If banks won't make loans, if they won't issue letters of credit, how will the economy function? How will commerce take place without these fundamental components and tools of the trade that have enabled trade between parties who are generally unfamiliar with each other?

If the economy breaks down due to lack of trust, and the credit instruments in wide use cease to exist, does that mean we will have to rebuild the world economy and in doing so indeed finally have the "New Economy" as proclaimed, but never materialized, during the Dot Com era?

Is it possible that electronic transactions and the Internet play vital roles in actually solving the problem? Do we really need letters of credit to facilitate cross border transactions and shipment of goods or could the same type of third party escrow service Ebay buyers use come to the rescue?

Sorry. Shameless rip from ReadWriteWeb...

Per me e per tutti coloro che gestiscono siti web o portali di vario tipo  è necessario allarmarsi oppure no?

Quale sarà il futuro del Web 2.0?

Speriamo bene...

We have tremors, then major aftershocks.

And we have Anthony Bolton, President of Fidelity Fund Managers, saying in the FT Money section (things are so bad that people are reading the Money sections - see below!), that he's not been more optimistic in years. See 'We've seen the bottom of the abyss'.

We might be riding through mental hell, but there seems to be a sense that we are getting settled with the uncertainty, that there can't possibly be any more uncertainty, that 2009 is already written off, that the Bank of England, Feds and Governments are in the process of taking extraordinary, bedazzling steps. But, at least, action is underway.

So, it's right to call the bottom. And, while the whole system seems to be creaking. The statistics of BIG start to look very attractive. Because you can start small, start low, start from the minus-zone. And, any move in the positive direction will register big percentage hikes up.

You start when the tide has gone out, the waves have sucked out all the water... and a sense that there must be some swishing, gushing jet to ride back up the beach of capitalism. So, timing is key to the Next Big Thing.

There are many articles about winners and losers. I'm mentally preparing for pain a-plenty all round, because it only seems fair that the pain is widespread. But, as with other water analogies... Archimedes Principle holds true: displacement. If people aren't using cars, they are getting their bike repaired. If they aren't buying Champagne, they will still treat themselves to Cava. Look on the bright side. Turnip sales are up 75% at Tesco!

And, as Bolton points out, there are sectors that are oversold. He points to Media and Marketing Services. To Reed Elsevier. Buy buy buy... into the world of B2B communities...

So... to my earlier point...

In times of massive uncertainty, people devour news. And, Barry Diller has tried to show impeccable timing with the launch of The Daily Beast, headed by editorial doyen (or is that dinosaur?) Tina Brown, who described the internet as Terra Incognita before she was hired to Da Beast. She looks to me to be trying to do 'The Week' online before Felix Dennis has got there. (Only, I love The Week because it's print!!!)

As earlier on Opencast, I say that Barry Diller has spotted that the web is turning into TV channels... and he's packaging up demographics... so The Daily Beast is staking out an audience space in the Baby Boomer age group (my mum, I think that means... particularly if they have elderly Andrew Neil blogging!). I'm not betting against it, but it all looks a bit pre-RSS and post-Huffington Post if you ask me...

Timing... yes, timing...

Out of options:  Rising prices are forcing elders to make difficult choices with their money

"When I retired nine years ago, things weren't too bad," said 69-year-old widower Stephen Sanick, who lost a hand in an industrial accident years ago and two toes to diabetes last November. "Now, I have to watch my pennies. The gasoline prices are knocking the daylights out of me, and my money isn't going as far as it used to at the grocery store. What used to cost me $12 or $13 now costs me $20."

As they field calls from elders anxious about the economy, advocates for the poor fear many of the region's most vulnerable seniors will face even tougher decisions in the coming months. Buy needed medications, or pay the heating bill? Patch the leaky roof, or pay the mortgage?

Local social service agencies say thousands of seniors are living in fear, worried about how they'll make ends meet on scant pensions and Social Se curity checks during the cold weather months ahead.

"We're getting hundreds of phone calls each month from seniors who need help with medical bills, heating bills, shelter, even clothing," said Rosanne DiStefano, executive director of Elder Services of the Merrimack Valley Inc., a nonprofit agency working to help elders remain in their own homes. The agency serves seniors in 23 communities stretching from Dunstable to Amesbury.

"The people we serve are not living off retirement plans," said DiStefano. "These are people who get by on Social Security and scant savings. Until now, they've managed to keep their heads above water, but as the costs of basic necessities continue to escalate, we're seeing unprecedented levels of fear and anxiety."

Such fears are driving many seniors back into the labor force. Today, more than 6 million workers are 65 or older, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. And over the next decade, the number of 55-and-up workers is expected to rise at more than five times the rate of the overall workforce, the federal agency reported.

"Years ago, folks would retire and, six months later, they'd go out and get part-time jobs to have something to do," said Susan Cripps, a counselor with the SHINE (Serving the Health Information Needs of Elders) program, who helps seniors across the Merrimack Valley navigate the complex world of Medicare. "Now, we're seeing a lot of seniors getting jobs to supplement their income. This seems to be especially true for older women who typically stayed home to raise their children and didn't put much into their retirement plans, or didn't have retirement plans at all."  

