Auld Lang Syne 2008

Should auld acquaintance be forgot
and never brought to mind?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot
and days of auld lang syne?
For auld lang syne, my dear,
for auld lang syne,
we'll take a cup of kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.

Should auld acquaintance be forgot
and never brought to mind?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot
and days of auld lang syne?
And here's a hand, my trusty friend
And gie's a hand o' thine
We'll tak' a cup o' kindness yet
For auld lang syne

Listen,

A Sneak Peek at Plymouth's 2009

Year-end articles naturally divide into two types: A recap of the "big" stories of the previous year, and predictions for the upcoming year. For the former category, one wonders how big those stories were if we already need a reminder. There is also a suspicion that these articles are really filling the space vacated by the retailers' ads. As far as predicting the future, there is serious downside as some wise guy will go back and look up your predictions, especially the ones that really turned up lame, like the predictions for 2008 which saw absolutely no chance that Barack Obama could win the election.

The solution here is to focus on a few developments from 2008 and examine how they might emerge in the coming year. In addition, the focus here is on our home town where issues fly under the radar of the national media.

At last May's Town Meeting, a proposal for a new form of government for Plymouth was voted down by a two to one margin. In spite of the low 25% voter turnout, it was generally agreed that while there was significant support for a mayoral form of town government the proposal was just too complicated and failed to provide clear lines of responsibility.

Almost immediately, work started anew on another new charter for town government, which is expected to be presented to the spring Town Meeting. According to a recent ARTICLE in the Old Colony Memorial, the charter process can be lengthy:

This week, Town Clerk Laurence Pizer clarified the process and noted that, optimistically speaking, it could be two years before any major changes in Plymouth’s administration went into effect – assuming Town Meeting and voters opt for a mayor.

“If everything passed, my best guesstimate would be January 2011,” Pizer said.

The rest of the article does a good job of explaining the process. And while the primary concern was for the possible impact of a new charter on the hiring of a new town manager, it also highlights the opportunity cost going through the whole approval process with a half-baked proposal, only to be turned down by the voters. The lesson here is that we all might spend some time studying the proposed new charter before it gets locked in to the process. We need to give the concept of a mayoralty type government a hard look and be sure it is presented in its best form. Otherwise, we will lose at least a few years before we can try again.

The second issue to unroll in 2009 will be the initial development of Plymouth Rock Studios. Co-founder, David Kirkpatrick, was featured in a Boston Sunday Globe ARTICLE profiling his movie-making background and his enthusiasm for making the Plymouth studio a reality. Suffice it to say that his enthusiasm proved infectious as Plymouth provided the project with all the approvals and tax breaks it sought. And many would ask, why not? The enticement of jobs and tax revenue overwhelmed any concerns about infrastructure and traffic. If the $400 million project succeeds, the benefits to the town will be substantial. And while the project will take several years to come to fruition, construction is expected to start in 2009. According to the article:

In the coming year, Kirkpatrick says, the vision of Hollywood East will begin taking on a physical form. "Since we want to be open in the fourth quarter of 2010, part of the studio will be built by the end of 2009," he says. "We've got $200 million in payroll to spend on construction in laborers, carpenters, and tradesmen."

The studio is expected to employ 2,000 or more. "Jobs on the lot," as Kirkpatrick calls them, will start being filled in the spring of 2010.

Let's hope that this movie plays out as well as its previews.

Back by Popular Demand

Amid the fallout from: political posturing, dueling bailouts, hedge fund crooks, lost elections, stock market swoons, senate seat raffles, sub-prime failures, bankruptcies, lay-offs, ice storms, sagging home values, and (say it ain't so) weak retail sales, we go back to basics to find our true values and claim the peace of mind that is there contained:

Christmas 101

In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that the whole world should be enrolled. This was the first enrollment when Quirinius was governor of Syria. So all went to be enrolled, each to his own town. And Joseph too went up from Galilee from the town of Nazareth to Judea, to the City of David that is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David to be enrolled with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. While they were there, the time came for her to have her first child and she gave birth to a son. She wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

Now there were shepherds in that region living in the fields and keeping night watch over their flock. The angel of the Lord appeared to them and the glory of the Lord shone around them. and they were struck with great fear. The angel said to them "do not be afraid; for behold, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For today in the city of David a savior has been born for you who is Messiah and Lord. and this will be a sign for you; you will find an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger. And suddenly there was a multitude of the heavenly host with the angel, praising God and saying:

"Glory to God in the highest
and on earth peace to those on
whom his favor rests."
Luke 2

May you find the peace and comfort that this simple message has brought to so many

Continued Auto Madness

Its been hard to support George Bush for the past eight years. He is our guy, but it's no wonder he has an approval rating that reflects three out of four are unhappy with the job he has done. Yesterday's bailout of the American auto industry has many of his erstwhile backers scratching their heads. An EDITORIAL in today's Wall Street Journal neatly sums up the effect of the program:

Friday's taxpayer bailout of Detroit's auto makers isn't the worst moment of the Bush Presidency, but we'd put it in the top 10. President Bush will now avoid getting the blame for letting the companies declare bankruptcy on his watch. In return, he's essentially handing over GM and Chrysler to the political ministrations of the United Auto Workers and the green lobby, as mediated by Congress. Taxpayers are likely to own a piece of this Corvair for years -- and tens of billions of dollars -- to come.

