How can any business be thriving under this administration's policies? ---- ask the jews at BrightSource Energy
On Dec 28, 11:00 am, Travis <[email protected]> wrote: > Since this is not a muzzie company think President Bendover Assinair will > bail them out? > > ** > New post on *Fellowship of the Minds* > <http://fellowshipofminds.wordpress.com/author/dcgere/> Hope and > change…<http://fellowshipofminds.wordpress.com/2011/12/28/hope-and-change/>by > DCG <http://fellowshipofminds.wordpress.com/author/dcgere/> > > <http://fellowshipofminds.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/hopeandchange2.jpg> > Sears to close 100 to 120 Kmart, Sears stores > > Mail.com<http://www.mail.com/business/economy/934628-sears-to-close-100-to-120...>: > Sears Holdings Corp. *plans to close between 100 and 120 Sears and Kmart > stores to raise cash after a weak holiday shopping season for the retailer*. > > The closings fueled speculation about whether the 125-year-old retailer can > turn itself around. The closings are the latest and most visible in a long > series of moves to try to fix a company that has struggled with falling > sales and shabby stores as rivals like Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and Target > Corp. spruced up their looks and turned into one-stop shopping sources. > > Absolutely Pathetic (AP) goes into spin mode: "There's no reason to go to > Sears," said New York-based independent retail analyst Brian Sozzi, "It > offers a depressing shopping experience and uncompetitive prices." > Billionaire investor Edward Lampert purchased Kmart out of bankruptcy in > 2003 and bought Sears, Roebuck & Co. a year later. Since 2004 Sears > Holdings — which operates both Kmart and Sears stores — has watched its > cash and short-term investments go from about $2.09 billion for the year > ended Jan. 31, 2004 to $1.34 billion for the year ended Jan. 31, 2011, > according to FactSet. The figure now stands at about $700 million. > > That company disputes talk that it is in trouble financially or will have > problems surviving. Spokesman Chris Brathwaite says Sears Holdings has more > than $3.5 billion of liquidity, consisting of $700 million in cash and $2.9 > billion available under its credit lines. > > Still, Sears Holdings said its declining sales, ongoing pressure on profit > margins and rising expenses pulled its adjusted earnings lower. The company > predicts fourth-quarter adjusted earnings will be less than half the $933 > million it reported for the same quarter last year. > > At least some experts recognize the true problem: *Some industry experts > say part of the problem Sears is facing is that economic difficulties > continue to grip its core customers.* These middle-income shoppers have > seen their wages fail to keep up with higher costs for household basics > like food. > > AP spins again: But the bigger issue, analysts say, is that *Sears hasn't > invested in remodeling, leaving its stores uninviting*. Preschool teacher > Sara Kriz concurred. Picking up conditioner at a Kmart in Manhattan on > Tuesday, Kriz said she shops at Kmart "only when I have to," which amounts > to once every few months. Yet she goes to Wal-Mart or Target nearly every > week because, she said, *they are cleaner and better stocked*. > > I've been to all the stores mentioned in this article. Walmart and Target > are cleaner stores? Please, they all have their issues. I've never been in > a Sears and thought, wow, this store isn't clean. > > Can anyone blame the lackluster sales on the stores' appearances? Sure. > But let's talk about the economy. This Christmas, my friends and family, > we chose not to exchange gifts (kids excluded). We all are feeling the > pinch. Yet Americans shopped > <http://fellowshipofminds.wordpress.com/2011/12/01/americans-shopped-o...>like > there's no tomorrow on Black Friday. Though they probably charged the > majority to credit cards. > > Real unemployment is > <http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/ezra-klein/post/wonkbook-the-real...>at > 11%, and existing home sales climbed > <http://www.realtor.org/press_room/news_releases/2011/12/ehs_nov>recently > yet although rebenchmarking resulted in lower adjustments to several years > of home sales data, the month-to-month characterization of market > conditions did not change. > > And Obamacare will impose > <http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2010/04/obamacare-impact-on-...>new > compliance regulations, employer mandate taxes, taxes on business > “flow-through” and investment income, and numerous indirect costs on small- > and medium-size companies. > > We have over <http://www.usdebtclock.org/>$15 trillion in debt and Skippy > wants to ask > <http://hotair.com/archives/2011/12/27/treasury-official-obama-to-ask-...>for > a debt limit hike. > > How can any business be thriving under this administration's policies? > Until this administration is done, I'm going to bet you'll see more stores > and businesses closing. > > DCG > *DCG <http://fellowshipofminds.wordpress.com/author/dcgere/>* | December > 28, 2011 at 5:57 am | Tags: > Kmart<http://fellowshipofminds.wordpress.com/?tag=kmart>, > Sears <http://fellowshipofminds.wordpress.com/?tag=sears> | Categories: > Economy <http://fellowshipofminds.wordpress.com/?cat=17656840> | > URL:http://wp.me/pKuKY-bt2 > > > Comment<http://fellowshipofminds.wordpress.com/2011/12/28/hope-and-change/#re...> > See all > comments<http://fellowshipofminds.wordpress.com/2011/12/28/hope-and-change/#co...> > > Unsubscribe or change your email settings at Manage > Subscriptions<http://subscribe.wordpress.com/?key=49883164090367a8ae3126d288a16eee&;...>. > > *Trouble clicking?* Copy and paste this URL into your > browser:http://fellowshipofminds.wordpress.com/2011/12/28/hope-and-change/ > Thanks for flying with WordPress.com <http://wordpress.com/> -- Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. 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