But for elders like Sanick who suffer serious health problems, returning to the 9-to-5 grind is not an option. Instead, they're being forced to delay home repairs or rethink their lifestyle. Some seniors are clipping coupons or carpooling. Others are finding they must change their eating habits in order to rein in costs at the supermarket.

"A lot of elders rely on frozen dinners and prepared foods, because of the convenience they offer, but with the cost of food going up and up, they're finding they have to do more of their own food preparation," said Martha Cashins, who owns and operates a Home Instead Senior Care franchise that helps 80 elderly clients in more than 30 Essex County communities from Andover to Salisbury maintain a safe and independent lifestyle. "We try to help our clients in any way that we can, from taking them to medical appointments and the movies, to helping them with meal preparation or finding a handyman to make minor home repairs."

In the most desperate cases, frail elders are playing Russian roulette with their health. Barbara Howes, 73, a widow, went without her prescription medications last year in order to keep the heat on in her Haverhill apartment. She ended up in the hospital. This year, in hopes of averting a similar scenario, she's applying for fuel assistance.

People are living longer lives these days than we used to. This means that many adults who themselves are approaching retirement are responsible for the care of elderly parents. There are two major ways in which these adults often have to assist their aging parents: financially and through caregiving.

Financially, many elderly people find themselves in a tight position. They don’t have enough money to continue living in their home and paying their bills. They often have to move in with their adult children because they simply can’t pay to support themselves on a fixed income. Alternatively, adults with parents in situations like these may be responsible for assisting parents in figuring out their financial options (such as helping them to get a reverse mortgage loan) or they may need to help pay some of the parents’ bills.

In addition to financial assistance, these adults often have to provide some care for their parents as they age. Some will get caregiver training to care for the parent in the home. Getting some basic caregiver education from a place that is skilled in training in home care providers can greatly assist these adults in figuring out how to appropriately care for aging parents into the later years of life.

The history of how America treated it's elderly is described in this comprehensive special feature that takes elder care from 1776 to the 1980s.

History of Long Term Care

Elder financial abuse has become a hidden national epidemic

AoA Joins Launch of Aging with Dignity National Call to Action Campaign

The National Center on Elder Abuse (NCEA)

Elders Rights & Resources

AoA has a strong commitment to protecting the rights of seniors. Our community-based long-term care programs allow millions of seniors to age in place with dignity. AoA also supports a range of activities at the state and local level designed to prevent elder fraud and abuse, inform seniors of their rights, and help them to make end-of-life decisions.

Elder Rights & Resources:

• Elder Abuse
• Health Insurance Counseling
• Legal Assistance
• Long Term Care Ombudsman Program
• Preventing Fraud and Abuse

How to Find Help:

• Eldercare Locator
• State and Area Agencies on Aging
• Health and Aging Organizations

How to Find Help Resources: (Other Links):

• USA.gov - The official U.S. gateway to all government information
• Social Security Administration - (ssa.gov) – Link to information on Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits.
• Medicare – Link to information on Medicare
• Veterans Administration - (va.gov)– Link to the programs and services offered by the U.S. Veterans Administration
• Nursing Home Compare - Link provides detailed information about the performance of every Medicare and Medicaid certified nursing home in the country.
• National Energy Assistance and Referral (NEAR) project – NEAR provides information on where individuals can apply for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). Toll-free phone number is 1-866-674-6327 or send an e-mail to energyassistance@ncat.org
• State Resource Directory on Elder Abuse Prevention

The failed mortgage buying company had been trying to foreclose on 90-year-old Addie Polk of Akron, Ohio, when the woman shot herself last week to avoid being evicted from her home. In an effort to mitigate the bad publicity that followed, Fannie Mae forgave Polk's loan and signed the necessary paperwork to give her legal possession of her house. But that created a new problem.

"We have been besieged with phone calls from homeowners who have a mortgage with us," said Fannie Mae spokesman Brian Faith. "They want their loans forgiven as well, and feel they are being discriminated against because they haven't injured themselves in desperation over their financial situation. By law, Fannie Mae cannot discriminate."

Faith went on to say that the mortgage company will offer a detailed payment plan in which homeowners will be allowed to substitute self-inflicted injuries in exchange for mortgage payments.

"We are finalizing the details, but the injury payment plan will work something like this," he began. "Homeowners who shoot themselves and miss vital organs will be forgiven for 10 years worth of mortgage payments. Those who stab themselves and miss vital organs may deduct five years worth of payments. Cutting off an arm or leg is equal to three years worth, while severing a finger is equal to two monthly payments."

Critics of the plan say that it doesn't cover a successful suicide attempt.

"Apparently Fannie Mae discriminates against the dead," said financial expert Anthony DeFazio. "That is blatantly unfair."

But most homeowners were happy to hear about the new plan.

"I only have ten years worth of payments left on my Fannie Mae mortgage," said Luke Kimball of Rochester, New York. "I'm debating whether to go for a couple of stabbings or just shoot myself and get it over with. I feel much better about the economy now."

