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Exploring the Franchise Customer Journey at FCMC 2018

Jul 11, 2018

I recently returned from the 2018 Franchise Consumer Marketing Conference, in Atlanta, and as with past FCMC events, it was a great place for picking up fresh ideas and insights from some of franchising’s most innovative and successful marketing pros and practitioners.

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Tags: marketing strategy, customer experience, local marketing automation, franchise, franchise local marketing

How and Why Franchise Consumer Marketers Are Going Local

Jan 25, 2018

A shift is underway from national to local franchise marketing.Could there be a shake-up on the horizon regarding national advertising funds paid into by franchisees for the purpose of promoting franchise brand awareness at the national level? The answer may very well be “yes,” as new research indicates franchisors are shifting from an over-investment in national-level marketing to locally targeted campaigns, in order to tap into the local movement that consumers are increasingly embracing.

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Tags: local marketing budgets, franchise, franchise local marketing

Nuggets of Franchise Marketing Wisdom Heard at #FCMCon 2017

Jun 29, 2017

Hats off to the team at Franchise Update Media for a terrific Franchise Consumer Marketing Conference last week in Atlanta. The Vya team came away from the event with some great connections and an instructive view into the realities faced by today’s franchise marketers. Here are just some of the powerful insights and recommendations we heard from those who are on the frontlines of franchise marketing.

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Tags: marketing resource management, local marketing, franchise, franchise local marketing

How to Help Franchisees Up the Quality Quotient of Their Local Marketing

Jun 15, 2017

Experts estimate today’s US consumer is exposed to as many as 10,000 brand messages a day. More than ever, marketers need to deliver relevant messages, through multiple channels, with enough frequency to gain recognition and engagement. Every consumer touchpoint counts. Which means the quality of marketing campaigns is critical to breaking through the noise.

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Tags: marketing resource management, local marketing, franchise, franchise local marketing, ad systems

How to Support Your Local Associates for Successful Community Sponsorships

Apr 20, 2017

Whether you’re a bank with local branches or a franchise business with multiple locations, local sponsorships offer a powerful way for your local representatives to build relationships and visibility in the communities they serve. Sponsorships are effective because supporting local sports teams, charitable causes, the arts and other cultural organizations puts your brand in front of the customers and prospects you most want to reach at the local level.

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Tags: bank marketing, brand consistency, financial services, local marketing, legal and regulatory compliance, franchise, community sponsorship, local advertising

How to Foster a Marketing Culture at the Local Franchisee Level

Jan 26, 2017

Running a local franchise business requires a broad skillset. From day-to-day operations management, customer service, accounting and business planning, to HR, inventory control and facilities management—franchise business owners wear many different hats. For many franchisees, one hat that never seems to fit quite right is that of marketer.

That’s not to say that franchisees lack an understanding of the importance of marketing and promotion to the success of their business. In fact, in a recent survey of franchise SMBs by local media researcher BIA/Kelsey, franchise owners reported more than half of their business is derived from promotions.

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Tags: localized marketing, marketing productivity, marketing resource management, local marketing automation, franchise, streamline marketing, scale local marketing, franchise marketing software, getting franchises to do marketing campaigns, turnkey marketing campaign, local marketing resource management

Distributed Marketing Lessons from #FCMC 2016

Jun 28, 2016

I just returned from Atlanta with my colleagues Kandi O’Connor and Seanna Lewis after attending this year’s Franchise Consumer Marketing Conference. What a terrific event for sharing local marketing best practices. We met a number of truly inspiring franchise marketers and came away with some fresh thinking about marketing through franchisees that can apply across industries with distributed marketing models.

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Tags: local marketing, franchise, distributed marketing

Ideas for Grand Opening Event Success in a Distributed Marketing Model

Jun 09, 2016

Managing local grand opening events can be a challenge when you operate in a distributed marketing model. As a corporate marketer you want to support the success of the new location and ensure brand consistency. At the same time, you want to enable your local team the flexibility to create an event that resonates with their local market.

We’ve supported many clients’ local grand opening events. From franchisors facilitating new franchise openings to banks launching newly acquired local branches, here are some guidelines based on our experience:

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Tags: bank marketing, brand consistency, franchise, distributed marketing, franchisee marketing, grand opening event ideas

How to Scale Localized Marketing

May 12, 2016

Often we are approached by companies that are experiencing tremendous growth. Sometimes it’s a bank that has made an acquisition and is in the process of integrating many new bank branches into their corporation. Other times it’s a franchisor who has many new locations under construction or has several new franchisees under contract. It’s exciting to be part of a growing business; but it can also be stressful, especially for the corporate marketing department.

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Tags: bank marketing, financial services, localized marketing, marketing productivity, marketing resource management, local marketing automation, franchise, scale local marketing, franchise marketing software

3 ways to engage franchisees in local marketing efforts

Nov 24, 2015

Franchises face unique challenges when it comes to local marketing. They are reliant on local owners to share corporate-supplied marketing campaigns and messages, but are not always able to measure effectiveness, or even tell if franchisees used materials provided.

That can be a big problem. If franchisees aren’t engaged in marketing strategies and techniques, then customers aren’t receiving carefully crafted materials – representing a loss to revenue and a waste of time and money spent creating campaigns that never get used.

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Tags: localized marketing, local marketing, franchise, marketing strategies, marketing techniques, distributed marketing, franchise marketing best practices, Drive sales, through-channel marketing, franchisee marketing, franchise marketing campaign, franchise local marketing


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Friday, April 1, 2011

Internet Explorer 8 on Windows 7 - Zero Day Trifecta!

CVE-2011-1347: Unspecified vulnerability in Microsoft Internet Explorer 8 on Windows 7 allows remote attackers to bypass Protected Mode and create arbitrary files by leveraging access to a Low integrity process, as demonstrated by Stephen Fewer as the third of three chained vulnerabilities during a Pwn2Own competition at CanSecWest 2011

As far as I know this string of exploits is NOT publicly available at the moment, but if you want to read more check out the full story on zdnet.
Stephen Fewer: If you look closely you can see his brain radiating heat!

Anytime you get a bunch of geeks together and are giving away free computers and ca$h, it's a pretty good bet that something is gonna break. Nice work Fewer!

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Saturday, April 30, 2011

Pay For Secure Coding, Not Lawyers

Is it cheaper to get a lawyer to fix your buggy software than to hire or train your programmers how to handle data safely? Must be, cauz that's what drives business decisions, right?! Money. Apparently this is the case in Germany with the Magix Incident.

Here the researcher appears to have tried responsible disclosure. Notifying the vendor, even working with the vendor. All PoC code and flaw description is given to the vendor then the vendor sues! Wait, WTF!?! Someone is trying to help you fix flaws in your software, then you bend them over?! Someone who was helping you with his time FOR FREE (as in beer), donating time. Someone who went to the vendor with the flaw, not the exploit market, not directly to public disclosure. WTF?!

Filing a lawsuit against a security researcher that has attempted to follow responsible disclosure practices shows the company doesn't really understand the business environment of software. I can't help but think the management conversation that led to the decision went something like this. "Let's throw lawyers at the problem, Jim. The problem isn't ours! These damn haxors breaking our beloved software. Someone should show them a thing or two about business.", "Sure Bob, that sounds great." No conversation about secure coding. No taking responsibility for the issue.

The way I see it, rather than paying full time employees to sit and audit code for a decent salary + benefits, throw a few bucks at the security researchers that spend their own time looking at your code. What's $500, $1000 (Mozilla bug bounty anyone?!) in the big scheme of things? A cheap ass code audit if you ask me! Surely you'll get more press and relationship mileage out of cooperating with researchers rather than bullying them with ridiculous law and people so far from the issue that they can't even begin to understand it.

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Zone38 Presents...
Letters to the World

Time for some metacognition…

Filed under: General — codeman38 @ 2:48 pm

My results on the Mind Media Brain Persuasion test, a meme that’s been going around quite a few blogs, with my own comments in italics:

Auditory : 54%
Visual : 45%
Left : 23%
Right : 76%

Auditory 54%? I can see how they could label me as right-brained; my mind works in a rather “ADD-ish” way, for lack of a better explanation. But I’ve always thought of my primary style of thinking as verbal-visual. Then again, in a non-verbal capacity– for example, instrumental music or abstract art– I do tend to process things better aurally. Go figure; it’s almost the reverse of how most people tend to think…

Cody, you show a slight right-hemisphere dominance with a moderate preference for auditory processing, an unusual and somewhat paradoxical combination of characteristics.

Again, I wonder where they got the idea that I had an auditory preference; I was wondering if my answers on some of the “wordplay” questions like SING:SONG::_:_ had any impact. I chose the answer I did because they had the closest resemblance as words in themselves, ignoring the ideas represented by those words.

You are drawn to a random and sometimes nonchalant synthesis of material. You learn as it seems important to a specific situation, and might even develop a resentment of others who attempt to direct your learning down a specific channel.

True… I’ve always considered myself a “jack of all trades, master of none”, a polymath geek who’s interested in a wide variety of topics, with interest in them widely varying depending on the circumstances.

