Greg Shenkman Business Catalyst

Once in a blue moon there is one on New Year’s Eve. Those of you who are not quite sure just what a blue moon is, it is not the color of the moon like most people think, it is that there are 2 full moons in a month and it occurs every 2 1/2 years according to NASA. A New Year’s Eve blue moon occurs every 19 years. The last time was in 1990 and the next time will be in 2028. Those of you who are giving alot of your business to the New Yorkers in Times Square, will be able view the full moon right above your heads. Enjoy this amazing site and see you next year.~Greg Shenkman

Greg Shenkman here, though it ended badly for some, the first decade of the new millenium ushered in a new Gilded Age on Wall Street. The last ten years saw the rise of hedge funds, $100 million bonuses and bundles of billionaires from as near as Park Avenue to as far as Siberia. Unfortunately, for the average American investor it was “deca horribilis,” to paraphrase the Queen of England. Overall, the last ten years were the worst on record for U.S. stocks, dating all the way back to the 1820’s. History suggests another bull market for U.S. stocks is coming and the ’10s will likely and hopefully be better than the ’00s. There have never been two consecutive decades of negative returns in the U.S. stocks. Unfortunately, as Tom Petty once said, “the waiting is the hardest part.”

As a frequent flyer for business, I, Greg Shenkman, have a hard time understanding the mess with Northwest Airlines and the pilots that were “distracted”. How does one get so deep in a conversation that you ignore calls from flight control, and don’t answer to a flight attendant knocking on the cabin door? It is all very puzzling and makes no sense. I was reading an article on Yahoo that said the two pilots were looking at their laptops and discussing the new crew scheduling plan. I being a business man, can understand talking in depth about work, and new procedures, especially with the merger of Northwest and Delta, but how do you ignore someone at the freaking door. These two held the lives of many people in their hands, and I feel what they did was careless. I am happy that the FAA revoked both the pilot’s and the first officer’s license. We wouldn’t want them getting ditracted again, maybe next time they wouldn’t have noticed until the plane was out of fuel.

- Greg Shenkman

I, Greg Shenkman, finished reading an article on CNNMoney.com about the Unemployment insurance bill that President Obama signed today. Today’s bill is said to help the jobless, home buyers and even provide a much needed tax break to businesses. All businesses will be able to apply their losses from either 2008 or 2009 to any five years prior to 2008, allowing the businesses to get a refund from the IRS on taxes that were paid over those five years. While most of the lawmakers voted to support the bill, not all agreed it was the best solution to our economic problem.
The Unemployment bill also increased the number of weeks that a person could collect unemployment and extended the tax credit for all home buyers through April.
I understand the need to put money back into our economy to strengthen it, but ultimately I feel we Americans will be paying the price for it later.

Sometimes when watching a national news program such as one of the many seen on CNN, I , Greg Shenkman, feel as though something is lacking as the news programming often seems formulaic. Local news  programs often delve into silly and trivial content. And both local and national news reports seem fairly one sided and lacking in objectivity. Fortunately, along with radio and Internet radio programs, there are two televised news programs which I love.

The first is BBC World News. The news of the world is actually covered here and sometimes one gets a whiff of objectivity.

The second program is Germany’s Deutsche Welle News and TV . The format is usually a half-hour of news, both local and international. The second half is usually an in depth human interest piece covering different social and political issues and themes.

Please check your local TV listing to determine if  either program is available in your area.

This is Greg Shenkman and I was just reading on Yahoo about how since April when the Swine Flu was first identified that 600 people have died and more than 9000 have been hospitalized. Apparently vaccines for the Swine Flu began this week but the demand for the vaccine out numbers the supply. They are also saying that the regular flu shot given in  conjunction with the H1N1 flu shot is effective. I feel like everyone this time of year is sick, especially with the changes in the weather, and now we have to be even more conscious of our surroundings and protect ourselves and our children from getting sick.

Hello, this is Greg Shenkman,  I like change because without it things grow stagnate.  Even small changes can make big differences.  Change the office arrangment, change a workout routine, change of scenery, try it, you just may love it.