Once there was an automaker that was struggling to reverse its years of poor performance. One could say it had to change its ways from that of a light-hearted grasshopper, hopping and sawing away in the summertime, to that of the diligent …
Archive for April, 2008
US hospitals: no insurance, no $45,000 check, no service
by Kristi Park, April 29, 2008, 7:00 amA front-page article in the Wall Street Journal yesterday highlights the common practice among US hospitals of requiring up-front payments from uninsured or under-insured patients before they’ll provide treatment.
The story describes the plight of Lisa Kelly, a Lousiana woman diagnosed with leukemia and …
A high stakes gamble in the cable television business
by Larry Bills, April 28, 2008, 7:00 amIt’s no secret that the cable television industry is going through a period of radical change. With consumers increasingly choosing different ways to get their entertainment, from video on demand services to online streaming to DVD purchases, media companies are throwing all kinds of innovative new distribution …
Jamba jumps on the breakfast bandwagon
by Barbara Murray, April 25, 2008, 8:26 amIt all started with the yogurt. Long thought an arcane, sour-ish, pudding-y substance eaten by elders in the Far East and obscure parts of Russia, US food purveyors put sugar and flavors in it, froze it up, and offered it for sale across the land at perky …
First Solar: Its shares are worth more than 2 barrels of oil
by Jeff Dorsch, April 24, 2008, 7:00 amWhen we last posted about First Solar, the thin-film solar module manufacturer’s stock had gone north of $200 a share. Now, after a few months of gyrations up and down, the stock has breached the $300 level and may be testing new highs on a …
Back in business. The Bakken Shale oil deposits
by Stuart Hampton, April 23, 2008, 6:29 amOne of the North American oil industry’s oldest and less well kept secrets is that there is a lot of oil sitting in the rocks of the Bakken Formation in the Williston Basin that spans Montana, North Dakota, and Saskatchewan.
The Bakken Formation was …
To save, or spend: That is the question facing US shoppers
by Alexandra Biesada, April 22, 2008, 6:05 amTax day has come and gone (thankfully) and the federal government is due to begin mailing economic stimulus checks to an estimated 130 million households in May. Whether you intend to spend or save your tax rebate, brace yourself for a barrage of ads and gimmicks — …
Recapping the recapitalizations at WaMu, Wachovia and more
by Ryan Caione, April 21, 2008, 6:14 amThanks to the far-reaching effects of the ongoing mortgage crisis, lenders are tightening their purse strings, private equity takeovers (so 2006) have dwindled to a trickle, and some financial services companies find themselves teetering on the brink of collapse. Yet some …
Recycling meds could benefit health care system
by Anne Law, April 18, 2008, 6:37 amBizmology fans who read my post on pharmaceutical contamination of water supplies last month may recall the suggestion that health care facilities and individuals take unused prescriptions to collection centers to help prevent the buildup of chemicals in drinking water.
A …