Your right-hemispheric dominance provides a structure that is only loosely organized and one which processes entire swatches of reality, overlooking details. You are emotional in your reactions and perceptual more than logical in your approach, although you can impose structure and a language base when necessary.

Somewhat on the right track. Though my thought process is loosely organized and I often do miss out on certain details, I’m not exactly the most emotional person in the typical sense of the word (though I can get emotional at times, generally those emotions tend to be rather introverted). And perceptual and logical aren’t necessarily mutually exclusive, which is what this result seems to suggest; in the INTP personality type, they coexist, though there *is* a slight preference for intuitive perception.

Your auditory preference, on the other hand, implies that you process information sequentially and unidimensionally. This combination of right-brain and auditory modes creates conflict, as you want to process data more rapidly than your natural processes allow.

I do tend to process information unidimensionally and sometimes sequentially, but I don’t think of it so much as auditory as a visual “stream”, if that makes any sense at all.

Your tendency to be creative and free-flowing is accompanied by sufficient ability to organize and be logical, allowing you a reasonable degree of success in a number of different endeavors. You take in information methodically and systematically which can then be synthesized rapidly. In this manner, you manage to function consistently well, although certainly less efficiently than you desire.

Ah, there we go. That sounds more INTP than the earlier descriptions! 😉

You prefer the abstract and are a theoretician at heart while retaining the ability to be practical. You find the symbolism in a great deal of what you encounter and are something of a “mystic.”

Heh… is there any reason I felt most comfortable this past semester in the classes that had “theory” in their names?

With regards to your lifestyle, you have the mentality which would be good as a philosopher, writer, journalist, or instructor, or possibly as a systems designer or social worker. Perhaps most important is your ability to “listen to your inner voice” as a mode of skipping over unnecessary steps to achieve your goals.

Systems designer… programmer… hm, I can kind of see that working out, heh. And I do often use intuitive thinking to skip over unnecessary steps; it’s yet another common INTP trait…

1 Comment »

  1. My problem in taking the test was that I could usually see the “argument” for every possible answer. While I first thought “U and R” in response to the “I M” question, as soon as I saw the “9 13” choice I immediately understood the logic behind it as well. I guess the test was right when it said I tend to vacillate! I took the test twice, and although I changed several answers, both times I got the same response screen (even left and right; slight visual preference). My second “scores” were Auditory : 37% Visual : 62% Left : 42% Right : 57

    Comment by Lesi — 10-Jun-2003 @ 2:01 am

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Part II: Which Races Will Decide Whose Party Controls the Senate?

Last week we gave you a run-down of some of the closest U.S. Senate races this mid-term election that will decide which party controls that chamber. Today, we bring you Part II of that list.

These five races are among the dozen that politicos will be watching as Republicans seek to maintain their current numbers, plus win six seats that Democrats currently hold in order to call the Senate their own.

Louisiana: The latest poll from the conservative Rasmussen Reports has Democratic incumbent Sen. Mary Landrieu up just three points against Republican challenger Rep. Bill Cassidy, in a three-way race that also features tea-party candidate Rob Maness. Should the race go to a run-off, as some political watchers expect it to, Landrieu could find herself in some trouble. The latest polling of that scenario from several pollsters shows Cassidy with a solid edge. Debate over the Common Core State Standards recently erupted in the race, pitting Landrieu against her two challengers. Landrieu defended the common core, emphasizing that the standards are a local and state effort, and not part of a federal initiative. Both Cassidy and Maness came down on the other side of the argument, popular among Republicans these days: Cassidy insisted that that the Obama administration forced states to adopt the common-core standards in exchange for waivers from the No Child Left Behind law and competitive grant dollars, while Maness explained that the standards are troublesome for students with special needs, like his son.

Arkansas: The latest poll from the conservative Rasmussen Reports has Democratic incumbent Sen. Mark Pryor down three points against Republican challenger Rep. Tom Cotton. It's always been assumed that Pryor, a moderate Democrat in a red state, would face a tough re-election. Indeed, at this time last year, the National Education Association was already running ads criticizing Cotton, at that point Pryor's potential GOP opponent, for trying to delay implementation of the Affordable Care Act by shutting down the government. Though Pryor doesn't play a major role in education issues, he did introduce the Sensible School Lunch Act, a bill that would have made changes to grain and protein requirements, similar to those in the new USDA rule. Cotton, meanwhile, is a big proponent of school choice, including home schooling, charters, and vouchers to be used at private and religious schools. He also favors merit pay for teachers and alternative teaching certification pathways.

South Dakota: The latest poll from the GOP Harper Polling, shows Republican Mike Rounds up four points against Independent candidate Larry Pressler and Democratic candidate Rick Weiland. The three are vying for a seat left open by retiring Sen. Tim Johnson, a Democrat. Rounds, a former governor of South Dakota, increased K-12 state spending while in office and opened 10 research centers at the state's university system. His campaign web site says that, if elected, he plans to abolish the U.S. Department of Education and defund its budget. Pressler served in the U.S. House from 1975-1979 and in the U.S. Senate from 1979 through 1997. He has limited education experience, though he sat on the House education committee for four years.  Weiland, meanwhile, doesn't have any information about his education priorities on his campaign web site.

Kentucky: The latest poll from conservative Rasmussen Reports has Republican incumbent Mitch McConnell, the Senate Minority Leader, up eight points against Democrat challenger, Alison Lundergan Grimes, Kentucky's secretary of state. Two weeks ago, however, a survey from the Courier Journal showed Grimes up two points. The race has largely been a battle of coal and energy issues. Other than corralling Republicans through various legislative issues as Minority Leader, McConnell doesn't play a key role in education legislation. Grimes doesn't have much experience on education issues either, though one of her major campaign platforms is making college more affordable by giving students the same loan rates at Wall Street banks, allowing student to refinance loans, and streamlining repayment options.

New Hampshire: The latest poll from Suffolk University and the Boston Herald has Democratic incumbent Sen. Jean Shaheen up three points against Republican challenger Scott Brown. Shaheen has been a big proponent of STEM issues, and introduced a bill that would establish a competitive grant for states to work with the private sector to establish extracurricular and non-traditional STEM education programs, such as robotics competitions or engineering software challenges. During her time in the Senate, she also voted to fully fund the Pell grant program, which provides tuition assistance for low- and middle-income college students. Brown, meanwhile, is focusing his education platform on higher education. In a position paper, he touts efforts to slow the rate of tuition increases at colleges and universities through the use of technology and by re-examining tax policies on college endowments. He also pledges to overhaul the entire student loan system.

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April 27, 2009

It's safe to eat a worm in your sandwich.

(Thanks to Horace LaBadie)

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I would think the mezcal would get the bread soggy.

The dad looks like Steve Buscemi !

Tuna surprise.

And, in a pinch, just add a hook and it can be used to catch dinner.

I smell settlement dollars here.

Wrong country, Ron. What's five pounds translate to in American? 2.2 Kilos? No, wait...

Sure, Mr Tesco (?) YOU eat Tuna-n-worm sandwiches every day, right?

I've mentioned this before, but we eat a lot more "surprises" then we know about. As a retired health inspector, I've seen a lot. However, in over 30 years, I never investigated a worm (insect, suspicious chemical taste, you name it) that amounted to real danger to the consumer. I take that back; one couple complained of a bloody band-aid baked into a pizza. Their complaint wasn't about the bandage as such, but that the pizza place refused to give them a second pizza to replace the one they had half eaten.

Kewl. Worm & jam. Worm & cheese. Or just worm on toast, plain. Pass the gaakk, p'tak.

Is it safe to eat poop? Cuz it's in the sprouts, now.

You have been warned.

Great. Their attitude would almost certainly keep me as a customer. But if I was still having any small bit of hesitancy, I think the line, "They burrow deep in the flesh..." would remove all doubt and ease those silly fears.

Many fish have worms, which is why Sushi is frozen before it is served. They don't bother the fish much, and very few fish worm species can live in humans. The tuna was presumably canned and therefore cooked, so the worm was just extra protein. If Tesco wants to do something about worms, maybe they can just serve them on the side.

What I want to know is, how did he get his four year old son to even eat tuna at all and not just a bag of Fritos?

I thought things like this were supposed to be a delicacy in countries that are not the United States? Or is that just in China?

Must be double cliche day. A real can of worms in a fine kettle of fish.

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Tag Archives | colonoscopy

ABC News Tweet Chat: Colon Cancer Awareness Month

March is Colon Cancer Awareness month and Edith Mitchell, MD, Director of the Center for Cancer Disparities and Immediate Past-President of the National Medical Association, recently participated in an ABC News Tweet Chat moderated by chief health and medical editor Dr. Richard Besser on symptoms, prevention and treatment of the disease.

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foreign direct investment

Why Do Foreign Investors’ Attitudes toward Women Matter?

