#14: THE END

So the end is nearly here...finally. This experience of writing blogs has been a long and frustrating one, with the frustrations being 100 percent my fault. Christina warned us all at the beginning of the semester that it is not a huge job if you did some each week and kept on track. She probably was right, but of course I left most of them until today, giving myself a much unneeded headache. I think that if I had to do it all again I would have spread it out more, and not just because of the work. I think I would have enjoyed knowing what was going on in the world throughout the entire semester. Even though we touched on current events in almost every class, if you do it on your own time you get to pick the articles that interest you personally. It is unfortunate that I realized now that I like being up to date with what is going on, it makes me feel like i am connected to the world. Hopefully after this great epiphany I will continue to stay connected, not necessarily through reading but maybe I will turn on the news once in awhile. Sorry make that real news, not TMZ or anything else played on MTV that I stay up to date with now. I hope that everyone else took something from this assignment and that we all learned something, even if it was as small as wanted to stay connected.

#13: Magazine Article

We all have heard about all the amazing perks that come with working at Google, and I am sure we have all thought more than once about trying to get a job there. We have seen a couple presentations on the company and talk about it all the time in Human Resources so I know that we students think it would be an awesome company to work for but its investors are not as impressed. The article Google's First-Quarter Earnings: Revenues Down, Profits Beat Forecasts, Investors Yawn, from BusinessWeek explains that Google has a lot to live up to. It has got to be tough to be Google right now because as the article states they have been doing so well that in order to get anyone to pay attention now they have to do something huge. A quote from the article sums this up by saying “even for Google, merely meeting expectations on the top line isn’t something that will get investors enthusiastic because it means business overall is still under pressure.” So even though the “Gross revenues came in at $5.51 billion and net revenues excluding special items were $4.07 billion, just about even with analysts’ expectations,” no one is applauding just yet. I think that with the economy the way it is its good to hear of a company still making that much money, and i would be very happy if i worked there.

#12: Newspaper Article

I blogged earlier about the flooding in Manitoba and its impact on the Canadian economy. Today the Toronto Star reported in the article, Water starting to recede in Winnipeg, that things are starting to look up. The article says “High water threatening some riverfront neighbourhoods in Winnipeg was expected to start receding Thursday – just hours after the city declared a state of emergency as a precaution.” This is great news for the people of Manitoba. I believe that the city and the people in that city grew very close during the dangerous time. The article confirms that by stating that “Hundreds of volunteers formed a human chain to heave sandbags to build up existing dikes.” It is good to see that even with all the hardships people are going through with the economy that they can still band together and help each other. It makes me wonder that if anything like that happened in this area how we as a community would handle it. It is also interesting to see that depending on where you live effects how the flooding affects you. “Depending on where you live, you are not impacted in any way, shape or form. For others, it's extremely terrifying to know that your home could be flooded. You watch the water rise. There are a lot of anxious moments right now,” said Mayor Sam Katz. So some parts of Manitoba are greatly affect while others are not touched, which is interesting to think about.

# 11: Magazine Article

Although it is more on the entertainment side, I decided to write about the Forbes article 'Slumdog' filmmakers give Mumbai charity $747, 500, because of the economical impact it will have. The article claims “The makers of the hit movie "Slumdog Millionaire" have donated $747,500 to a charity devoted to improving the lives of street children in Mumbai, the filmmakers said Thursday.” It goes to show you that even with the economical problems we have today some people are still worried about helping out other, less fortunate people. It is good to see that Hollywood still acknowledges that they have the power to changes people’s lives for the better and that they can make a difference with their excess money. The article says that the money will go to Plan, an organization that has been trying to help the children of India since 1979. I gathered from the article that the organization helps to educate children as their goal is to educate 5,000 slum kids in the next five years, but other than that it does not say much about the organization. The movie made more than $300 million worldwide and got a lot of criticism for not helping out the children of Mumbai and exploiting its child stars. The donation is in response to all the criticism and I think it will really help their image. The only issue is that they are donating the money just for their image, but either way the children get the money so it all works out in the end.

#10: Newspaper Article

Although it is kind of a bad sign, according to the Toronto Star and RBC, housing now has become more affordable. Home ownership more affordable, RBC says, is an article that talks about Canadian housing becoming more affordable, which is good for graduates who are looking to start their life. It states that, “Other types of housing also become more affordable, RBC said, with standard townhouse costing 35.4 per cent of family income (from 36.9), the standard condo to 30.1 per cent (from 31.4), and the standard two-story home to 50 per cent (from 52.0).” This is good news and bad news. It is good because graduates and home buyers are now going to be able to look at options they might not have be able to afford before. It is bad because it is another sign at how bad the economy is doing. The reason the prices are going down is because no one could afford them at where they were before. The article backs up my point by saying “RBC Economics said the biggest factor affecting the improved affordability in the final three months of 2008 was falling mortgage rates, while improved family income also contributed.” I personally cannot wait to get my own house, although it is mostly for the freedom aspect and probably will not happen for many years. Hopefully by that time the prices will not have skyrocketed again and I will actually be able to get a good home.

