Now his company, Aroma, Israel's largest coffee chain with 73 outlets,So you have an old time coffee house vibe with a Mediterranean feel. It sounds like the kind of thing that could put a little fear into the largely homogenized Starbucks coffee experience. Well then again maybe not, since Starbucks is quite dominate in their industry. However, I think a place like Aroma could only thrive in the big cities where people have more eclectic tastes and are willing to try a weird Mediterranean style coffee experience.
has brought the American-style espresso bar back to New York with a Hebrew
twist. In July, the company opened a flagship cafe in SoHo, replete with
Mediterranean interior design and food.
Friday, August 11, 2006
Israeli Companies Pop Up in the US
This Aroma Coffee store sounds like an actual contender to Starbucks insane dominance.
Thursday, August 10, 2006
Terrorist Attack Foiled By the Brits
It seems like this one was a pretty close run affair for the most part.
So we would have had 10 planes blasted out of the sky on or about 7/14-1/15. Talk about coming in at the wire. And what they planned to do is pretty devious as well:
So what they seemed like they were going to do is use hydrogen peroxide inside of a water or soda bottle. Then maybe use a diode or a battery or something to ignite the bottle and the blast would violently depressurize the cabin. It looks like they were going to use about 20 people too so that would be two blasts per plane somewhere over the Atlantic. Now that is a scary thought. I would hate to be Arab looking and flying in the next few weeks. They will be scrutinized every time they reach into a carry-on bag.
The terrorist attack foiled by British authorities on Thursday was
aimed at blowing up as many as 10 airplanes on trans-Atlantic flights, and
plotters had hoped to stage a dry run within two days, U.S. intelligence
officials said.
The actual attack would have followed within days.
So we would have had 10 planes blasted out of the sky on or about 7/14-1/15. Talk about coming in at the wire. And what they planned to do is pretty devious as well:
One official said the suicide attackers planned to use a peroxide-based
solution that could ignite when sparked by a camera flash or another electronic
device.
So what they seemed like they were going to do is use hydrogen peroxide inside of a water or soda bottle. Then maybe use a diode or a battery or something to ignite the bottle and the blast would violently depressurize the cabin. It looks like they were going to use about 20 people too so that would be two blasts per plane somewhere over the Atlantic. Now that is a scary thought. I would hate to be Arab looking and flying in the next few weeks. They will be scrutinized every time they reach into a carry-on bag.
Wednesday, August 09, 2006
Is the Mac Pro Worth it?
It certainly sounds like quite a machine from this article in Techsploder.
Mac Pros come with the Intel Xeon 5100 CPUs, or Woodcrest as they're code-named. These dual-core 64-bit beasts run at up to 3GHz, have 4MB of shared L2 cache, and fast 1.33GHz front speed buses - independent ones too, and capable of hitting 21GByte/s in bandwidth.
With two Woodcrests in each, you'll do quad-core damage with the new Mac Pros. Woodcrest should be a good deal faster than Conroe which I have tested (review coming soon) and which is very fast by itself.You can squeeze in some 16GB of 667MHz DDR2 RAM, and the memory bus is 256 bits wide.
The other specs are impressive too, like space for four 500GB SATA drives, four PCI Express slots for expansion, and Nvidia Quadro FX4500 and 7300GT video cards plus, surprisingly enough, an ATI X1900 XT option too, despite AMD now owning the Canadian graphics card maker.
The bottom line for me is how fast it can run Boot Camp and whether I could play my games on the Windows side without any slowdown or annoying problems. This bad boy clocks in a $2500 though. I priced a complete upgrade of my old box and it weighed in at about $1200 with a top end graphics card so I am still on the fence about it.
Mac Pros come with the Intel Xeon 5100 CPUs, or Woodcrest as they're code-named. These dual-core 64-bit beasts run at up to 3GHz, have 4MB of shared L2 cache, and fast 1.33GHz front speed buses - independent ones too, and capable of hitting 21GByte/s in bandwidth.
With two Woodcrests in each, you'll do quad-core damage with the new Mac Pros. Woodcrest should be a good deal faster than Conroe which I have tested (review coming soon) and which is very fast by itself.You can squeeze in some 16GB of 667MHz DDR2 RAM, and the memory bus is 256 bits wide.
The other specs are impressive too, like space for four 500GB SATA drives, four PCI Express slots for expansion, and Nvidia Quadro FX4500 and 7300GT video cards plus, surprisingly enough, an ATI X1900 XT option too, despite AMD now owning the Canadian graphics card maker.