(Photo by AgnosticPreachersKid, Wikipedia)

WASHINGTON - New evidence from former United States officials reveals that Osama bin Laden and other al-Qaeda leaders were able to skip Afghanistan for Pakistan unimpeded in the first weeks after September 11, 2001, as the George W Bush administration failed to plan to block their retreat.

Top administration officials instead gave priority to planning for war with Iraq, leaving the United States with not nearly enough troops or strategic airlift capacity to close the large number of possible exit routes through the Afghanistan-Pakistan border area where Bin Laden escaped in late 2001.

Even after September 11, Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz and Vice President Dick Cheney continued to resist any military engagement in Afghanistan, because they were hoping for war against Iraq instead.

Bush's top secret order of September 17 for war with Afghanistan also directed the Pentagon to begin planning for an invasion of Iraq, according to journalist James Bamford's book Pretext for War.

Cheney and Rumsfeld pushed for a quick victory in Afghanistan in NSC meetings in October, as recounted by both Woodward and Undersecretary of Defense Douglas Feith. Lost in the eagerness to wrap up the Taliban and get on with the Iraq War was any possibility of preventing Bin Laden's escape to Pakistan.  [full article]

Consider the costs...

• $4,681 per household.
• $1,721 per person.
• $341.4 million per day.

Bush never blinked.  His single minded obsession with a pre-planned agenda, at any cost, has caused more grief per ordinary person since the Great Depression.  Collateral Damage is inconsequential when you are myopic.

We, the people, all knew this, but were blocked from investigating by politicians and their lap dog media.  They called us conspiracy nuts.  We'll see the tear in this cloak of secrecy open up more and more over the next few months.  When the administration changes in January, depending on who wins, the deception should rip wide open.  But, if McCain wins, we will have to wait a little longer to get prosecutable evidence.  Be sure, McCain will continue the cover up.  McCain is the Bush Manchurian Candidate who has been brainwashed with necessary rhetoric to suspend serious probing.  On the subject of brainwashing, we have enough scientific evidence that PTSD is a by-product of encarceration and torture.  The other by-product is suggestability.  Ideas, responses and attitudes can be embedded while someone is in an altered state, these mental manipulations can sprout sponaneously with subtle triggers, even years later.  If the CIA was active with Project MKULTRA, don't you think that the North Vietnamese, with Russia's assistance, was doing the same thing?  This is what McCain was exposed to.

Now, we have a Presidential Candidate that is too close to inheriting the economic meltdown caused by deception and disinformation.  Glaring disregard for the collateral damage caused by out of control war spending, mostly unaccountable, is bankrupting America and it's foreign investors.  The single minded obsession with oil has resulted in today's global economic crisis.  McCain has become a willing participant in this obsession.  Pandering to the public's most irrational fears to pave the way for personal gain, and out of control corruption is tyranny.  The "axis of evil" sits right here in Washington DC.  Are we still on the PNAC timeline?  Was this part of the plan?..

1. The idea of limits has been ignored for decades

2. Democracy promotes irresponsibility

3. Only-one-economy possible.

4. Domino effects abound.

5. Either/or instead both/and.

6. Infantilizez consumerism and waste production.

7. Thinking within the box.

8.Consumerism and alienation.

9. System size- control and compass lost.

10. Its time to think a new science of economics.

I think is worth toread for all of you. Even if i adisagree with some of his text.

List of stock market crashes

Undecided Voters Are Gloomier About Economy, Lean Toward Obama to Fix It

... raising the stakes: The demise of Washington Mutual Inc., the largest banking failure in U.S. history, sent a fresh message to Washington of the fragility of the financial system.In a sign of the extraordinary tension, at one point in the afternoon Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson interrupted a small gathering of Democratic leaders at the White House with a plea for them not to say anything that might blow up the troubled deal, according to three people familiar with the matter. In doing so, the Treasury secretary got down on one knee, a gesture that one of these people described as a moment of levity in a rough day.

In pratica si riscontra l'addio della supremazia Usa su internet. Gli argomenti chiave sono due: la perdita di controllo dei dati e del traffico internet, una perdita di controllo e di visione a lungo termine da parte delle imprese statunitensi del settore. Questo proprio quando inizia a diventare consistenza la concorrenza di imprese di altri continenti, quelle cinesi in primis.

Se fino a a pochi anni fa, il web era una faccenda quasi esclusivamente a stelle e strisce che manteneva il suo cuore a New York e San Francisco (da lì passava la maggior parte del traffico digitale mondiale), oggi non è più così.

Citando da un articolo correlato della stampa: "Una situazione di cui gli Usa beneficiavano non solo dal punto di vista commerciale, ma anche da quello politico e militare, se è vero che nel 2006 il direttore della Cia Michael Hayden ammise che era come se gli Stati Uniti giocassero “in casa” la partita globale delle telecomunicazioni, “un grande vantaggio assolutamente da conservare”. Magari anche attraverso accordi tra le agenzie di intelligence e i big provider per intercettare e controllare tutto questo mare di informazioni, come rivelato nel 2005 dal New York Times."

