The world according to ME

Carlos Slim on the world economy and Europe

2011-11-14T11:38:00.001-08:00

Click the link below to see the interview:

http://edition.cnn.com/video/?hpt=hp_c1#/video/world/2011/11/14/ctw-carlos-slim.cnn

On Europe:"... they put current expenses, before public investments... they think they can solve the problem by austerity and will only get more unemployment... this think makes young people lose the hope in the future..."

I fully agree. People in Europe want jobs, not welfare!

One important measure to create jobs is by increasing goverment investments. However with the huge debt burden that most countries in Europe have to carry, no money is available.

This leaves us with 2 options to finance job creation:

Increase goverment debt

Reduce current expenses (reduction of the number of state employees through privatisations, lower state employees salaries, lower pensions, lower welfare benefits, etc...)

I leave it to the reader, which of the above options is the more sustainable solution.

Youth unemployment in Europe; fuel for the next revolution

2011-11-08T10:12:00.001-08:00

To get into the subject, here is an abstract of an article published by the WASHINGTON POST

"The wealth gap between younger and older Americans has stretched to the widest on record, worsened by a prolonged economic downturn that has wiped out job opportunities for young adults and saddled them with housing and college debt.

The typical U.S. household headed by a person age 65 or older has a net worth 47 times greater than a household headed by someone under 35, according to an analysis of census data released Monday.

While people typically accumulate assets as they age, this gap is now more than double what it was in 2005 and nearly five times the 10-to-1 disparity a quarter-century ago, after adjusting for inflation"

The situation for Europe's youth (even without huge college debt) doesn’t look much brighter:

- Youth unemployment rate nearly doubled from 2005 to 2011, to reach over 20% today

- Greece and Spain have a youth employment of rate of nearly 50%

- Average debt-to-GDP in Europe has increased over 80% for EU members

In May 68 the generation of our parents hit the streets and protested for higher minimum wages, higher pensions, better social security, etc… The cost of these social improvements is the debt burden our generation is faced with today. A large part of the “net worth” of the elder generation is financed by indebting the future ones. This situation is unbearable for the future.

High debt leaves European governments with little fire power for big job creation programs without even further increasing its debt, which doesn't seem to be a realistic option considering the actual situation.

With deindustrialization increasing due too noncompetitive wages in Europe, slow growth of most economies and the highest European debt post World War II, how will Europe be able to put it youth back to work?

How will governments explain their youth that there was enough money to save the global financial sector from its collapse, but that there's no money left to save or create new jobs?

The creation of jobs for the youth must become the TOP priority in Europe; otherwise this generational clash will lead into a revolution that will be far more radical and global than the one in 1968.

Les Moulins de Kleinbettingen à la pointe du progrès

2011-02-03T07:33:00.000-08:00

Les Moulins de Kleinbettingen viennent de sortir un packaging révolutionnaire pour la farine. L'occasion de faire le point sur les évolutions fantastiques de ces moulins ultramodernes.

Un meunier. L'image du meunier avec son béret, sa salopette pleine de farine et portant un gros sac de grains sur l'épaule est reléguée au rang de cliché pittoresque. Un chef meunier, aujourd'hui, est un technicien supérieur ou un ingénieur.

Les Moulins de Kleinbettingen sont gérés depuis 1921 par la famille (bien nommée) Muller. Meuniers de père en fils depuis 1704, les Muller ont suivi l'évolution du métier et ont réussi à créer, aujourd'hui, un moulin à la pointe de la technologie. Machines, turbines, air comprimé, vérins, dédale complexe de tuyaux en inox… Le tout est géré par l'électronique. Voilà pourquoi il faut une formation d'ingénieur ou de technicien supérieur pour superviser le fonctionnement des installations. Les Moulins de Kleinbettingen fabriquent trois produits: la farine, la semoule et les pellets destinés à l'alimentation du bétail. Ils emploient 45 personnes; principalement des chauffeurs, des magasiniers et des vendeurs. Un laboratoire est également intégré aux moulins. «Le meunier d'aujourd'hui doit connaître les machines et les circuits», indique Edmond Muller, le directeur. «Les mélanges de blés pour obtenir la meilleure farine sont en revanche déterminés par le laboratoire. Il contrôle tous les blés, à l'entrée et à la sortie du processus d'élaboration de la farine.»