The bottom line for me is how fast it can run Boot Camp and whether I could play my games on the Windows side without any slowdown or annoying problems. This bad boy clocks in a $2500 though. I priced a complete upgrade of my old box and it weighed in at about $1200 with a top end graphics card so I am still on the fence about it.
At Least Georgia Dems Know What they are doing
They booted Cynthia McKinney the 9/11 conspiracy theorist and Capital Hill Scuffler. Maybe the common sense wing of their party is a little stronger then one might thing. There was even a scuffle at her news conference:
WXIA-TV said on its Web site that a boom microphone had struck members of McKinney's entourage and In the confusion, McKinney staffers struck an 11Alive photographer and knocked his camera equipment to the ground. Earlier in the day, the station said a McKinney staffer had scuffled with another 11Alive photojournalist.
Boom mike accidentilly hits an entourage member and someone is getting the rolling smack down from her crew. Georgia politics must be some pretty dangerous stuff.
WXIA-TV said on its Web site that a boom microphone had struck members of McKinney's entourage and In the confusion, McKinney staffers struck an 11Alive photographer and knocked his camera equipment to the ground. Earlier in the day, the station said a McKinney staffer had scuffled with another 11Alive photojournalist.
Boom mike accidentilly hits an entourage member and someone is getting the rolling smack down from her crew. Georgia politics must be some pretty dangerous stuff.
Lieberman to Fight On!
I feel bad that the Dems axed Joe Lieberman in such a distasteful manner. At least he is going out with a bang when he runs as an independent in the coming election.
"I think it would be irresponsible and inconsistent with my principles if I were to just walk off the field," Lieberman said in an interview with The Associated Press a day after his loss to the political newcomer in a race that was considered an early referendum on the
Iraq war.
It is too bad because this guy truly votes his conscience and tells it like it is. He didn't toe the party line of the Cut-And-Runners and instead did his own thing. I hope he wins the Primary or at least seriously thinks about running for President in 2008. I also agree with Cheney when he says this about the Dems.
"When we see the Democratic Party reject one of its own — a man they selected to be their vice presidential nominee just a few short years ago — that would seem to say a lot about the state the party's in today," he said.
Yup he was a Democrat through and through in everything except the Iraq War and they turned on him like rabid dogs. A man that stands up for his principals and what he truly believes in is torn apart by the so-called "Progressive" party. I guess "Progressive thinking" is just echo-chambered group-think. While "Progressive measures" are punishing those that don't agree with the entire party line. Man he looks beat in this pic:
"I think it would be irresponsible and inconsistent with my principles if I were to just walk off the field," Lieberman said in an interview with The Associated Press a day after his loss to the political newcomer in a race that was considered an early referendum on the
Iraq war.
It is too bad because this guy truly votes his conscience and tells it like it is. He didn't toe the party line of the Cut-And-Runners and instead did his own thing. I hope he wins the Primary or at least seriously thinks about running for President in 2008. I also agree with Cheney when he says this about the Dems.
"When we see the Democratic Party reject one of its own — a man they selected to be their vice presidential nominee just a few short years ago — that would seem to say a lot about the state the party's in today," he said.
Yup he was a Democrat through and through in everything except the Iraq War and they turned on him like rabid dogs. A man that stands up for his principals and what he truly believes in is torn apart by the so-called "Progressive" party. I guess "Progressive thinking" is just echo-chambered group-think. While "Progressive measures" are punishing those that don't agree with the entire party line. Man he looks beat in this pic:
Why Americans are So Fat
Ah, so my Mom was right when she says that it is sugary drinks that is making people in the US so damn fat.
An extra can of soda a day can pile on 15 pounds in a single year, and the "weight of evidence" strongly suggests that this sort of increased consumption is a key reason that more people have gained weight, the researchers say.
It seems that whenever I see a very, very fat person they seem to be drinking a Big Gulp type Soda or something similar. I wonder what the effect of removing all the soda machines from public school is having on how fat kids are nowadays. I guess it will be another decade or so before we can know for sure. This fact also floored me as well:
Regardless of this debate, a single 12-ounce can of soda provides the equivalent of 10 teaspoons of table sugar, the Harvard review says.
I'm glad I switched to Diet Coke instead of the regular stuff. Now it tastes too sweet for me.