Il professore Andrew Odlyzko dell’Università del Minnesota e censore del traffico online globale, parla chiaro. Se fino a dieci anni fa il settanta per cento di tutti i dati che circolavano su Internet passava per gli Usa, oggi quella percentuale è scesa al venticinque. E continua a erodersi, con una progressione che fa il pari con quella di altri indicatori sullo stato delle cose digitali.

Nel 2007, Technorati ha dichiarato finita la supremazia della lingua inglese sul web. L’idioma più usato nei diari online è diventato il giapponese. L’inglese scende al secondo posto, seguito dal cinese.

La Cina sarà la dominatrice del futuro. A luglio, Pechino ha staccato Washington nella quantità di utenti web: 253 milioni contro 220. Con una differenza significativa se si considera che in Nord America la penetrazione di Internet è ormai superiore al settanta per cento, con una crescita quindi praticamente al minimo, in Cina è connesso solo un cittadino su cinque, le potenzialità di crescita cinesi sono elevatissime. Nei prossimi mesi, insomma, il distacco aumenterà.

L'aspetto più preoccupante, tuttavia, è quello della crisi dell’innovazione. Per la prima volta nuvole si addensano sulla Silicon Valley, l’area a sud di San Francisco che ha fatto da culla non solo a Internet ma a tutte le delizie tecnologiche che compongono la società digitale in cui viviamo oggi. L’ultimo campanello d’allarme lo ha suonato Judy Estrin, 53 anni, ex-responsabile del settore high tech di Cisco, con il libro “Closing the Innovation Gap”.

Il motore dell’innovazione sembra dare segnali di inceppamento: calano gli investimenti e si offusca persino quel sacro concetto di “visione a lungo termine” che è storico cavallo di battaglia dell’imprenditoria americana. La paura e la crisi finanziaria si fanno sentire.

Intanto i temuti rivali asiatici aprono i loro rubinetti di investimenti nel settore tecnologico e sviluppano nuove cittadelle dell’innovazione grazie al ritorno in patria di quegli scienziati mandati a studiare proprio in America (come avviene nel caso dell’India).

Solo dieci anni fa, alla fine del ventesimo secolo, il timone delle nuove tecnologie era saldamente in mano agli Stati Uniti. Oggi non sono in pochi che iniziano a dubitare che sarà così anche alla fine del ventunesimo. Il sistema americano sembra attraversare una crisi a tutto tondo.

While the west has seen tremendous change in the past 300 years, their commanding heights of the economy have never been contested like this, their ability to perceive the next step, or even to dictate the next step is eroding. With hundreds of millions of new factors in the world stage its impossible not to have volatility. Volatility is the new normal. The "New Economy" is not just based on continuous growth through normal circumstances, but continuous growth because of unusual ones. Welcome to the new world, the new economy, the new normal.

Our main effort in the professional life is to give birth to our own self and our excellence is something that we now invite by the state we become. Don't you think we need to continuously explore our own potential and create things for the benefits of our own domain? 

The world economy is undergoing a fundamental structural change driven by both globalization and the revolution in information & communication technology (ICT). A superior economic structure is arising for the new industrial revolution known as 'New Economy'. Knowledge gap is widening the inequalities as the outlook is dramatically transforming the business world. The change is compelling everyone to participate in the transformation process; the message is loud and clear; industry which is able to adapt global trends will eventually outperform its expectations.

We are all passing through a very dynamic era that sets new rule for survival in business life. We need to increase our adaptability to accept changes both in attitude and content. We have to build our own network for existence as loneliness means death. Amidst all the mysteries by which the corporate world is surrounded in the new economy, nothing is more certain than the fact that it is ever in the presence of an unexplored and infinite knowledge base from which all things proceed. Modern economy is coming to think of organizational excellence as dwelling in its professionals rather than as operating on them by the organization. Professionals have to explore the source of the knowledge base, exploit it for growth. His potential finds the power behind this knowledge and locates it within him. This is the secret of the wonderful creative power of the "World Within" responsible for the formation of “world without”.

It is even more important to the business sectors that have yet to share the benefits of the New Economy. Will there be any benefits, and if so, how can they be achieved? That creates the slogan of the new economy – thrive, do not just survive.

Presentation on the Roadmap

Leave your suggestions on presentation here 

Kevin Kelly’s brilliant essay on New Rules for the New Economy has this to say:

“As power flows away from the center, the competitive advantage belongs to those who learn how to embrace decentralized points of control.”

“As fortunes are made by training machines to be ever more efficient, there is yet far greater wealth to be had by unleashing the inefficient discovery and creation of new opportunities!”

Step up into the future of enterprise !

A number of different paths seem to be converging again, paths that have traveled separately - although always connected - for some years. Many eyes are shifting again to the “new generation entrepreneurs.” By new generation, we do not necessarily refer to a reflection of age. New generation entrepreneurs in a downturn can also be those whose spark of vision, daring spirit and sense of adventure lead them to open up their own shop rather then spend more time working for their employer.