#9: Newspaper Article

The Toronto star has been writing a lot about the bad economy and businesses going bankrupt. In this article, Canadian bankruptcies surge in February; it actually gives you some hard facts on exactly what is going on. It states that the number of bankruptcies across Canada swelled 22.1 per cent in February compared with a year earlier. That is a huge number and shows just how seriously Canada’s economy is being affected by the recession. This affects us because if the economy doesn’t start to pick up, not only will we as students not have jobs, or enough money to continue going to school, but it will also affect us as graduates. If we were to graduate this year there is a slim chance we would get a job in out desired field. Even though we will have the most resent knowledge and training, and have the reputation of St. Lawrence business students preceding us, there are very few companies hiring right now. The economy is really hurting right now, and i believe that although the government is helping out a little, it need to help us students more. We are the future work force, and if we cannot afford to get an education, or a good company cannot hire us then the economy is not going to get any better. They need to help with the cost of schooling, which would give students more money to put into personal buying which will in turn help the economy. They need to give us a chance to show them what we can do for Canada.

#8: Magazine Article

I am sure by now everyone has heard about how badly GM and Chrysler are doing. If they do not already have enough problems to worry about President Obama just announced that 60 days to come up with a better plan of he is cutting off tax payers funds. The article General Motors: 60 Days to Show Result, which appeared in Business Week, explains that Obama is not satisfied with the plan that GM and Chrysler presented to his administration recently. He says they need to come up with a better plan, or else. Some of the criteria they must meet are to negotiate further cuts from the UAW, reduce its unsecured debt, and show a plan that works. This is a comfort to finally hear. Obama is actually taking charge and working towards building our economy, because what happens in the states is so closely related to what happens to us. I gathered from the article that what GM originally proposed would have met Bush’s standards, which seem to be a lot lower than that of Obama’s thankfully. Obama does not see the benefit in giving these companies money if they do not have a solid viable plan on how they would use it. We need to get a clearer grasp on what our economy is going through right now, like Obama has. No more CEOs making millions, if not billions of dollars, while their company is going bankrupt. It does not make sense, and hopefully with Obama’s influence it will begin to stop.

#7: Book Review

So for my personal book choice I think I changed my mind like 100 times, I just could not choose what book I wanted to read and talk about. I really enjoy reading books that have become movies before I see the movie so that I can compare them. I have done it with many books like Harry Potter and Twilight, and usually I find that the books are better than the movie. The only time this was not the case is with the Lord of the Rings, simply because the book was so hard to get through. My favourite book so far, and the one I finally chose to do this review on, is the Never-ending Story. It was one if my favourite movies as a kid, my mom said I watched one VHS so much that I actually wore the tape out, and the book is just that more interesting. It has amazing detail, and the story just comes alive in your imagination. The idea that the book you are reading is really happening and how you react is actually part of the book is so interesting. Sometime it’s a little confusing because you are reading about a little boy who is reading, but it keeps the story going. The antagonist in the book is a wolf named G'mork and he is as scary in the book as he is in the movie. Atreyu, the protagonist, is one of my all time favourite book and movie characters simply because of his depth, you gives inspiration through overcoming his challenegs. I haven’t quit finished reading the book yet, so look forward to another blog on how I feel about the ending, and how much more different the book and movie become.

#6: Newspaper Articles

My next article is Blended sales tax next year. This is a huge deal to anyone living in Canada as our taxes will now be a 13% single sales tax as of July 1, 2010. This will have a HUGE effect on items that are pst exempt, like fast-food and home heating fuels. Because of this the Liberal government plans to impliment a slew of consumer-friendly measures, but I am not to sure how much they will help. The article states that Families earning less than $160,000 a year will get three cheques totalling $1,000 annually to offset the higher prices, but that is most families, especially with all the layoffs. So this raises that question, how will our government afford that? Single people will get lesser relief, which is bad for college students like me, living on their own. It also says that children's clothing, diapers, feminine hygiene products, books, child car seats and boosters, and new homes costing less than $400,000 will continue to be subject only to the 5 per cent federal GST. As a single person, making little more then $10,000 a year im not sure how this will effect me. I work in a grocery store so I will be able to see the effects first hand, but I would like to know what people who are PST exempt are going to do. This proposal seems like it is going to do more harm then good, but I guess we will have to wait and see.

#5: Newspaper Articles

So its been a long time, but I am back. So lots has been going on in the news and the world. There is always articles about another company going bankrupt or laying off more people; the reccesion is affecting everyone in some way. Its pretty much all we talk about in all our classes, so for this write up I have decided to read about something a little different. The article Manitoba town fears worst actually has nothing to do with layoffs or people having no money. Its about the potential flooding they are facing. The first sentence in the article says “The mayor of a Manitoba town says he's bracing for the "worst two weeks" in the community's history as ice-clogged culverts, ice jams and the rising Red River threaten dozens of homes.” Now not only do these people have to worry about losing their homes because of money troubles, but they have to worry about physically losing there homes to a flood. The people of Manitoba have been trying to break up the ice, but it seems that by the time they have made progress at one point the ice has resettled in another area. Already 40 homes have been evactuated and another 100 people have been up on alert. This effects us because the economy is so fragile right now, and any problem in any part of Canada could greatly effect us all. I luckily have no family out there to worry about, but I feel for the people who do.