An extra can of soda a day can pile on 15 pounds in a single year, and the "weight of evidence" strongly suggests that this sort of increased consumption is a key reason that more people have gained weight, the researchers say.
It seems that whenever I see a very, very fat person they seem to be drinking a Big Gulp type Soda or something similar. I wonder what the effect of removing all the soda machines from public school is having on how fat kids are nowadays. I guess it will be another decade or so before we can know for sure. This fact also floored me as well:
Regardless of this debate, a single 12-ounce can of soda provides the equivalent of 10 teaspoons of table sugar, the Harvard review says.
I'm glad I switched to Diet Coke instead of the regular stuff. Now it tastes too sweet for me.
Israel Goes to the Ground Offensive
Here comes the invasion part of plan to Pacify Hezbollah. I wonder if they are going to stay in that area for good?
Israel approved a massive new ground offensive into southern Lebanon in an effort Wednesday to inflict further damage on Hezbollah and halt most rocket attacks before the
U.N. Security Council demands a cease-fire.
And of course the Nasrallah talks trash from the safety of Syria or wherever he is hiding.
In a televised speech, Hezbollah's leader taunted the Israelis.
"If you enter our land, we will throw you out by force and we will turn the land of our invaluable south into your graveyard," Sheik Hassan Nasrallah said. "We will be waiting for you at every village, at every valley. Thousands of courageous holy warriors are waiting for you."
He should say he is in Beirut or Tyre and dare the Israelis to off him. Now that would be worthy of a brave "Muslim Warrior." I'm sure Saladin wouldn't cower in some basement and talk a bunch of smack if he was heading Hezbollah.
Israel approved a massive new ground offensive into southern Lebanon in an effort Wednesday to inflict further damage on Hezbollah and halt most rocket attacks before the
U.N. Security Council demands a cease-fire.
And of course the Nasrallah talks trash from the safety of Syria or wherever he is hiding.
In a televised speech, Hezbollah's leader taunted the Israelis.
"If you enter our land, we will throw you out by force and we will turn the land of our invaluable south into your graveyard," Sheik Hassan Nasrallah said. "We will be waiting for you at every village, at every valley. Thousands of courageous holy warriors are waiting for you."
He should say he is in Beirut or Tyre and dare the Israelis to off him. Now that would be worthy of a brave "Muslim Warrior." I'm sure Saladin wouldn't cower in some basement and talk a bunch of smack if he was heading Hezbollah.
Monday, August 07, 2006
"Post Mortem" of a MySpace Outage
This is a very interesting web sociology project that came up when MySpace was down for two days. Where do people go when a massive social networking phenomenon goes down?
According to Tancer's MySpace outage "Post Mortem", Google gained the greatest increase in market share, as measured by page impressions. Dating sites experienced a 10 percent increase and adult sites had a slight rise.
Tancer said he believes the rise in Google activity was due to long-tail behavior, like recreational searches. Facebook, a competitor in social networking, also saw an increase in use, according to Tancer.
While MySpace shares of page impressions dropped from about 16.5 percent to 11 percent, Google shot up from 11.5 to 16.5, according to Hitwise. Facebook impressions rose from about 11 percent to 16.5 percent of the market share at the same time, according to Tancer, who did not provide figures on the adult sites' increase. He described those as a "mild bump up."
According to Tancer's MySpace outage "Post Mortem", Google gained the greatest increase in market share, as measured by page impressions. Dating sites experienced a 10 percent increase and adult sites had a slight rise.
Tancer said he believes the rise in Google activity was due to long-tail behavior, like recreational searches. Facebook, a competitor in social networking, also saw an increase in use, according to Tancer.
While MySpace shares of page impressions dropped from about 16.5 percent to 11 percent, Google shot up from 11.5 to 16.5, according to Hitwise. Facebook impressions rose from about 11 percent to 16.5 percent of the market share at the same time, according to Tancer, who did not provide figures on the adult sites' increase. He described those as a "mild bump up."
Google and MySpace Partner Up
Seems like a good fit between the two companies. I wonder if $900 million is a good price just to capture the Ad Content of MySpace? I guess so judging from the article:
After months of speculation on which company might win the MySpace search business, considered by analysts to be the biggest advertising prize in the online market, an agreement was hammered out six hours before it was announced, the companies said.
With barely enough time to figure out what else they could do together, executives said they planned to discuss expanding the partnership in areas such as potential content licensing or video search and advertising.