Heba Shams's picture
Gender equality is one of the sustainable development goals (SDGs) that calls for ensuring women’s full participation in political, economic and public life as a target. Gender inequality is still a key development issue. The World Economic Forum’s Gender Gap Report 2017 found a gender gap of 42% when it came to labor force participation and earned income. Unrealized Potential, a May 2018 publication of the World Bank Group, puts a staggering figure to the cost of this inequality in earnings - $160.2 trillion globally, or $23,620 per capita.
Kuralay Aitzhanova, Dispatcher Manager at the Energy Transmission Control Center of KEGOK. Kazakhstan. Photo: Shynar Jetpissova / World Bank

Global Investment Competitiveness: New Insights on FDI

Anabel Gonzalez's picture

It is easy enough to find data on flows of foreign direct investment (FDI). There are also plenty of anecdotes out there that purportedly encapsulate what businesses worldwide are thinking. It is far more difficult, however, to establish rigorous connections between global investment trends and individual investment decisions by international companies. In the World Bank Group’s newly published Global Investment Competitiveness Report 2017–2018, our team does just this, combining new survey data, rigorous econometric analysis, and extensive literature reviews to reveal what is going on behind the headline numbers.

Here are some of the key takeaways:

Looping in local suppliers rather than forcing out international firms

Anabel Gonzalez's picture

An instructor at the Savar EPZ training center in Dhaka, Bangladesh, helps young women being trained to make shirts. Photo Credit: © Dominic Chavez/The World Bank

Increasing economic prosperity for developing countries is related not only to rising trade, but also – and more important – to transforming the traditional composition of what they produce and export. In the world today, many developing countries strive to diversify away from exporting commodities toward higher-value-added goods and services.

The evolution of trade and investment flows over the last three decades shows that foreign direct investment (FDI) can be a powerful driver of exports, a creator of well-paid new jobs and a crucial source of financing. More important, FDI may become a very rapid and effective engine to promote the transfer of technology, know-how and new business practices, helping to raise productivity and setting a country on the course of convergence. This is particularly the case of efficiency-seeking FDI – that is, FDI that locates productive processes in a country seeking to enhance its ability to better compete in international markets-.
The benefits of FDI are further leveraged when local firms can catalyze the presence of foreign investors to connect to global and regional value chains (GVCs). As a result of new international firms investing in a host country, great new opportunities arise for local enterprises to supply the inputs – be it goods or services – that their international counterparts need.

This has been the experience of Bangladesh, where local suppliers have grown in tandem with foreign investors in the garment sector. It is through linkages with international investors that local firms can gradually be lured into producing new goods and services that, until then, were not produced in the host country.  This is how economic diversification and greater value added are generated.

Multinational enterprises (MNEs) and their key partners (Tier 1 suppliers) are generally keen to source locally if a competitive local supplier can be found. However, they are also reluctant to absorb high search-and-find costs, and they will typically not invest in assisting local suppliers with upgrading efforts. Likewise, local firms are generally keen to supply to foreign firms, but are often not ready to make the necessary investments in technology and in processes to meet strict quality standards without a clear line of sight on potential payoff for such investment.

The false debate: choosing between promoting FDI and domestic investment

Cecile Fruman's picture

Should we focus our efforts on foreign investment or domestic investment?” Policymakers in developing economies often ask this question when the World Bank Group advises them on how to improve their countries’ investment climate or investment promotion efforts. Our answer is: They do not need to choose one over the other. In order to grow and diversify, an economy needs both domestic investment and foreign direct investment (FDI).  The two forms of private investments can be strong complements.
Recognizing the Potential Benefits of FDI
The economic benefits of FDI were identified a long time ago. A Harvard Business School paper published 30 years ago summarized the benefits of FDI based on an extensive review of economic literature (Wint, 1986). In short: Benefits traditionally attributed to FDI include job creation, transfer of technology and know-how (including modern managerial and business practices), access to international markets, and access to international financing.

Granted, some of these benefits also occur thanks to domestic investment. For instance, domestic investments create jobs in a host economy – usually many more than FDI. However: What FDI does well is enhance or maximize some of the benefits already generated by domestic investments in a developing economy.
To stay with the example of job creation: Foreign firms might not create as many jobs as the domestic private sector, but they often create better-paid jobs that require higher skills. That helps elevate the skills level in host economies. The same can be said for other FDI benefits. For instance, more advanced technologies and managerial or marketing practices can be introduced in a developing economy through foreign investment, and at a much faster rate than would be the case if only domestic investment were allowed. Moreover, through partnerships with foreign investors who have existing distribution channels and commercial arrangements around the world, developing countries’ firms can benefit from increased market access.

In China, millions of rural residents each year migrate to cities to seek work. As they find jobs in modernizing industries, they gain the skills they need to earn higher incomes. In this photo, an employe in Chongqing is learning higher-level computer skills. Photo: Li Wenyong / The World Bank

Why does efficiency-seeking FDI matter?

Cecile Fruman's picture
Today we face an interesting paradox. The number of people in the world living in extreme poverty has decreased dramatically in the past three decades. In 1981 half of the population in the developing world lived in extreme poverty. By 2010, despite a 60 percent increase in the developing world’s population, that figure dropped to 21 percent.

While extreme poverty has diminished, however, the gap between the richest and poorest countries has increased dramatically. In 1776, when Adam Smith wrote The Wealth of Nations, the richest country in the world was approximately four times wealthier than the poorest. Today, the world’s richest country is more than 400 times richer than the poorest.

What separates them?

One answer is knowledge, diversification and the composition of exports, all areas in which foreign direct investment (FDI) has an important role to play.

FDI matters, but not all FDI is created equal
While FDI is important for economic growth, not all FDI is the same. One way to differentiate is by an investor’s motivations using a framework established by British economist John Dunning:
  • Natural resource-seeking investment: Motivated by investor interest in accessing and exploiting natural resources.
  • Market-seeking investment: Motivated by investor interest in serving domestic or regional markets.
  • Strategic asset-seeking investment: Motivated by investor interest in acquiring strategic assets (brands, human capital, distribution networks, etc.) that will enable a firm to compete in a given market. Takes place through mergers and acquisitions.
  • Efficiency-seeking investment: FDI that comes into a country seeking to benefit from factors that enable it to compete in international markets.

This last category – efficiency-seeking FDI – is particularly important for countries looking to integrate into the global economy and move up the value chain.

Foreign Investment Policy: Encouraging news from China

Xavier Forneris's picture

The Investment Policy team of the World Bank Group’s Trade & Competitiveness (T&C) Global Practice has learned that China is about to adopt a new foreign investment law that would bring about several potentially significant improvements to the current investment regime. Although we have not yet seen an English-language version of the proposed law, and therefore have to rely for the moment on accounts by international law firms and chambers of commerce that have seen (and sometimes commented on) the draft law, I wanted to share the news with the Private Sector Development community because of the new law’s potential impact – not just in China but across East Asia.
China has very significant political and economic clout in the region and across the developing world. Its reforms are closely watched, and they could inspire many other developing and emerging economies to follow suit.
After soliciting comments on the three existing laws, China’s Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) issued a draft of the Foreign Investment Law on January 19, also soliciting public comment – a process that, incidentally, should also inspire many countries.
If passed, the new law would abrogate and ‘unify’ the three current laws that regulate foreign investment: namely, the Sino-Foreign Equity Joint Venture Law, the Wholly Foreign-Owned Enterprise Law and the Sino-Foreign Contractual Joint Venture Law. Although going from three laws to one can in itself be a positive thing – simplifying the regulatory environment usually is a good idea – what really matters to the investor community is the substantive or procedural changes that the new law would introduce.
A first change is that the new law would adopt a “negative list” approach, modeled on the system in place in the Shanghai Pilot Free Trade Zone (FTZ). As a reminder: Under a negative-list approach, certain sectors where foreign investment is restricted, capped or prohibited are specifically enumerated on a negative list. And foreign investment in restricted sectors can only proceed through some sort of ex ante screening and approval mechanism by a governmental authority or agency. On the other hand, under such a system, investments in sectors that are not on the negative list can usually proceed without any prior screening and approval, using, for example, the normal company registration process.
The negative-list approach is one that T&C’s Investment Policy Team often recommends to our client countries, because it fosters transparency and predictability and because it reduces government discretion over the admission of investors. Obviously, in this case, we would need to see the actual negative list before we can offer a more definitive assessment. But assuming that the number of sectors on the negative list is not excessive or, better, that sectors previously closed or restricted are now open to Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), the impact of this single change could be very significant.

Fostering Private Sector Development in Fragile States: A Piece of Cake?

Steve Utterwulghe's picture
Private sector development (PSD) plays a crucial role in post-conflict economic development and poverty alleviation. Fragile states, however, face major challenges, such as difficult access to finance, power and markets; poor infrastructure; high levels of corruption; and a lack of transparency in the regulatory environment.

The private sector has demonstrated its resilience in the face of conflict and fragility, operating at the informal level and delivering services that are traditionally the mandate of public institutions. However, in post-conflict situations, PSD can have predatory aspects, thriving on the institutional and regulatory vacuum that prevails. The private sector will need to create 90 percent of jobs worldwide to meet the international community’s antipoverty goals, so pro-poor and pro-growth strategies need to focus on strengthening the positive aspects of PSD, even while tackling its negative aspects.


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Blog To Express

A blogosphere learning experience to express with blog

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Location: Singapore, Singapore

A "recycled teenager" learning to blog.

