, meanwhile, is serious about making Midway the first major U.S airport to be put under private control. A multi-decade lease could bring in billions, which Daley would use to build infrastructure, such as schools and libraries, and to shore up four city employee pension funds that face a combined deficit of at least $5 billion.
Of course! Gotta protect those public employee pensions.
"The mayor absolutely is on the forefront of this concept by virtue of the fact that, up until the Skyway, there had never been a privatization of a tollway in the U.S., while it's, frankly, very commonplace overseas," says Dana Levenson, Chicago's chief financial officer.
"I think, clearly, the Indiana tollway proved what we knew all along — that the Skyway was not just an isolated incident. I think you'll now start to see cities and municipalities across the country start to examine their 'portfolios' for what can be done, from a practical and political viewpoint."
Show them the money!
Saturday, June 24, 2006
A very strange bird is a Pelican...
His beak holds a snootful:
Possibly drunk pelican hits windshield
LAGUNA BEACH, Calif. — The driver was sober. The bird he hit may have been under the influence. A California brown pelican flew through the windshield of a motorist on the Pacific Coast Highway in Orange County Thursday, and wildlife officials said the bird was probably intoxicated by a chemical in the water.
FUI?
Possibly drunk pelican hits windshield
LAGUNA BEACH, Calif. — The driver was sober. The bird he hit may have been under the influence. A California brown pelican flew through the windshield of a motorist on the Pacific Coast Highway in Orange County Thursday, and wildlife officials said the bird was probably intoxicated by a chemical in the water.
FUI?
Thursday, June 22, 2006
Out of the Closet
Soon available at the stock exchange of your choice:
MILAN, Italy – Nothing on wheels more personifies Italian style than the Vespa scooter, whose carefree spirit was immortalized by Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck circling Rome's piazzas in the 1953 film "Roman Holiday."
The Vespa's familiar curved frame has a found a place in design museums and in the hearts of Europeans, who first hopped aboard simply to get around after World War II and who still cling dearly to its handlebars as they zip through clogged streets.
Now, as the Italian icon turns 60, the company that makes the Vespa is about to go public.
The move is a sign of Piaggio & C SpA's return to health after being rescued from the verge of collapse by Roberto Colaninno, the former Telecom Italia chief executive whose holding company Immsi SpA bought Piaggio in 2003 and brought the company to record sales in two years.
....An investor should be someone "who believes in a product that is a combination of technology, beauty, style, dreams and sport," Colaninno said. "We're not just about transportation, but about a particular concept of transportation, stylish, fun and luxurious."
Just the thing for Max and pgl to motor about Italy if they can't afford the privatized toll roads of Autostrada.
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
Career Breaker
Max Sawicky drove the steam shovel off the Indiana Toll Road into the ditch:
The Gov could just as easily contract out operations and management, but keep the tolls for itself.
To which the FLUBA Committee on the Obvious responds; that the $3.85 billion the state will receive from Cintra-Macquarie this week, are (twice the projected net) tolls. That the lease is a contract, and, that the same consortium will operate and manage the road.
From that position, head engineer pgl has been busy excavating the position further. The latest being:
...the state could also run the toll roads more efficiently with technology. But isn’t it evident that there has been a huge efficiency gain when the private firms can offer double the state’s reservation price as established by the Crowe Chisek discounted cash flow model? ....The alleged efficiency gain would have to come from Cintra and Macquarie being able to run the toll roads not only more cheaply than the government but also more cheaply than the other bidders if this were a truly competitive auction.
The emphasis in the above not only being the FLUBA's, but also it's point--made several times in the comments sections attached to pgl's posts--and we're delighted it finally penetrated.
Not that it had any effect on the quality of his analysis. As he later explains it away as graft:
... maybe the other 10 bidders refused to pay enough to the Governor under the table as he was so happy to claim $3.8 billion was better than his reservation price - a reservation price concocted by citing a really sloppy analysis.
Which would further extend the investors' break-even point beyond the $ 8.25 billion--in addition to the $3.85 lease payment, they've committed to $4.4 billion in maintenance expenses--and make it even less likely they'll profit from this deal.