Initially, Google-branded search bars will appear on all pages of MySpace, along with more than a dozen other Fox Interactive Web properties, including its IGN.com for video gamers and RottenTomatoes.com for video lovers, they said.
After months of speculation on which company might win the MySpace search business, considered by analysts to be the biggest advertising prize in the online market, an agreement was hammered out six hours before it was announced, the companies said.
With barely enough time to figure out what else they could do together, executives said they planned to discuss expanding the partnership in areas such as potential content licensing or video search and advertising.
Initially, Google-branded search bars will appear on all pages of MySpace, along with more than a dozen other Fox Interactive Web properties, including its IGN.com for video gamers and RottenTomatoes.com for video lovers, they said.
FED Mulling Interest Rate Pause
I think they might pause the Interest Rate hikes here now that the economy is noticably slowing down.
In the futures market, chances of a rate increase are near 20 percent, given recent evidence of a slowing economy. A Reuters poll of primary bond dealers on Friday found that 17 of 22 think the Fed will hold rates steady.
In the futures market, chances of a rate increase are near 20 percent, given recent evidence of a slowing economy. A Reuters poll of primary bond dealers on Friday found that 17 of 22 think the Fed will hold rates steady.
Oil Pipeline May be Shut Down for Months
It seems that the corrosion on that BP pipeline is worse then they thought it would be.
BP PLC said it will have to replace most of the 22 miles of so-called transit pipeline at Prudhoe Bay, which produces about 2.6 percent of the nation's daily supply, or about 400,000 barrels a day.
That should move Oil Prices higher in the near term. I wonder if we are going to tap the Petroleum Reserve to make up for that 2.6 percent shortfall?
BP PLC said it will have to replace most of the 22 miles of so-called transit pipeline at Prudhoe Bay, which produces about 2.6 percent of the nation's daily supply, or about 400,000 barrels a day.
That should move Oil Prices higher in the near term. I wonder if we are going to tap the Petroleum Reserve to make up for that 2.6 percent shortfall?
Friday, August 04, 2006
Could Israel Widen the Conflict?
This is an interesting article on the power of Hezbollah's anti-tank missiles which were shipped in from Iran. I wonder is Israel would be willing to widen the conflict like we did by bombing Laos in the Vietnam war. This is the passage that got me thinking about that:
The report cited Western diplomatic sources as saying that Iranian authorities promised Hezbollah a steady supply of weapons "for the next stage of the confrontation."
Top Israeli intelligence officials say they have seen Iranian Revolutionary Guard soldiers on the ground with Hezbollah troops. They say that permission to fire Hezbollah's longer-range missiles, such as those could reach Tel Aviv, would likely require Iranian go-ahead.
In other words there are Iranian Army is on the ground acting as advisors to Hezbollah. In a way it would be the Iranian Army actually helping fire missiles on Tel Aviv. It seems to be exactly how the US served as advisors to the SVA in the Vietnam war.
In any case this is a very interesting gambit for Iran to play. They use a proxy army to get Israel stuck into a war that is turning further against them with every civilian that they accidentally kill. Iran knows they have world opinion on their side since only the US is in Israel's corner. Our credibility is shot to hell and we are in our own quicksand in Iraq so we really can't put much more then token pressure on Iran, Hezbollah, or anyone for that matter.
Iran also has a chance to showcase their top-of-the-line weapons in actual combat situations. This is very much like how the Nazis supplied Fascist Spain with tanks and planes during the Spanish Civil War. Iran has shown that they might have the tech know-how to defeat Israel in strait-up fight on the ground.
Iran just needs to figure out a way to neutralize Israel's air superiority. Maybe they would go with a first strike of Israeli Air Bases and try to knock out as many planes as they could while they are still on the ground. Maybe they could follow up with a Syrian led invasion into Israel betting that the US won't put troops in to protect Israel.
Maybe it would be a better idea to bide their time until Hillary gets into the White House and we cut and run in Iraq. She would most likely abandon Israel when Iranian Rockets rain down and Syrian Tanks cut their nation in two. I can see the Looney Left running around with "No Blood for Israel" signs and Syrian flags on their cars.
The report cited Western diplomatic sources as saying that Iranian authorities promised Hezbollah a steady supply of weapons "for the next stage of the confrontation."
Top Israeli intelligence officials say they have seen Iranian Revolutionary Guard soldiers on the ground with Hezbollah troops. They say that permission to fire Hezbollah's longer-range missiles, such as those could reach Tel Aviv, would likely require Iranian go-ahead.