La concurrence étant rude dans le domaine, les Moulins de Kleinbettingen ont agrandi et modernisé leurs installations en 2010. La construction de deux nouvelles cellules de stockage de blé avec une capacité de 3.750 tonnes chacune, la modernisation du moulin à semoule et aujourd'hui, les Moulins attendent leur certification IFS, International Food Standard. «La plus haute certification dans le domaine agro-alimentaire», souligne Edmond Muller. «Il est très important d'avoir une certaine taille pour tenir le coup aujourd'hui. Deux moulins ici à Kleinbettingen, cela signifie aussi deux métiers et donc une clientèle plus diversifiée.»

La concurrence se situe en France (à Nancy, Strasbourg) et en Allemagne (Sarre), principalement. La plus grosse partie des ventes est destinée à l'industrie (80 %), les boulangeries artisanales représentent environ 15 % des ventes et les supermarchés ou magasins, moins de 5 %. Le plus gros (65 %) de la production de farine et de semoule est exporté vers la Belgique, la France, l'Allemagne, les Pays-Bas et le Danemark.

Farin'Up, premier de sa génération

«En passant dans les rayons des magasins, nous avons remarqué que les packagings de farine n'avaient pas évolué depuis de nombreuses années», résume Jean Muller, fils d'Edmond Muller et futur repreneur des Moulins de Kleinbettingen, pour rester dans la tradition familiale. «Ces emballages fuient, la farine ne se conserve pas bien, ce n'est pas pratique. Un fabricant de sucre a proposé son produit en emballage Doypack et cela a très bien marché. Nous avons pensé que cela serait tout à fait adapté à la farine.» Cet emballage est en plastique épais, noir mat avec une fenêtre qui permet de voir le produit. Et surtout, il est doté d'un bec verseur. Parfaitement hermétique, il permet un transport, une conservation et une utilisation bien plus pratiques que les traditionnels emballages papier. Lancé mi-2010, Farin'Up a déjà remporté un grand succès en France, où il est référencé dans de nombreuses grandes surfaces. Son succès permet aux Moulins de Kleinbettingen de prévoir le même emballage pour vendre leur semoule à couscous et commercialiser aussi une farine bio. Les autres axes de développement sont l'export, avec des demandes croissantes de l'Allemagne et une possibilité de vente en Suisse, ainsi que d'autres pays. Des projets en marketing vont aussi se multiplier, avec pour commencer, le lancement cette année d'un site internet qui dispensera des conseils d'utilisation de la farine. Pas de doute, ces meuniers-là ne sont pas endormis. (PAR ANNE FOURNEY)

Things Babies Born in 2011 Will Never Know

2011-01-09T05:28:00.000-08:00

Video tape: Starting this year, the news stories we produce here at Money Talks have all been shot, edited, and distributed to TV stations without ever being on any kind of tape. Not only that, the tape-less broadcast camera we use today offers much higher quality than anything that could have been imagined 10 years ago -- and cost less than the lens on the camera we were using previously.

Travel agents: While not dead today, this profession is one of many that's been decimated by the Internet. When it's time for their honeymoon, will those born in 2011 be able to find one?

The separation of work and home: When you're carrying an email-equipped computer in your pocket, it's not just your friends who can find you -- so can your boss. For kids born this year, the wall between office and home will be blurry indeed.

Books, magazines, and newspapers: Like video tape, words written on dead trees are on their way out. Sure, there may be books -- but for those born today, stores that exist solely to sell them will be as numerous as record stores are now.

Movie rental stores: You actually got in your car and drove someplace just to rent a movie?

Watches: Maybe as quaint jewelry, but the correct time is on your smartphone, which is pretty much always in your hand.

Paper maps: At one time these were available free at every gas station. They're practically obsolete today, and the next generation will probably have to visit a museum to find one.

Wired phones: Why would you pay $35 every month to have a phone that plugs into a wall? For those born today, this will be a silly concept.

Long distance: Thanks to the Internet, the days of paying more to talk to somebody in the next city, state, or even country are limited.

Newspaper classifieds: The days are gone when you have to buy a bunch of newsprint just to see what's for sale.

Dial-up Internet: While not everyone is on broadband, it won't be long before dial-up Internet goes the way of the plug-in phone.