Aug 19, 2013

New "Thingy" for National Day 2013

Photo credit:  - calendar
Almost everybody in Singapore, especially among the young and not so young,  use a "thingy" smartphone these days to get connected to make mobile phone calls, send SMS or surf the Internet online.

Stuff like Facebook, Twitter or Instagram was unheard of 48 years ago when we had our first National Day celebrations in 1966.

Communication technology in the past was undeveloped and primitive because these new "thingy stuff" were not invented yet.  So please don't blame our grandfathers or grandmothers. They are not "suaku"!

With a burgeoning population of over 1½ billion users between them, Facebook and Twitter are still the undisputed leaders in social media. But the two environments are about as ‘similar and different’ as PC and Mac:  The developers of these two cyber-landscapes have been intent upon making their networks as distinct as possible from each other.

In June 2013, Facebook introduced a new ‘lingo’ as an online social networking service, and followed by Twitter.

Facebook appeals to people looking to reconnect with old friends and family members or find new friends online; the mashup of features like email, instant messaging, image and video sharing, etc. feels familiar.  Twitter on the other hand, encourages you grab ideals in byte-size chunks and use your updates as jumping off points to other places or just let others know what you’re up to at any given moment.

Many of them have both, Facebook and Twitter, whichever is for their specific purposes and effectiveness to choose for their own convenience.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong is updated with Facebook, Twitter addresses. As part of efforts to reach out to more Singaporeans, Prime Minister launched his own Instagram accounts.

Photo Credit:  Straits Times
The Prime Minister delivered his National Day Rally 2013 speech on the evening of August 18, at ITE Headquarters and College Central, Singapore.

Thanks to the Channel News Asia to watch the videos in segments based on topics in "bite-sized" portions which is easy to digest and understand for everyone; anytime, anywhere to access the Internet.

The Prime Minister's speeches made during the National Day Rally 2013 in Malay, Mandarin and English with translated subtitles on different TV channels.  The translator with sign language appeared at the bottom corner of the video screen for the help of the deaf and mute viewers.

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I did read the Forbes article. It was the issue with the top 200 small cap companies in the US and Lannett was number 3. It was also down some 40% from its highs. Issue, shrinking margins due to competition. I did my due dilligence and then bought the stock. And, as you say, it dropped 20% on the earnings report. Reason (I think), continued margin erosion on a stock with light float. A few institutional sales will move a stock like this a lot of points and of course they operate on a quarter to quarter basis.

My reasons for buying the stock were: I didn't own any generics and wanted some representation in my portfolio; the baby boomer argument; sales look to be growing steadily. For a growth stock, I want to see sales increasing. Margins and net can float all over the place on a quarterly basis but ultimately, growth is based on sales increases. The Forbes recommendation is actually mixed for me. All of the big financial magazines tell you what is known and believed on the Street. In particular, in spite of their comments about forward looking, they are not but rather a consensus view of the professionals, not a good place to get ideas.

I am not doubling down on the stock although I continue to like it. I have learned the hard way that doubling down on a falling stock turns out badly more often than not. You have to figure that the other folks may know something you don't. I am holding here though.

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Monetary Policy Decision Making

  • Monetary policy decisions are taken by the Governor

  • Decisions are taken twice per quarter and are based on the recommendations emerging from the bank’s Forecast & Policy Assessment System (FPAS) (see Figure 1 for an outline of the forecasting process). This is an intensive process that involves the examination of trends, model projections, expert judgement and scenario analyses of all the major variables that impact domestic inflation.

  • The results of this process are documented in a comprehensive Monetary Policy Assessment (MPA) report. The MPA report provides a thorough assessment and forecast of key economic indicators for the international economy which includes developments in key trading partners, a review of the balance of payments, local financial markets, as well as updates and forecasts of real domestic activity, inflation, exchange rate and monetary developments.

Macroeconomic Forecasting Process

Also See: Monetary Policy Objective
Setting the Inflation Target
Monetary Policy Schedule

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Bone The Fish - Most Recent Comments!

Who said you can't coin your own term? What is "Boning the Fish"? It's a moment. A defining moment when you know that your favorite TV Show, Celebrity, Movie Series or Music Group has reached its peak. That instant you know from now on...it's all downhill. Some call it a climax of sorts. We call it "Boning the fish". From that moment on things will simply never be the same.

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Recent Comments

American Idol - TV Shows
Why Ellen? And hell, WHY PAULA? "Um, uh, sweety, I think... its like... I would... you're made of many colours, and the thing is your singing, it has this quality, of ... (3 hours later) and ... and thats why... first I wanna just say..." Why cant you find a strong, intelligent, steady handed woman? Like Gloria Estefan, or Amy Grant? You know, find someone who is actually IN the music business, AND has a brain! -- Submitted By: (KaseyAkira) on November 28, 2009, 3:06 pm

Knight Rider (2008) - TV Shows
4. The quality of the episodes started to drop. It started off with a complex, half secretive history of Mike Traceur, later Mike Knight, with a complex web of lies and the mystery of Karr only occasionally mentioned in fleeting dialog. The interpersonal relationships between the characters left plenty of room for development. Then FLAG is gone, KARR is gone, and the plot is gone. We're left with Mike showing up at a random place, gun fight, car chase, fist fight, car chase - the end! Gun fight, car chase, fist fight, car chase - the end! Completely destroyed what could have been so great. -- Submitted By: (KaseyAkira) on November 28, 2009, 2:58 pm

Knight Rider (2008) - TV Shows
3. FLAG. The Foundation for Law and Government. I liked how this was a branch of the government that was involved in counter-terrorist activities and took on special cases - "In a world of criminals who operate above the law". Then they got rid of FLAG. All of it. WTF??? Suddenly the whole thing is shut down, the daughter of the guy in charge inherits 10 billion or something, then its back to just 4 people? How do they decide what cases they'll go after? Do they just randomly pick? One of the cases was some guy who nobody knew but he died under mysterious circumstances. WHY DOES ANYONE CARE??? At least with the government you get the sense that someone is prioritizing targets with at least national interest at hand if nothing else. Having just 4 kids run the whole place makes it seem like Scooby and the gang investigating random mysteries. -- Submitted By: (KaseyAkira) on November 28, 2009, 2:53 pm

Knight Rider (2008) - TV Shows
This show had sooooo much potential, and they blew it so incredibly bad, it was painful to watch. 1. The opening. I loved the music... but whats with all the super fast close ups and one second explosions? The opening is just a blur of images that leave you dazed rather than dazzled. 2. Karr. We had this HUGE lead up to Karr being revealed. I mean a careful, methodical lead up that really built the suspense - especially since Mike was his driver, but had his memory erased! Finally they show him - OMG some type of transforming robot thing! THEN!... Kitt kills him. The end. WHAT???? You could have let Karr survive the initial encounter and had like 10 seasons of plot surrounding this, all leading up to some incredible series finale with an epic battle between KITT and KARR, government vs terrorist, law and order vs chaos and corruption. Instead they had Kitt fight Karr right from the start, in a terribly choreographed scene, when Kitt was supposed to be only partially functional anyway. Its ridiculous. -- Submitted By: (KaseyAkira) on November 28, 2009, 2:47 pm

America's Funniest Home Videos - TV Shows
Normally, Grandma slipping and falling off the roof is tragic. BUT! When Grandma slips (whoooOOOP!), falls down (doop de doop de doop!) and breaks her hip (boinngngngngng!) Bob Sagat: "Help, she's fallen and she cant get up!" - that does go a long way. What would normally be on the next "I Shouldn't Be Alive" or "Rescue 911" or "Extreme Videos" or "Most Shocking Moments" ... can now be aired on America's Funniest Home Videos to be laughed at by the whole family!!! -- Submitted By: (KaseyAkira) on November 28, 2009, 2:38 pm

Commercials - Random Topics
When I watch my old '80s videos, I noticed how the commercials back then didn't all try to be funny like they do now. I remember how the unique it was at that time to have humorous ads like "Where's The Beef?" I'd rather have a straightforward humorless ad or a jingle like back then than the attempting-to-be-funny-but-failing ones of today. -- Submitted By: (Travoltron) on November 28, 2009, 6:52 am

Something Awful - Websites
My favorite was Cliff Yabloski Hates You. -- Submitted By: (MSmith) on November 27, 2009, 11:25 pm

Steven Tyler - Celebrities
Still can't figure out how Liv Tyler is his daughter. Must take after her mother. -- Submitted By: (MSmith) on November 27, 2009, 11:12 pm

Calvin and Hobbes - Random Topics
Just looked at a C&H book and the comics are still a riot. The snowmen strips are classic!! -- Submitted By: (MSmith) on November 27, 2009, 10:59 pm

Commercials - Random Topics
Commercials where the commercial is a lot louder then the show. It's always a wonderful pleasure to have to turn the volume down, only to need to turn it back up after the commercials or for a commercial to scare the heck out of me or drown out a conversation. If you need to scream at me in order to tell me about your product, I don't think that's saying much about your product. -- Submitted By: (ExplodingConsole) on November 27, 2009, 10:01 pm

