Gross: Mismanagement 101 | Newsweek Voices - Daniel Gross

Mismanagement 101

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The concern extends beyond airlines to America's industrial complex at large. Leery of the ability of provincial American executives, with their limited language skills, to negotiate today's global business environment, the boards of massive U.S. firms like Coca-Cola, Pepsi-Cola, Alcoa, and insurer AIG have hired foreign-born CEOs. Carl Icahn, the 1980s corporate raider, has reinvented himself as a borscht-belt comedian/activist investor, who delights conferences and reporters with jokes at CEOs' expense. On a recent "60 Minutes," Icahn complained to Lesley Stahl about the incompetence of American management. "I see our country going off a cliff, and I feel bad about it."

Icahn is moping all the way to the bank. The market's recognition of management failures gives him the opportunities to acquire companies on the cheap. But those of us who aren't billionaire corporate raiders—which is to say pretty much all of us—must manage through this management crisis on our own.

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when you are right you are right. i give you some "dap" on the 101 piece. but i have to quibble a little with elder 1737. yes it is we boomers who have led this thing. there are 2 sides to the boomer gen. it is not the hippie side, we tuned out remember? it is the conservative's like bush and cheney, who like us avoided the war any way we could, but won't admit it. it is all those botton down, narrow black tie, horned rim glassed businness school geeks who sided w/nixon and RR. since RR in 1980, the C's agenda held sway politically and in business it its their side that has set the pace in finance and business. we are the sucess haters who still want protections for the environment and our money. so right gen 1737, wrong side. and back to farmer jim dan. we need all the grain w can grow for our fuel and our food the dynamic of exporting grain to ballance trade is over. it ended with the run up in oil. and as far as pig farmers you should have worried about the 20,000+ family, u.s. pig farmers that disappeared in favor of a few corporate pig farmers who's waste ponds pollute the air and water where they exhist. and who will no doubt leave the tax payer stuck with the clean-up bill.

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Posted By: David Root @ 03/24/2008 11:51:50 AM

re 3/10/08, "The R Word":
Try getting 45% of your salary taken away. Oh yeah, and also your pension for 20 cents on the dollar. Welcome to the world of the commercial airline pilot.
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Posted By: David Root @ 03/24/2008 11:49:42 AM

re the March 10 article on "The unspeakable R Word":
You say at the bottom of column 1: Think about...if your salary fell 10% tomorrow." Try your salary falling 45% and your pension taken away for about 20 cents on the dollar. Welcome to the world of the commercial airline pilot, where much of that didn't need to happen.
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Posted By: david-fahey @ 03/21/2008 10:05:16 AM

when you are right you are right. i give you some "dap" on the 101 piece. but i have to quibble a little with elder 1737. yes it is we boomers who have led this thing. there are 2 sides to the boomer gen. it is not the hippie side, we tuned out remember? it is the conservative's like bush and cheney, who like us avoided the war any way we could, but won't admit it. it is all those botton down, narrow black tie, horned rim glassed businness school geeks who sided w/nixon and RR. since RR in 1980, the C's agenda held sway politically and in business it its their side that has set the pace in finance and business. we are the sucess haters who still want protections for the environment and our money. so right gen 1737, wrong side. and back to farmer jim dan. we need all the grain w can grow for our fuel and our food the dynamic of exporting grain to ballance trade is over. it ended with the run up in oil. and as far as pig farmers you should have worried about the 20,000+ family, u.s. pig farmers that disappeared in favor of a few corporate pig farmers who's waste ponds pollute the air and water where they exhist. and who will no doubt leave the tax payer stuck with the clean-up bill.