Midas1

We're Living Through the Best of Times

Greed is most assuredly killing our country faster than any bomb. We think we have a healthcare crisis--we do thanks to heath insurance execs taking multimillion dollar bonuses. WellPoint's CEO is one of these lovely people and it's from PREMIUM DOLLARS that he takes from the bonus trough! Twenty (YES 20) million dollars buys a lot of health care, but we must make sure the greedy lot at the top siphon us dry. Healthcare for the benefit of a few. Oh, what a system. Those at the top hear this: when the masses are suffering, fences and expensive mansions will not prevent the angry and hopeless from converging on your paradigm!


On Oct 26 09:32 AM a. palmer jr. wrote:

> You could have mentioned that the reason third world is rising and
> unemployment here is rising is because we, as a country, allowed
> our jobs to be given away to China, India and others. You could have
> mentioned the non-patriotism of big corporate America that would
> see our people go hungry just so they could make a few extra bucks
> on their products. You could have mentioned that stores like Wal-Mart
> used to have a rule that they would make every effort to buy American
> goods when now it is virtually impossible to find almost anything
> Made in America at any store. You made it sound like that it's the
> natural rotation of things and that it's the other countries turn
> for all the prosperity....it's not the case at all, it's people in
> the higher up jobs in corporations and government selling out their
> country for a few measley dollars!

Pension Apprehension

Two weeks before giving dismal guidance for the next year, WellPoint gave very positive guidance. Employees who were in the 401K and shareholders saw their accounts tanked when the real results were announced. WellPoint knew what was going to happen by lying in the weeks prior to the ACTUAL numbers coming out. We have so many greedy bums running everything, they are succeeding at ruining everything. Lying, cheating, stealing seem to be the top qualifications for any executive nowdays. It is so sad to see our once-great country turn into the corrupt vessel it is today.

Who's Cashing In on All Those Clunkers?

Domestic or domestically-produced? The Ford Fusion is built in Mexico. The Toyota Camry is made here, as well as some of the Corollas. Honda also builds the Civic here. Toyota and Honda are much more domestic than what many consider "domestic".

Top 10 'Clunkers' and New Cars Purchased

Two service situations yesterday. One with Toyota, the other with a professional appointment. As usual, Toyota delivered consistently excellent service; the other, the usual dismal service. Due to an "oversight" no one called to cancel the appointment when the person I was seeing knew 5 business days prior to the appt he would not be able to make the appt. I took time off without pay for that appt. Hats off to Toyota--great products, great service, great company. Toyota respects its customers; many other businesses carry an attitude of "we dare you to do business with us". I will do business with Toyota for life. We could learn much from the Japanese culture in how to do business such as humility, shame, and honor. Rest assured if Toyota management ran our financial services industry, we would not be in the mess we now find ourselves.

Toyota: A 'Smart' Housing Play for All Long-Term Investors

The author did not mention that Toyota has been in the prefab housing business for years. Toyota is well-positioned to develop home systems as discussed in this piece.

Toyota: A 'Smart' Housing Play for All Long-Term Investors

Toyota is one of the smartest companies in the world. It is also the most respected company in the world (Forbes), #1 for customer loyalty and #3 for innovation (which will change to #1 rest assured). Perhaps most endearing (and refreshing) is the honesty from executives. A recent online article noted how the head of North American Operations stated Toyota had lost its vision, etc. and how more companies should admit when they make a mistake instead of making excuses. The Japanese culture could teach us much about values at this time. Another example is Japan Airlines. The company's CEO took a salary cut to about $90,000 per year, eats with employees in the cafeteria and feels management should suffer with employees in the economic downturn. I wish more companies would adopt the same thinking.

Mortgage Servicers' Perverse Incentives

Bank of America is in the customer service hall of shame for the 3rd year in a row. No surprise. This has to be the worst run, most inept, corrupt firm in the U.S. Just do a simple search of "complaints" and "Bank of America". One site carried 31 pages of complaints. Of course, there are multiple sites equating to thousands of complaints. Is it any wonder we're in this financial mess when we have nothing more than a bunch of crude, rude, overbearing, obnoxious, arrogant, lying, cheating fleabags running firms such as this one? Will we ever get to a point where integrity means anything anymore?

Obama's Sweeping Changes for America's Cars

Toyota has received 80,000 orders for the new Prius. Why couldn't it have been GM or Ford? Wake up domestics and get a decent small hybrid car on the road. Toyota is lightyears ahead of you.


On May 20 05:05 AM Freya wrote:

> The new Toyota Prius is rated at 50 mpg highway. It will be sold
> here shortly.

12 Cars That Could Spoil a Chrysler-Fiat Deal

Toyota has just received an order for 75,000 Priuses. As a consumer I would rather go with a well-established Hybrid rather than take a risk with another. That said, Honda, like Toyota, admittedly has exceptional quality. Toyota has without fail backed its product with the vehicles I have purchased. It would take a lot to pry me away from such a good company. For all the years I've owned Toyotas, I have gotten exceptional service and an extraordinary product. Have I had any problems? Yes. Toyota backed them even when the warranty was out because I impeccably maintain (in good times and bad) my transportation that I rely on 24/7. Many years ago in another recession I had a Corolla with a problem that wasn't under warranty. I didn't have much money. The repair cost was about $650 (the car had over 100,000 miles). Toyota repaired the car and said they would cover it. When I bought my next car, I looked back at that time when things weren't so good for me and how Toyota worked with me. I bought another Toyota and have driven Toyotas ever since. There's more to business than money exchanging hands. Toyota has a mix of values: 1) profit, of course, to continue in business; 2) never forgetting the customer; 3) working with customers; 4) ethics and integrity; and 5) humility, honor, and shame which is part of the Japanese culture. Had the Japanese been overseeing our financial services, rest assured we would not be in the mess we now find ourselves, as well as the world.