EA Sports - Random Topics
EA sports boned when they bought the exclusive NFL license in 2005. That means that only EA Sports is allowed to make video games using real NFL teams, players, stadiums, etc. Why did they do this, you ask? They did this because they knew that NFL 2K5 (produced by 2K Sports) was far superior to their Madden 2005. They knew that 2k was producing high-quality games, so the cowards over at EA bought the license so that only they could make NFL games. They were AFRAID that 2K was making better games, so they pull a chickenshit move like that. Ever since they bought the license, EA's Madden games have steadily gone downhill in terms of quality. The Madden games are just the same steaming piece of dog turd released every year, the only difference is the updated rosters. To that I say SCREW YOU EA SPORTS, you're getting no more of my money until you give up that license. -- Submitted By: (ScottyB) on November 27, 2009, 12:32 pm

National Basketball Association (NBA) - Random Topics
What are you talking about, FlxibleMetro? Up until their most recent championship this past year, the Lakers hadn't won the Finals since the 2001-2002 season. -- Submitted By: (ScottyB) on November 27, 2009, 12:14 pm

Legally Blonde - Movie Series
I was the tie-breaker that voted never boned, still rocks! Reese is really good in both movies! -- Submitted By: (LauDor08) on November 26, 2009, 5:07 pm

Napoleon Dynamite - Movie Series
Not a series and it never boned! -- Submitted By: (LauDor08) on November 26, 2009, 5:05 pm

NickelBack - Music Groups
I admire them for making a lot of money, but their music is heartless. -- Submitted By: (bullman) on November 26, 2009, 7:08 am

Swine Flu - Random Topics
the next morning after a hook up, I do worry about swine flu a little -- Submitted By: (bullman) on November 26, 2009, 6:40 am

Burger King - Random Topics
I occasionally have nightmares about the commercial where the guy wakes up to find the king in bed with him. -- Submitted By: (bullman) on November 26, 2009, 6:39 am

Josie and the Pussycats - TV Shows
One of the worst cartoon shows, ever! -- Submitted By: (FlxibleMetro9150) on November 26, 2009, 5:38 am

Dairy Queen - Random Topics
Their burgers & chicken sandwiches are awful! But their chicken strip basket, which is real white meat is damn delicious! -- Submitted By: (FlxibleMetro9150) on November 26, 2009, 3:59 am

Commercials - Random Topics
Around 1996 or 1997. When commercials started getting stupid. All started with the 'talking' Taco Bell dog & the annoying GEICO gecko, then all commercials gone down from there. -- Submitted By: (FlxibleMetro9150) on November 26, 2009, 3:57 am

ABC Family - Random Topics
It was better, when it was FOX Family. -- Submitted By: (FlxibleMetro9150) on November 26, 2009, 3:49 am

Macarena, The - Random Topics
One lame song & dance. Glad that it's dead. -- Submitted By: (FlxibleMetro9150) on November 26, 2009, 3:43 am

National Basketball Association (NBA) - Random Topics
Los Angeles Lakers always winning the finals every year. Need I say more? -- Submitted By: (FlxibleMetro9150) on November 26, 2009, 3:35 am

Dawson's Creek - TV Shows
Series 3. Up to that point Dawson's Creek had been one of those shows that even if you were ambivalent about teen dramas it could win you over. The characters had an ingrained history and whilst their capacity for articulation was a stretch, the feelings they emoted about felt very real. It could have done with more subtlety- how much more surprising and wonderful would it be if Dawson and Joey hadn't discussed the changes that were happening to them so that when they finally got together it really wasn't something you'd expect (but would feel very natural and believable all the same). Series Two i'd say was the most refined season, and then with Series Three it just seemed like there was someone new in charge who just didn't really like or respect the show, and turned it into a contrived, desperate sex comedy and transformed the characters beyond recognition. Something of my respect for the show died when that happened and despite things picking up afterwards I just didn't feel the trust towards the show that I used to. It stopped being special to me, it stopped having a firm place in my heart because it seemed to have lost its own heart. -- Submitted By: (Tanlee) on November 25, 2009, 8:17 pm

Maury - TV Shows
Agreed, MSmith. Out of the 20 or so people that appear on his show daily, I'm willing to bet that only 3 or 4 have a college degree (or even attended college, for that matter). The rest are basically inbred backwoods trash. -- Submitted By: (ScottyB) on November 25, 2009, 5:36 pm

Twitter - Websites
Check out this video. CollegeHumor hit it right on the head: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tTN9We8unmU -- Submitted By: (ScottyB) on November 25, 2009, 5:29 pm

Tiny Toon Adventures - TV Shows
It was (and still is) one of my favorite cartoons of all time,it's one of the best cartoons of the 90,and most important of all,it's the best "next generation" cartoon show (followed by muppet babies,everything else in that genre is waaaaaaaaaaaay behind). -- Submitted By: (davidix) on November 25, 2009, 2:32 pm

Cleveland Show, The - TV Shows
Just what we need. Another Family Guy clone. -- Submitted By: (MSmith) on November 25, 2009, 1:49 pm

Super Mario Bros. - Random Topics
Super Mario Bros 4 is actually Super Mario World. And it's one of the greatest games ever made. If there was a good moment when SMB Boned the Fish, it would be Super Mario Sunshine. But it immediately jumped back with New Super Mario Bros. and Super Mario Galaxy. And New SMB Wii ain't too shabby either (yes there is less originality, but it still a terrific game). -- Submitted By: (btf52) on November 25, 2009, 8:10 am

Apple Inc. - Random Topics
Apple was a computer Powerhouse with the Apple II. They boned the fish with the Macintosh that was difficult to upgrade and expand with no plug-in peripherals and very expensive compared to the PC compatible computers. -- Submitted By: (scatcatpdx) on November 24, 2009, 10:52 pm

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2003) - TV Shows
With the new movie "Turtles Forever" out, I just want to take this opportunity to say, "I called it." Well, some of it anyway. A review I wrote on JumpTheShark (http://web.archive.org/web/20061031120857/http://www.jumptheshark.com/): (Quote) The franchise itself is beyond jumping: somehow it manages to stay between pop culture and the pure collector's clique well enough that it can resurrect into the public eye every few years without becoming stale. Many other old franchises have tried this, but none up to this point have succeeded as well as TMNT. Also, with interdimensional travel a recurring theme in the stories, the entire series actually has a built in self starter: whenever one incarnation becomes stale, simply focus in on another dimension. With that said, the 2003 series has definitely jumped the shark hardcore with the 4th season. Stuff like Shredder being an Alien and such didn't really hurt the series or the franchise, however, the triple whammy of marginalizing Casey Jones's insanity, making April an expert ninja (who can kick Casey around whenever she wants to) and making Shredder an inferior combatant to Bishop could pretty much end this show tomorrow. Did Eastman and Laird not learn from the previous series what NOT to do with certain characters? If nothing else, haven't they read the runs of the comics that they originally parodied and similar comics? Hell do these guys even watch professional wrestling at all? If so, I would think that they would know that things like marginalizing the villain and the anti-hero are big no-no's when it comes to good storytelling: your heroes are only as good as your villains, and your anti-heroes are good solutions to problems that the guys in the white hats are unwilling or unable to deal with; you don't want to neuter them either, or you'll find your storylines a lot more boring. Eastman and Laird have managed to do both, turning Casey Jones from a crazed justice driven vigilante to an animated version of Ray Romano, and making the Shredder a buffoon on the level of the original animated Shredder of the latter part of the first series. I really like Bishop and the new Rat King as tough enemies for the TMNT, but no one should be outshining the Shredder as far as fighting ability and sheer deviousness, something which Bishop and hell, even Baxter Stockman do regularly. April as a super ninja has also got to go. I know it's Eastman and Laird's series, and they can do whatever they want with it. That said, my opinion, the move sucks. Having her sneak around enemy bases and beat up enemy ninjas (while neutered Casey sits around getting beat up) doesn't make Splinter look better as a ninja master, it makes THE ENEMIES LOOK WORSE, and as a result, it makes the HEROES (aka the TMNT) look that much worse as well. If you don't believe me roll on over to the ST: Voyager comments, and see how Janeway's regular abuse of the Borg went over with fans: do they consider Janeway a hardass or do the Borg suck in public opinion? Apply that answer to the TMNT, and you'll see why April needs to go back to second bananas scene filler real quick. I really don't think that the series is ever coming back, and the rumors I hear of the 6th season being purely comedy oriented (and the 5th being DVD only) don't help matters much either. That is a shame, because the series started out with so much potential...(/Quote) Yeah, season 6 wasn't permanent, nor was April's super ninjitsu, so I missed those. Did get the dimensional crossover though, so I think this might survive the Nickelodeon crossover as well. -- Submitted By: (castaghast) on November 24, 2009, 10:42 pm

Maury - TV Shows
Its amazing that Maury can have a stage full of people and the sum total of their IQs is still double digits. First, these people apparently have no idea how reproduction works. 'Yeah I sept wit her fo, fi times. But she a ho, so I cain't be da baby-daddy.' Then the grammar is horrid. I don't expect perfect English from everyone, but let's make some attempt at looking intelligent. -- Submitted By: (MSmith) on November 24, 2009, 9:27 pm

