Do boycotts work anymore? It seems like of late boycotts have returned to the en vogue way of attacking a company or movie with owners or creators one dislikes. But, then people on the other side of the issue see the talk about a boycott and step up their business. If anything, then it seems…
The overuse of “This is your last chance” annoys me. Last means there are no other chances beyond it. If I do not act now, then I have to accept the penalty for the rest of eternity that I could have taken the offer but failed to do so. However, when someone is trying to…
Flash Boys: A Wall Street Revolt by Michael Lewis My rating: 5 of 5 stars This book is really the story of why and how IEX was created. Humans made bad decisions. So, to protect people from other people, we moved the operation of the stock market to being run by computers. The natural consequence…
An advertisement for a Porsche plug-in hybrid really fails. First, Porsche was old and lame by high school. Lotus, Lamborghini, Ferrari, and so many other car companies come ahead. Second, I do not have a job where an ostentatious car helps me. Third, I cannot keep my mobile phone properly charged. A plug-in hybrid is not the…
As an information technology professional, when a web site has performance problems, I sigh, gnash my teeth, and gripe just like everyone else. However, twenty minutes later I realize I have been there and feel bad for those having to deal with the mess. Also, should I feel hurt that I am not among the…
In this day and age, I find it surprising enormous corporations have not figured the difference in the perception of a fee vs a discount. Adding a fee causes consumer uproar. They feel the faceless no good bully is trying to make money unfairly. Even people who probably will avoid ever paying the fee on…
Maybe this is why I do not work in sales. Maybe this is why I should never go into management. Bragging about a potential customer selecting my product or service over another seems like a really stupid thing to do. The potential customer announcing the selection of something over another is okay to me. The…
There is a video of soldiers returning from Afghanistan irritated about having to pay out of pocket for bags they thought were allowed under the government contract with Delta Airlines. At the time, Delta’s understanding of the contract was First or Business class could carry four bags. Economy class could carry three. Because of this,…
Higher education is very litigious. Students sue universities over encroaching on personal beliefs. People who fail to get accepted sue over discrimination or reverse discrimination. Employees claim wrongful termination. Publishers claim copyright infringement. Software companies battling over patents. Equal funding of historically black colleges and universities to non-black counterparts. We are involved in selecting a new…