Not to mention it is a casual slander of Governor Daniels, the successful bidder, and the Goldman Sach advisers the state hired to vet this.
No mind, personal slights will be overlooked when there's money to be made. And, according to pgl, there's plenty of that left on the table:
So the Governor – aided by what appears to be a faulty Crowe Chisek analysis are selling assets that may be worth $5 billion to private investors for only $3.8 billion. ...one might wonder of the Governor asked them to lowball the reservation price. In other words, is this some form of financial fraud imposed upon the taxpayers? Why would any responsible Governor be engaged in this kind of behavior? Oh but – we are talking about George W. Bush’s first OMB director.
The FLUBA Committee on Economists Who Insist on Flying Under Low Hangers, asks (given that the Ohio Turnpike is undoubtedly next in line, unless Texas or New Jersey beats them to the punch), when will Sawicky, pgl & Assoc. be entering the lists?
I.e., if you're so smart, why don't you make yourselves rich by getting in on the deal? Thar's gold in them thar tolls, you sez.
The Gov could just as easily contract out operations and management, but keep the tolls for itself.
To which the FLUBA Committee on the Obvious responds; that the $3.85 billion the state will receive from Cintra-Macquarie this week, are (twice the projected net) tolls. That the lease is a contract, and, that the same consortium will operate and manage the road.
From that position, head engineer pgl has been busy excavating the position further. The latest being:
...the state could also run the toll roads more efficiently with technology. But isn’t it evident that there has been a huge efficiency gain when the private firms can offer double the state’s reservation price as established by the Crowe Chisek discounted cash flow model? ....The alleged efficiency gain would have to come from Cintra and Macquarie being able to run the toll roads not only more cheaply than the government but also more cheaply than the other bidders if this were a truly competitive auction.
The emphasis in the above not only being the FLUBA's, but also it's point--made several times in the comments sections attached to pgl's posts--and we're delighted it finally penetrated.
Not that it had any effect on the quality of his analysis. As he later explains it away as graft:
... maybe the other 10 bidders refused to pay enough to the Governor under the table as he was so happy to claim $3.8 billion was better than his reservation price - a reservation price concocted by citing a really sloppy analysis.
Which would further extend the investors' break-even point beyond the $ 8.25 billion--in addition to the $3.85 lease payment, they've committed to $4.4 billion in maintenance expenses--and make it even less likely they'll profit from this deal.
Not to mention it is a casual slander of Governor Daniels, the successful bidder, and the Goldman Sach advisers the state hired to vet this.
No mind, personal slights will be overlooked when there's money to be made. And, according to pgl, there's plenty of that left on the table:
So the Governor – aided by what appears to be a faulty Crowe Chisek analysis are selling assets that may be worth $5 billion to private investors for only $3.8 billion. ...one might wonder of the Governor asked them to lowball the reservation price. In other words, is this some form of financial fraud imposed upon the taxpayers? Why would any responsible Governor be engaged in this kind of behavior? Oh but – we are talking about George W. Bush’s first OMB director.
The FLUBA Committee on Economists Who Insist on Flying Under Low Hangers, asks (given that the Ohio Turnpike is undoubtedly next in line, unless Texas or New Jersey beats them to the punch), when will Sawicky, pgl & Assoc. be entering the lists?
I.e., if you're so smart, why don't you make yourselves rich by getting in on the deal? Thar's gold in them thar tolls, you sez.
And if the wearer doesn't bathe...
A country with 400 types of cheese, and obsessing over its jeans...
Want to save the planet? Wear your jeans two days a week, wash them every fifth day, and let them dry by themselves. Or better still, don’t wash them at all. And don’t even think of ironing them.
This is the conclusion of a report commissioned by France’s environment agency on the ecological impact of a pair of denims.
.... The study, by the research firm Bio Intelligence Service, looked at the jeans’ life cycle, from material production to daily use of the garment. It concluded that a French jeans wearer would damage the environment the least by buying denims made of cotton from a country not too far from Europe with strict anti-pollution laws. Machine washing, tumble drying and ironing caused 47% of the eco damage the jeans caused -- 240kWh of energy a year, equal to using 4 000 lightbulbs, each of 60 watts, for an hour. Dry cleaning was “an environmental disaster”.