Snuggy - Random Topics
Ah the blanket that want's to make you join a cult. BTW my grandma has a snuggie she says its not a thick as a blanket should be and is somewhat cold. -- Submitted By: (CobraCommander1) on November 24, 2009, 7:13 pm

Quantum Leap - TV Shows
This show came close a few times, often to connect to a popular fad or movie. Leaping into a chimp (The Right Stuff 1983/Episode 407 The Wrong Stuff 1991)in season 4 was a goofy stretch. But for me, the low point was when it violated all the rules it had created to explain "leaping" by having Sam leap into his great-grandfather during the Civil War. (Ken Burns' Civil War series 1990/Episode 520 1993) They tried to explain this by saying that it had to do with common DNA. They used a similar expaination to explain the leap into a chimp, by the way. -- Submitted By: (UUTodd) on November 24, 2009, 1:16 pm

Veganism - Random Topics
A post from a vegan condemning meat eating and meat eaters: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/22/opinion/22steiner.html?_r=1 And on the second page, the 8th paragraph, he calls meat-eaters "self-righteous". The pot calling the kettle black?: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/22/opinion/22steiner.html?pagewanted=2 He criticizes meat eaters for devalueing animal life, and seeing animals as inferior beings. If this guy's concerned about devalueing the lives of living things, he should stop eating fruits and vegetables too, because plants are also living things. When he bought his vegan food, did he check for a label saying "No animals were killed in the raising of this produce either through the use of pesticides or farm equipment"? If any animals were killed during the production of his meals, then he is just as guilty of killing animals as those who eat meat. The only way to ensure your diet does not kill any animals is to starve to death. Really, nobody in their right mind wants animals to be tortured, but not all farms are cruel to their animals. And many of the ones that are eventually get caught and punished. And it's no more hypocritical for an animal lover to eat meat than it is for a plant lover to eat fruits and vegetables. -- Submitted By: (Robert) on November 24, 2009, 12:21 pm

Global warming - Random Topics
"The jig is up - the news is out - they've finally found me..." Conspiracy, collusion in exaggerating warming data, possibly illegal destruction of embarrassing information, organised resistance to disclosure, manipulation of data, private admissions of flaws in their public claims and much more. http://tinyurl.com/yhx9juw -- Submitted By: (BrewMaster) on November 24, 2009, 9:45 am

Fast and the Furious (film series), The - Movie Series
Day one they give too many props to crappy rice burners and smash up classic American muscle cars. -- Submitted By: (TheAdamantiumElbow) on November 24, 2009, 2:17 am

Twitter - Websites
Lol I have a Twitter and it's actually ok, but in moderation. I hate when ppl overtweet! I get online alot, but if I had all those updates sent to my phone (especially the dumb ones,) I'd be pissed! -- Submitted By: (LauDor08) on November 24, 2009, 2:02 am

Problem Child - Movie Series
They should have ended it after the second movie. It tied up the series perfectly but nope USA network just had to go and crap allover the franchise with a TV sequel starring the kid from the Pizza Hut commercials. -- Submitted By: (TheAdamantiumElbow) on November 24, 2009, 1:51 am

Squirrels - Random Topics
Squirrels? Really? Come on people. -- Submitted By: (MCS) on November 23, 2009, 11:33 pm

Christmas - Random Topics
I didn't realize Christmas was a two-month celebration that started in freaking OCTOBER. Of course, that's what Walmart would have you believe. -- Submitted By: (ScottyB) on November 23, 2009, 8:00 pm

Thanksgiving - Random Topics
Thanksgiving is completely overshadowed by Christmas, no doubt about it. I see people decorating for Christmas already, and it's not even Thanksgiving. Not to mention that Christmas commercials started showing up even before Halloween. I haven't seen a Thanksgiving-themed commercial yet. Radio stations are also starting to play Christmas carols. Don't get me wrong, Christmas is my favorite holiday, but it seems that nobody gives a damn about Thanksgiving anymore. -- Submitted By: (ScottyB) on November 23, 2009, 7:57 pm

Pixar Animation Studios - Random Topics
Never Boned. They've yet to make a bad movie, in fact, their movies seem to get better and better, IMO. Looking forward to Toy Story 3! -- Submitted By: (Mr.Bill) on November 23, 2009, 7:05 pm

Commercials - Random Topics
I rarely watch commercials, as most of you probably do, I consider them "TV Intermission" or whatever. I think in general there have been a few funny ones, and a few horrible ones. -- Submitted By: (Mr.Bill) on November 23, 2009, 6:58 pm

George and Junior - TV Shows
Although I don't think the 'banned' cartoons deserve to be destroyed or locked away in MGM's vaults, never to see the light of day again, though. -- Submitted By: (Mr.Bill) on November 23, 2009, 6:49 pm

JumptheShark.com - Websites
When it stopped being a website similar to this one, and became some stupid celebrity blog. -- Submitted By: (Mr.Bill) on November 23, 2009, 6:46 pm

Internet Archive, The (aka the Wayback Machine) - Websites
When certain websites in the archive began being blocked by the Webmasters, or others had been lost or deleted, having the error message "Robots.txt Data Retrieval Failure". -- Submitted By: (Mr.Bill) on November 23, 2009, 6:45 pm

Ask.com - Websites
When Jeeves left. -- Submitted By: (Mr.Bill) on November 23, 2009, 6:40 pm

George and Junior - TV Shows
This series only lasted, what, 5 shorts? It didn't have time to Bone. Besides the gags were perfectly timed, and they still hold up to this day; It was by the great Tex Avery anyway, I don't think he ever made a bad cartoon. (Although a few were racially insensitive) -- Submitted By: (Mr.Bill) on November 23, 2009, 6:39 pm

Proud Family, The - TV Shows
I couldn't get into this show. The humor was dry, and unfunny, the character designs were all ugly and hard to even look at, and the characters were all stereotypes, (Like the one Black girl has 50 brothers and sisters, talks in slang, and is loud, the Hispanic girl is rich, snooty, and stuck up, the Father is a bumbling idiot, I could go on). -- Submitted By: (Mr.Bill) on November 23, 2009, 6:25 pm

Tom and Jerry - TV Shows
The shorts declined in quality when William Hanna and Joesph Barbera stopped working on them. The Chuck Jones shorts weren't bad, they still had the charm that the original T&J shorts had. The Gene Detich shorts from the 60's and 70's weren't all that great-- these shorts had poor animation and sound FX, and just weren't funny. (Tom became the punching bag, and Jerry and Tom's owner were @!$*s). I could never get into these revivals and movie remakes of the shorts. Some were clever and funny, but they can't (and probably never can) hold a candle the the Tom and Jerry shorts from the 30's, 40's, and 50's. -- Submitted By: (Mr.Bill) on November 23, 2009, 6:20 pm

That '70s Show - TV Shows
When Eric left. Then he was replaced by 'Randy'... Brrr.. -- Submitted By: (Mr.Bill) on November 23, 2009, 6:13 pm

Tom and Jerry - TV Shows
Anytime the black title card came up, I changed the channel for a few minutes and hope the next one was a classic. -- Submitted By: (MSmith) on November 23, 2009, 3:46 pm

PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) - Random Topics
They're caught up in a live lobster broiling scandal: http://www.mizozo.com/weird/11/2009/20/peta-slaughters-lobsters-for-cookout.html -- Submitted By: (Travoltron) on November 23, 2009, 2:17 pm

Captain Planet and the Planeteers - TV Shows
I think this show in many ways did more of a disservice towards understanding ecological issues. The main problem is that it never really pointed out who the real bad guys are. They created all these recurring villains that share the goal in covering the world in toxic waste but without any affiliation to industry. But then again, if Captain Planet was fighting corporate interests and regular people, then companies would refuse to advertise on the show. This was not a well thought out idea. -- Submitted By: (jconifer7) on November 23, 2009, 10:47 am

Miley Cyrus - Celebrities
I like Miley/Hannah/Destiny...lol who is this chick? But she's cool actually. I don't usually listen to her type of music but her show was cool and I eventually gave her music a chance, too. Plus, she's pretty, so don't hate on Miley Cyrus. -- Submitted By: (LauDor08) on November 23, 2009, 2:09 am

Youtube - Websites
The first 3 pretty sum it up for me when Youtube BTF-ed. I hate favorited a good song or vid and then when I go back to it, it's not there anymore because someone broke copyright restrictions or it was flagged for some stupid reason. They trip offa too much, really. And yeah, I hate the commercials they make you watch before some vids, but I think ads are how they keep you from paying for a website. Youtube is good because it has movies, music, and everything, pretty much so I'm on there alot, but they just frustrate me sometimes, especially WMG copyrights on movies and music. -- Submitted By: (LauDor08) on November 23, 2009, 1:26 am

Hall and Oates - Music Groups
Never boned! Hall & Oates put out some of the best pop/ blue-eyed soul of the 70s and 80s! -- Submitted By: (diezman) on November 22, 2009, 11:25 pm

