Does anyone want to take on a bet?

[peterstevans]

Kind of like a Football Pool. I'm not sure how to set up the pay-offs and I suspect that it is illegal for people to bet each other. Not sure how all that Wall Street nonsense got to go on as long as it did...oh well.

We all know that AOL is going to go belly-up...no doubt about it. They're starting to pull the same kinds of tricks that MCI pulled...I actually had MCI Cellphone Service...got tired of my monthly visit to one of their few actual bricks and mortar storefronts to correct my bill. AOL is using the same techniques...and I just love that CD they gave out by mistake that gave you more free hours for a month than there were hours in a month. They soon after changed it to 45 days. I wonder if those are worth anything? So, we start a pool betting on the day they announce it, how much involved, and so on. I saw Jane Fonda's ex on the tube the other day...I can feel it, and rarely am I wrong.

[OuTpaTienT]

I'll bet ya. I bet AOL does NOT go belly up for the next 10 years.

I forget, just how tens of millions of paying subscribers they have. And you think they're going out of business??? You're certifiable.

I believe you are mistaken in your assessment, peterstevans. OuTpaTienT is correct. AOL is only one facet of its organization. Do not forget that they are also comprised of Time Warner cable who also have a large subscriber base. If you want to put money on a provider going under, put it on Charter. I don't see them going under either, though.

My ISP just informed me that they are folding. Just 1 month ago they were telling me what I would be getting paid and what my benefits were, etc. I'm glad I didn't work for them!

Then again, if I did, it might not be going under. After all, I'd have everyone here to help me

The bonus is that I might just end up with two wireless microwave transiever antenna/router assemblies. I could extend my lan waaaaay across town with that stuff

[peterstevans]

That's the last figure I heard. How about all that trading of advertising...not cool. Then there's that little problem of the anticipated drop in Biblical Proportions of actual cold cash Advertising Revenue...CNN reported a 60% drop anticipated for 2003. Warner Brothers will keep them floating? There are two letters that reveal oodles of insight, P&E.

I'm sure they will stay in business after Chapter 11, not sure how that works...doesn't seem fair. All I know is that I hear in casual conversation all the time, of people wanting to drop the service, and homeless encampments use their CD's as shingles. Their new Postal Service Marketing is a big flop. Supermarket Chains are considering taking back the space because nobody grabs them and they can make more money selling gum. Nobody wants to do business with companies that spam and do pop-ups. And where do I get all this information? You won't believe who hangs in the Hot Tub at Lupin at 10:00 PM. Silicone Valley is not what you saw in View To a Kill. Forget about the Pool...it's a fool's bet. I can't take anybody's money, and besides, it's illegal.

Who are you trying to convince?

[peterstevans]

Good question...and to be honest, one can ask that question almost universally on the Internet. So, don't mind me...I'm just doodling around...other people play video games.Einstein once said: "E = mc2 = Mrs. Murphy's Horsepower." What that means is that everything needs to have an ultimate practical value, and I do mean everything. For example, three years ago when I used to go into MCI's Storefront in Larkspur Landing to straighten out and pay my cell phone bill, MCI stock was at a peak of sorts. I looked at the manager who I bonded with over a period of 5+ years and told him to dump his stock in the company because my problems with my bill could not be unique. He took my warning to heart...he's a very happy man now, and a very good friend of mine.

It's not Rocket Science. Remember that guy on 60 Minutes who on a show about the Dot Com Bonanza, told the entire Country that "his job was to put CBS out of business", and some other guy told everyone "to get used to Receptionists earning 250K/year". I sold my portfolio the next day when the NASDAQ was at 5000+/-. For me that was the hair on the back of my camel for tolerating an arrogant industry. Since then, I've seen a lot of people in total meltdown.

Wall Street works when people in general have loyalty to the companies they work for. Remove the loyalty and Wall Street is history. It will take decades for confidence to be restored. It took till the late 1950's for confidence to retrurn after the 1929 Crash.

So who am I trying to convince? Nobody...I'm just doodling.



1.618 rules on this Planet, and the Nerd thing is not without substance. It's a complicated scenario to grasp because of all the cultural tabo stigmas. And just what is 1.618? It's the ratio of biological acceptance for our species. Harsh? Yes, and big time.

[SPEEDO]

Do ya think the Pats will win today?

AOL-Time Warner is a huge organization with a huge customer base. They do stupid things like the coasters they mail but they are rock-solid underneath. They don't really have a competitor. Too diversified.

And I'm not biased because I own AOL stock.

[peterstevans]

I play games with balls every once in a while to bond with a bunch of guys and get some exercise, but watching it on a tv set or in a crowd of people where all the women look like pirates in drag...yuk! Hopefully you might have a cash bet on it...and that could be important on a level of regional pride stuff. I don't think anyone is from anywhere anymore, least of all from the places they get a paycheck from.

By the way, what company was that CEO on 60 Minutes from? It had an interesting name and I did write it down somewhere...I always wanted to find out what they did which would put CBS out of business. It'll come to me and I'll share it as a retrospect thing. I owe that guy...but he really was just a portly schmuck.