If the auto makers are to avoid the stigma of bankruptcy, they must still make the required cuts, including substantial UAW givebacks, that will allow them to develop a viable business model. These requirements should have been part of the bailout package, but instead were included as strongly-worded suggestions, which the UAW quickly rejected. By granting this loan, the task of sorting out the auto makers mess becomes the job of the new administration. Rather than pursuing cost reductions, the new Administration and Congress may decide instead to focus instead on greening up the product line. This could get expensive for the taxpayers.

On the personal front, I met with the dealer yesterday as part of my buy-a-new-car campaign. As you will recall, I had decided to re-focus my efforts on a 2008 model due to a lack of 2009's and the thought that I might get a better price on a 2008. While the dealer had a few 2008's, they weren't exactly what I wanted. Moreover, the price on a 2009 was actually the better deal than buying one of the leftovers. So we agreed on a price for a 2009 subject to them finding a car in the dealer network. This could take a week or so, which is fine with me. Overall, if this deal closes, I will end up with the car I want at a decent price from the local dealer that I preferred. All in all, a good ending.

One of the things I learned through all this is that while the Detroit auto-makers are caught up in a game of financial Russian roulette, their competitors are still doing business at an impressive clip. It will be interesting to watch how the Democrats deal with the stubborn UAW. I hope that they do better than George Bush.

The New Car Saga Continues

It seems to make sense to learn as much as you can about the car you want before you go into the showroom. By pinning down the model and options I am looking for will hopefully avoid some of the confusion of trying to sort it all out in the midst of a face to face sales spiel.

In my case, I had already decided on the make and model, so I needed to compare the standard features of the three options being offered. I used the manufacturer's web site as a starting point and it was quite helpful. The middle option had all of the features that I wanted except for an upgrade to the radio/CD player. The site also supplied the MSRP which gave me a starting point on price.

As previously mentioned, this quest is a little different from my previous car-buying experience. First of all, my old car is getting to the point that it's becoming more and more expensive to maintain, and while 115,000 miles is not considered to be high for this car, a few recent repairs have provided the handwriting on the wall. Also, we will be taking a cross-country trip early next year and I don't want to deal the breakdown risk. The second consideration is the fact that I am now retired and, unlike previous car purchases, I need to be sure to get the best deal, even if it requires some leg work. I am envisioning visiting a number of dealers and flogging them into a bidding war which will get me a good price.

My next step is a visit to Edmunds.com which is reputed to provide the actual expected sales price. I am buoyed up by tales of friends who have been successful in getting dealers to accept the Edmunds price. The Edmunds price for my selected model is about $4,500 less than the MSRP. This is great. I haven't even left my house and I've knocked off $4,500. As a last step, Edmund's recommends requesting a free on-line quote from a dealer. This sounds painless and it would give me more ammunition when I actually get to the dealer.

I quickly discover that the quote will be supplied by a dealer that is forty miles away in a nearby state. It appears that my two local dealers don't participate in the online quote derby. Nothing ventured, etc. I request the quote and sit back and wait. Not for long. The phone rings and I am talking to a guy from the dealer who tells me that he really can't give me a quote on a 2009 model because they don't have any. The new models are trickling in and he has at least six customers lined up and waiting. He suggests considering a 2008, so I tell him to send me the info on what he has. A short time later, I receive an email linking to a site for a virtual test drive. No price quotes are included. I write this experience off. I wasn't going to use this dealer anyhow and decide to check around to see if the local dealers have any 2009's.

Neither of my local dealers are showing any 2009's on their web site new car inventories. I start thinking that a 2008 might make sense. The cars don't change that much year to year, and the prices should be better on a 2008. I revisit Edmunds and price out the 2008 version. As suspected, the Edmunds price is a little lower.

I finally bite the bullet and call the local dealer that is closest to me and the one with whom I would just as soon do business. The Sales Manager takes my call. His story regarding the 2009's sounds a lot like the out-of-state guy and I wonder if they are all reading from the same script. He does have a a few 2008's and we set up an appointment for the following morning. As I fall asleep that night, I wonder if these guys have missed the articles about car sales being at historical lows.

