Chaos and happy hour

"Today is one of those days when we have to put off happy hour for a few moments and dig into some real economics. I sure hate it when the outside world intrudes into my fun time. Ah, welcome to 2008, dear Commonwealth, which is already shaping up to be an economic humdinger..."

Here's the rest of the article...

Who holds the bag?

It's time for some straight talk about the CNMI's economic situation, so here it is. No sugar-coating here!

As an aside, I'll mention that I may offer a presentation or two on the CNMI economic situation, to include the tourism situation, for members of the private sector who are interested in such things. I'm not long-winded, so any presentation would be brief, about 30 minutes. If you're interested in attending, let me know; we've got plenty of lead time, I'll probably shoot for sometime this summer.

The peso, the dollar, and everything

As I've been saying for over a decade in the Tribune, the U.S. dollar is doomed. Here's my latest take on it. Seems like markets are, at long last, heeding reality.

E-mail purgatory

Has e-mail gone from blessing to curse? It sure seems like it sometimes.

It's a good theme to start the new year off with, so catch "E-mail purgatory" in the January 4 Saipan Tribune.

The packaging avalanche

In today's Saipan Tribune:

"The floor is littered with boxes, plastic blister packs, cardboard, greeting cards, ribbons, bubble wrap, tags, pins, bows, wrapping paper (my nemesis), polystyrene packing, plastic bags, and all the rest of it. I know I'm not the only one digging out from an avalanche of packaging and related garnishments..."

The Obsolete man

Whenever I find a product I like it is immediately discontinued. It is a recipe for derangement and financial ruin, as explained in today's Saipan Tribune: The Obsolete Man.

Digicam shopping

Digital cameras are going to be popular gifts (again), so, for aspiring Saipan Santas, I ponder the realm of camera shopping in today's Tribune.

A mighty useful information source is Steve's Digicams. On that site you'll find that the "conclusion" page for any given camera holds the most useful insights.

There's a lot to digest in that site, so here are three good pages to start off with:

6- to 7-megapixel cameras

8- to 10-megapixel cameras

Steve's Best Cameras list

On a related note, in the world of digicam batteries, PC World magazine reported getting as many as 664 shots out of one pair of "AA" sized Energizer E2 lithium batteries. And one writer for PC Magazine reported getting 2, 676 (yikes!) shots out of one pair. I'm sloppy about power management-- I spend more time looking at photos on my screen than I do actually taking pictures-- and yet my battery-draining behavior still yields at least 450 shots out of a pair. They're magic. (These are disposable batteries, and are NOT the same as the "lithium-ion" rechargeables. )

As I prepared this article, I happened to stumble across a favorite old camera model of mine, so I wound up buying...ahem... well...I bought 10 digicams; I'm cursed with the fact that every time I like something, it's discontinued, so I think I've developed a hoarder's mentality. Most people start New Year's off with a headache, but I'll start it off broke!

Photo: Steve's Digicams

Department of Santa Claus

After creating a Department Of Santa Claus (DOSC), Saipan's bureaucrats issue their grand strategy, namely:

"Diversifying from reindeer-powered sleighs to eco-friendly wind-powered rocket ships, which will create a tremendous opportunity for diverse diversification within inter-cosmic free trade zones via public-private partnerships, education, and community participation."

Old St. Nick ain't amused.

Enlightenment

Wise man say: "It is better to light a flashlight than to curse the darkness."

While the CUC Grinch will keep delivering blackouts to the Commonwealth, aspiring Santas can use the opportunity to recognize a practical and affordable gift: The Mini Maglite. It's a must for Saipan, and the topic of today's column.

These nifty things are available locally. Joeten Ace Hardware in Susepe has them for $17.99.

And here's a link to the manufacturer's site, which includes a graphic for using the candle mode.

Also, here's some history behind the company and its founder, Anthony Maglica, who is a very inspiring entrepreneurial success story.

A kid's poster

It's time to take a break from Saipan's economic death watch. Let's contemplate something more inspiring, and what could be more inspiring than flying?

Although I played hooky today by hiding out from Saipan's economic issues, editor Jayvee Vallejera drove right to the heart of the matter with an excellent overview of the regional economic context, available here.