Crossing the visible line

Mr. Friedman, the respected columnist of the NYT, wrote in his column titled "America vs. The Narrative" that "...The Narrative is the cocktail of half-truths, propaganda and outright lies about America that have taken hold in the Arab-Muslim world since 9/11. Propagated by jihadist Web sites, mosque preachers, Arab intellectuals, satellite news stations and books — and tacitly endorsed by some Arab regimes — this narrative posits that America has declared war on Islam, as part of a grand “American-Crusader-Zionist conspiracy” to keep Muslims down. Yes, after two decades in which U.S. foreign policy has been largely dedicated to rescuing Muslims or trying to help free them from tyranny — in Bosnia, Darfur, Kuwait, Somalia, Lebanon, Kurdistan, post-earthquake Pakistan, post-tsunami Indonesia, Iraq and Afghanistan — a narrative that says America is dedicated to keeping Muslims down is thriving. Although most of the Muslims being killed today are being killed by jihadist suicide bombers in Pakistan, Iraq, Afghanistan and Indonesia, you’d never know it from listening to their world. The dominant narrative there is that 9/11 was a kind of fraud: America’s unprovoked onslaught on Islam is the real story, and the Muslims are the real victims — of U.S. perfidy. Have no doubt: we punched a fist into the Arab/Muslim world after 9/11, partly to send a message of deterrence, but primarily to destroy two tyrannical regimes — the Taliban and the Baathists — and to work with Afghans and Iraqis to build a different kind of politics. In the process, we did some stupid and bad things. But for every Abu Ghraib, our soldiers and diplomats perpetrated a million acts of kindness aimed at giving Arabs and Muslims a better chance to succeed with modernity and to elect their own leaders. The Narrative was concocted by jihadists to obscure that..."

This article makes assumptions. One of them is that whatever information is out publicly reveals all...as the writer says, "we did some stupid and bad things. But for every Abu Ghraib, our soldiers and diplomats perpetrated a million acts of kindness..." he does not seem to realize that some of the "things" are far worse than just being stupid and bad. More importantly, our government continues to hide the "bad" information. Today, the Supreme Court vacated a lower court ruling that would have required the government to release photographs showing the abuse of prisoners in Iraq and Afghanistan. Apparently "...President Obama overruled his lawyers, saying his national security advisers had persuaded him that releasing the photos would inflame anti-American sentiment abroad and endanger American troops. Some of the pictures, according to a government brief, showed “soldiers pointing pistols or rifles at the heads of hooded and handcuffed detainees,” a soldier who appears to be striking a detainee with the butt of a rifle, and a soldier holding a broom “as if sticking its end” into a prisoner’s rectum..."

An open society and an educated populace are necessary for tackling these "narratives."

Fighting where it is convenient

Couple of stories today...

4 officers shot dead in Washington state.

A 28-year-old Summit man died early this morning after being shot multiple times about a block from his home.

***The government cannot maintain control of the cities and towns, but the big debate is about troop escalation in Afghanistan. The latter is easier politically...

Call of Duty...Support through the Food Stamp Program

The bizarre world we live in....where people enjoy playing games, and people end up playing games.

From Reuters: "Activision Blizzard Inc. said on Friday its "Call of Duty" video game franchise pushed past the $3 billion mark in global retail sales. Overall, the "Call of Duty" series has sold more than 55 million units since its launch in 2003, Activision said, citing data compiled by NPD Group, Charttrack, GfK and internal company estimates. The company released the sixth title in the series, "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2," earlier this month to record-breaking results. The first-person shooter game recorded an estimated $550 million in sales in its first five days on the market. It sold 4.7 million copies on the first day in the United States and United Kingdom alone. "If you consider the number of hours our audiences are engaged in playing Call of Duty games, it is likely to be one of the most viewed of all entertainment experiences in modern history," Activision Chief Executive Bobby Kotick said in a company release..."