Up Close and Personal

It's been interesting, to say the least, watching the Congress and the President wrestle with the woes of the auto industry. But like many of the great issues of the day, they take on a much different meaning when they impact on us personally. In my case, I have reached one of those points in life, dreaded by so many, I need to buy a new car.

I believe it pays to do your homework. Given the bottomless well of information on the Internet, a lot of this can be accomplished in the comfort of one's own home. Without dragging my readers through all the gory details, suffice it to say that this allowed me to narrow down my choice substantially as I am locked in on a make and model before setting foot on a dealer's lot. One of my constraints is the availability of dealers in my area. I am committed to doing this deal locally for a host of reasons, not the least of which is I can easily tow the new car back if I have problems. Fortunately, I have two dealers within proximity, so barring any unexpected problems, I know where I will be buying the car.

I am not going to name names, but let's just say that once I buy my car, I will not have to worry about a bailout for its manufacturer. I am going to buy what used to be called a foreign car. Rather than being a choice between patronizing Americans vs. foreigners, I have the choice of a car made by Americans with an equitable sense of financial balance, or buying a car from a bloated, outdated company being held hostage by the UAW. Let me think.

The media is crammed with stories about how car sales are at levels not seen since the Korean war and how desperate the dealers are to move metal. Given that, one might expect that I'd be welcomed with open arms, but I'm not falling for that. Car dealers are stuck in their old ways salesmanship which is sort of a cross between a carnival and a casino. I pass one of my prospective dealers regularly, and last time I looked, they had a balloon on every car and a fifteen foot blow-up dragon in front of the dealership. Do you think I might be met by a fast-talking glad-hander when I show up? You betcha. Once you buy into that "let's make a deal" routine, getting the car you want at a reasonable price can be a challenge. My solution? I will try to lay the groundwork by phone so that by the time I show up at the dealer we will at least be focused on the car I want.

This may sound like the musings of an anal-retentive, ultra-cautious, cost-conscious, well-organized consumer. Only if that were so. My track record on buying cars is replete with impulsive-compulsive purchases of cars not previously on the radar screen. In other words, I have always been the fast-talking, glad-hander's prime target. But to coin a phrase, this time it will be different.

More reports to follow.

Our Guy Sal

At one time, a small school of financial analysts developed a relatively simple method for gauging the economic outlook. Back in the dark days before the Internet, they would measure the volume of optimistic financial newspaper articles and compare it with the volume of pessimistic articles and thereby develop an index of future investment performance. Okay, I said it was a small school, but it does have a certain logic about it. Suffice it to say, any measure today of such a sentiment would indicate clearly that we are definitely on the edge of a monumental abyss of financial calamity. Now with the American Auto Industry facing the alternatives of bankruptcy, or nationalization, it is hard to know where to start to propose remedies.

Amid this quandary, comes our own Sal DiMasi to the rescue. As reported in today's HERALD:

House Speaker Salvatore DiMasi pushed today for legislation that would allow cities and towns to join the state’s insurance plan despite objections by local unions, saying the move could save municipalities millions as they brace for possible cuts in state aid of up to 10 percent next year.

The idea that a municipality can save substantially by transferring its group insurance to the state program is not a new idea, and, in spite of the fact that significant cost savings can result, only about 5% of Mass. municipalities have signed up. And while these cost savings come without any loss of benefits, continued resistance has been laid to the door of the public employee unions who apparently see some sort of loss of bargaining power by switching to the state plan.

Now maybe the fact that Sal has got the right idea on this is akin to a stopped clock being right twice a day. But he is correct that hard times are upon us and its only a matter of time before they trickle down to the local communities. If the doomsayers are even partly right, we are going to need a lot more proposals like this one. The public employees are missing a great opportunity to take the high road and agree to switching their insurance to the GIC. Then, they might be able to garner some community good will rather than being dragged, kicking and screaming, to the same end result when Sal's proposed law mandates the change.

A New Look for the Plymouth County GOP

Check out the Plymouth County Republican Club's new .WEBSITE. Behind the new graphics and informational line-up, is a new spirit which, after last month's election is sorely needed. The site also includes a link to the Club's BLOG which should contribute to the flow of information among the County Republican Committees.

Now, more than ever, Republicans and like-minded others must band together to re-affirm the value of tried and true conservative principles and bring them to bear on the issues of the day. High on the list of Goals should be a commitment to return Massachusetts to a two-party political system. The recent failures of Democratic-dominated Beacon Hill illustrates the need for balance and oversight that a two-party system can bring to the taxpayers of Massachusetts. The View salutes the Plymouth County Republican Club for taking a leadership position in this effort.