The report’s author, Nadia Boeg-lin, who suggested also minimising impact on the planet by giving jeans away or cutting them down to make shorts, said: “We focused on jeans but all the things we use daily are a problem ... just by paying attention to a few simple details we could reduce [greenhouse] gas emissions.”
Want to save the planet? Wear your jeans two days a week, wash them every fifth day, and let them dry by themselves. Or better still, don’t wash them at all. And don’t even think of ironing them.
This is the conclusion of a report commissioned by France’s environment agency on the ecological impact of a pair of denims.
.... The study, by the research firm Bio Intelligence Service, looked at the jeans’ life cycle, from material production to daily use of the garment. It concluded that a French jeans wearer would damage the environment the least by buying denims made of cotton from a country not too far from Europe with strict anti-pollution laws. Machine washing, tumble drying and ironing caused 47% of the eco damage the jeans caused -- 240kWh of energy a year, equal to using 4 000 lightbulbs, each of 60 watts, for an hour. Dry cleaning was “an environmental disaster”.
The report’s author, Nadia Boeg-lin, who suggested also minimising impact on the planet by giving jeans away or cutting them down to make shorts, said: “We focused on jeans but all the things we use daily are a problem ... just by paying attention to a few simple details we could reduce [greenhouse] gas emissions.”
Tuesday, June 20, 2006
No Free Riders
Update: [Gary Becker and Richard Posner dignify the debate]
On the Indiana Toll Road, unanimously says that state's Supreme Court:
The state Supreme Court, dealing a blow to foes of plans to lease the Indiana Toll Road to a private partnership, rejected claims the deal is unconstitutional and ordered opponents to post a $1.9 billion bond if they plan to move ahead with their challenge.
Well, there goes the Angry Bear consultancy fee. Sorry guys.
On the Indiana Toll Road, unanimously says that state's Supreme Court:
The state Supreme Court, dealing a blow to foes of plans to lease the Indiana Toll Road to a private partnership, rejected claims the deal is unconstitutional and ordered opponents to post a $1.9 billion bond if they plan to move ahead with their challenge.
Well, there goes the Angry Bear consultancy fee. Sorry guys.
Spear the Whales
Japan makes progress toward resuming the hunt:
The International Whaling Commission voted narrowly in favour of a future return to the managed hunting of whales at its annual meeting on Sunday. The vote, by 33 to 32, was a victory for pro-whaling nations led by Japan.
A worldwide moratorium on commercial whaling has been in place since 1986. Sunday's vote was the first favouring the resumption of whaling that Japan has won.
But the victory is only symbolic. In order to end the moratorium, pro-whaling countries need to secure 75% of votes.
....The motion that was passed was proposed by a group of six Caribbean nations including St Kitts and Nevis. It has no legal force but requests a "normalisation" of the IWC. According to the pro-whalers, this means returning to the commission's original 1946 mandate of regulating whaling rather than preventing it.
"The moratorium, which was clearly intended as a temporary measure, is no longer necessary… many species and stocks of whales are abundant and sustainable whaling is possible," read the motion.
The main justification outlined is that whales are now competing with humans for fish stocks, and threatening "food security for coastal nations".
The International Whaling Commission voted narrowly in favour of a future return to the managed hunting of whales at its annual meeting on Sunday. The vote, by 33 to 32, was a victory for pro-whaling nations led by Japan.
A worldwide moratorium on commercial whaling has been in place since 1986. Sunday's vote was the first favouring the resumption of whaling that Japan has won.
But the victory is only symbolic. In order to end the moratorium, pro-whaling countries need to secure 75% of votes.
....The motion that was passed was proposed by a group of six Caribbean nations including St Kitts and Nevis. It has no legal force but requests a "normalisation" of the IWC. According to the pro-whalers, this means returning to the commission's original 1946 mandate of regulating whaling rather than preventing it.
"The moratorium, which was clearly intended as a temporary measure, is no longer necessary… many species and stocks of whales are abundant and sustainable whaling is possible," read the motion.
The main justification outlined is that whales are now competing with humans for fish stocks, and threatening "food security for coastal nations".
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