Encyclopedias: Imagine a time when you had to buy expensive books that were outdated before the ink was dry. This will be a nonsense term for babies born today.

Forgotten friends: Remember when an old friend would bring up someone you went to high school with, and you'd say, "Oh yeah, I forgot about them!" The next generation will automatically be in touch with everyone they've ever known even slightly via Facebook.

Forgotten anything else: Kids born this year will never know what it was like to stand in a bar and incessantly argue the unknowable. Today the world's collective knowledge is on the computer in your pocket or purse. And since you have it with you at all times, why bother remembering anything?

The evening news: The news is on 24/7. And if you're not home to watch it, that's OK -- it's on the smartphone in your pocket.

CDs: First records, then 8-track, then cassette, then CDs -- replacing your music collection used to be an expensive pastime. Now it's cheap(er) and as close as the nearest Internet connection.

Film cameras: For the purist, perhaps, but for kids born today, the word "film" will mean nothing. In fact, even digital cameras -- both video and still -- are in danger of extinction as our pocket computers take over that function too.

Yellow and White Pages: Why in the world would you need a 10-pound book just to find someone?

Catalogs: There's no need to send me a book in the mail when I can see everything you have for sale anywhere, anytime. If you want to remind me to look at it, send me an email.

Fax machines: Can you say "scan," ".pdf" and "email?"

One picture to a frame: Such a waste of wall/counter/desk space to have a separate frame around each picture. Eight gigabytes of pictures and/or video in a digital frame encompassing every person you've ever met and everything you've ever done -- now, that's efficient. Especially compared to what we used to do: put our friends and relatives together in a room and force them to watch what we called a "slide show" or "home movies."

Wires: Wires connecting phones to walls? Wires connecting computers, TVs, stereos, and other electronics to each other? Wires connecting computers to the Internet? To kids born in 2011, that will make as much sense as an electric car trailing an extension cord.

Hand-written letters: For that matter, hand-written anything. When was the last time you wrote cursive? In fact, do you even know what the word "cursive" means? Kids born in 2011 won't -- but they'll put you to shame on a tiny keyboard.

Talking to one person at a time: Remember when it was rude to be with one person while talking to another on the phone? Kids born today will just assume that you're supposed to use texting to maintain contact with five or six other people while pretending to pay attention to the person you happen to be physically next to.

Retirement plans: Yes, Johnny, there was a time when all you had to do was work at the same place for 20 years and they'd send you a check every month for as long as you lived. In fact, some companies would even pay your medical bills, too!

Mail: What's left when you take the mail you receive today, then subtract the bills you could be paying online, the checks you could be having direct-deposited, and the junk mail you could be receiving as junk email? Answer: A bloated bureaucracy that loses billions of taxpayer dollars annually.

Commercials on TV: They're terrifically expensive, easily avoided with DVRs, and inefficiently target mass audiences. Unless somebody comes up with a way to force you to watch them -- as with video on the Internet -- who's going to pay for them?

Commercial music radio: Smartphones with music-streaming programs like Pandora are a better solution that doesn't include ads screaming between every song.

Hiding: Not long ago, if you didn't answer your home phone, that was that -- nobody knew if you were alive or dead, much less where you might be. Now your phone is not only in your pocket, it can potentially tell everyone -- including advertisers -- exactly where you are.

By Stacy Johnson

Interesting video on what's driving food prices

2010-11-19T07:14:00.000-08:00

http://video.ft.com/v/679555154001/What-s-driving-food-prices-

La farine d'aujourd'hui ne se cache plus

2010-10-13T07:28:00.000-07:00

Farin’UP bringt neues Leben ins Mehlregal

2010-10-13T07:15:00.001-07:00

Erstes praktisches Mehl für die Küche und die Konditorei.

3 gute Gründe wieso FarinUP auch in Ihrem Regal stehen sollte:

 Innovative Verpackung, bietet optimalen Schutz vor Feuchtigkeit und wird den aktuellen Erwartungen moderner Kunden gerecht.

 Praktischer Schraubverschluss, ermöglicht präzise Dosierung und hermetischen Verschluss nach dem Gebrauch.

 Qualitätsmehl, ohne zu klumpen lässt sich Farin’UP Instantmehl beim Kochen und Backen ganz leicht in Flüssigkeiten anrühren.