From the NYT:

"...With food stamp use at record highs and climbing every month, a program once scorned as a failed welfare scheme now helps feed one in eight Americans and one in four children.It has grown so rapidly in places so diverse that it is becoming nearly as ordinary as the groceries it buys. More than 36 million people use inconspicuous plastic cards for staples like milk, bread and cheese, swiping them at counters in blighted cities and in suburbs pocked with foreclosure signs. Virtually all have incomes near or below the federal poverty line, but their eclectic ranks testify to the range of people struggling with basic needs. They include single mothers and married couples, the newly jobless and the chronically poor, longtime recipients of welfare checks and workers whose reduced hours or slender wages leave pantries bare. While the numbers have soared during the recession, the path was cleared in better times when the Bush administration led a campaign to erase the program’s stigma, calling food stamps “nutritional aid” instead of welfare, and made it easier to apply. That bipartisan effort capped an extraordinary reversal from the 1990s, when some conservatives tried to abolish the program, Congress enacted large cuts and bureaucratic hurdles chased many needy people away. From the ailing resorts of the Florida Keys to Alaskan villages along the Bering Sea, the program is now expanding at a pace of about 20,000 people a day. There are 239 counties in the United States where at least a quarter of the population receives food stamps, according to an analysis of local data collected by The New York Times. The counties are as big as the Bronx and Philadelphia and as small as Owsley County in Kentucky, a patch of Appalachian distress where half of the 4,600 residents receive food stamps. In more than 750 counties, the program helps feed one in three blacks. In more than 800 counties, it helps feed one in three children. In the Mississippi River cities of St. Louis, Memphis and New Orleans, half of the children or more receive food stamps. Even in Peoria, Ill. — Everytown, U.S.A. — nearly 40 percent of children receive aid..."

A Study in Contrasts...

A number of interesting stories today...

A NYT article, "Some Jostling, but Less of a Frenzy Among Shoppers" reveals that "...At Wal-Mart stores around the country, consumers said they were feeling the pain. At a store in Columbus, Ohio, Michelle Perry, 33, a waitress at Waffle House, said she moved this year from a nice rented house in the middle-class suburb of Pataskala to one in a rough neighborhood on the north side of Columbus.“I can’t even let my kids outside without me going with them,” she said. “But we had to do something to save money, and I’m saving $300 a month by switching from renting to buying.”Still, she feels better about her finances this year than she did last year. After Wal-Mart, she was off to Meijer’s to look for an Xbox 360 for her son, and for gifts inspired by the film “Twilight” for her 12-year-old daughter.“She’s got to have the Twilight lip gloss,” Ms. Perry said. “Every girl at her school has it, so she’s got to have it, too.”"

"Food banks nationwide report more 1st timers - With layoffs and wage cutbacks, more 1st time visitors at food banks across the country" describes a number of people going to food banks. "...About half of the almost 40,000 families who have been fed at Holy Family Food Pantry in Waukegan, Ill., about 40 miles north of Chicago, are new, services director Barb Karacic said. They include Gail Small, a 55-year-old school bus driver who got laid off from her $16 an hour job at the Waukegan Public School District earlier in the year and hasn't been able to find work since."It was very embarrassing," Small said. " I didn't tell my children. I didn't tell my dad."Others say at some point, the need to survive trumps emotions.Linda Herrera, 59, went to All Saints Parish on Detroit's southwest side for the first time this week. Herrera, who is on state assistance, said the embarrassment of having to pick up food was offset by her empty cupboards."We were down to practically nothing," she said, carrying out bags containing juice, mashed potatoes, dried milk, rice and beans. " I'm trying to just make it now 'til the end of the month, until I get my check." "

Report Cards versus Annual Reports

As the year winds down, it is time to us to review our performance for the year and give ourselves a report card with a grade. However, it is perhaps better to write an annual report, where in addition to giving ourselves a grade, we review the year that has passed and also look to the future. A good annual report will describe the foundation we have laid for the years ahead, and how we are going to do things in the next year.

LOVE: Leading through Values and Ethics

I have been spending some time thinking about leadership and the framework for decision making. My framework is based on a core foundation of values and ethics. In my business, the top ten key values can be listed quite simply:

1. Practicing before Teaching and Preaching
2. Being ethical, and never coming close to the dividing line
3. Keeping the education of the student as the highest goal
4. Improving the education experience, every day and through every action
5. Driving innovation while ensuring consistency of delivery
6. Being transparent, without being naked
7. Being fair and equitable
8. Listening to all views, but making decisions quickly
9. Sharing any and all knowledge
10. Aligning compensation and rewards with performance and contribution

Under Water...waiting to be rescued

From MSNBC.com

"Nearly one in four U.S. borrowers owe more on their mortgage than their home is worth, a worrisome sign that the housing recovery could be threatened by a wave of defaults, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday.