On May 15 08:31 AM Soldalma wrote:

> You forgot the new Honda hybrid, which will be way cheaper (although
> less thrifty) than the Prius. It is the number 1 selling car in Japan
> right now, and there is no reason it could not sell like pancakes
> in the US. The price is expected to be under $20k.

Toyota: Changes Ahead?

Toyota will be fine. I believe Mr. Toyoda will again, as in the past, see how important the market segment is for small cars and continue to produce top-flight quality Corollas (top-selling car in the world), Scions, etc. GM focused so much on the SUV market, the company forgot about the now very valuable markets for decent small to mid-size cars. Toyota never lost sight of that (e.g. Camry). One HUGE difference between domestic makers and Toyota is that Toyota backs its products and cares about what they're putting on the road. Customer service will be key to any company's success and in that arena Toyota is a strong winner. GM could have been in a great position right now if it had taken the opportunity with the joint venture between the two companies to learn the multiple facets of Toyota's resounding success. I believe GM can turn around, but the company absolutely must start backing its product even if out of warranty to attract customers. Too many transmissions have failed in and just out of warranty. People get tired of dealing with problems and enjoy driving a relatively problem-free vehicle for years. Toyota produces many. After paying several thousand dollars for a vehicle, the last thing you should tell a customer with a $2-3,000 problem is that somehow it must have been their driving. In some cases, maybe. Most cases, no. GM needs to give customers the benefit of the doubt and start covering these items. Otherwise, expect Toyota to keep upping its market share. Thank you.

William Holstein on Why GM Matters

Though you make it sound like Toyota and GM are in the boxing ring, fact is they have had a joint venture for years. The Prizm was the Corolla; the Pontiac Vibe is the Matrix, etc. I would like you to address why GM did not absorb the knowledge of the Toyota Production System and apply it to their assembly plants in the midwest. The Prizm was a perfect opportunity to show the world that GM could make a very decent small car. Under the hood was a Toyota engine. The Corolla is the #1 selling car in the world. Why haven't articles addressed the joint venture? By reading the many online articles addressing GM's plight, one would certainly think Toyota and GM are at war. If GM tapped Toyota's production system, they could turn around their dire situation rapidly. HOWEVER, GM MUST be ready to back their product in and out of warranty as Toyota does. GM must prove they believe in their own product enough to drive it to Washington when asking for taxpayer dollars. GM must stop blaming new car owners for transmission failures at 800 miles and back the product accordingly. The Japanese makers do not leave their customers out in the cold and neither should GM. GM must also strongly envision themselves in the customer's shoes--like that working Joe whose multithousand dollar purchase must WORK and KEEP WORKING FOR YEARS TO COME because working Joe doesn't have the money anymore to keeping buying cars. Toyota is the #1 most respected company in the world (Forbes), #1 for customer loyalty, and #3 for most innovative. GM please use your joint venture with Toyota, study customer service inside and out, deliver quality, and BUYERS WILL COME. Just as Toyota's reputation took years to build, so will yours to rebuild. It can be done, but you must tap all available resources and you have a pretty darn good one right at your fingertips. Also, mimick Toyota in another way--Toyota executives often get in a given model and are told to drive from Canada through Mexico and beyond to understand what consumers are experiencing with their product. YOU MUST DO THE SAME. When you get stranded several times, perhaps you will then emphathize with your customers who endure the same predicament. By literally living in a vehicle and driving several hundred thousand miles, you get a pretty good idea of how to change creature comforts, employ safety features, and design the product to maximize quality/effectiveness. Perhaps this is why I can own a Camry for 14 years and NEVER experience a failure. 100% reliability is certainly impressive and is not easily pryed from my memory. Toyota's doors have been open to you for years. It's time to step up to the plate and act like a sponge, absorbing every tidbit Toyota offers. I truly hope the best for GM. Thank you.

US Bancorp: The Other Big Bank with Big Problems

Moron author, as usual. USB didn't give loans to anything that breathed unlike BAC, Citi and others. USB will do just fine thank you very much because they had integrity when everyone else had greed. TARP is being crammed down their throat. The stock price will recover unless USB is forced to mollycoddle those that bought above their means and are now whining.

Buffett May Not Have Sold Johnson & Johnson

JNJ is a solid company. I believe Buffett is still invested in the company and would be surprised to learn of him dumping a great stock.

CMOs Dissatisfied with Quality of Candidate Pool

Now substance matters? For years the highest and most enduring qualification has been to know what to kiss and when. Example: Quite frankly, if I were one of the passengers on Sully's flight, I don't give a hoot how nice or fluffy you are in the work environment, or what your coworkers think of you. I want you to know what you're doing. Sully is a rare breed. Perhaps if the financial services and other industries sought true quality people, they'd get true quality results. Instead, they choose to hire airheads that can compliment their threatened bosses and coworkers to keep them feeling warm and fuzzy. Ask any one of the 155 passengers aboard that US Air flight if they care about Sully being a team player and if he said all the nice things people want to hear. The most assuredly wanted someone who knew what they were doing. This world desperately needs more Sullys (substance) and less fluff. Is the corporate world dissatisfied with the looking lot because they are not Stepford employees or because they might challenge the boss?

Husky Energy Dividends Get Cut - More Companies to Follow?

BP is one of the better energy stocks.