In other words there are Iranian Army is on the ground acting as advisors to Hezbollah. In a way it would be the Iranian Army actually helping fire missiles on Tel Aviv. It seems to be exactly how the US served as advisors to the SVA in the Vietnam war.
In any case this is a very interesting gambit for Iran to play. They use a proxy army to get Israel stuck into a war that is turning further against them with every civilian that they accidentally kill. Iran knows they have world opinion on their side since only the US is in Israel's corner. Our credibility is shot to hell and we are in our own quicksand in Iraq so we really can't put much more then token pressure on Iran, Hezbollah, or anyone for that matter.
Iran also has a chance to showcase their top-of-the-line weapons in actual combat situations. This is very much like how the Nazis supplied Fascist Spain with tanks and planes during the Spanish Civil War. Iran has shown that they might have the tech know-how to defeat Israel in strait-up fight on the ground.
Iran just needs to figure out a way to neutralize Israel's air superiority. Maybe they would go with a first strike of Israeli Air Bases and try to knock out as many planes as they could while they are still on the ground. Maybe they could follow up with a Syrian led invasion into Israel betting that the US won't put troops in to protect Israel.
Maybe it would be a better idea to bide their time until Hillary gets into the White House and we cut and run in Iraq. She would most likely abandon Israel when Iranian Rockets rain down and Syrian Tanks cut their nation in two. I can see the Looney Left running around with "No Blood for Israel" signs and Syrian flags on their cars.
Culture War Not Such a Big Deal to Americans
At least according to this recent poll.
Best illustrating the willingness of Americans to consider opposing points of view is that two-thirds of poll respondents supported finding a middle ground when it comes to abortion rights -- a solid majority that stood up among those calling themselves evangelicals, Catholics, Republicans or Democrats.
This is good news because the polorization of America is something we can't afford to have when there are people out there that want to kill us. I think some of the various entrenched camps should find middle ground when it comes to different issues.
An example that I push a lot is evironmentalists and security hawks can come together on reducing the need for foreign oil. The environmentalists don't want the global warming and the hawks don't want to pay our enemies in order to drive to work every day. They can both agree on the problem now they just need to hammer out a solution.
Best illustrating the willingness of Americans to consider opposing points of view is that two-thirds of poll respondents supported finding a middle ground when it comes to abortion rights -- a solid majority that stood up among those calling themselves evangelicals, Catholics, Republicans or Democrats.
This is good news because the polorization of America is something we can't afford to have when there are people out there that want to kill us. I think some of the various entrenched camps should find middle ground when it comes to different issues.
An example that I push a lot is evironmentalists and security hawks can come together on reducing the need for foreign oil. The environmentalists don't want the global warming and the hawks don't want to pay our enemies in order to drive to work every day. They can both agree on the problem now they just need to hammer out a solution.
Thursday, August 03, 2006
American Eagle the Back-to-School Leader?
It seems that back to school is going to be choppy depending on the companies fashion mix. American Eagle may have that mix according to this article.
"Our fashion consultants feel that American Eagle is positioned well for back to school compared to rival teen retailers, particularly Hollister," she wrote, referring to a competing teen chain run by Abercrombie & Fitch Co. "Since our buyers were very enthusiastic about AE's new assortments, we think that this could be an opportunity for it to gain market share."
I need to do more recon on AEOS but they seem to have an interesting assortment of jeans that are pretty affordable. I think some kids not wishing to pay Abercrombie's outrageous markup may start going to American Eagle to make their dollar stretch out more.
I think teens who drive will really be hit by these higher gas prices because they don't make nearly as much to absorb the added cost. So that kid for instance will be more likely to buy the $34.50 AE Artist Stretch Jean instead of the $69.50 Emma Low Rise Boot Cut.
This hypothetical girl going back to school will save $35 by buying pretty similar jeans from AEOS instead of ANF. That represents a tank of gas, some shoes, a blouse, or something in a similar price range.
Also if it is the parents buying the clothes it gets even worse. They might have an Adjustable Rate Mortgage and may have taken on too much house then they can afford. Thus those parents are now facing higher monthly mortgage payments, $3.50 gas, and inflated prices for food. So even if their daughter complains she is still going to be getting those aforementioned Artist Stretch Jeans. This should be a good deal for AEOS any way you look at it.