Politicians, economists, financial institutions and many other individuals and organizations are suddenly all-ears to the latest buzz among small business owners. News in both mainstream and online media report on the percentages of new businesses that are started and other valuable statistics that creates an environment in which being part of this “New Generation Entrepreneurs” can actually open you up to exciting opportunities.

Emerging markets, globalization, convergence of technologies and industries, and ubiquitous connectivity, all these have changed many aspects of business. They have also changed the nature of consumers. We have consumers who are informed, networked, active and global. At the same time these events have changed the nature of companies. Today firms can fragment their value chain in ways that they could not have done before. Not just the physical products, but the intellectual part of my company - the business processes, management processes, including research and development, engineering - all that can be fragmented. Businesses today, is not restricted to one geographic location, various aspects of its operations can be located and managed from anywhere. 

Economic experts believe small businesses will help the world to a more positive economic plateau again as they go in for the much needed rebound and come forward to create new wealth !

Now for the questions -- how do you manage to start out in this environment, or expand your business in different geographic regions? Where CAN you find funding? How can you leverage new technologies, media and marketing? All of these topics are part of the E.Factor half-day conference in New York on the 10th September - Titled: "New Economy: Do or Die" - this is one afternoon you should mark in your diaries. The sessions are topbilled by Fred Seibert of NextNewNetworks, Tom De Bruyne of BoonDoogle, and Robert C. Raciti of GE Commercial Finance. Howard Greenstein of Harbrooke Group, a social media strategist and evangelist will be the moderator.

]]> http://ilsarcotrafficante.wordpress.com/?p=119 Fri, 22 Aug 2008 11:37:08 +0000 ilsarcotrafficante http://ilsarcotrafficante.it.wordpress.com/2008/08/22/facebook-delle-mie-brame-chi-e-il-scemo-del-reame/

Non so come stiate messi a Social network, ma io piuttosto imbrigliato.
Da un bel pò, però, mi sono concentrato totalmente su FACEBOOK; gli altri profili li lascio vagare nel cyberspazio senza curarli più di tanto. Dopo 1 mese di FB, avevo già ricontattato: tutti gli amici delle elementari, medie e liceo; gli amici del camposcuola di quando avevo 14 anni (si, ahimè, facevo il camposcuola CATTOLICO..non è il massimo per un ebreo, però ci si drogava bene); i miei parenti dell'australia e dell'argentina (scroccherò sicuramente qualche viaggetto); i miei ex colleghi di lavoro di Madrid. Insomma, ho rimpiguato la mia rete di amicizie in modo tale da rimanere sempre connesso.

Facebook è un ottimo strumento per una serie di obiettivi.

1. Ricontattare gli old friends,
2. Trovare lavoro (sto cercando di contattare Rocco Siffredi),
3. Rimorchiare (amore, non è il mio caso! Mi dicono così..)
4. Fare nuove amicizie (non rimorchio-oriented),
5. Organizzare eventi pazzi (tipo l'incendia-lucchetto party a Ponte Milvio),
6. Trovare oggetti introvabili (il vibratore Rabbit è ormai introvabile!),
7. Controllare il partner e i propri figli (amore, non lo faccio. Credici.).

Peraltro, Facebook ultimamente ha superato anche myspace come contatti mensili, per cui è diventato decisamente più cool da utilizzare. Anche se m'iniziano un pò ad insospettire quelle pubblicità che mi appaiono al lato del profilo, perchè sembrano TROPPO dirette a me. Insomma, mi sembra di stare nel film, Minority Report, dove i cartelloni pubblicitari animati ti chiamano per nome. Non a caso, FB recentemente ha avuto parecchi problemi legati alla privacy; ed il fatto che Microsoft gli stia ronzando attorno non fa ben sperare.

Insomma,
Facebook: cool o presa per il cool?

I'm constantly amazed at the number of Chinese tourists here. I understand that with the new economy many people are now able to afford to travel and see a lot of their own country that they could never have imagined seeing even a few years ago. I find that tourists are tourists no matter what their origin. And you know what? The local tourists buy all the same tourist junk as the rest of us![gallery]

Traditional brick and mortar stores that have built a reputation on what they know are dying.  They fight and scratch and claw at the internet moguls to try and steal back what they used to own.  And yet they know that they can't do anything about it.  They can't change, much less influence, anything about the "new economy".

In a social sense, the web has connected people, and will continue to connect people, in ways that were never before possible.  If you have the time, I would invite you to check out this video of a presentation by Michael Wesch about YouTube/Web 2.0 communities.  It is a powerful commentary on where we are, and where we are going as an online society.

It is strange to think that the rules are changing every day.  But with the internet, nothing is constant.  There is nothing that is out of reach, and nothing that cannot be created.  In a world without limits, who can tell you when to stop.  Innovation is at it's height right now.  But it will be higher tomorrow.  Each new day will be the peak of innovation in the history of the world.  So what are you doing about it?

Of course, the average income was less than $5,000 per year but nevertheless living expenses back then were a lot cheaper than today.

(Yes, I'm probably older than most of you reading this article)…J

The Problem...