Amazon.com - Websites
That stupid goddamn Kindle....it looks like a primitive Palm PDA from the 90s...it doesn't even have a color screen! They need to stop spamming that thing everywhere. It's a horribly overpriced piece of junk. -- Submitted By: (Skelly) on November 22, 2009, 11:57 am

Yakkity Yak - TV Shows
Crappety Crap. -- Submitted By: (Robert) on November 22, 2009, 11:44 am

Radiohead - Music Groups
Radiohead is boring. Great cure for insomnia though! -- Submitted By: (diezman) on November 22, 2009, 8:42 am

New Leave It To Beaver, The - TV Shows
Anything that begins with "The New" is doomed to suck from the start. -- Submitted By: (criskity) on November 22, 2009, 7:45 am

Genesis - Music Groups
genesis used to be one of the premier progressive rock bands of the 70s! Things changed when Peter Gabriel left and Phil Collins took over. They changed from being a prog band (although there are prog elements in all Genesis albums in all fairness) to primarily a radio friendly 80s pop and ballad band. Don't get me wrong - I love Phil Collins but every Genesis album after Peter Gabriel sounded like a Collins solo album. -- Submitted By: (diezman) on November 21, 2009, 11:52 pm

Rolling Stones, The - Music Groups
When Mick crapped his Depends and Keith lost his dentures while singing Little T&A during the A Bigger Bang tour. -- Submitted By: (diezman) on November 21, 2009, 11:44 pm

New Mission: Impossible, The - TV Shows
Rule of thumb: Any title that begins with "new" generally sucks. This show was no exception. -- Submitted By: (diezman) on November 21, 2009, 11:32 pm

Triumph - Music Groups
Great band! Some people refer to these Canadians as a "Poor Man's Rush" I have to disagree with this statement - Triumph put out some outstanding albums such as Allied Forces, Never Surrender and Thunder Seven. While not as musically complex as Rush, these albums remain on the same level. Triumph missed a step in the late 80s early 90s when Rik Emmett decided to leave the band and persue a different direction as a classical guitarist. While Rik's replacement (sorry, can't remember his name) sounded good on record, Triumph never recovered the fame they had in the early 80s. -- Submitted By: (diezman) on November 21, 2009, 11:27 pm

Academy Awards, The - Random Topics
The Academy Awards was added to my list of award shows that I stopped watching for one good reason. In the end, you come to realize that what you like is not what others like. We all have our own tastes and interests and with that said and no matter how glamorous the event is, the majority of the public often finds it irrational to allow an award show to tell us what to like. And I think much of the reason why obscure, independent, and foreign films are winning awards over the big studio productions made here is they are probably have more of the written winning criteria to show for. Meanwhile more of the movies made for mainstream audiences are spending more time focusing on giving people what they want and if the movie is number one at the box office two weeks in a row, that probably means more to the studio than a molded piece of metal, and if people like the film the profit from the DVD sales will show it. -- Submitted By: (jconifer7) on November 21, 2009, 10:39 pm

Cable TV - Random Topics
Cable is a waste of money. You get all these channels and only a few of them you ever watch. Worse yet, many of the older cable channels changed their format to become more general in order to reach more audiences, ignoring their original purpose. Remember when A&E and Bravo were devoted to arts, then started showing network reruns and reality shows? Remember when MTV2 tried to restore the former music only format of MTV and then started to have reruns of shows from the first network? Remember TNN was the "Nashville" Network devoted to country music lifestyles and then became the "National" Network to broaden their programming, and now known as Spike TV? In the end, you might find that to watch any good shows you can go online and get what you want while ignoring the rest. Save the TV screen for movie night. -- Submitted By: (jconifer7) on November 21, 2009, 10:14 pm

Sci Fi Network - Random Topics
Respelling the name and giving the network an ugly logo which we have to see at the bottom left corner all the time. There was zero reason for it. I think most people knew what Sci Fi Channel meant. -- Submitted By: (jconifer7) on November 21, 2009, 10:02 pm

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1987) - TV Shows
This was a fun show back in the day, so I wouldn't think that it ever boned simply because of it being a childhood memory. The movies though were a real eye opener, at first when they did the live-action movies in the early 90's I thought they were simply compensating for things that were only possible in a cartoon, but when I got older I learned of how the Turtles were actually adapted from an underground comic that was targeted to teens and young adults. And I realized the movies were reflecting this, well at least the first one and the recent CGI version, whereas Secret Of The Ooze was written to avoid issues from the parents. Of course, I know some like to view the cartoon as "bastardization" but for me it was something I once loved and that's how I want to remember it. -- Submitted By: (jconifer7) on November 21, 2009, 9:41 pm

Friday Night Videos - TV Shows
Friday Night Videos was a great alternative for those of us who didn't have MTV at the time (as well as Night Tracks on TBS) Every week they would have one video against another in a "video vote" They would show both videos back to back and viewers would call a 900 number (50 cents a vote) and vote for their favorite. They would throw in a "video classic" by The Who or Jimi Hendrix or the like every week. I remember seeing the debut of Michael Jackson's Thriller on Friday Night Videos FNV started to slide when celebrity hosts started promoting their latest movie or TV series instaed of showing videos. -- Submitted By: (diezman) on November 21, 2009, 6:49 pm

Don Kirshner's Rock Concert - TV Shows
Great show! Where else could you see great bands like Blue Oyster Cult, Cheap Trick, Black Sabbath, Heart and Peter Frampton every weekend. DKRC was staple viewing for those of us who were too far away from any concert venue to see these bands live. It was a way for us to see our favorite bands in a live setting. Sure, Don had the personality of a wet mop and the show kind of boned during the disco years (Don's Disco Dancers!) but overall it was a great show. -- Submitted By: (diezman) on November 21, 2009, 6:31 pm

Youtube - Websites
One of my pet peeves about youtube - if you leave the window open for too long, then try to comment, your text and the post comment button are greyed out. Sometimes this happens even if you dont wait too long, and you cant figure out the reason why your comment wont post. So you have to type your comment all over again... or try to remember, every single time, before you click "post" to copy what you just typed in case that happens. -- Submitted By: (KaseyAkira) on November 21, 2009, 12:11 pm

Happy Days - TV Shows
Too many bones to count! Potsie singing like the whitest person in the world. Jenny Piccolo being a cast member instead of a person never seen. Fonzie getting soft and moral instead of being a hood. Changing the theme song from Rock Around The Clock to the terrible "Suday Monday Happy Days!" Studio audience. Changing the Cunninghams house around. Chachi!! The mystery of Chuck..ect. ect.. Happy Days was okay for the first couple of seasons then it turned into a regular Bone-o-Rama! -- Submitted By: (diezman) on November 21, 2009, 8:49 am

Lindsay Lohan - Celebrities
Lindsay Lohan is a graphic example of the reality that people who are child or teen performers rarely turn out to have sustainable adult careers as singers/actors/performers. It's worse yet for actresses, as even the ones that have some talent usually have trouble getting decent roles once they become ancient (which these days probably means over the age of 25). -- Submitted By: (Eugene) on November 21, 2009, 7:42 am

2001: A Space Odyssey - Movie Series
It's not quite as simple as that. Clarke and Kubrick did write a book first, but the movie revised parts of the book, and parts of the book were revised based on the movie. Additionally, parts of the book included things that it was difficult to film, and which were thus left out of the movie. Finally, I suspect that some of the mystical touches in the movie were more Kubrick's contribution. The complete process ended up being a full time effort for Clarke and Kubrick for about four years, and the finished product was very different from what they intended to do at the beginning. If you want to learn more about the process, read the book "The lost worlds of 2001" by Clarke, which goes into the history in some detail, and includes large extracts from earlier versions of the book. -- Submitted By: (Eugene) on November 21, 2009, 7:37 am

X-Men - Movie Series
If you want to kill a successful franchise, who ya gonna call? BRETT RATNER!! -- Submitted By: (TomerS) on November 21, 2009, 3:12 am

Dora the Explorer - TV Shows
The only redeeming quality of this show is that it teaches Spanish. I've found the rest of the show to be loud, annoying, and repetitive. The characters run around saying the same words and sentences OVER and OVER. Like the Map's song is literally him/it saying "I'm The Map!" 50 times. Lord knows why this show is so successful. -- Submitted By: (Mr.Bill) on November 20, 2009, 10:00 pm

Phineas and Ferb - TV Shows
Btw: I was the one who made this topic so yeah... Phineas And Ferb is just awesome so if you have cable or something tell your kids about it! -- Submitted By: (Dudepop34) on November 20, 2009, 7:07 pm

Entertainment Tonight - TV Shows
Back in the day....when there was no 24/7 entertainment news, "ET" was the only source of what was going on in the world of celebrity and it was not so sensationalistic. Or maybe it was and we just didn't know any better. Now, it's just WAY over the top. I also wish Mary Hart would retire. Her perkiness is exhausting to watch. I'm beginning to feel like Kramer on "Seinfeld" and how he would have a seizure everytime she was on TV! -- Submitted By: (Stephanie) on November 20, 2009, 3:04 pm