Kochen und backen leicht gemacht, mit Farin’UP!

Le rayon farine se réveille avec Farin'UP

2010-10-13T06:27:00.000-07:00

Investing in Africa

2010-06-09T05:35:00.000-07:00

Some factors that suggest that the time might be right to progessively start investing in Africa:

- The nigerian stock market is the second biggest sub-Saharan stock market after Johannesburg. With a total market cap of approximatly $ 40 Billion this stock market is worth less than 1/5 of the market value of companies like Microsoft or Apple.

- The number of financial products to invest in Africa developped by banks is significantly increasing.

- European and American equity investments have disappointed investors over the past decade.

Nouveaux défis pour le financement de transactions de fusions et acquisitions

2010-03-30T03:18:00.000-07:00

La rétissance des banques à attribuer des crédits pour des transactions M&A fait renaitre les solutions de financements alternatifs

Pendant la crise financière les banques se sont largement retirées du financement de rachat d’entreprises, ce qui a entrainé une baisse considérable de l’activité M&A en Europe.

Par le passé les investisseurs financiers ont essayé de faire porter à l’entreprise rachetée la charge du financement. Désormais, la situation sur le marché des crédits oblige les investisseurs à considérer des méthodes alternatives de financement.

Augmentation des capitaux propres

Les transactions récentes se distinguent par une part plus élevée de fonds propres dans leur financement. Par le passé nombreuses acquisitions ont été réalisées avec un minimum de fonds propres, le reste étant financé par de la dette. Les volumes d’endettement atteignaient souvent entre 3 et 6 fois le résultat avant intérêts, impôts, dépréciation et amortissement de goodwill. Ces coûts de financement représentent des coûts fixes pour les entreprises et peuvent mettre en péril la survie de la société en cas de baisse de chiffre d’affaires et de cash flow. La situation économique actuelle et les nombreuses faillites de sociétés trop endettées, montrent les limites et risques de ce type de financement.

En réaction à la situation conjoncturelle actuelle et à la rétissance des banques à accorder des crédits, les investisseurs augmentent la part de capitaux propres à travers des méthodes alternatives de financement comme l’augmentation de capital ou l’emprunt convertible. Les cash flow futurs des entreprises étant très incertains dans le contexte économique actuel, les instruments de financement basés sur les actifs de l’entreprise refont surface. Le factoring et le leasing en sont deux instruments classiques. L’avantage majeur de ce type de financement est qu’il évolue au rythme de la croissance de l’entreprise. Si une augmentation du chiffre d’affaires entraine une augmentation des débiteurs, le volume de factoring pourra être adapté dynamiquement pour financer ce poste.

Renaissance des prêts consentis par le vendeur

Les répercussions de la crise économique sur les résultats futurs des entreprises sont très difficiles à estimer, c’est pourquoi les investisseurs sont rétissants à payer pour des cash flows futurs projetés. Un prêt consenti par le vendeur est une solution pour atténuer le risque de l’investisseur et a été un facteur clé dans la conclusion de nombreuses transactions.

Cet instrument permet à l’acheteur de financer une partie du prix d’achat à travers un prêt accordé par le vendeur. La durée d’un tel emprunt est généralement de plus de 10 ans et représente en moyenne entre 10-20% du prix d’achat. En pratique des taux d’intérêts varient entre 0 et 20%, avec une tendance vers des taux relativement élevés du au fait que ces crédits sont généralement de rang inférieur à ceux des banques et donc plus risqués. Malgré que la structuration d’un tel emprunt est libre et n’est soumis à aucune restriction, une certaine uniformité est visible dans la pratique.

Du a la difficulté de financer les transactions à travers de crédits bancaires, le nombre de transactions contenant un prêt accordé par le vendeur sont en nette progression depuis plusieurs mois. Ce type de financement a trois atouts majeurs:

Réduction du risque pour l’investisseur, qui réduit son cash out et pour les banques donneurs de crédit, parce qu’en général un prêt vendeur est de rang inférieur aux crédits accordés par les banques

Crédibilité du vendeur qui par l’acceptation de cette forme de financement témoigne de sa conviction de l’évolution positive de l’entreprise et de sa capacité à générer du cash

Cash flow supplémentaire pour le vendeur grâce à l’encaissement des intérêts liés au prêt. De plus, cette forme de financement permet souvent au vendeur de négocier une augmentation du prix vente par rapport à une variante sans prêt vendeur.