The newspaper said almost 10.7 million households, or 23 percent of mortgage holders, were underwater in the third quarter, and 5.3 million have mortgages that are 20 percent higher than the value of their home as prices have plummeted since the recession began.

The report cited a survey by First American CoreLogic, a Santa Ana, Calif.-based real estate information company, which said more than 520,000 of the borrowers have received a default notice...."

With supply still exceeding demand significantly, it will take a while for housing prices to stablilize. What happens until then remains to be seen.

"Bing"eing on Fox...

Rupert Murdoch, if the news report from today is to be believed, wants to pull News Corp.'s news content from Google's search engine, and instead provide it exclusively to Microsoft's Bing. In return MSFT is expected to pay Rupert a lot of money. It would be interesting to see how many people think a) Fox is News, and b) are educated enough to find it on a search engine called Bing.

When the Public (Sector) is Milked, Private(ly)

The folks in Government, in bed with the sleazebags from the private sector...

A disturbing report from Businessweek, available on MSNBC.com gives examples of a number of local governments that made deals with the big private sector banks, risking tax payer money in search of higher returns. Now these governments are in deep trouble, and have to fork over billions of dollars in fees and penalties to the banks, in addition to losing billions on investments.

It is egregious dereliction of duty on the part of government officials to risk tax payer money, because the commitments made are never at risk- the state has to pay the employees and honor its commitments. On the other hand, it is even more grossly egregious behavior on the part of the banks to demand the money from the government, when the latter is in the business of serving the people. Services are being cut, schools are getting far less money, and people are paying more, and all the while the banks' managers and investors are looting the citizens. Capitalism run amok, with no ethical behavior on both sides.

Crying...after setting fire

FT reports that "Germany’s new finance minister has echoed Chinese warnings about the growing threat of fresh global asset price bubbles, fuelled by low US interest rates and a weak dollar. Wolfgang Schäuble’s comments highlight official concern in Europe that the risk of further financial market turbulence has been exacerbated by the exceptional steps taken by central banks and governments to combat the crisis. Last weekend, Liu Mingkang, China’s banking regulator, criticised the US Federal Reserve for fuelling the “dollar carry-trade”, in which investors borrow dollars at ultra-low interest rates and invest in higher-yielding assets abroad. Speaking at a banking conference in Frankfurt on Friday, Mr Schäuble said it would be “naive” to assume the next asset price bubble would take the same guise as the last. He said: “More likely today is a scenario in which excess liquidity globally creates a new [sort of] asset market bubble.” He added: “That low interest rate currencies such as the US dollar are increasingly being used as a basis for currency carry trades should give pause for thought. If there was a sudden reversal in this business, markets would be threatened with enormous turbulence, including in foreign exchange markets.Mr Schäuble, a political veteran, took over the German finance ministry after Angela Merkel began her second term as chancellor last month.
Further signs of official frustration about policy steps being taken elsewhere came from Lorenzo Bini Smaghi, a European Central Bank executive. He said in a speech in Paris on Friday that emerging Asian economies were continuing “strongly accommodative monetary policies” in spite of their faster economic recoveries. Separately, Jean-Claude Trichet, ECB president, issued his strongest warning yet that banks must control pay and bonuses. Striking a noticeably stiffer tone, Mr Trichet told the Frankfurt conference: “Profits earned should be used, as a priority, to build capital and reserves, rather than be paid out as dividends or excessive compensation.” The ECB president quoted a warning by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Frankfurt’s most famous son, on the need for self-restraint: “If I wanted to lavishly let myself go, I could well destroy myself and my environment. Mr Trichet said: “Compensation and bonuses must remain contained. Otherwise, we would take risks that Goethe [has] already described.”.."

While Mr. Trichet is a smart person and is respected, he should not be complaining and warning now after pushing enormous amounts of money into the system. When risk takers do not see any downside, why should they listen to Mr. Trichet or anyone else? There was a good opportunity to put fear into the system, which Trichet, Bernanke and others squandered.

Evading responsibility...

