As I predicted in my writing on another site, GM has announced cutbacks in their NASCAR activites. It has already been anounced that some truck and Nationwide series teams have lost support. Cuts in the Cup series have not been announced as of yet. This follows moves by both Ford and Dodge to cut costs. These moves have resulted in layoffs throughout the sport.
At Michigan, it was Mark Martin taking his third win of the season in race taht was decided by fuel strategy. A crowd of only 80,000 watched Mark win another one for the over 50 crowd.
While the current crop of car suppliers are suffering, Brian France is opening the door to more imported competition. This was announced following this weekend's race.
It has also been announced that NASCAR is going green. Following each race, trees will be planted to provide a carbon offset.
What does Brian France have in common with the captain of the Titanic? Both went down with their ships. The double file restarts are a plus, but if things do not start changing, look for NASCAR to get in line for a bail out.
If you want see some real neat vintage racing photos, check out the latest edition of "Muscle Machines" published by Hemmings. The spotlight is on Darlington in the 50s. Among the cars are a 51 Kaiser Manhattan and a 59 Buick Invicta. Drivers include a young Richard Petty, Fireball Roberts and other greats of the early years. Both "Muscle Machines" and "Classic Car" are good reads if you like cars the way I do.
The Chrysler -Fiat marriage is a done deal. We will now be blessed with ugly little cars that start rusting before they leave the lot. I have always been a fan of the US car companies, but scratch Chrysler and GM from the competition for the vacant spot in my driveway.
"Trains" magazine had an interesting article this month on trasnpotation comparing how various modes stack up for costs and efficiency. It costs less to build a mile of track than a mile of expressway. Lots of other intersting stuff there also. It vacks up my belief that we need a balanced transportation system in this country.
The Obama administration shudders every time unemployment figures are announced. They can be held directly responsible for another jump with almost 800 Chrysler dealers closing this month and thousands of GM dealers getting ready to follow. While BO has said that he does not want to run a car company, it looks like many of the closings have been dicatated by politics as opposed to economics.
I have not had as much time to blog or to participate in my favorite chat rooms, but that is a good thing. My personal economy has improved since I returned to work for Tony Patalano's
stores. I am now pushing around 60 hrs a week. That can easily grow, depending on sales.
We are negotiating with the bank and hoping to avoid foreclosure.
That it for this trip. John
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Ranting at Random
Hello all
Welcome to any new readers. This blog now is being posted in the Soundoff Ct. chatroom, the Western Ma 912 discussion board and on my Facebook Page.
I would like Tony Patalano of Patalano Pizza for rehiring me. Tony has two Domino's stores in Chicopee and Springfield Ma. I worked a full week for the first time in about five months and it feels good.
Looks like the house is safe for now. I have spoken to our lender and we are now eligible for a loan modification. Looks like I will now have to mow the grass since it is now taller than a poodle.
A interesting development. Some old friends from Woonsocket High School have been finding me on Facebook. I wonder what they are thinking when they see the rest of my page?
I am a proud member of two conservative groups. The Western Mass 912 group and the Sound Off Ct chat room. The 912 group operates on priciples esposed by national talk show host Glenn Beck, while the Sound Off group supports Jim Vicevich who is a talk show host on WTIC in Hartford. The reason I support both of these organizations is simple. I live in Mass and work both in Mass and Ct.. I have also found the chatroom that supports Jim to be a really great bunch of people. They proved to be very supportive during my recent difficulties.
What bothers me is the inability of these two groups to get together. Despite the fact that they are built around many of the same priciples, they let geography and the fact that they support different radio shows keep them apart. I am trying to act as a link between the groups because I feel that if we really want to have an impact, we need to show larger numbers. We cannot do that if we are splintered into many small groups. Western Mass and Ct. have many of the same problems. We face high taxes and representatives who do not speak for the people but are bought and paid for by special interests.
I have read a copy of the NASCAR Substance Abuse Policy that was recently made public.
If you are intersted in the sport, you will find it of interest. Now what I would like to see is a list of banned substances and a quick end to the Mayfield case. I am sick of this sideshow. We should be reading about racing, not court cases. Jimmy Johnson won this week's race at Dover Downs. I missed the end of the race but what I did hear was a good one.