Malgré ses nombreux atouts ce type de financement contient des risques nonnégligeables
pour le vendeur. En cas de faillite pendant la durée du prêt le vendeur risque de perdre l’intégralité du solde de l’emprunt, du au fait que ces crédits sont généralement de rang inférieur à ceux des banques. De plus le vendeur continue à porter un risque financier pour une société dont il n’a plus le contrôle. Ces aspects doivent être pris en compte pour pouvoir juger de manière pondéré si un prêt doit être consenti par un vendeur dans un cas particulier.

Think out of the box

Le financement de transactions M&A en temps de crise n’est pas impossible, mais nécessite de l’ingéniosité et un changement d’attitude. Le « credit crunch » a rappelé que la dette disponible pour le financement de ces transactions n’est pas infinie.
Plusieurs méthodes alternatives de financement existent mais restent largement sous-exploitées ; le prêt consenti par le vendeur n’en est qu’un exemple. La solution modèle n’existe pas, mais une simulation de l’impact financier de différentes méthodes facilite souvent la décision « Go or No Go » pour les différentes parties impliquées.

By Jean Muller (Agefi Magazine mars 2010)

Cango & Rinaldi webshop launch

2009-12-02T08:13:00.000-08:00

Cango & Rinaldi is an exclusive Italian jewellery and accessories brand, which is distributed in Switzerland since August 2008.

All of our products are handmade. The Cango & Rinaldi goods owe their beauty to exquisite leather, imaginative designs and living tradition. Our impeccable collections guarantee lasting quality and inspired unique designs.

Combination of the CRYSTALLIZED™ -Swarovski elements with the finest Italian leather…

The aim of our webshop is to present you the newest and the latest collection of our brand and make them available to you online.

Click here to start your tour www.exclusive1.com

HISTORICAL COSTS OF PREVIOUS U.S. WARS (July 2008)

2009-12-02T08:11:00.000-08:00

World War II $3.2 trillion
Iraq and Afghanistan To Date $808 billion in DOD costs
Vietnam War $670 billion
World War I $364 billion
Korean War $295 billion
Persian Gulf War $94 billion
Civil War (both Union and Confederate costs) $81 billion
Spanish-American War $7 billion
American Revolution $4 billion
Mexican War $2 billion
War of 1812 $1 billion

Source: Congressional Research Service and Office of Management and Budget data.

Sumox Computer Helpline

2009-06-20T10:17:00.000-07:00

Sumox is an IT support and training business based in Luxembourg, that provides a new and innovative approach to IT support for private costumers. Sumox operates in Benelux, France, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.

With Sumox's cutting-edge “remote assistance” technology and their experienced solution engineers, Sumox is able to fix computer problems in a more effective and less time consuming manner than traditional computer support companies.

Sumox's unique billing system ensures 100% client satisfaction. Sumox only charges for the time spent by an engineer to fix a computer problem. If Sumox is unable to solve a computer problem, the customer will not be charged.

Check it out www.sumox.com

Basic economic models

2009-06-19T00:38:00.000-07:00

SOCIALISM You have 2 cows. You give one to your neighbor.

COMMUNISM You have 2 cows. The State takes both and gives you some milk.

FASCISM You have 2 cows. The State takes both and sells you some milk.

NAZISM You have 2 cows. The State takes both and shoots you.

BUREAUCRATISM You have 2 cows. The State takes both, shoots one, milks the other, and then throws the milk away...

TRADITIONAL CAPITALISM You have two cows. You sell one and buy a bull. Your herd multiplies, and the economy grows. You sell them and retire on the income.

SURREALISM You have two giraffes. The government requires you to take harmonica lessons.

AN AMERICAN CORPORATION You have two cows. You sell one, and force the other to produce the milk of four cows. Later, you hire a consultant to analyze why the cow has dropped dead.

ENRON VENTURE CAPITALISM You have two cows. You sell three of them to your publicly listed company, using letters of credit opened by your brother-in-law at the bank, then execute a debt/equity swap with an general offer so that you get all four cows back, with a tax exemption for five cows. The milk rights of the six cows are transferred via an intermediary to a Cayman Island Company secretly owned by the majority shareholder who sells the rights to all seven cows back to your listed company. The annual report says the company owns eight cows, with an option on one more. You sell one cow to buy a new president of the United States, leaving you with nine cows. No balance sheet provided with the release. The public then buys your bull.

