- Nice day in the markets. Market internals were great. Technology looks a little fuzzy, though. The DOW is at a new high. I think we're buoyed on the monthly strength of 401(k) additions, so we'll have to see what happens when that dries up. It is now officially February, so let the buyer beware.
- On the inflation front, there is very little. The core PCE deflator was up just .1%.
- Only one more week of American Idol tryouts. And hey, if Paula wants to come in sloshed, I say let Paula come in sloshed.
- So, we're responsible for global warming, because of greenhouse gases mainly from burning fossil fuels in power plants. But get this: The Eiffel Tower, near the meeting hall, and some French homes shut off lights for five minutes on Thursday night in an action to highlight energy waste and global warming, briefly cutting France's power consumption by one percent. WHAT? France gets most (85%) of their electricity from nuclear energy. They're not even contributing to global warming. They could've asked everyone in the country to turn every light on and leave them on 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and 365 1/4 days a year. Just to boast. Maybe France should get the Nobel Peace Prize for having the smarts to rely on nuclear energy instead of fossil fuel energy, eh?
- Nintendo Wii parties. (Just a side thought. I've been to several stores where Playstation 3s seem to be in plenty of supply, but no Nintendo Wiis are available. Just saying).
- Amazon (AMZN) reports after the bell that sales were up 34%, but profits were cut in half. The more they sell, the more they lose. Hey, what a business model! Thank goodness sales weren't up 68%! Seriously, something about "the company lost the benefit of a large tax gain it had a year ago and saw its operating margin narrow." Er, okee. 2007 business plan: Widen back up that operating margin. See? I could be CEO.
- Work is driving me knuts. Er, gnuts. Aw, crazy. You know? I need a drinking vacation. I wonder if Paula would be interested? Well anyways. One planned is coming up in the not too distant future. Ooh, and a Super Bowl party sunday. Hey, I'm okay. Mental attitude adjusted. Glass is back to half full.
- And look at France with their tax credits for video games with a "cultural dimension." I'm not sure what they mean by that, but it sounds like if the video game objective is to kill bad guys, so that you can rescue an expensive bottle of Merlot, that'd be okay.
