Archive for January 11th, 2011

“It’s raining. Brother, can you spare me an umbrella?

January 11, 2011

As usual, Thomas Sowell hits the nail on the head.

Why should responsible taxpayers bail out fiscally irresponsible non-taxpayers (and fiscally irresponsible states)?

Excerpts from RCP: Saving” the Housing Market, January 4, 2011

Sometimes, some people are especially deserving.

But this cannot be said about those who borrowed money to buy homes that they could not afford, or who borrowed against the equity in their homes, and now find that what they owe is more than the home is worth.

If anyone is especially deserving, it is those who had the common sense to avoid taking on bigger financial obligations than they could handle, but who are now expected to pay as taxpayers for other people’s irresponsibility.

No doubt some people who are facing foreclosures might have been able to continue making their mortgage payments if they had not lost their jobs.

But since when were we all guaranteed never to lose our jobs?

People used to put money aside “for a rainy day.” But now people who have spent like there are no rainy days are supposed to have the taxpayers pay to give them an umbrella.

What about the people who saved and put their money in a bank?

Those who blithely say that the banks ought to modify the mortgage terms to accommodate people who are behind in making their monthly payments forget that, however “rich” a bank may be, most of its money actually belongs to vast numbers of depositors, most of whom are not rich.

Those depositors deserve to get the best return on their money that supply and demand can offer.

Why should people who save be sacrificed for the benefit of those who spent more than they could afford?

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2011/01/04/saving_the_housing_market_108421.html

Posted in Budget - Deficit, Housing - Mortgages | Leave a Comment »

How loud is a rock concert ?

January 11, 2011

The Decibel (dB) scale measures noise in objective terms.

On the Decibel scale, each 10 points [dB(A)] added represents 10 times as much sound.

For example; 70 dB(A), is not 17% louder, but ten times as loud as 60 dB(A).

  • Threshold of human hearing: 0 dB(A)
  • Soft whisper: 20 dB(A)
  • Refrigerator: 50 dB(A)
  • Normal conversation: 60 dB(A)
  • Dishwasher running: 55-70 dB(A)
  • Busy street traffic: 70 dB(A )
  • Car interior: 75 dB(A)
  • Vacuum cleaner: 80 dB(A)
  • Common home stereo: 80 dB(A)
  • Lawn mower: 90 dB(A)
  • Rock concert: 110 dB(A)

http://library.rusbiz.com/article_index.html?cat=123&id=34092&seo_name=Quiet_Air_Purifier_-_What_You_Should_Know_Before_Purchase

Posted in Cool Stuff, Factoids | Leave a Comment »

Tata Auto asks: What if the bottom of the pyramid thinks cheap stuff is, well, cheap stuff?

January 11, 2011

TakeAway: India’s middle class is enormous but still relatively poor.

With the world’s cheapest car, the Nano, Tata Motors thought that large segment was finally accessible.

But Tata forgot that the Nano comes with more than a low price, it also comes with the stigma of driving the world’s cheapest car.

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Excerpted from Washington Post, “India’s Tata Nano, ‘the world’s cheapest car,’ struggles to move ahead,” by Emily Wax, January 3, 2011

When the Tata Nano – known as the world’s cheapest car – zipped out of factories in 2009, it was praised as an example of Indian innovation in cost-cutting. It quickly became a cult hit … [b]ut today, sales are so slow that the $2,200 Nano is barely seen on Indian roads. …

The podlike vehicle dubbed “the people’s car” has also suffered from … poor marketing and competition from a flood of slightly more expensive cars made by companies such as General Motors India and Maruti Suzuki. Those companies have launched aggressive campaigns aimed at India’s growing young families and call-center workers, with claims that their cars are better made and more reliable.

… the low sticker price, which was predicted to be Nano’s selling point … has also contributed to its downfall.

For India’s newly middle class, owning a car is the ultimate sign of status, and the Nano is synonymous with something cheap, said Ashish Masih, assistant editor of India’s edition of What Car? Magazine. …

Many of the top-selling automobiles fall into a sweet spot of under $7,000, industry experts say. …

… at the Nano factory in India’s western state of Gujarat, about 7,000 cars are parked in the open, and just 509 cars were sold from the plant to dealers in November, according to the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers.

The lagging interest in the Nano comes at a time when India’s auto industry as a whole is enjoying record sales, with a reported a 33 percent growth from April to October 2010, compared to the same period in 2009, according to a study by SIAM.

Tata Motors is trying to revive the Nano’s fortunes. Debasis Ray, head of corporate communications for the company, said it has launched a comprehensive marketing push and added a free four-year manufacturer’s warranty. …

Edit by DMG

 

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Full Article
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/01/03/AR2011010302721.html

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Posted in Mktg - Global - BoP | Leave a Comment »