General Motors is now officially bankrupt. Another 30 Billion of our tax dollars will be invested in this company. If GM was going to go bust, it should have happened a year ago without taxpayer dollars. As a result of this bankruptcy, more plants are going to be closed as are more car dealers. Where will the administration find jobs for all of these displaced workers?
Another result is less choice for the car driving public. Both Pontiac and Saturn are being dropped and the Hummer brand will be sold. As part of the deal to sell GM of Europe, there was an agreement that the new company could not sell cars here.
While the Federal government prints and spends money, the states are in trouble. California is already bankrupt and voters there recently failed to approve new taxes. Mass and Ct. are not far behind however we cannot follow the lead of Ca voters. In Mass., our leaders recently approved a 25% increase in the state sales tax. A small band of us recently staged a protest at the state office building in Springfield. Why would our state reps listen to 25 protesters in Springfield when they are getting lobbied constantly by people who get paid to do just that?
Meanwhile, our brothers and sisters who own firms in Ct. are beins slapped with another penalty. Thye are being told that they have to provide paid sick time if they have 50 or more workers. This is just another form of taxation. More buisness will either leave or not grow in the Nutmeg state.
Till next week, Live long and pay cash. John
Welcome to any new readers. This blog now is being posted in the Soundoff Ct. chatroom, the Western Ma 912 discussion board and on my Facebook Page.
I would like Tony Patalano of Patalano Pizza for rehiring me. Tony has two Domino's stores in Chicopee and Springfield Ma. I worked a full week for the first time in about five months and it feels good.
Looks like the house is safe for now. I have spoken to our lender and we are now eligible for a loan modification. Looks like I will now have to mow the grass since it is now taller than a poodle.
A interesting development. Some old friends from Woonsocket High School have been finding me on Facebook. I wonder what they are thinking when they see the rest of my page?
I am a proud member of two conservative groups. The Western Mass 912 group and the Sound Off Ct chat room. The 912 group operates on priciples esposed by national talk show host Glenn Beck, while the Sound Off group supports Jim Vicevich who is a talk show host on WTIC in Hartford. The reason I support both of these organizations is simple. I live in Mass and work both in Mass and Ct.. I have also found the chatroom that supports Jim to be a really great bunch of people. They proved to be very supportive during my recent difficulties.
What bothers me is the inability of these two groups to get together. Despite the fact that they are built around many of the same priciples, they let geography and the fact that they support different radio shows keep them apart. I am trying to act as a link between the groups because I feel that if we really want to have an impact, we need to show larger numbers. We cannot do that if we are splintered into many small groups. Western Mass and Ct. have many of the same problems. We face high taxes and representatives who do not speak for the people but are bought and paid for by special interests.
I have read a copy of the NASCAR Substance Abuse Policy that was recently made public.
If you are intersted in the sport, you will find it of interest. Now what I would like to see is a list of banned substances and a quick end to the Mayfield case. I am sick of this sideshow. We should be reading about racing, not court cases. Jimmy Johnson won this week's race at Dover Downs. I missed the end of the race but what I did hear was a good one.
General Motors is now officially bankrupt. Another 30 Billion of our tax dollars will be invested in this company. If GM was going to go bust, it should have happened a year ago without taxpayer dollars. As a result of this bankruptcy, more plants are going to be closed as are more car dealers. Where will the administration find jobs for all of these displaced workers?
Another result is less choice for the car driving public. Both Pontiac and Saturn are being dropped and the Hummer brand will be sold. As part of the deal to sell GM of Europe, there was an agreement that the new company could not sell cars here.
While the Federal government prints and spends money, the states are in trouble. California is already bankrupt and voters there recently failed to approve new taxes. Mass and Ct. are not far behind however we cannot follow the lead of Ca voters. In Mass., our leaders recently approved a 25% increase in the state sales tax. A small band of us recently staged a protest at the state office building in Springfield. Why would our state reps listen to 25 protesters in Springfield when they are getting lobbied constantly by people who get paid to do just that?
Meanwhile, our brothers and sisters who own firms in Ct. are beins slapped with another penalty. Thye are being told that they have to provide paid sick time if they have 50 or more workers. This is just another form of taxation. More buisness will either leave or not grow in the Nutmeg state.
Till next week, Live long and pay cash. John
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About Me
- John
- Interested in politics from an early age. Once supported George McGovern for President. Involved in NASCAR in various roles for some 30 yrs. Friend of Bill W, since May of 82 and married to Janet since Dec 1991.