Motor City Blues

It's finally looking like blue skies for people working in the motor city.  Not long ago, General Motors was bankrupt and had to install a government bailout plan.  After just three short years, GM has paid back their bailout in full on top of their interest rates.  GM's investor press release goes into strong detail regarding capital gains in just about every category.  What I found most intriguing was all the different links to related resources that further support General Motors strong comeback.  Raising 11% in revenue since 2010, General Motors is back on top of the automotive industry with strong data to support their earnings.  The press release, named "Earnings Release" works from the ground up highlighting increases on a quarter level, regional gains as well as worldwide revenue.  Another great addition is towards the end they have a 2012 outlook, in the form of a temporary mission statement that explains their goal: Why more people should want to buy General Motors.  After living in Michigan and growing up with a father retiring from his position at one of GM's headquarters, it was hard to see the landslide happen so quickly.  However with a refreshing recovery, General Motor's earnings release reassures the public that they have their trucks in a line.

GM Earnings Release

The Attack of Blogging

Blogging as we know it is taking over the world of journalism.  It brings more opinions, less paragraphs and a constant news feed worth of information about the medium that never sleeps.  24 hour news is faster than ever and with more people blogging each day it is much easier for someone trying to find a niche they are tailored to reading.  Jason Salzman is a professional blogger with a deep emphasis on an 8-blog-per-day goal.  He often exceeds that goal explaining that in order for readers to consistently refer to your blog you must update it constantly.  Jason also mentions that fresh morning blogs with the most up to date information is key when hosting a blog as a way of saying "you heard it here first."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jason-salzman/blogging-tips_b_1385123.html?ref=media&ir=Media

TSA- Boy with Cast

THE COST OF SAFE AIR TRAVEL HAS NEVER COME AT A HIGHER PRICE.  A CHICAGO FAMILY WAS HAULTED BY T-S-A IN THE CHICAGO O'HAIR AIRPORT AFTER THEIR THREE-YEAR-OLD CHILD WAS SELECTED TO BE PATTED DOWN.  THE BOY WAS HANDICAPPED IN A WHEELCHAIR DUE TO A LEG CAST WHICH LED THE T-S-A AGENT TO SWAB THE CAST AND PAT DOWN THE BOY WITH THE HELP OF HIS OWN FATHER ONLY TO LIFT HIS SON'S SHIRT.  THE FOUR FAMILY MEMBERS WERE OUTRAGED BY THE T-S-A TAKING ACTION ON AN INJURED THREE-YEAR-OLD AS WELL AS A SENIOR CITIZEN ALL AT THE SAME TIME.  AFTER REASSURING FROM A DISTANCE THAT THE BOY WAS SAFE, T-S-A LET THE FAMILY PROCEED ON THEIR TRIP TO DISNEY WORLD. 

TSA Pats Down 3-year-old

Wireless Warzone

The article attached pertains to an issue that everyone, our generation especially, should be worried about.  Most of us have a birthday list asking for either the newest iPhone or have a good idea of when we're due for an upgrade.  What consumers have yet to discover is that, the wireless phone market is growing at a rapid pace.  This calls for maximum capacity of cellular airwaves currently tied up with MTV and other local cable networks.  So much so, Verizon has offered cable companies a large sum of money to use their unused waves whenever available, pending federal approval...

Wireless Warzone

The Evolution of Music

Chuck's Town and I are in the midst of producing a trend article about the evolution of music festivals around the world.  Below are two articles to give a brief idea of what to expect when attending these colossal super shows:

CNN's Top Music Festivals
What Does a Music Festival Say About You?

The Corner Store

Thanks to my CofC tour guide for pointing out that George Street's CVS is the highest grossing CVS in the state.  Conveniently located across Craig dorm last year, CVS hosts every flavor of Arnold Palmer you could ever imagine with the surplus of basic grocery items.

Being a resident of Craig last year had one perk: location, location, location.  What they really mean is CVS, CVS, Liberty.  If you didn't want yesterday's chicken at liberty, you went to CVS or Jimmy John's.  Walking into CVS every other day became second nature until the day they stopped carrying Arnold Palmers and rearranged the store.  The pharmacy is placed in the back which is nice so you don't have to walk through the sick patient's waiting room while purchasing Swiffer mops and M&M's.  Thankfully I only had to visit the pharmacy once for the flu and the line for shots followed by medication was a seamless, quick transition.

Kickin' on King

Chances are you've been to Kickin Chicken.  Whether your roommate needs his fix of blazing hot wings or your parents succumb to signing up for a Kickin Chicken rewards card.  I always find myself sitting in the back heated outdoor seating known as the "chicken coop."  Right at the front door you get a great feel of a sports bar atmosphere with a robust wooden bar hosting multiple demographics.  Followed by a mix of flat screens that are sure to be showing whichever March Madness game is relevant to the college town life.  My fraternity often reserves the back patio to have large dinners for basketball games or getting together for rush events.  Needless to say there's always one guy who orders sweet potato fries that still haven't made there way onto the menu.  Ask for them, they're great  Great food, great people, Kickin Chicken.

Blackout Tour Coming to Charleston

Scratch that.  Shout to Charlie over at Chuck's Town for suggesting an event long in the making. Barstool Sports, a sports blog-turned-megablog has fostered their marquee event called The Barstool Blackout Tour.  I was contacted by Barstool's event promoter back in the fall to potentially help bring the Blackout Tour to Charleston.  Unfortunately the timing wasn't right and I had trouble convincing our organization's executives that hosting this event would be a major success.  With that said, CofC's Hockey team has taken on the challenge and I am anticipating a groundbreaking concert that Charleston has never seen.  The Blackout Tour is on April 19th, 2012 at Music Farm

Get your tickets before they sell out! Click Here

In light of recent visitors staying at my house, I have decided to write an article about the American Idol auditions held a few months ago in Charleston and Savannah.  My roommate's best friend works as a Production Assistant for American Idol for two years now.  He has offered to help construct an article explaining the phenomenon from behind the scenes and what goes into building up a city for auditions.

http://www.postandcourier.com/photos/galleries/2011/jul/22/american-idol-auditions/

The Five W's: A Response

Recently I found an article I can relate to all too well.  Parents heckling coaches in youth sports.  We've all seen and heard "that family" at every game cheering on their "next Derek Jeter."

- Who     What     Where     When     Why - 

Do parents of young athletes have the right to speak up when they do not like a coaching decision? What if they yell at the game officials or bark orders at their children from the sidelines?

Patrick Hite, a columnist for The News Leader in Staunton, Va., suggests that obnoxious and outspoken parents are chasing away the best coaches from youth sports. He tells the story of Rob Bennett, a Covington High School science teacher with a master’s degree who was also the town’s mayor. But the job of boys’ basketball coach recently proved too much for Mr. Bennett, and he resigned.

Bennett and his coaching staff were questioned by parents about something after every game.

“It was either over playing time, what I said to their child on the bench, why they didn’t start, why they didn’t play in this quarter, why did you play this player because he missed practice or missed 30 minutes of practice because he went to get tutored in English, why did you keep a freshman on the varsity,” Bennett said. “It was unbelievable….”

Said Bennett, “Why am I going to be miserable doing something I love to do and, for the most part, was pretty good at?”

NY Times Article