AN AFTER THOUGHT TO YESTERDAY
October 29, 2014
Just a couple more things referring to yesterdays post have you seen the business news lately and how Facebook and Amazon are going around and buying every company they can? Well they are and now if you want to get rich it’s like the old dotcom days. Just start a company, have it do something along the lines of a social network or package distribution. And one of these two behemoths will come along and offer you an unreal sum of money to sell to them. It’s almost immoral the kind of money that they talk about for basically office space. Some of these companies have great ideas but really haven’t been able to get the proper financing to put them over the top. While others simply have an app or do something that one of the two companies feel they could make better use of or might actually be better than anything they could come up with. You know like a better steak knife or apple peeler. When one big company buys a smaller one they usually do what referred to as cherry pick it assets before throwing the rest away and that includes its employees. It boils down to this a couple of people get rich potential competition is destroyed and everybody else gets screwed. Hey this has been fun don’t forget tomorrow is mischief night and Friday is Halloween. This is Flounder saying CIAO from Medellin, Colombia.
A LITTLE STUFF ABOUT GREED
October 28, 2014
I just read an article about Walmart and how they’re going to start selling used video games in November. That means they’re targeting game stop stores. Well this story got me to thinking about all the companies that want to rule the world sort of. There’s Bill Gates who has for years wanted to control access to the internet and all the information contained there. Then there’s Google same ambitions. Amazon wants to control the entire retail world including what we can read, eat, watch, and play. You see this unbridled ambition in a lot of companies some such as the ones above just try to buy their competition out others like big banks want to destroy theirs anyway they can. I wonder at what point is all this greed going to come back and bite them in the ass and what the effect on the rest of us will be? We know they don’t give a shit about us they don’t want us to be educated unless we think like they do. If you really want to see the dangers of this greed look at the food industry you have two major companies trying to control either the production or the consumption of our food. On the production end you have Monsanto and on the consumption end Nestle foods. Monsanto has managed to get itself include in free trade agreements such as the one the US has with Colombia. In said agreement was included a provision that the farmers in Colombia had to use Monsanto’s genetically altered seeds to grow food for export. Nestle on the other hand just buys the competition out. I know a lot of my friends march against some these companies and their policies but until we can hurt them on a very seriously economic front I don’t see thing changing just getting worse. This is Flounder saying CIAO from Medellin, Colombia.
JUST A LITTLE MORE STUFF
October 27, 2014
I get so many compliments and views when I write about STUFF that I’ve come to the conclusion that my readers either don’t know what STUFF is or they have too much and want o know how to get rid of some of it. Well first you have to what STUFF is and STUFF is everything, even those little thoughts in your head. This Blog is STUFF of course it my STUFF and I get rid of it by writing about it and when you read it then it becomes your STUFF. It’s really a vicious circle STUFF we never really get rid of it we just move it from place to place. When you clean out your closet you take the STUFF you don’t want to the dumpster. Now the stuff belongs to the guy who picks up the garbage. He takes it to the dump or they recycling plant now your STUFF belongs to more people. If it ends up in a junk yard sooner or later it will either be bought by someone else or crushed to make something new. If it goes to a recycling plant it gets made into a newer version of your old STUFF. So in conclusion if you want to get rid of STUFF don’t think don’t buy don’t do anything. But you know what if you do that you’ll just become STUFF we’ll have to try and get rid of. This is Flounder saying CIAO from Medellin, Colombia.
BITS AND PIECES
October 24, 2014
I called this post bits and pieces because I really didn’t want to call it what it really is and that’s stuff. This is just a little review of some events of the past week that we really know is just more stuff. First up Peyton Manning Denver quarter back broke the record for most Touchdown passes ever. This was originally held by Bret Farve of the Green bay Packers. Next we have Steve Nash of the LA Lakers will be out for the season due to a nerve injury in his back. At his age, 40, this should end a great career. It looks like one of the longest running programs on TV is reaching its end The Original CSI has it production schedule reduced this year and that’s usually a prelude to cancelation. I’ll miss it but it’s been long enough. Pat Robertson a Christian preacher known for sticking his foot in his mouth has done it again referring to Gay activists as terrorists. Some idiots just never learn. Fox TV News anchor woman Kimberly Guilfoyle declared that young female voters shouldn’t vote but should go back to Match.com and Tender and get married so they would have more life experience therefore be better voters. There is a confirmed case of E Bola in NY city this has to be a real nightmare for health workers since this person apparently road the subway and came into contact with hundreds of people. And finally you knew I had to use this. A Bear walked into a drug store, I’ll let you finish this one. This is Flounder saying CIAO from Medellin, Colombia.
