@meanjoe75fan
Why don’t you make your own argument instead of trying to find fault with mine. Don’t be bashful. If you don’t like that I only used actual interest rates paid by the employee and not implied, you can make that point on your own. Don’t use me as your step stool. Go for it ! Besides, I worry when some one doesn’t tell us what they are scratching .;( it appears like we are on the same side…or not.
"I think that drone delivery of packages is many years in the future "
I don’t know. When you see how some of the packages are “dropped off” sometimes, it sure looks like they fell from the sky.
Some professor many years ago told me to invest in production not debt, and that has served me well. People that invest in CDs are investing in other people’s debt. People who invest in stock are investing in production. CDs pay 1%, the market last year was up 30%. Those who put their money under the matress and are rewarded with a 1% gain got the safety they wanted versus those that risked and built production capacity and were equally rewarded in the long run. Why blame the market for rewarding risk?
The market is as phony as Maddoff’s scam, @Bing. Where would the Dow and Nasdaq be if the Fed hadn’t poured $85billion each month into the markets these past many years to keep interest at near zero while pumping up Wall St? The grand numbers from stocks are the result of manipulation by the Fed and the Treasury.
What will Jim Cramer do when Yellen draws down the monthly infusion? The stagflation booby prize awaits us. The insiders will again get out ahead of Ameritraders and Schwabbies. They will cash in and leave the 401s licking their wounds.
And, BTW, I bought U-Haul the month after Obama’s first inauguration.
Absolutely @RodKnox
There is no legitimate grow with savings that keeps ahead of inflation unless the prime is much much higher and can support higher interest rates for CDs and general savings accounts. In a healthy economy, stock market growth is then legitimate. That’s the only way savings accounts can keep up with inflation. Otherwise, everyone is forced into the stock market to keep their savings from withering away while still, stock markets are manipulated by insider trading and reap the most profits for only those who can afford to move large sums in a “knowing direction”. That’s not you and I.
Equity in industry or debt, take your pick. Actually company profits have been pretty good regardless of the fed actions. And over the last 30 years, this hasn’t been the first time values have been up, and of course had a 50% loss a few years ago. Money for immediate needs should be in the bank but investment money for the longer term should be in equity of solid companies. People that value money so much that they are unwilling to risk a penney of it get their 1% reward. Times have changed over the last 50 years and banks can no longer charge 8% for home loans and 10% for car loans and give 3% for CDs. Simple as that. Those who hide their talons under a basket have already received their reward.
“When you see how some of the packages are “dropped off” sometimes, it sure looks like they fell from the sky.”
That–unfortunately–has been my experience with FedEx on multiple occasions.
By contrast, I have never had problems with UPS deliveries and it has been many years since I had a package damaged by the USPS.
If I am given a choice between FedEx or UPS shipping, I always choose UPS.
"I always choose UPS "
The only problem we have had with UPS is their over enthusiasm to make deliveries on our road when it was impassable for two wheel drive. Routinely, they would get stuck and block everyone coming or going. Eventually they seemed to give up the last few winters and just put notices in our mail boxes to pick up packages at the local facility.
I like UPS and I like Fed Ex but you haven’t seen packages come through the Minneapolis UPS center if you think they aren’t squashed beyond recognition. How they could destroy a case of canned baby formula, I don’t know but they did it. Some of the packages coming through looked like they were run over by the fork lift or trapped in the conveyor, then patched up and sent on their way if the address and bar code was still intact.
Clearly, people have varying experiences with the shipping companies, and one of the reasons might be that almost all of FedEx’s drivers are actually independent contractors who can–pretty much–do their own thing. Your local FedEx drivers may be great, but the ones in my area look and act like they are on a work-release program from the state penitentiary.
However, the independent contractor status of FedEx’s drivers doesn’t begin to explain the demeanor of the folks in the FedEx regional offices who have consistently displayed unprofessional behaviors and negative attitudes when I have gone there to retrieve errant packages. My skin crawls at the thought of having to go to a FedEx facility to pick up a package.
well, I ve gotten thru the first five pages. gosh, I iwish I had been online to catch it live! I can see that I owe the the discussion a comment or two. I think I ll read on a bit before I chime in tho. maybe I ll learn a few things…
@wesw
Some of us regulars have pretty strong opinions about walmart
I think it’s high time we heard yours
I, for one, will not hold it against you
Some of the people I respect the most have opinions that are at odds with my own
If I am given a choice between FedEx or UPS shipping, I always choose UPS.
You have a choice between Fedex or UPS on how packages are delivered? Companies usually have contracts with one or the other. I’ve never seen a company that will have both deliver options. They might have an option with the USPS, but never with two private delivery firms.