A FRENCH CORPORATION You have two cows. You go on strike, organize a riot, and block the roads, because you want three cows.

A JAPANESE CORPORATION You have two cows. You redesign them so they are one-tenth the size of an ordinary cow and produce twenty times the milk. You then create a clever cow cartoon image called 'Cowkimon' and market it worldwide.

A GERMAN CORPORATION You have two cows. You re-engineer them so they live for 100 years, eat once a month, and milk themselves.

AN ITALIAN CORPORATION You have two cows, but you don't know where they are. You decide to have lunch.

A RUSSIAN CORPORATION You have two cows. You count them and learn you have five cows. You count them again and learn you have 42 cows. You count them again and learn you have 2 cows. You stop counting cows and open another bottle of vodka.

A SWISS CORPORATION You have 5000 cows. None of them belong to you. You charge the owners for storing them.

A CHINESE CORPORATION You have two cows. You have 300 people milking them. You claim that you have full employment, and high bovine productivity. You arrest the newsman who reported the real situation.

AN INDIAN CORPORATION You have two cows. You worship them.

A BRITISH CORPORATION You have two cows. Both are mad.

AN IRAQI CORPORATION Everyone thinks you have lots of cows. You tell them that you have none. No-one believes you, so they bomb the **** **** out of you and invade your country. You still have no cows, but at least now you are part of Democracy....

AN AUSTRALIAN CORPORATION You have two cows. Business seems pretty good. You lose the office and go for a few beers to celebrate.

A NEW ZEALAND CORPORATION You have two cows. The one on the left looks very attractive.

THE SINGAPORE CORPORATION You have two cows - or maybe two gazillion cows? You don't let anybody know how big and fat or where they are. You hide them away for a rainy day. You hope that UBS and Citibank do not go bust - otherwise you will be back to just two cows again

THE LUXEMBOURGISH CORPORATION You have two cows - you forecast that cow birthrate increases over the next 20 years and that you will be able to convince cows to pay for social security - No need for a social security reform any more - You sell this to your electors and are elected for another 5 years ;)

Federer will regain N°1 spot after Wimbledon, if...

2009-06-16T13:19:00.000-07:00

European Election results

2009-06-08T00:40:00.000-07:00

http://www.elections2009-results.eu/

Have a special look at the results in Germany. SPD got their bill for messing with Luxembourg ;-)

KB Hills 2009 preview

2009-04-01T05:33:00.001-07:00

Letzebuerger Fussball Geschicht

2009-03-30T04:28:00.000-07:00

Bildzeitung entdeckt ewiges Leben...

2009-01-29T09:37:00.000-08:00

This article published by "BILD" renews my hopes of immortality :-)

Das ewige Leben gibt's wirklich – bei einer Qualle

Wovon die Menschheit seit Jahrhunderten träumt, hat ein kleines Tier, gut versteckt in den Tiefen des Mittelmeeres, schon verwirklicht: die Formel für die Unsterblichkeit.

Es ist die Qualle „Turritopsos Nutricula“.

Sie ist nur fünf Millimeter groß, besteht aus einer Außen- und einer Innenhaut, zwischen denen eine zellfreie Schicht liegt. Beide Häute sind nur ein Fünfzigstel Millimeter dick. Damit ist sie durchsichtig.

Unter dem Körper hat sie zahlreiche Tentakeln, mit denen sie Plankton fängt.

Wenn die „Turritopsos Nutricula" ein bestimmtes Alter erreicht hat und ihre Körperzellen nicht mehr ausreichend funktionieren, lässt sie sich auf den Meeresboden sinken. Das Tier heftet sich umgedreht am Untergrund fest. Dann „verjüngt" sich der gesamte Zellbestand (Transformation). Dabei verlieren ihre Nerven- und Nesselzellen ihre eigentliche Funktion. Sie kehren in ihr Ausgangsstadium zurück.

Als Polyp beginnt die Qualle anschließend ihr Leben erneut. Er besteht zunächst wieder aus lauter unbestimmten Zellen, aus denen sich die spezialisierten Zellen wieder neu ausbilden.