Mr. Bob Herbert, a thoughtful individual, makes excellent points in his serious column about the current economy- An American Catastrophe. He writes that "...Detroit and its environs are suffering the agonies of the economic damned because of policies, crafted at the highest national and corporate levels, that resulted in the implosion of crucially important components of America’s manufacturing base. Those decisions have had a profound effect on the fortunes not just of Detroit, or even Michigan, but the entire U.S. economy. “We’ve been living with the illusion that manufacturing — making things — is so 20th century,” said Mr. Shaiken, “and that we could succeed by concentrating, for example, on complex financial instruments while abandoning the industrial base that sustained so many American families.” The idea that the fallout from the wrongheaded economic concepts of the past 30 or 40 years could be contained, with the damage limited to the increasingly troubled urban areas while sparing prosperous suburbia, has now proved as phony as Bernie Madoff’s fortune. Americans, whether they live in big cities, suburban towns or rural areas, need jobs, and when those jobs are eliminated (for whatever reasons — technological advances, globalization) without being replaced, the national economy is guaranteed at some point to hit a wall..."

***

Unfortunately, the mindset of many citizens and politicians is such that government is criticized and blamed and minimized during the good times. When the situation turns negative, everyone rushes to the government for aid- whether it is unemployment insurance or health insurance or the big financial bailouts. Mr. Herbert does not address the fundamental conflict- that capitalism in its raw form is a high risk game- winners can win big, but there are many losers, and the losers lose big. In such a system, the losers are at the mercy of the winners. Losers have to beg, and winners can choose to help by donating to charities and creating foundations. However the operative word is "can choose to help." USA is not short of wealth- one just needs to look at the bonuses paid out by the Sachs crooks. If a system that provides for the many is desired, there are a number of models- Sweden, for example. But the Swedish system does not provide for the big wins as much as the USA does. Before blaming the government and globalization and industrial policy, Mr. Herbert and others should dig deeper and debate the fundamental system that has caused this outcome. The biggest problem, from this writer's point of view, is the lack of true education in the public, and a lack of desire in the public to get educated.

Education....a Relationships Business

Mr. McDonough, in his speech yesterday, mentioned a few times that the Blackhawks were in the "relationship" business. I could relate to him because being an educator, I am in the relationship business too. When the relationships translate into students who maintain connections long after graduation or into fans who keep following the team during good times and bad, it can be highly rewarding. An email I received today from a former student who just wanted to ping and update me is one more data point supporting relationships. Another student told me yesterday that her brother was visiting next week and she wanted to bring him to meet me. Life is enriched through these little encounters.

A Rewarding Day

Today one of my former students came and sat in my class- it was a fun experience to see Michelle again in a classroom. She always impresses me with her sharp comments and great humbleness.

A great delight!

Interesting...Interested.

Tonight Chicago Blackhawks President John F. McDonough was the special guest at a fundraising dinner hosted by Elmhurst Memorial Hospital. He was an entertaining speaker, though prone to praising his boss a trifle too much. Mr. McDonough made some interesting points about managing-

• Be interested. Be interesting. Read.
• Hire well. People who are aggresive, driven.
• Don't stop to admire success. If you stop, the game is over.
• Businesss is about relationships.
• Connect to the past and identify the future, but always work in the present.
• Know what you have.

Good messages for everyone.

A lot of hot..and expensive air

The major airlines are pulling as many tricks as they can to raise more revenue. How they plan to increase ridership when making the flying experience more expensive and more miserable is anybody's guess.

Airlines boost peak-day surchargesAirlines boost surcharges on peak days, US Airways to add 5 percent to all tickets in May

Drugged...by the Pharmas...