In Minnesota we have Speedee out of St. Cloud that is a pretty good carrier. When I worked we used USPS, UPS, Speedee, and Fedex, just depending on price and delivery needs. Part of the problem is that you have to have updated software and pricing on your mail equipment that can sometimes be a hassle and expense but we had enough volume to use most of them. I tried to push UPS a lot for their tracking but my shipping manager liked USPS for the cost savings.
@bing. you are absolutely right, and I plan give an in depth statement in the near future. i really want to finish reading the thread first though, and i don t seem to be able to find the time. i just joined facebook and have been spending all my screentime catching up with my high school class of '85. (and trying to expand my extremely limited computer skills]. i hope the thread is not closed before i get to it!
"They might have an option with the USPS, but never with two private delivery firms."
What’s that old saying about, “Never say never”?
While I don’t recall which company it was that gave me this option, I do know that one of the online entities with which I used to deal did give their customers the option of using UPS, FedEx, or the USPS.
I suspect that the option may have something to do with the reality that there are some very rural locations in The US that are served by only UPS & the USPS, or only by FedEx & the USPS, or only by the USPS.
I wish that I could recall which company this was, but unfortunately I do not recall the specifics.
It’s been a while but when I drove a parcel delivery van many customers shipped on Fed
Ex. UPS, USPS, several truck lines and my company. That was prior to FedEx having a seperate Ground division which currently uses contract drivers for final delivery and even prior to FedEx being much more than a regional carrier. But I still see high volume shippers with trucks from all the parcel delivery companies backing up to their doors.
An old friend of mine was one of the first to contract with Fred Smith before FedEx bought their first truck. He was living in Little Rock and used his VW van. My friend asked what type van seemed to be best suited for the business and I recommended a 6 cylinder Ford van. He got one and it seems that for many years FedEx was pleased with those Fords.
The same Mountain Bike. Scout around for a free download of Libre Office, an offshoot of OpenOffice. Unless you do a lot of weird stuff, it runs the same .doc or .odt files as MS, but free.
As far as Wal-mart and its variety of goods, last trip to the States, I learned you can order stuff on-line from their web page, and they bring it to the store you desire. i drove around for two hours looking for Lava soap, no luck at closest Wal-mart or supermarkets… I ordered it on-line and one hour later got a message to pick it up.
Later, I desired to buy a new computer, $500 with flat screen monitor. 30 minutes later, a message. The store I specified found it on their own shelves, and I did not have to go looking for it. Just drove over and paid for it. Brought it to Mexico, has Windows 8 updated to 8.1, will eventually install Linux.
There is a much larger selection available via to-store delivery than are in a given store. And, in most cases, they pay shipping to your store.
My wife loves Wal-mart, much more than I do. And, I do find much more stuff I want there than at Target. And, K-mart is sort of a sick joke. Local mom-n-pops have almost no selection and much higher prices.
Happiness: a few years ago, a study showed that the people of Mexico, poverty and all, were the happiest on the planet. I sure am happy here.
As far as Wal-mart, in Tehuacan, the variety of goods in Wal-mart is incredible compared to the rest of available retail. I was there on Tuesday, and the choices really pleases me, far more than in the US where there are so many competitors. Here, almost none.
And, their return if not satisfied policy is almost unheard of here.
Tourists really whine when they see a Wal-mart here. But, Wal-mart does here what they do in the US. Evaluate a community, and if they can make money, they open a store, and the locals love them. And, foreign tourists can go hang.
I had a boss one time who told us we all could be replaced. Not a threat, he was just stating an opinion. What he didn’t understand was, it cost more to replace some of us than others. There were times in my 31 years I could have been replaced with an empty chair.
And, once on the first microprocessor unit, it had been noted that I got all my work done in less than two hours a day. When I signed out, they had two men working 12 hours a day, 7 days a week, with 1.5 times pay over 8 hours a day, and double time on some days. And, my stupid ex-boss actually boasted how he got rid of a man who did almost nothing and got two men who worked hard 12 hours a day. You can’t make up stuff like that.
@irlandes Tehuacan sounds interesting and nice. I think the closest I have been is Monterey. The only Wal-Marts I have visited in Mexico are Puerto Vallarta and Can’Cun. I was impressed that they had many items Hecho en Mexico. Not so much in the USA. I have visited our neighbor to the South many times. I would guess over 2 dozen. I have always enjoyed the hospitality. I don’t understand the lack of hospitality here. I live in a small town with a large Hispanic population. Our crime rate is close to zero.
I’ve known decent, hospitable people from all over the world. And I’ve met people that aren’t from all over the world. I think a lot of it depends on the economic base for a given region. Places that thrive on tourism will generally be more hospitable than places that thrive on crime… like NYC’s financial district, or Washington DC. Just kidding, guys.