"Our fashion consultants feel that American Eagle is positioned well for back to school compared to rival teen retailers, particularly Hollister," she wrote, referring to a competing teen chain run by Abercrombie & Fitch Co. "Since our buyers were very enthusiastic about AE's new assortments, we think that this could be an opportunity for it to gain market share."
I need to do more recon on AEOS but they seem to have an interesting assortment of jeans that are pretty affordable. I think some kids not wishing to pay Abercrombie's outrageous markup may start going to American Eagle to make their dollar stretch out more.
I think teens who drive will really be hit by these higher gas prices because they don't make nearly as much to absorb the added cost. So that kid for instance will be more likely to buy the $34.50 AE Artist Stretch Jean instead of the $69.50 Emma Low Rise Boot Cut.
This hypothetical girl going back to school will save $35 by buying pretty similar jeans from AEOS instead of ANF. That represents a tank of gas, some shoes, a blouse, or something in a similar price range.
Also if it is the parents buying the clothes it gets even worse. They might have an Adjustable Rate Mortgage and may have taken on too much house then they can afford. Thus those parents are now facing higher monthly mortgage payments, $3.50 gas, and inflated prices for food. So even if their daughter complains she is still going to be getting those aforementioned Artist Stretch Jeans. This should be a good deal for AEOS any way you look at it.
Consumers Are Slowing But Only Slightly
It seems that high gas prices and the super hot weather in the mainland hasn't slowed all the retaliers.
Thursday's reports showed some pockets of strength despite the high-profile disappointments from Target, Costco and Gap.
Department stores such as J.C. Penney Co. Inc. (JCP) and Nordstrom Inc. (JWN) were among the winners with better-than-expected growth, but J.C. Penney said it remained cautious about August sales because of a tough economy.
Dollar stores were also surprisingly strong, with Family Dollar Stores Inc. (FDO) and Dollar General Corp. (NYSE:DG) beating July sales forecasts, and Dollar Tree Stores Inc. (Nasdaq:DLTR) posting strong second-quarter sales.
So the strength again comes from the high end consumer and from people trying to save a few bucks by buying cheap stuff.
Thursday's reports showed some pockets of strength despite the high-profile disappointments from Target, Costco and Gap.
Department stores such as J.C. Penney Co. Inc. (JCP) and Nordstrom Inc. (JWN) were among the winners with better-than-expected growth, but J.C. Penney said it remained cautious about August sales because of a tough economy.
Dollar stores were also surprisingly strong, with Family Dollar Stores Inc. (FDO) and Dollar General Corp. (NYSE:DG) beating July sales forecasts, and Dollar Tree Stores Inc. (Nasdaq:DLTR) posting strong second-quarter sales.
So the strength again comes from the high end consumer and from people trying to save a few bucks by buying cheap stuff.
Arizona Considers $1 million Voting Lottery
I think this is a great idea to increase people going to the polls:
Arizonans will vote on the reward idea Nov. 7. The proposal made it onto the ballot in June after supporters turned in nearly 184,000 signatures, or about 50 percent more than required.
If the measure passed, election officials would assign a number to each voter who casts a ballot in a state election. The state commission that oversees the Arizona lottery would then hold a public drawing to pick a winner, with the prize money coming from unclaimed lottery prizes.
I would even vote several times so I could have more chances to win. Wait maybe this isn't such a good idea after all.
Arizonans will vote on the reward idea Nov. 7. The proposal made it onto the ballot in June after supporters turned in nearly 184,000 signatures, or about 50 percent more than required.
If the measure passed, election officials would assign a number to each voter who casts a ballot in a state election. The state commission that oversees the Arizona lottery would then hold a public drawing to pick a winner, with the prize money coming from unclaimed lottery prizes.
I would even vote several times so I could have more chances to win. Wait maybe this isn't such a good idea after all.
Wednesday, August 02, 2006
Sector Based Mutual Funds getting Hammered
It seems that buying ETFs have replaced investing in Sector Based Mutual funds.
During just May and June, investors poured $2.48 billion into sector ETFs, while sector mutual funds saw net outflows of $3.32 billion, according to fund tracker Lipper. Most interesting, during that two-month period of rising energy costs, funds holding natural-resources stocks saw a net outflow of $25 million, while natural-resources ETFs received $1.83 billion in new assets.
I would rather buy an ETF then a Mutual Fund just because I can trade it faster if oil or gold prices start to drop again. You have more control over portfolio weightings if you stick to ETFs. Plus I like them because you just have to see what sectors seemed poised to do well and not have to drill down and own individual stocks to get that sector exposure. This article touches on why I like ETFs vs. Sector Mutual Funds. I hate those redemption fees.
