So, Bernie Madoff, who could become the top symbol for the decade's
economic troubles, appears to be in the prison hospital.
Though old, he's just starting his sentence, and it would be
disheartening to see him escape prison time, considering he's
supposedly never getting out of there.
From what I've seen, CNBC's web site is the first to report the
disgraced financial leader was moved to the prison's medical ward.
Wonder if he'll end up like Ken Lay of Enron, who died before serving
his prison term.

A recent year-in-review bit on CNNMoney.com had listed some of the dumbest business moves of 2009.

Of course, the automotive crash this year highlighted the top, but Pontiac was included in the listing for its sale of the Silverdome.

They noted that the city only received 1 percent of what was paid to build the dome and buy the property.

Ouch.

It's one thing to make a mistake, it's another make a big enough mistake to get noticed across the country.

But seven years of political inaction made them ripe for the taking and someone took them.

The announcement came late Friday, at the end of the week's news cycle.
The weekend news reports about Tiger Woods' allegedly indiscretions
would follow a similar theme: What did it mean with him leaving golf
and what would is sponsors do?
Finally, the guy is trying to control the situation, announcing his
indefinite departure from golf. But it seems to me that he simply
took his ball and went home, leaving the field of play.
The leaving could be short-termed, perhaps until the Master's, when
he could return to a hero's welcome. Or he could take years off and
come out of retirement as a man of mystery.
Either way, his return would be the biggest story of the weekend or
year, depending how long he waits.
And his return depends on what he thinks of his place in history.
I figure, the way he controls himself, he might just value his place
in history a tad bit more than his family or even his bank accounts,
both with rely on a happy home front.
If he stays away too long, he might make sure Jack Nicklaus remains
the biggest champion of all time, with 18 major victories, an
accomplishment that I thought was just waiting to be topped by Tiger.
Two or three years away, and he may not be as competitive and he may
learn those majors aren't so easy.
But Tiger Woods likely still is focused on the final prize, being the
best ever.
This move, I suspect, was calculated as a way to take charge of the
story, let people in the media and world of golf stop and appreciate
what he brought to the game every weekend of the PGA season, and to
give him some breathing room.

The struggles in the newspaper business have been widely reported with drops in advertising and cuts in work force. But perhaps the most distressing sign came today, with the announcement that the owners of Editor and Publisher — the journal that has covered the newspaper business very well for more than a century — will be closed. 

Ouch!

Of course, perhaps it is just because magazines have been hit harder than newspapers and a magazine covering an industry undergoing such change provides little inspiration to keep it afloat.
I don't necessarily think the newspaper industry is dying, though its current form certainly is. It is undergoing a significant change, some calling it a revolution. 

I'm tuned in to see how this one turns out, though it'll be harder with the fine folks at E&P.

President Barack Obama announced his plan for creating jobs, but it's just a plan. The reality followed a story that came out as the president was letting his plan be known.... a survey of CEOs found few plan on hiring for the first half of next year.

Seems like everyone agrees that jobs are needed to fix the economy, but everyone seems to be saying, once the economy's fixed and we're doing better, then I'll hire.

Oh well.

Throw in Pontiac and Arts, Beats & Eats playing the blame game (when reality is likely that both are struggling and could no longer function together), another hung jury for the Rib Rack case, a snow/rain mix tonight, the likely loss of Curtis Granderson, a shooting in Pontiac, and... well, we know, the news was bad. 

However, I'd like to thank Marshall Mathers, better known as Eminem, for the story that noted he was the top-selling artist of the decade. Good for him and good for us. Haven't really been a fan, though I like his humor and his beat, but I like that he is at least one sign of success in what has turned into a long, long miserable day.

Is there a plan to release some new 'Family Ties' materials? It's a natural reaction in today's marketing-savvy entertainment world.

First, just last week, came the announcement that the actress who played the mom in the show, Meredith Baxter, is a lesbian. She hasn't been one her entire life, but she realized it in recent years.

And then today, The Associated Press reported that the actor who played the youngest child, the cute son, was arrested after an assault.

Wonder what's next, I mean, besides the DVD or reunion show.

Last week, on Monday, I was already tired of the Tiger Woods news,
wondering which story - Tiger Woods' car crash and the White House
party crashers - would have the legs to outlast the other.
Then the rumors got legs, and it was obvious the privacy so craved by
the world's best golfer would succumb to the tabloid-chasing
networks, while the party crashers would disappear into CSPAN
hearings and lame cable reality shows.
Now, maybe both stories will go away for a while...or at least until
the Masters.