It's becoming increasingly more difficult to make ends meet in today's economy with food prices going sky high and $4.00 a gallon gas. As one can plainly see, a person making $15 per hour, working forty hours a week, will bring home about $480.00 after all deductions. After paying rent or house payment, making car payment,

buying food and all other necessities, the week’s pay is usually gone before the week is…

The above scenario usually will not allow for a simple vacation, taking the family out to dinner or any of the normal family activities that each and every one of us expect and yes, deserve...It's been widely reported that the biggest problems in most families start with financial problems.

Fear not, there is a solution, and it can solve your financial problems, abeit not overnight.

The Solution...Online Success...

Those families that can afford a computer, (which somehow most families can), are moving toward finding ways to earn extra money, and sometimes a full time income online...For most of those individuals however, (about 97%), online success becomes much more difficult than they have been lead to believe...

This is almost always directly related to lack of online success education...In other words, Most folks don't do the research or don't gain the knowledge required to successfully choose and market the right opportunity that suits them...You must first realize that online success will not happen overnight. It's not a sprint, it's a marathon. 

You must however, choose the right program or business that will start you off the first month by providing enough income to properly market your new online success business, to keep your out of pocket expenses to a minimum...

Sometimes this strategy will include what I call a "Funded Proposal". in other words

a very inexpensive or free way to fund your main online success business. This usually will be something other than your main business...Something that you can give away free.

This will provide you with a minimum income, but enough to fund your main online success business...

You will find more information about my best “Funded Proposal” at the end of this article…

It's free and it works very well...

Once you decide to become involved in your very own online success, and find that "just right business", Your financial freedom and your time freedom will be your biggest rewards.

The income from your online success business will become endless. Your personal rewards will be a great as you want them to be. As a matter of fact, if you have chosen the right business for your online success, you will not be able to stop it unless you decide, for whatever reason, that you've made enough money or you chosen online success business simply goes out of business...

If that should happen, you will have, by this time, positioned yourself to becoming just as successful with another program or company and continue on with your online success future...

To Your Abundant Success.

Sam Beach

*****************************************************************************************************************

About the author

Sam Beach has been an online marketer for over 7 years, becoming successful only after several failures. Things turned around for Sam after realizing that, "going it alone" was going to take some time...

Some of the programs that are currently working for Sam are:

 http://www.extraez.net

http://www.3000ot.com

http://www.customprofits.com

**************************************************************************************************

There's a terrific article in the August issue of GQ Magazine titled, "Congratulations, You're Fired!" by Cecil Donahue.

For anyone working in the new, new economy, this article is a must read. Be sure to keep a pad nearby so you can scribble notes. You may need them one day.

Here's a quick snapshot of the first paragraph and a link to the article:

"A few days ago while hauling my sorry ass to work, I ran into my old pal Tim. I hadn't seen him in a while and was shocked by his appearance. He looked great, all loose-limbed and smiley -- a far cry from the ashen-faced, clench-jawed bundle of nerves I'd grown accustomed to. I asked him if he'd lost some weight. Nope. Been working out? Nuh-uh. Back from vacation? Negatory. What then, gave him the right to be so chipper on a Monday morning? 'I got fired last week,' he said..."

http://www6.mygazines.com/articles/view/25089

The Long Tail: Why the Future of Business is Selling Less of More

Chris Anderson’s The Long Tail has been heralded as a brilliant era-defining business book. Many of the most visible leaders and academics in the internet industry—Eric Schmidt from Google, Jeff Bezos from Amazon, and Lawrence Lessig from Stanford Law School (to name just a few)—sing praises for Anderson’s great insight on how the internet is causing a shift in traditional economic models.

The premise of The Long Tail is that the internet has had, and will continue to have, a significant impact on twenty first century economics due to the democratization of production and distribution and the immense “reach” made possible through search. This democratization, according to Anderson, means greater opportunity for niche markets and less emphasis blockbuster-like hits optimized for lowest-common denominator appeal.

In his introduction, Anderson, who happens to be editor at Wired, offers an intriguing comparison between our culture’s historical focus on hit machine measurement tools such as box-office sales, platinum records and Nielsen TV ratings and today’s youth reality of computers, connectivity and search engine technology, making it possible to find virtually any type of content no matter how obscure in content or location. This is the basis for his theory that the growth if niche markets will lessen the economic importance of big hits. This thinking is the foundation for the Long Tail theory.

Anderson defines Long Tail content as books, music and film not available in big-brand retail stores such as Walmart, Hollywood Video and Barnes and Noble. Anderson makes the point that Long Tail content reflects between 21% and 40% of sales from big-brand online stores such as Netflix, Amazon and iTunes. Without the physical limitation of shelf-space and zero-cost inventory, these retailers are able to make it economically feasible to play to niche markets by offering more choice. The idea being that the aggregate revenue from the “Tail” rivals the revenue generated from selling “big hit” content.

The book excels at discussing economics and the Long Tail concept in simple-to -understand terms—no MBA required. And, as with most successful products, the concept has been well branded, enabling it to be easily integrated into New Economy vernacular.

