Funny Money: iPods and Debt
The UAW held a 6-hour strike against
Chrysler
(
my poppa!
) during which time negotiators for both sides sat in a stocked conference room and said, "You think we've been in here long enough?"
Yeah, probably looks like we're serious, let's go.
"Wait, hold on, I think I can wolf down another sandwich."
Well... You're a tough negotiator. Only If I can have more Perrier!"
"Agreed!"
Actually, the shorter strike was just an attempt for labor and manufacturing to reflect their lessened relevance.
Mmmmm, iPods and debt.
Sallie Mae
, the student lender, is suing a group of firms to force them to purchase the company. Sallie Mae keeps calling the companies and is able to track them down even when they move. The companies told Sallie Mae they were broke right now, but have been looking for jobs, and should be able to get her some money next month. Sallie Mae threatened to take away their diplomas.
The
St. Joe
company underwent big cutbacks this week, but it wasn't as bad as the
Hey Joey
company, which suffered a shortage of white tank tops and Camaros.
Ryder
reported lower earnings, but the company's prospects look good should there be a massive need to move, such as a hurricane, change of administration, or a lot of foreigners buying all our property.
Done and almost done and done.
Miller
and
Coors
have merged so that their Lite and Light beers can just come from the same giant vat of lukewarm water. You won't notice the difference.
In a blatant case of copyright infringement,
Boeing
will delay delivery of its 787 Dreamliner.
Hey! That was Airbus' story!
In a story about an American producer of Chinese food, the marketing director said: "We wanted our fortune cookies to be a little more value-added." Word of advice to makers of Chinese items: Don't say you've "added" anything.
Along those tainted lines,
Johnson & Johnson
,
Wyeth
and
Novartis
were among drug manufacturers recalling infant cold medicine. Oh, leave them be. They're going to grow to be lead-toy users anyway.
Profits at
Yum Brands
rose in part thanks to sales in China. So look for special lead prizes in your next bucket of KFC wings.
Unforeseen Complications
The German software maker
SAP
bought another company, and I'm just surprised that SAP is German. Every time I hit the SAP button on my remote, my TV doesn't say
danke
, it says
gracias.
Royal Bank of Scotland
finally won control of
ABN Amro
after reluctantly agreeing to throw in a kilo of haggis, one wet monster, and the right to veto kilt-wearing on windy days.
The EU is delaying
Thomson's
plan to buy
Reuters
because it might constrain competition in the financial information market. Here's some financial info:
I want money. Gimme. I'll do good things.
NBC
purchased the Oxygen network in an attempt to breathe life into its programming. It's a breath of fresh air. Investors breathlessly await with baited breath. Um ... NBC likes the ladies?
Cadbury
will spin off Snapple and Dr. Pepper. Consumers should be warned to open the new company over the sink, because, having been spun, it might explode.
Citigroup
combined two major units in an effort to keep all their money in one place.
ConAgra
stopped production of Banquet pot pies ...
and I don't care!
Oh wait, the song's "Jimmy Crack Corn, and I don't care," not "ConAgra pot pies, and I don't care."
Poop.
Wal-Mart
consistently pushes for lower property taxes, because by "supporting the community," they don't mean "supporting" the "community."
You don't need schools and fire departments. Just come work for us. It's menial and easy. Plus, we've got sprinklers.
Ford
will build a plant in Thailand, which probably has no relation to the high cost of U.S. labor or the low cost of Thai immorality.
Analysts predict heating costs to rise this winter. In unrelated news,
Exxon Mobil
just purchased Mars.
After finally being taken private,
TXU
changed its name to Energy Future Holdings Corporation because "Doom Gloom Omnipotent Control Inc." wasn't sinister enough.
MGM Mirage
announced plans to build a $5-billion hotel in Atlantic City and then make us all time-travel back into the '50s.
A federal panel cleared the way for a new heart stent from
Medtronic
, because it's been a while since anyone's profited from inevitable "unforeseen complications."
The CEO of
Children's Place
is engaged in a nasty legal spat with his former company in an effort to set a good example for customers.
The
Fed
was unclear about future interest rate movement, and stocks surged. Ah, back to the good old days of spring, when government uncertainty and/or incompetence and/or uninvolvement made the private sector giddy.
The Republican candidates all said the economy is doing great because they're getting millions of donations for just talking and talking and talking...
According to
The Times
, several stores are quietly beginning to market Christmas shopping. To those stores, I have a simple message: You must die.
New technology allows sports fans to keep track of their teams wherever they are. Oh, and the world's dying so much Al Gore won the Nobel. But gooooooo Rockies!
A graduate of Princeton, Virginia Law School, and the fictitious College of Asparagus Lovers, Jeff Kreisler (JeffKreisler.com) is an accomplished comedian, writer, producer and person. He writes for Comedy Central's Indecision2008, won the Bill Hicks Spirit Award for Thought Provoking Comedy, is in the cast of "Shoot The Messenger," a new show from the creator of "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart," stars in the "Comedy Against Evil" tour, and is writing "Get Rich Cheating," a parody of corporate crime. Jeff performs at clubs and colleges all over the known galaxy and has been featured at the Edinburgh Fringe, Freedom Cinema, and San Francisco Comedy Festivals. He plays blues saxophone, speaks French and Russian, was a sports broadcaster, taught English in Russia, helped start a non-profit dedicated to at-risk youth, and played college football. After extended stops in cities like San Francisco, Boston, and D.C., Jeff now lives in New York City from whence he is available for birthdays, circumcisions and bachelorette parties.