The redemption fees are a growing issue, particularly when it comes to sector investing. Investors pour money into a given sector quickly, then get out when sentiment shifts. People who want to time the market often have to pay redemption fees for these short-term trades — more so now since the mutual-fund scandals of 2003 shone light on the practice of market timing — which drives up the cost of trading. ETFs don't have such redemption fees, so are better suited for those who want to trade sectors, rather than invest in them over a longer term.
During just May and June, investors poured $2.48 billion into sector ETFs, while sector mutual funds saw net outflows of $3.32 billion, according to fund tracker Lipper. Most interesting, during that two-month period of rising energy costs, funds holding natural-resources stocks saw a net outflow of $25 million, while natural-resources ETFs received $1.83 billion in new assets.
I would rather buy an ETF then a Mutual Fund just because I can trade it faster if oil or gold prices start to drop again. You have more control over portfolio weightings if you stick to ETFs. Plus I like them because you just have to see what sectors seemed poised to do well and not have to drill down and own individual stocks to get that sector exposure. This article touches on why I like ETFs vs. Sector Mutual Funds. I hate those redemption fees.
The redemption fees are a growing issue, particularly when it comes to sector investing. Investors pour money into a given sector quickly, then get out when sentiment shifts. People who want to time the market often have to pay redemption fees for these short-term trades — more so now since the mutual-fund scandals of 2003 shone light on the practice of market timing — which drives up the cost of trading. ETFs don't have such redemption fees, so are better suited for those who want to trade sectors, rather than invest in them over a longer term.
Starbucks Sales in July Disappoints
It looks like they were not fast enough with those Frappuccino's to have same store sales be higher then 4%. In recent months they were pulling in 10% same store increases so they are really slowing down in terms of sales. At least the CEO has pointed the finger at the problem:
"We are experiencing stronger-than-expected -- actually unprecedented -- customer demand for blended beverages during morning peak hours," Chief Executive Jim Donald said on a conference call with analysts. "We still have work to do with service efficiencies around our Frappuccino blended beverage preparation."
I have noticed more people buying Frappuccinos then hot coffee when I go in the morning sometimes. I guess they could put in a machine that auto mixes Frappuccinos like those big Orange Slushy machines at the 7-11. Whatever the case this stock was priced for perfection and that little hiccup in same store sales last quarter mixed with this big time miss will probably cause a selloff in this stock.
"We are experiencing stronger-than-expected -- actually unprecedented -- customer demand for blended beverages during morning peak hours," Chief Executive Jim Donald said on a conference call with analysts. "We still have work to do with service efficiencies around our Frappuccino blended beverage preparation."
I have noticed more people buying Frappuccinos then hot coffee when I go in the morning sometimes. I guess they could put in a machine that auto mixes Frappuccinos like those big Orange Slushy machines at the 7-11. Whatever the case this stock was priced for perfection and that little hiccup in same store sales last quarter mixed with this big time miss will probably cause a selloff in this stock.
I guess We Forgave France
It like "Freedom Fries" are finally going to be relegated to small blurb status in the history books now. It will join the same notable place as "Hanging Chad," and "18 1/2 minute gap."
Of the five food outlets that had heeded calls by House Republicans to inject patriotism into their menus in March 2003, the last two that still used "freedom fries" reverted back to the original name in the last two weeks.
Of the five food outlets that had heeded calls by House Republicans to inject patriotism into their menus in March 2003, the last two that still used "freedom fries" reverted back to the original name in the last two weeks.
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
Coal Stocks the new Oil Stocks
It sure seems that way from this article.
Stocks of U.S. coal producers have handily outpaced those of Big Oil over the past two years. During that period, for example, shares of oil giant ExxonMobil gained 37%, while the stock of Peabody Energy, the world's largest private-sector coal producer, more than quadrupled.
The real appeal of coal is that it isn't underneath countries that just love killing Americans. Too bad the Stanley Steamer went out with the 20s.
Stocks of U.S. coal producers have handily outpaced those of Big Oil over the past two years. During that period, for example, shares of oil giant ExxonMobil gained 37%, while the stock of Peabody Energy, the world's largest private-sector coal producer, more than quadrupled.
The real appeal of coal is that it isn't underneath countries that just love killing Americans. Too bad the Stanley Steamer went out with the 20s.
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