#4: Magazine articles

So I am reading Forbes and BusinessWeek for my magazines. They both have a lot of appealing articles, both business and entertainment wise.
Forbes had an attention-grabbing article called The Year's Most Valuable Celebrity Face. It’s interesting because it talks about how even the newspaper and magazine business is suffering because of the recession. No one wants to pay for something they don’t absolutely need. So the magazines are putting faces on the covers of people you can’t help but look at so you’re more likely to buy the magazine. They talk about how important people like Angelina Jolie are important because of how well pictures of her face sell. Jennifer Aniston also sells a lot of magazines, so expect to see a lot more of them.
BusinessWeek also has a lot of interesting articles. The one that caught my eye was Bottled Waters Lose Their Effervescence. This article also talks about an industry that is being hit by the recession. Although there was an increase in sales there was a decrease in the annual growth of the company. More people are filling up reusable water bottles as opposed to buying bottled water. People are not only watching their wallets but also their earth. With more eco-friendly and wallet friendly options people are buying less and less bottled water. Its talks about how companies like Groupe Danone, maker of Evian are looking for more eco-friendly ways to sell their water.

#3: Newspaper articles

The two articles from the Toronto Star that I read this week were Super Bowl or Recession Bowl? and British seek power to expel wayward lords like Conrad Black.
The article Super Bowl or Recession Bowl? talks about worry of the empty seats and a decline in merchandise sales. The articles states “Hotels had vacant rooms, restaurants had empty tables. A gala at the aquarium hosted by former star Warren Sapp slashed the price in half once it started”. It just goes to show how bad the recession is hitting in the states. The day before the game there was still empty seats. Unfortunately the article focuses on one woman, who paid $2500 for the “super bowl package” but said she couldn’t afford the $145 jersey because her husband lost his job and they were watching their money. Obviously she isn’t watching it very well.
British seek power to expel wayward lords like Conrad Black is about the British government wanting to expel law breakers from the House of Lords. People like Conrad Black would no longer be a Lord so to speak. Up until now if you were part of the House of Lords you died that way, criminal or not. They would like to be more like the House of Commons, where if you’re found to be doing something completely inappropriate you will be expelled. By doing this being a Lord will hold more meaning and hopefully they will gain some more respect.

#2: Newspaper Articles

So now that I have read everyone’s blogs I’m noticing that everyone is introducing themselves and their readings so I’m going to do that now. I am Shauntel and I am in section 102. I am reading the Toronto Star for my national newspaper, Forbes and BusinessWeek for my business related magazines, the Twilight series for my choice books, and I have chose my business book yet. I chose to read the Twilight series because I have already started and I read a lot, so one book doesn’t seem enough for me. I won’t bore you guys with a lot of details on those books though, unless you want to hear them.
So this week in the Toronto Start I read a ton of interesting articles but the two I picked to talk about were Tories promise job training and infrastructure aid and Kate Winslet wins SAG supporting-actress prize.
So the first article I chose talked about the conservatives putting 1.5 billion dollars towards job training. Although I don’t like the conservatives I do appreciate that they are trying to help the people. They realize that with the downturn in the economy that lots of people are going to be losing their jobs and will need money. They plan on putting lots of money towards employment insurance and other things of that nature. It’s good to know that they are taking the repression seriously and are trying to help us out. They are also going to be putting $33 billion towards our roads and bridges. I don’t know if anyone drives around Kingston but I do and I know I’m going to be greatful for some road work. I believe we have two of the top 10 worst roads in Canada just in Kingston so we could use some help.
The second article just talks about the controversy of Kate Winslet winning a supporting actress SAG award, as I mentioned in my previous blog I will always read one news article and one entertainment one, which I still think helps my knowledge of what’s going on.

#1: Newpaper Article

So the first article I read was Notorious B.I.G.'s legendary life after death from the Toronto Star. I know its not directly related to business, but I feel it is important to still know whats going on so you can have something none business related to talk about, even know at school. Plus I am interest in music and entertainment so it makes the read easier.
The article talks about the new movie coming out called Notorious that depicts the rappers life, and is the first of its kind. It also talks about the rappers life and how he opened doors for other rappers. He was one of the first to rap about his feelings and his hardships where as others at the time were always bragging or talking about partying. He was shot at the age of 24 and the shooter is till unidentified, 12 years later. The article simply explains how Christopher Wallace aka Notorious B.I.G. impacted so many people and how, even though he is dead, he still impacts people today.
The second article I picked was Israeli forces pull back. Its about the Israeli troops pulling back from Gaza on Sunday. I must admit I don't agree with war at all so I haven't really been following the whole Israeli situation so I picked this article so I can finally start knowing whats going on. Its really sad that in only 3 weeks over 100 people were killed by bombs, but because they are not "heros" or Canadians we don't really hear much about them. I think I will look for more articles like this one so I can be tapped into whats going on in the world, and I believe it will help me in my personal conversations as well as in business situation, especially if I ever do any overseas business.