From the NYT..."Even as drug makers promise to support Washington’s health care overhaul by shaving $8 billion a year off the nation’s drug costs after the legislation takes effect, the industry has been raising its prices at the fastest rate in years. In the last year, the industry has raised the wholesale prices of brand-name prescription drugs by about 9 percent, according to industry analysts. That will add more than $10 billion to the nation’s drug bill, which is on track to exceed $300 billion this year. By at least one analysis, it is the highest annual rate of inflation for drug prices since 1992. The drug trend is distinctly at odds with the direction of the Consumer Price Index, which has fallen by 1.3 percent in the last year. Drug makers say they have valid business reasons for the price increases. Critics say the industry is trying to establish a higher price base before Congress passes legislation that tries to curb drug spending in coming years. “When we have major legislation anticipated, we see a run-up in price increases,” says Stephen W. Schondelmeyer, a professor of pharmaceutical economics at the University of Minnesota. He has analyzed drug pricing for AARP, the advocacy group for seniors that supports the House health care legislation that the drug industry opposes. A Harvard health economist, Joseph P. Newhouse, said he found a similar pattern of unusual price increases after Congress added drug benefits to Medicare a few years ago, giving tens of millions of older Americans federally subsidized drug insurance. Just as the program was taking effect in 2006, the drug industry raised prices by the widest margin in a half-dozen years. “They try to maximize their profits,” Mr. Newhouse said..."

Wise Chinese Sayings...in C(r)ookies of Fortune

WSJ reports that 'China's top bank regulator blamed the U.S.'s loose monetary policy for creating new global asset bubbles, saying low interest rates and a weak dollar are encouraging speculation in world markets.The U.S. Federal Reserve's promise to keep interest rates at extraordinarily low levels for an extended period "has already led to a massive U.S. dollar carry trade and massive speculation," said Liu Mingkang at the International Finance Forum in Beijing, which began shortly before U.S. President Barack Obama arrived for his first visit to China. Mr. Liu, who is chairman of the China Banking Regulatory Commission, said the weak dollar and low U.S. rates are creating "unavoidable risks for the recovery of the global economy, especially emerging economies," and that the situation is "seriously impacting global asset prices and encouraging speculation in stock and property markets."...'

Rather than putting the country on a strict diet, Benny and his friends have been serving us any and all food- greasy and grubby, that we can splurge on. Serious surgeries will be required, sooner or later.

Good Old Days..at CBS Channel 2

Last night, CBS local station in Chicago Channel 2 staged a stunt- bringing back Bill Kurtis and Walter Jacobson, the mainstay news anchors in the eighties, and some of the other characters from that time, for a 10:00 PM newscast. Though corny, it was nice to see two stars from the past get together and do their act once more. Walter has had his share of personal problems after losing a battle with the cigarette companies. Bill Kurtis lost his son recently. It was perhaps good for them too to do the newscast.

The Google Chrome OS...some side benefits

If the Google Chrome OS takes off, as Google hopes it will, there may be some interesting consequences. At its simplest, we need a device with a big/wide screen, a reasonable processor, and no hard drive or DVD drive. This might reduce the need for periodic upgrades or a new buying cycle every couple of years for a bigger processor or more storage. Might have positive environmental effects. Longer battery power because of lightweight processor might mean less power consumption in the long run.

Giving advice, under advisement

Students often ask me for advice, especially on career or academic choices. These are hard topics, and while one tries to give his best advice, the best can be rather poor.

On Tuesday a former student of mine came to talk to my class about life in College and life after College. Today a senior student remarked that she found that presentation to be very encouraging and reassuring. Interesting how value can be added in many ways...

Want Government help..but don't want to pay for it...

A report from Yahoo.com

A new poll shows Southerners are fretting about job loss and the economy and don't think the federal government is doing enough to address either.

The Winthrop Poll of 866 respondents in 11 Southern states found the economy was the top concern of four in 10 -- the same share of people who said they were concerned about losing their jobs.

Overall, the economy was the biggest worry for 39 percent of the Southerners, followed by health care and unemployment at 12 percent each. Meanwhile, 38 percent said they were somewhat concerned or very concerned about possibly losing their jobs during the next year.

"More than one in three employed persons worried about losing their job means a lot of people who will put off spending and investing and that will slow economic recovery on the whole," said Scott Huffmon, a political science professor who oversees the poll and runs Winthrop University's social and behavioral research lab...

****

Question is- who is going to pay for all the services people want from government?

Sun creeping through a cloudy day

Two of my great seniors MF and KC both got good job offers today that they liked! Another student got a good internship offer. On the other hand, JB who graduated earlier this year is still looking for an opportunity. As he said today, he has a lot of energy and is looking to put it to practical use but cannot find the opportunity.