However, the “newness” of the The Long Tail concept and its market-changing impact is somewhat questionable. Additionally, a fundamental argument to TLT theory—the growth of the Long Tail diminishes our culture’s appetite for “big hits’—is not well substantiated. In fact Anderson contradicts himself on this point.

Long Tail businesses have always been part of our economic structure. But instead of Long Tail, we’ve used terms like specialty store, boutique or small business. Granted, until the advent of the web and search engines these LT v1.0 businesses were visible mostly at the local level. But their impact on the economy has always been significant. An FAQ from the Small Business Association notes that small businesses (Long Tail) represents 99.7% of all employer firms, employs half of all private sector employees, pay more than 45% of the total US private payroll and more than half of non-farm private GDP. (See http://app1.sba.gov/faqs/faqIndexAll.cfm?areaid=24)

The notion that hits “are not quite the economic force they once were” (p.2) is at best overstated. Anderson himself admits to not really understand the impact the Long Tail has on blockbusters. This is evident by the contradictions throughout the book. Chapter two implies the “hit era” is dead, yet chapter nine begins “Hits, like it or not, are here to stay.” It appears the opening is less about truth than about making a provocative statement to capture readers’ interest.

It’s true that less people may go see a movie like Iron Man in the theatre and therefore create the perception that blockbuster movies are losing their appeal, as measured by box office sales. But what about the people who will watch the movie at second-run theatres, rent (or buy) the DVD or click the “buy” button on cable pay-per-view? For example, the movie information site The Numbers www.the-numbers.com notes that Pirates of the Caribbean was the fourth most popular movie of 2007 with approximately 45 million tickets sold at the box office. The Pirates of the Caribbean DVD ranked #1 among DVD sales with 13,699,490 copies sold. Adding the two together, The Pirates of the Caribbean was actually the second most popular movie of the year behind Spider Man, not the fourth as the box office numbers would suggest. Note that this data does not reflect DVD rental or pay-per-view statistics that, added in, could result in Pirates taking the number one spot. Arguably Anderson applies outdated measurement methods to support his new economy theory (p.37).

And, despite the growth of the Pro-Am culture (p.60), there is still the reality of pure financial ambition. VCs want to bet on a winner, often using volume of traffic as an early indicator. Hollywood thrives on what’s the next big blockbuster formula. And most musicians would jump at the opportunity to play for a large audience. Anderson’s story about his former colleague Peter Acuni and the rise in popularity of his band, Birdmonster, is such an example. The band had to prove they had an audience as they were building an audience, “club owners . . . need to know that you’ll be able to attract a crowd.” The band was highly successful in online community building, giving them the much-needed credibility to secure live gigs and get noticed by label executives. Eventually Acuni left Wired because he could make enough money as a musician due to the growth of Birdmonster’s fan base. Selling “onesies and twosies” offers siginificant financial opportunity for the large aggregators such as Amazon, Rhapsody and eBay. But it doesn’t necessarily foster financial success for the individual artist or merchant.

One point Anderson could have made is that the Tail potentially means greater variety and wealth diversification at the Head, because artists and merchants no longer need to share earnings with the likes of big movie studios, record labels or publishing houses.

Ultimately, though, The Long Tail concept is fascinating and reflects the increased opportunity for musicians, authors, film makers and anyone who has something to share or sell. The promise of discovering a never-heard-of-before book, film or pair of shoes that can't be found on retail shelves is both completely exciting and a possibly a bit overwhelming. The question is: Will people have time to enjoy all the abundance?

Spesso si parla dell'Era dell'Informazione da cui ne deriva la cosidettà società delle reti ma cosa si intende più precisamente!!?!

Per spiegare questa evoluzione inizierei ha definire la Net_Economy o New_Economy, precisando che non è l'economia delle aziende che usano internet, quanto il modello di business e il network informatico, i quali diventano indispensabili a livello organizzativo e operativo.
In questo il Networking diventa un elemento cruciale della società dell'informazione, comprendendo aziende, persone, media e governi: si tratta in pratica di una comunicazione flessibile organizzata da tecnologie informali. Internet non è solo una tecnologia ma diventa quindi un mezzo tecnologico fondamentale, ridefinendo a sua volta due tipi di identità, quella collettiva e quella individuale.
E' bene che le imprese capiscano che nella realtà è inimmaginabile che l'economia possa mantenere per sempre un livello costante o crescente di produttività, l'introduzione di nuove tecnologie porta un aumento di rendimento delineando 3 fattori importanti:  organizzazione reticolare, risorse umane adeguate e capacità d'innovazione dell'azienda. Il cambio di paradigma porta ad incanalare i profitti negli investimenti piuttosto che sui consumi, in quanto la materia prima della New_Economy sono il know how e il settore dell'R&D (per questo oggi ci si è concentrati molto sul tema dell'innovazione); l'aumento di produttività è visto e deve poter interessare non solo le singole aziende ma anche l'intero panorama imprenditoriale del Paese. Le imprese devono essere capaci di coniugare know how e talento se vogliono generare innovazione, ma il Know how dipende a sua volta da 2 fattori che sono il sistema universitario e l'immigrazione, in questo caso si tratta di operare una scelta tra i due.