Und diesen in der Tierwelt einmaligen Prozess kann „Turritopsos Nutricula“ so gut wie unbegrenzt wiederholen. Wird sie nicht gefressen oder auf eine andere Art und Weise getötet, kann sie so ewig leben.

Inzwischen versuchen Wissenschaftler, den genetischen Code der Qualle zu knacken, um zu ergründen, wie das Tier den Alterungsprozess einfach umkehrt.

Winners of KB Hills Open 2008

2009-01-29T04:23:00.000-08:00

Benita saves the family honor by winning the KB Hills Open 2008 together with "Scheif", after I failed to qualify for the semi-finals for the second year in a row... Next year a need to find a better partner ;-)

Citigroup Private Jet

2009-01-29T00:58:00.000-08:00

The US financial sector’s new political masters began exerting their influence on Tuesday as Citigroup was forced to scrap the purchase of a $50m executive jet that was seen as a misuse of money at a time when the bank is reliant on public support.

Only a day earlier, Citi had insisted it would complete the acquisition of the aircraft. But it backed down after officials acting for Tim Geithner, the new Treasury secretary, expressed strong opposition to the move.

Looking at their stock price the jet above would be a more appropriate acquisition for Citi!!!

'Cause I'm leaving on a jet plane
I don't know when I'll be back again
Oh, babe, I hate to go... :-)

Could Goldman Sachs be a private-equity target?

2007-07-04T11:03:00.000-07:00

After the recent decisions of Blackstone and KKR to go public, financial times blogger Felix Salmon has an interesting theory of what might be the next surprise in the booming private equity industry.

John Carney and Thorold Barker agree: Goldman might be a glorified hedge fund, but it sure ain't valued like one. Carney's solution? Goldman should spin off its trading business. That would solve at a stroke any number of conflicts of interest, as well as do wonders to the valuation of the whole. Barker doesn't go quite as far as Carney, but he does reckon that more transparency from Goldman on where its profits are coming from could mean the bank's multiples moving up towards the kind of levels seen at Fortress and Blackstone.
Let me throw in my own idea: Blackstone, or KKR, or Silver Lake, or someone along those lines, should just buy Goldman already. People have been talking about the first $100 billion private-equity deal for some time now – and this could be it. Goldman is a great PE target: an undervalued company with highly-paid managers who historically have hated the idea of a public listing, with all the disclosure requirements associated with it.
Goldman's market capitalization right now is in the region of $85 billion. Any buyer would obviously have to pay a significant premium over that sum. But in theory, there's no reason why it shouldn't happen. And maybe under new management Goldman's funds will do even better.

Winners of the Kleinbettingen Hills Open 2007

2007-07-02T11:25:00.000-07:00

After a trilling match and a tough fight Cathy Leesch and Gilles Kremer managed to win the first edition of this prestigious tournament. The winners were highly rewarded thanks to our main sponsor Rideaux Center Esch also named "dem Fatzi sain buttek do ennen am Süden" ;-) Applications to sponsor next years edition are now being received...

Hope to see you all next year.

Cheers

Nina & Jean Muller

Kleinbettingen Hills Open 2007

2007-06-30T07:23:00.000-07:00

Hey Players,

muer ass et esou weit. Den 5ten Grand Slam vum joer Kleinbettingen Hills Open gin un...
D`formule ass double mixed. An daat hei sin d'equipen ewei ech se zesummen gestallt hun. Wann der net zefridden sidd beschweiert iech beim co-organisator d'Nina ;-) Et gett an zwou poulen gesplillt, wou dann dei 2 bescht equipen an d'halef final kommen.

Hei ass den Tableaux an Zaiten em weivill auer ween spillt:

An der poule A gewennt dei equipe den match dei als eischt 4 jeuen huet an bei 3:3 gett et en tiebreak deen och bis 4 geet. An der poule B gett all keiers en ganzen satz gespillt. Kritt der nach eng keier alles sur place erklaert ;-)

CU tomorrow

Weg kommt zur zait soss geet et matt der zait net op THX

Adresse ass:

17, rte de Kahler
L-8378 Kleinbettingen

From an independant source...

2007-06-04T00:56:00.000-07:00

jean muller --

[noun]:

A master of storytelling

'How will you be defined in the dictionary?' at QuizGalaxy.com