A Denis Day

Today, one of my advisees who graduated in 2008 came to talk to one of my classes. Denis took the trouble of talking to a number of his friends and compiled a number of tips for students. I have never seen anyone put together that much effort in giving back to students. I take it as a compliment that my stellar students want to come back and contribute to the education of current students.

Probing the depths...

Hammered by a steep drop in the sale of traditional packaged video games, Electronic Arts Inc. on Monday said it would cut 1,500 jobs, more than 16% of its workforce, even as the game publisher announced plans to acquire online game developer Playfish Inc. in a deal valued at up to $400 million...EA said those hardest hit by the cuts would be research and development workers, whose jobs will depend on whether games they are working on are canceled...LA Times.

Sprint Nextel Corp. on Monday said it will cut 2,000 to 2,500 jobs, mostly before the end of the year, as it keeps losing subscribers.

While the news from the private sector is grim, WSJ reported today that "A U.S. program that pays generous benefits to jobless people displaced by global trade has been swamped with applications in recent months, leaving thousands of potential beneficiaries in limbo. About 3,000 applications representing hundreds of thousands of workers have flooded into the government since May, when the Trade Adjustment Assistance Program was expanded. The benefits include unemployment checks, retraining and 80% of the cost of medical insurance for workers whose jobs move overseas or are diminished by foreign competition. The small staff at the Labor Department overseeing the program is straining to keep up. In six months, the number of applications has outpaced all of 2008, marking a record since the program was introduced in 1962 to protect workers while promoting global trade. Early this year, 50,000 people were getting the benefits, barely 1% of jobless Americans. Now, some 1,500 applications are in the pipeline, representing as many as 150,000 people, based on the average size of applications last year. Not all of these will be approved, although the government has been validating a vast majority..."

Going further into debt to fund such lavish programs is not the hallmark of a good leader.

Education...not an Indian Summer.

75% Indian engineering students unemployable: Report
NEW DELHI: Discussing a report by software industry group Nasscom which says that 75 percent engineering students in India are unemployable, education experts here on Saturday said that the Indian higher education system must give skill building and practical training equal importance as academics to give them an edge. A.D. Sahasrabudhu, director of the College of Engineering, Pune said that one of the major reasons why engineers, even from reputed institutes, are not easily employed because they lack hands-on skill. "The focus in most institutes here is always on academics and theory. Thus a mechanical engineer may actually not know how to change a part of a machine. Therefore even if a high scoring student gets placed in a good company, eventually that lack of practical knowledge catches up," Sahasrabudhu said during a panel discussion at the sixth Higher Education Summit organised by Federation of of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI)...

***

My experience with students in India recently reinforces the points made in this article, but about business students. My friends working in organizations like Wipro also sing the same song- that the graduates from technical and business schools are woefully under-prepared for professional work.

Crusty Faculty...

Today I presented our work on our 'Local Choices Global Effects' course at the NRC Conference on Students in Transition. The attendance was small, but those present gave good comments and feedback. They were quite impressed by the work of some of our students. It was also quite heartening to note that other schools have similar programs; it was also disconcerting to note that a few schools are quite ahead of us.

I attended a session on memory and how to help students perform better based on what know about memory. The session was quite interesting, and I learnt quite a bit. At the end, in the context of math, I remarked that faculty often dumb down things and could be the culprits. I cited, as an example, the practice of allocating points when describing grading on a syllabus. Instead of saying 20% of the grade depends on homeworks, faculty write that 100 points are for the homework, and so on, and the total grade is out of 500 points. Students now don't have to do even the basic math to convert their % to points. The speaker remarked that she also does this, and in jest, said she is a fake. Perhaps, but she did not seem to understand the gravity of the situation.

Progress....

On my flight to Salt Lake City today an elderly lady sat across the aisle from me. During the flight she called the flight attendant and wanted to know what Southwest was doing regarding recycling and whether the aluminum cans that were being given out were being recycled. While the answer was "not right now" I was delighted to see even the older generation taking such keen interest in sustainability.

The Marriott where I am staying has featured its "Reduce Reuse Recover Recycle" theme prominently and explains what it is doing towards sustainable living. I was quite impressed by some of the initiatives being undertaken. In my room there is a biodegradable bag into which I can throw in all the recyclable materials I am using and disposing.