Il messaggio che viene lanciato è il seguente:
L'economia può svilupparsi attraverso l'innovazione (eliminazione degli sprechi, adozione di processi più “verdi”, uso di fonti energetiche alternative....) il potenziamento dell'R&D ecc, ma bisognerà creare un rapporto fiduciario tra società civile e mercato in un'ottica di espansione glo-cale.

Per completare il processo di trasformazione manca un ultimo elemento: la rivoluzione dello spazio, che riguarda in primis noi stessi inglobando anche le città fino ad espandersi oltre. In tutto questo i veri protagonisti non sono le tecnologie come si potrebbe pensare, ma bensì le persone e quindi dallo sviluppo sociale che dipende appunto dalla capacità di stabilire un'iterazione sinergica tra innovazione tecnologica e valori umani capace di sviluppare un nuovo modello di economia sostenibile; dato dalle condizioni istituzionali, dalla capacità di riorganizzare le imprese e reinventando la realtà sociale che ci circonda.

(M. Castells, La città delle reti, 2004)

Ich sehe mir den Manager an, der nur einen Molotowcocktail-Wurf entfernt sitzt. Er dürfte in etwa in meiner Position arbeiten. Aber was für ein Unterschied: Er trägt jeden Tag Anzug, stets mit Krawatte. Und fast immer mit blauem Hemd, nur manchmal, da trägt er weiß, ich nehme an, er tut es immer dann, wenn Kunden oder Vorstände zu Besuch sind.

Jetzt sitzt er da, in seinem schwarzen, schweren Ledersessel, eine Pfeife in der einen Hand, eine Zeitung in der anderen. Er saugt genüsslich den Rauch ein, läßt ihn langsam aus dem Mund gleiten, sinniert dem blauen Dunst hinterher. Dann greift er sich seine Zeitung, beginnt zu lesen.

Auf seinem Schreibtisch steht ein alter Rechner, vermutlich mit Windows 2000 als Betriebssystem. Die Tür zum Vorzimmer ist geschlossen, eine Sekretärin tippt dort munter vor sich her. Vor ihr liegt ein Diktiergerät, das ich auch schon in seiner Hand gesehen habe.

Kurz: Die Szene erinnert an den typischen Büroalltag, wie ich ihn als Kind bei meinem Vater erleben durfte, wenn ich ihn besuchte. Es gibt Hierarchien und Privilegien. Zeitungen und Pfeifen. Ledersessel und Zierpflanzen. Einen Rechner, der zur Arbeit nicht unbedingt nötig ist.

Ich vergleiche: Bei mir steht ein Schreibtisch in einem kahlen Raum, dafür liegt auf ihm ein MacBookPro. Das Telephon ist alt, es wird nicht so sehr gebraucht wie der Rechner. Eine Sekretärin kümmert sich nicht nur um mich, sondern auch um die Geschäftsführer und einen anderen Bereichsleiter. Vor der Tür, die natürlich stets offen sein muß, ist ein Großraumbüro mit ständig wechselner Sitzordnung, es ist laut, aber die Leute haben auch Spaß am Chaos. Mein Sessel ist aus Stoff. Mein Anzug besteht aus einer Stone-Island-Leinenhose und einem La-Martina-Polohemd. Läse ich während der Arbeitszeit Zeitung, erntete ich merkwürdige Blicke. Allerdings stört es niemanden, wenn ich parallel zu den ganzen beruflich notwendigen Websites auch Spiegel Online, die Welt, Heise, MacRumors und ein privates Blog geöffnet habe.

Und wenn ich mit Krawatte zur Arbeit erscheine, werde ich gefragt, ob wir Kundentermine haben.

Würde ich tauschen wollen? Nein, natürlich nicht. Aber es gibt ein paar Dinge, die in der alten Geschäftswelt gar nicht so schlecht waren. Vor allem natürlich die Ledersessel und die Raucherlaubnis.

Only a "21st Century" man/woman will survive and thrive in our new economy. Let's get used to the high prices on just about everything. What that means is, we should "ramp up" our earning power to meet the demand of our living expenses. Gone are the days when we really could save money in the bank for retirement or just some simple pleasures. The 21st Century individual can ADAPT to anything. If you are the "20th Century" individual, prepare to loose the battle of living on what you make now or even retain the job you had for the past 10 years if you are lucky enough to have it. Today, you need to adapt by:

1) cross train into an industry that is robust or "recession" proof
2) start your own business for either supplemental income or the sole income
3) change the way you think about the present and the future, having an undying positive attitude is a must today
4) network with friends, collegues and relatives for your next job. It is still "who" you know that will get you the next job much sooner

Get working on new ideas and talk to other people and get their take on the economy and jobs and survival. The more you talk about it, the more ideas you will get to transform yourself to adapt to the new economy....which, by the way has not evolved yet!

Peace and Love,

Bruce

Are you ready for the green economy? Are you ready to tackle the climate crisis by building a green economy strong enough to lift people out of poverty?

Green Jobs Now is having a job fair, rally, press conference & community conversation in Des Moines.