HUMAN TRAFFICKING
October 23, 2014
Sorry about no post yesterday I was doing a little research on today’s topic not just for this blog but also Jeff’s books. The topic is Human Trafficking. Now like most people I thought this was strictly about the sex trade and was surprised to see the list. Of course it contains the obvious Prostitution, and Child Porn. But also on this list were Forced Labor, Slavery, Organ Removal, and Illicit Adoptions. I should of thought about Organ Removal since transplants have become big business and you how really rich people want to live forever. Also people tend to think this all just about Children and it’s not. About the only ones who are safe are old people like Jeff. It’s really hard to find exact statistics about how many people are trafficked at any given time since a lot are out of the third world or simply forgotten people. Also in some countries if you go there by invitation to perform sex you are considered to have been trafficked. The people that do the kidnap’s or coercion to obtain a human for trafficking are not always perverts but rather just greedy criminals that see a demand that can’t be fulfilled legally, such as Organ Transplant. The perverts are the buyers and like anything else such as drugs, or any legitimate business, in order to put an end to it you must first remove the demand. And since this transcends most economic boundaries I really don’t see it stopping anytime soon. In the United States if you need help trying to finding someone you think might be involved in trafficking there is an organization you can contact. The name is the POLARIS PROJECT or THE NATIONAL HUMAN TRAFFICKING RESORCE CENTER. There is more information at their website http://www.polarisproject.org or you can phone them at 1-888-373-7888 and text at Info or Help to Befree (233733) This is one of those posts that I hope really get’s people thinking and maybe just maybe we can save one person. This is Flounder saying CIAO from Medellin, Colombia.
LOW OIL PRICES GOOD OR BAD
October 21, 2014
Here’s why I’m not an economist. Thus morning I read an article that claims falling oil prices are an indication of an economy in trouble. I read the article not really understanding how they came up with this. It would seem to me that if oil prices drop and that’s passed on to the consumer (Which of course it’s not) then they resulting saving would result in more consumer spending. Not only that falling oil prices are a sign that there is plenty of oil which means a lot of the programs to rid ourselves of oil dependency are working. It seems to me the one losing money or might have to reduce their pay by a few million are oil companies. Now I know someone much smarter than me is going to claim this is a worldwide catastrophe. Bull shit: just because a corrupt regime in Africa or Venezuela might collapse because oil is the only thing they have going for them does not mean that a country like America which is succeeding, albeit slowly weaning itself away from oil dependency shouldn’t do anything stupid. I mean we already give big oil tax breaks and subsidies that do nothing but increase their ridicules profits. I know when I get into issues like that my view might seem to be over simplistic but I know if I’m saving money on food because transportation prices are dropping. I’m going to buy T bones instead of Hamburger. The same applies to anything else I might buy. I don’t think a slight reduction in profit for the oil companies should result in a negative but rather a positive effect to the economy. This is Flounder saying CIAO from Medellin, Colombia.
I VOTE FOR QUALITY
October 20, 2014
Welcome to Monday thought I’d start this week off by getting involved in a subject that I usually stay away from, the American fast food world. It would seem that the Iconic Company Mc Donald’s is suffering a loss to its bottom line and of course analysts all say it about price. They never give credit to the American people that they might be fed up with the quality of the food. They don’t think that people might just be tired of a product that rarely looks or tastes like their ads. I took a look around the internet and found that while McDonalds’s and Burger King still hold the edge in the burger world I’ve noticed a funny trend. People are getting tired of paying for so so food and are switching to burger companies like In and Out Burger that don’t pre cook their food. One rising star is 5 Guys burgers now there a little more expensive but according to what I’m reading the quality is there. I’m sure price is an issue for a lot of people (it is for me) but since people are working harder for their dollar I think quality is becoming an issue. Unlike casual clothing where you can buy the same styles at discount stores food quality seems to be a big issue. Look at the Super markets and you’ll see companies like fresh foods and Trader Joes are making huge inroads into the traditional Super Market scene. Now Jeff has worked in both Supermarkets and Restaurants, so he knows how to get the best at reasonable prices. But the average person doesn’t have this knowledge so they depend on word of mouth and today that ward is quality over price. What does this mean in the scheme of things? It could result in cheaper prices at the big fast food chains but beware they have a tendency to reduce portions and quality to offset the price reduction. God forbid they have to drive a Nissan instead of a BMW. This is Flounder saying I’m suddenly hungry so I’ll say CIAO from Medellin, Colombia.
