Apollo Group Profiting from Bankruptcy

In an article in Yahoo! Finance I noticed that the Apollo Group is behind 3 of the significant bankruptcies mentioned.

Are they bad at business or do they know what they're doing? I don't know enough about business to say how one might go about sinking a business and profiting from it, but I'm sure it can be done.

election day unemployment rambling ruminations

In the midst of my current joblessness, I've been feeling a resurgence of rebelliousness. I'm being radicalized by unemployment. I can feel it happening. Of course I'm going to feel bad things towards a system that isn't currently working for me. It's the story of radicals around the world. Do you think most suicide bombers come from good economic situations?

It's a matter of national security for the US to strengthen its economy. Otherwise the likelihood of homegrown terrorism grows signficantly.

I'm suggesting that the preponderance of nontraditional work schedules is a threat to national security. Such schedules cause, continue, and exacerbate the disillusionment of workers. People with chaotic living patterns are drawn towards job with chaotic schedules ungrounded in reality. Nontraditional work schedules are bad for this country.

Everybody agrees that it's nice to have weekends and holidays off, but they're afraid to demand it. After a handful of years in the bar/restaurant industry I'm tired of working when everyone else is playing and relaxing. I got into that world because I wanted to be with people, but what it ends up doing is confining you to the shiftless, limited group of bar/restaurant people and college students and the unemployed. I mean, who else doesn't need to be up in the morning? On a Tuesday?

We've created a consumer world where we expect to be able to shop and buy things and get tech support every freakin second of the day, all week long, all year long...never stopping, never taking a break...always there.

What do we really need at all times? The cops, firefighters, EMTs, constantly aloft nuclear-armed bombers...all these things I acknowledge as needing to be at hand at all times. But is it really right to think it's OK for that cook to be grilling your steak at 10:30 PM when he should be home with his wife and kids? Is it his fault that he took the job? Or is your fault for creating the need?

The Business of Zune Musings

Came across this at Beyond Binary:

Why did Microsoft get in the Zune business? Why is it an important business to be in?
Belfiore: We think the possibilities for creating value for people around how they are entertained...is incredibly important. The potential for doing great things for people is huge. It can affect a wide range of devices, from portable devices that you carry around to devices that are hooked up to your TV to devices that look like what you think of as your PC or laptop today. We aspire to really making people's lives better in the way they are entertained. Being able to create those connections between people and get them content on whatever kind of device it is, we think is important and compelling and worth doing.

Joe Belfiore is apparently the guy in charge of the Zune for Microsoft. Whatever. I just want to pick at his words a bit.

His first response to the question of "Why is MS in this business?" is the stupendously obvious "To make money." Duh. That's what "creating value" means.

Then he says they want to do "great things". Wow. Walkmen...er iPods...er Zunes or whatever are now on the same level as feeding the poor and providing clean water for everybody. Those are great things.

The next sentence he's saying that they can defeat Apple by spreading the Microsoft...er Zune music experience across a wider and more popular selection of devices...and reach more people...and make more money. The Zune mission encompasses MP3 players, TVs, and computers. What about Zune theaters?

They want to improve people's entertainment experience. I'm all for that. Tough to pick on that one.

They want to connect people by the music they listen to and movies they watch. OK. He reiterates that their efforst are not limited to the Zune device itself. It's like Zune is Microsoft's codename for Entertainment. "We will entertain the people in every facet of their life and we will commodify it and connect people via their interests to create more profitable ad networks and virtual parties and we will call it Zune." Or is that XBox?

I'm confused.

Verizon Wireless Buying Alltel for a Bazillion Dollars

By the end of the year, AT&T's reign as the largest wireless service provider in the United States will come to an end and Verizon will ascend to the throne: Verizon Wireless Agrees to Buy Alltel for $28.1 Billion.

Engadget is a whiny baby

 Engadget recently distilled a NY Times article into a blog post, Microsoft and NBC working on copyright filters for Zune?  They go through the routine of how it's bullshit that companies are trying to protect their property, as if we have an inherent right to do whatever we want with whatever we want.  I'm mostly sympathetic to such views.  I believe in freedom, and that means I believe that people/companies have the freedom to protect their shit.  It's no more "wrong" for Microsoft to want their products to protect the rights of their clients than it is for me to want to be able to watch a movie, which I copied from you (illegally), on my media player.  Companies (and a lot of people) exist so they can make money.  Giving their products away for free or sitting idly by while people just take whatever they want doesn't make any sense.  There's not a lot of proof that illegal sharing (LOL...illegal sharing...thou shalt not share) is pilfering from the coffers of the corporations and it's impossible to totally lock down your stuff but that doesn't mean that companies are evil or foolish for wanting to try to lock down their property.  It's like not bothering to put locks on your doors because there are ninjas who can pick them.  Whatever.  I lock my doors.

And then Engadget goes on to bitch about Micro$oft and AT$T working on filtering copyrighted material at the ISP level.  I just don't get why people think that companies are evil for trying to prevent them from doing shit that's illegal.  Again, I'm not against file sharing.  I'm just against the belief that for-profit entities are wrong for attempting to maximize profit.  If you have a network that you built and paid for then you'd want to do what you want with it.  Is it so wrong for there to be forces patrolling the internet in the same way there are forces patrolling our highways trying to bust people for breaking the law?  Only the staunchest anarchist would argue that there is no good reason for the existence of police.  You don't have to be for such groups.  Do what you want to do and accept the fact that your behavior brings you enemies.  Repercussions make life fun, right?

a pin drops, mobile broadband users hear it clearly

Sprint Nextel and Clearwire are merging.

From a Sprint press release:

Sprint and Clearwire to Combine WiMAX Businesses, Creating a New Mobile Broadband Company

Intel, Google, Comcast, Time Warner Cable and Bright House Networks to Invest $3.2 Billion in Combined Company, at Target Price of $20.00 per Share

Formation of New Company Brings Together the Nation's Leaders in Communications, Technology Innovation and Entertainment

New Company to Speed Deployment of First Nationwide Next-Generation Mobile WiMAX Network

Transaction Designed to Unlock the Potential of Clearwire's and Sprint's 4G Assets

New Company to be Led by Seasoned Management Team from Clearwire and Sprint's XOHM Business Unit; Board of Directors to Include Leading Wireless and Cable Executives

Google's involved?  Cool.  That means the new company (which will be called Clearwire) will be easily accessible by the widest range of devices possible.  It'll make it easier to use the phone you want and it'll be easier for hardware and software developers to create cool new devices and applications.

Another partner in this deal that caught my eye is Bright House Networks.  Who the #@%* is Bright House?  I did a little googling and was surprised to learn that Bright House sells cable, phone, and internet service as nearby as Cantonment and Defuniak Springs.  Who knew?

Will next year's NASCAR season be dubbed the Clearwire Cup Series?