Nickelodeon - Random Topics
BTF around the early-to-mid 2000's... About 2002-2006 was the slow decline. NICKELODEON- Started to decline when most of the old Nicktoon's and Live Action shows began to end, Doug, Rugrats (pre-Dil of course), Ren and Stimpy, Rocko, Hey Arnold, Invader Zim, Angry Beavers, Pete and Pete, Clarissa, Hey Dude, and so on... now I wouldn't have had a problem if these shows were replaced with equally GOOD shows, but they weren't. Instead, we got stuck with the likes of unsightly garbage like The Amanda show, All Growed Up, Butt Ugly Martians, Yakity Yak, and now more recently Mr. Meaty, The Mighty Bee, 6Teen (which is currently clogging up Cartoon Network's airspace, I belive)My Dad the Rock Star, and loads more. These shows don't have the humor or magic that the older shows had. They are just potty humor, butt jokes, repetitive jokes, loud, ear-piercing voices/screaming, and stupidity. I have enjoyed Pre-movie SpongeBob, FOP (before it got lame), Avatar, Drake and josh, Teenage Robot though. But basically this channel is nothing but Teeny-bopper teen/tween shows, about 7 other shows (sorry Nick, I remember when you showed 17 shows a day, and never showed the same show twice... Unless it was a marathon) and SpongeBob (which is a good show; But, again, who on God's green earth wants to watch this show 50 times a day? I sure don't(see above). NICK JR- I don't really have a comment, I dislike the shows that are aired on it now, but the block is for Preschoolers. NICK AT NIGHT- Boned recently. Most of these shows are good, but the block is losing it's variety, Only a handful of shows are shown now. At least tell them to cancel the god-awful "Glenn Martin, D.D.S." god that show is trashy and disgusting. NICKTOONS- I thought of this as the Nick equivelent of Boomerang. But it boned when they removed all the old Nick shows and replaced them with the crap shown on Nickelodeon now, or gave them 3 A.M. (death) slots... (Ren and Stimpy). NOGGIN/THE-N/TEENICK- This channel was great in the beginning. Showings of Pete and Pete, Hey Dude, Bill Nye, Ghostwriter... Alas, it just became Nick Jr... Jr. The N/Teenick recently spun off... The channel is good, That 70's show, FPOBA and the other shows were a nice touch, but Degrassi is overplayed (and I really never cared for the show, myself). -- Submitted By: (Johnny_T._Bird) on November 20, 2009, 1:18 pm

Yahoo! - Websites
Yahoo used to be relatively cool, back in the mid-1990s. It seems odd now but there were really just a few thousand websites back then, and Yahoo was useful since it was a list of basically all the ones worth visiting. Lots of other sites tried to do this (in fact, the 'ya' in 'yahoo' stands for 'yet another') but Yahoo was the best. Of course that's now an impossible and irrelevant thing to do, but there was a point, long ago, where Yahoo was pretty darned useful. I think the point where the site boned the fish was with those "pop under" ads circa 2001. That was the moment where they said 'We don't respect our customers, we're going to get a nickel out of you any way we can, too bad if you don't like it'. Not surprisingly, Google surged ahead around this time. -- Submitted By: (doctor_awesome) on November 20, 2009, 12:03 pm

2001: A Space Odyssey - Movie Series
It was really based on the book, though. Kubrick and Clarke collaborated on a story, then Clarke made a book out of it and Kubrick made a movie. -- Submitted By: (doctor_awesome) on November 20, 2009, 11:56 am

NYPD Blue - TV Shows
NYPD Blue was pretty good in spite of itself, at least for a few seasons. But it seemed to be made with the premise that the goal of the show was to get people to watch by showing nudity, having some shocking new profanity (oh my god! someone says asshole in tonight's very special episode!), and in general most episodes were sold on the fact that they had some sort of gimmick. Aside from the reliance of gimmicks, the show was pretty well written and acted for a network cop drama, actually it is about as good as it gets in terms of the gritty formulaic cop drama where the bad guy always gets caught and there's no particularly deep message. It would have aged well if so many shows weren't obviously one-time gimmicks, but it's still better than most of the 90s cop dramas. Only the original L&O and Homicide: Life on the Street rival it, but none were really masterpieces. There was no real "bone the fish" moment, but it got pretty atrocious in the later days of Jimmy Smits. It had a brief uptick with Schroeder but then settled into a long, slow decline until the series ended. I don't think the first season is really that great, personally. They hadn't yet got into their signature two-cases-a-show format... which ultimately did make the show relatively watchable, if hokey. -- Submitted By: (doctor_awesome) on November 20, 2009, 11:39 am

Metallica - Music Groups
Diezman- You are correct- quality music never bones- Metallica stopped making good music in 1988. The slaw and vinegar have been pouring ever since. Ive always laughed at them whining about people stealing their music. I would be more than happy to re-purchase any of Metallica, or should I saw "Alternica"'s first 4 albums, they couldnt pay me to take the rest. Who would want to steal "Enter Sandman", or anything after that? Sheesh -- Submitted By: (Chubby Rain) on November 20, 2009, 10:54 am

Conan the Barbarian - Movie Series
I never even thought of the Wilt Chamberlain angle- HILARIOUS!! -- Submitted By: (Chubby Rain) on November 20, 2009, 10:52 am

Kellogg's - Random Topics
Everytime I see Kellogg's, all I can think of is the old commercials with the Monkees and they were singing that jingle: "K-E-Double-L O -Double -G Kellog's best to you!" -- Submitted By: (Stephanie) on November 20, 2009, 8:00 am

Mac vs. PC Commercials - Random Topics
Sucked from the start! I'd like to slap that smug little MAC douchebag! -- Submitted By: (diezman) on November 20, 2009, 6:12 am

Conan the Barbarian - Movie Series
I always laugh at Conan the Destroyer when they appoint Wilt Chamberlain as guardian of the princess's virginity. -- Submitted By: (Travoltron) on November 20, 2009, 6:09 am

Metallica - Music Groups
Great music never BTF! Yeah, they had a few clunkers like Load and St. Anger but overall their output is strong. Lars is still a douche though. -- Submitted By: (diezman) on November 20, 2009, 4:48 am

Designing Women - TV Shows
Never boned - DW was a funny show. Delta Burke was incredibly beautiful -- Submitted By: (diezman) on November 20, 2009, 4:42 am

History (History Channel) - Random Topics
Too much Hitler!! They should have just renamed it The Hitler Channel -- Submitted By: (diezman) on November 20, 2009, 2:36 am

Ann Coulter - Celebrities
The famale(?) incarnate of Satan - with an adams apple to boot!! -- Submitted By: (diezman) on November 20, 2009, 2:18 am

Alice - TV Shows
Flo was not hot!! She reminded me of some skanky old three tooth, Marlboro Red smoking trailer trash - eeeewwwwww!!!! -- Submitted By: (diezman) on November 20, 2009, 2:16 am

Lawrence Welk Show, The - TV Shows
There were no black people on Lawence Welk with the exception of the light skinned black guy who used to tap dance like a pathetic kiss-ass. -- Submitted By: (diezman) on November 19, 2009, 5:49 pm

Rush - Music Groups
Rush is one of the very few bands that can change with the times and still stay faithful to their beginnings. -- Submitted By: (diezman) on November 19, 2009, 5:36 pm

AC DC - Music Groups
Never boned! They have been using the same formula for almost 40 years - through disco, through punk, through new wave and hair bands, through grunge and nu metal. Guess what?? It still works!!! While bands from the past genres end up in the bargain bin, AC/DC is still selling a ton of music and selling out concerts worldwide! -- Submitted By: (diezman) on November 19, 2009, 5:32 pm

Urban Dictionary - Websites
This website is pointless. How many made-up words do we need to have? I'm just glad when I hear words and sentences than just plain make sense. -- Submitted By: (jconifer7) on November 19, 2009, 1:10 pm

Titus - TV Shows
Christopher Titus breaking that 4th wall in each episode and talking to the audience about his dysfunctional family was brilliant. The Thanksgiving episode where the mom intentionally put all of her bi-polar medication in with the turkey so she could escape when her family passed out, is absolutely hilarious! -- Submitted By: (Stephanie) on November 19, 2009, 11:48 am

Dr. Phil - TV Shows
LauDor08, Well, it sure takes ALL kinds. You're the first person here who's actually LIKED Dr. Phil- and I say this as someone who started out liking him but has long since gotten burned out by him and am grateful I usually have to work when his show's on. -- Submitted By: (Pelirojo) on November 19, 2009, 9:30 am

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Author's Notes on
Tin Man
Where Did That Come From

This missing scene from Part Two of the Tin Man miniseries was written for tm_challenge Round 11A: Things Unseen. I wanted to answer the question of how Glitch and Cain got to the Sorceress' Tower so quickly. It won third place.

Glitch is always an interesting viewpoint to assume. Half his brain removed yet still functional and at times brilliant. And don't forget brave. I loved working in the subconscious worry that if DG defies the Sorceress, she will end up with a zipper in her head too.

I finally posted the story to the Library on October 8, 2012, and then put it up at soon after.

Round 11 Third Place Badge
Link to the Story Link to More Author's Notes Link to Fiction Teasers