Flabber...gasting

Today, we were discussing religion and its influence on work culture in our Global Business class. I was surprised when a number of students insisted that Catholics were not Christians. From new Math to new Religion!

The Gap...between Economists and Realities

The markets, and the economists, are betting that the employment situation will be much brighter next year, and corporate profits would be soaring. This is because the lean and mean firms will see revenue flowing straight to the bottom line. Some flaws in this argument should be anticipated-

If the firms try to do more with less and manage to produce more revenue with less growth in expenses, how will the employment situation become much better? If employment and consumer spending does not improve, how will capital spending hold up?

The news on the margin continues to be negative- MSFT announced layoffs of 800 more, in addition to the 5000 earlier this year. J&J is cutting 7000 jobs. American, United, and Delta are cutting capacity faster than the decline in passenger traffic. Unless another bubble is inflated, it is hard to envision a rapid growth in employment.

Salary compression...

Some of my students in India have been complaining about the low salaries being offered by firms recruiting on campus. Graduate students are getting offers of around 1.5 lakh rupees, a far cry from the 5 to six lakhs students received a couple of years ago.

Here in the US, students are still struggling, and offers are coming in at lower than expected salary ranges.

When faculty and college administrators talk, but don't listen....

Quite a few faculty members I have encountered love to hear themselves talk, and have no desire to listen. No wonder the education system is in dire straits. Recently a new group formed on our campus that is focused on sustainable living. A couple of students from this group wanted to introduce their organization at the Faculty Meeting and solicit faculty support for their efforts. Students are often criticised for their apathy, and on our campus, student apathy runs deep. The one time students take enough interest to ask for permission to present to faculty, the "wise heads" of our Faculty Council refused. The reason given was "A majority of Council members felt that it opened the door for multiple requests from student groups..."

The NYT also reports that "The presidents of the nation’s major private research universities were paid a median compensation of $627,750 in the 2007-8 fiscal year — a 5.5 percent increase from the previous year — according to The Chronicle of Higher Education annual executive compensation survey. The highest paid private university executive was Shirley Ann Jackson, president of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, N.Y., with a pay package totaling $1,598,247 in fiscal 2008. Ms. Jackson, a physicist and former chairwoman of the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission, has been at Rensselaer since 1999, and first became the highest-paid university president just two years later. In this year’s survey, she was followed by David J. Sargent of Suffolk University in Boston, the top earner in last year’s survey, who took in $1,496,593 in fiscal 2008, and Steadman Upham of the University of Tulsa, whose pay package was $1,485,275. According to the survey, published in Monday’s edition, 23 private college presidents made over $1 million in total compensation, and 110 made more than $500,000. Such large pay packages are still relatively new in higher education: as recently as 2002, there were no million-dollar presidents, only four earning more than $800,000, and 27 earning more than $500,000..."

It is a shame that the people at the top of the educational institutions, folks who are supposed to set the highest example in simple living and deep thinking, take the loot while putting ever higher burdens on students.

BA or BS?

On the GPS show on CNN today hosted by Fareed Zakharia, two guests Dr. Schiller and Mr. Wolf both made the point that economics is not a science. In fact they pointed out the behavioral side of economics. I have, for quite a long time, stated that business, which is far less developed ( in terms of models) than economics, is not a science but mostly is an art. It is best learnt from those who have been successful and have thought deeply about their activities, in my opinion.
Most schools, including ours, award Bachelor of Science degrees to those majoring in business- a travesty, and insults those who do pursue rigorous science. Then there are schools like Northwestern which push the envelope to an egregious degree by having degrees in "financial engineering."

Dave on YouTube- Dave Allen, that is...

When I arrived in the United States in September 1983, soon after graduating from IIT Madras, my first challenge was to quickly figure out baseball and "football." Being a sportsman who played any sport that was played, I found it easy and fun to get to the bottom of the rules of these games and the intricacies involved. Apart from sports, Dave Allen at Large was part my weekly entertainment diet. Dave Allen used to appear on BBC and my friends and I found his skits highly enjoyable. Thanks to YouTube, I can now watch these skits again and re-live those fun moments. Whatever complaints people might have against Google, it has to be admitted that this enterprise has really enabled generations to connect with the past and with the present. Thanks, Google.