THE DANGER IS REAL
October 17, 2014
Well I’ve been reading a lot about Ebola lately and I’m surprised to find that some people believe we’re being fed just enough information to scare us. That might be true as some countries worry more than others. What worries me more than anything else is that this will cause a more racism and set the whole process back a hundred years. We learned to control aids once we realized what was going on by research and education. Is it completely under control no but it isn’t the instant death sentence it once was. I’ve been reading stories about Ebola almost from the beginning and one thing I notice is in the beginning they isolated the villages that had it and that the death rate was almost a 100%. Now they’re not able to isolate it as well as in the past, and it’s managed to cross borders with a 70% death rate. The only thing good about it crossing borders is that people in the advanced countries are starting to take it much more seriously and more attention means more money and research is going towards it. When it was first discovered there was a greater fear that it would cause a worldwide pandemic. The fear is still there but the doctors aren’t standing next to dead bodies predicting it. For those that think this is just media scare tactics, you may be right to a certain degree. But to completely look the other way and say the threat isn’t that great, well your libel to wake up one morning and find out it’s too late. When the Plaque hit Europe people weren’t worried because it stayed in the ghettos. The same thing with Ebola when it was first discovered it was poor Africa’s problem so well send them some medicine and a few doctors and that’s that. Now people are beginning to panic in some places. Panic is not the right response either is closing borders to the sick. Getting the research people to work together and not have the secrets and back stabbing that went on and still goes on to certain degree in Aids research. It is only a matter of time before some disease either wakes up or comes back to kick human kinds ass may be this is it may be not. This is Flounder saying CIAO from Medellin, Colombia.
WHAT REALLY IS TERRORISM
October 16, 2014
Terrorism not a nice word but what really is terrorism? Is it the bomb that goes off in the subway? Was 9/11 the ultimate terror strike? Well for me terrorism isn’t the bomb or the plane or the gun it’s the effect. You can see the effect everywhere soldiers at airports closed circuit cameras all over. You read about it too you phones being monitor emails, being read more security at airports. You see what I’m getting at true terrorism is designed to mess with your way of life to make you feel so unsafe that you’ll give up some freedom. If you want to look at it on a smaller scale go to a not so nice area and watch as some kid with gang colors takes protection money from one of his neighbors. Now you’re wondering why this happens or how could it happen well as for the big stuff you know bombs, planes, gas, or radiation Americans, like the Israelis just chose to ignore it till it happens to them. You don’t think that after 9/11 people in the Midwest didn’t go whew glad it wasn’t us before they became outraged at the attack. Most humans have a very short memory for tragedy that doesn’t directly affect them. Now let’s take a look around are there protests over the security do American worry about the next attack or the loss of privacy. I don’t think so I think they walk around with the idea it won’t happen to me or they wouldn’t dare do it again. Maybe they wouldn’t but we have our own group of whack jobs in America and they just might do it again. I think that some of the security in place such as monitoring you phones and computer activities are a little unnecessary and quite frankly I think the information being gathered is being misused. I don’t have actual proof of this but if you’ve read my Blog before you know that it’s mostly my opinion designed to make you think. This is Flounder saying CIAO from Medellin, Colombia.
ANYTHING GOOD GOING ON
October 15, 2014
It took me a long time to get started today because I can’t find anything good to write about. It must be really hard to be a reporter now a day since all you write about is bad stuff. I mean take the TV news down here all it shows is guy getting shot I robberies kids and women getting attacked bad car accidents. The same thing in the US all the news is about Ebola, ISIS, Hurricanes, and other disasters. I’m beginning to wonder does anything good ever happen. People love to blame Video games, Movies even some cartoons for the problem with the youth in the country. I don’t think so all they have to do is turn on the TV too the news and there’s enough stuff there to depress any one. I think pretty soon you’re going to see commercials with guys walking around with signs saying the end is near and you need to buy this or that now. If you watch or read the news you’ll see that you might as well just go rob a bank because there’s nothing good going to happen for you. When did we reach this point where Bambi was declared to violent for children to watch but war wasn’t? Well I’m going to go watch some Mighty Mouse cartoons and then take a nap. This is Flounder saying CIAO from Medellin, Colombia.
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