Business

Cult leaders as snake oil salesmen

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Women marked with permanent scars in the flesh. People living in complete isolation with all aspects of their lives monitored and controlled. False religions where passing the collection plate actually means donating all personal property. Are these examples of darkness in the Middle Ages or behind the curtain of a totalitarian country? No, these situations are happening in the US in 2020.

hard to detect

How did we get here? There have always been scammers who ignore the core values ​​of honesty, transparency, and consideration for others in the name of quick money and personal gain. Often these charlatans are easy to spot, like the smooth-talking door-to-door salesman who won’t take no for an answer. However, there are many more, which are much harder to see as they are disguised as self-help gurus or new age leaders just looking to help someone find their human potential.

At first, everything is glorious similar to a new love story. At that time, the charlatan finds his mark or source of money. Behind their ultra-smiles and boundless willingness to help, their carefully defined brainwashing techniques often begin. Praise turns to harsh criticism, voluntary help leads to forced labor, and financial fees or donations become much higher. The months turn into years or even decades and the brainwashing is complete.

attack the accuser

When questioned or questioned by family, friends, or legal authorities, cult leaders defend themselves with arguments of free enterprise, freedom of religion, or simply the freedom to live as one chooses. Then the process of targeting the attacker begins, such as Scientology’s Fair Play Policy of stalking and harassing anyone who criticizes their false religion or Synanon leaving a rattlesnake in a lawyer’s mailbox, which happened to Paul Morantz.

Years ago, the Center Foundation introduced a series of advisory groups that were ranked in order of performance. However, beyond expressing emotions in a supportive environment, leaders engaged in putting people down for their personal weight, physically assaulting members who were slow to accept feedback, and telling others where they could work, with whom they could get out or if they could keep them unborn. babies.

hard to fight

Law enforcement is often in a bind. Under pressure to keep the streets of our cities and towns free of the most obvious thieves, they often ignore the danger of cults until the threat is overwhelming. When conflict between local townspeople in rural Oregon escalated with followers of Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, marshals determined the cult group had more firepower on their ranch than law enforcement around the world. state of Oregon combined, so much to illustrate.

In the US, we often focus our attention on the supply side of misdeeds rather than the demand side. Of course, we need to criminally prosecute and civilly sue the leaders of these cult groups for their crimes. However, charlatans will always exist as they originate within the defects of the human heart. What about the demand side? As long as there is a market for illegal drugs in the US, there will always be suppliers ready to satisfy the consumer’s desire.

We need to stop seeking human fulfillment at the hands of scammers, who are only interested in making a quick buck and having power over a loyal and needy herd. Human growth comes from our family, friends, community, and spiritual connection in religions with a proven history of ethical behavior. Certainly there are problems in the major religions. However, many of those problems are being resolved.

false prophets

Keith Raniere, David Miscavidge, and Richard Corriere are not prophets. Instead, they are enterprising men who trade the false promise of human growth for their own power and financial gain. Let’s start by looking close to home and see the glorious nuggets of self-fulfillment that surround us. Isn’t the smile of serving food at a homeless shelter or taking a walk in nature worth more than surrendering your personal freedom to a scammer? I think you know the answer.

Home Kitchen

How to achieve a smooth painted finish on the cabinet

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When it comes to a beautiful finished cabinet paint project, there are a few things a homeowner needs to keep in mind and properly sanding your cabinets and doors is a must to get it right the first time. Cabinet painting is a very detailed system. Homeowners looking to undertake these types of projects should take the information in this article to be prepared for what it takes to produce beautifully finished cabinets.

Painting your kitchen cabinets is not like painting the walls or doors of your house. You must follow a system. The first part of that system is to remove any hardware. Next is to properly clean your cabinets and then fill in any holes or grains that will show up in your finished product. The worst thing that can happen is to do everything right, and not cover holes or grain, so you have to start all over again.

This article is about how to achieve a smooth finish, and that starts with sanding your cabinets. Depending on what cabinets you have, whether they are oak or redwood, you need to choose the correct sandpaper grit. The two different grits homeowners should have on hand are 150-grit and 220-grit sandpaper.

Going with a grit coarser than 150 will start to dig into your wood and those scratches will show up when you paint your cabinets and the scratches are really bad then you need to fill them in and start the process over again. Never go below 150 grit sandpaper. Some people will suggest 120 grit sandpaper, but that is incorrect and should never be considered for your cabinet painting project.

You’ll start by sanding with 150-grit sandpaper first, because that’s what will penetrate the caulk or other paint that’s on your cabinets to give your primer something to adhere to, too. When painting your cabinets, you don’t need to sand the wood. Sanding down to the wood is only necessary if you are going to stain your cabinets a new color or to give them a fresh look.

Most people think that you need to sand your cabinets down to the wood to paint them, but that’s not true. Also, the purpose of sanding your cabinets is to remove the gloss sealer that is now on your cabinets. Gloss Sealant is made to repel or create a poor bond for grease, oil, dirt, and paint. Once you have finished sanding your cabinets, make sure they are very dull and free of scratches.

After you’ve sanded down the first level of protection on your cabinets, you’re now ready to remove any leftover dust. If there is dust that was not removed, the dust once primed will give its own sandpaper feel and your finish will not be smooth. It’s best to clean cabinets with a damp rag once you think you’ve removed all of the sanding dust. Let the cabinets dry for a few minutes and repeat the wiping process with a damp rag or towel.

You are now ready to prime your cabinets. After the primer has dried properly, it usually takes 4-24 hours, depending on the primer you used and the manufacturer’s recommendations. This is when you put away the 150 grit sandpaper, you don’t need it anymore. Once your cabinets are primed, you will need to use 220 grit or finer sandpaper. Sand the cabinets smooth because the primer usually has a texture of its own. You are going to lightly sand the primer. You’re not trying to sand the cabinets hard, because you don’t want to sand the primer and have to re-prime the stained areas of the cabinets.

Repeat the dust extraction process. Use microfiber cloths to remove dust, then use damp rags or towels to remove any remaining dust. The next step is to paint your cabinets with the first coat of premium paint. Let the paint dry and sand your cabinets again between each coat of paint. You want to apply a minimum of 2 coats of paint.

Digital Marketing

Heal your mind, heal your life

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Let’s be frank from the start: grievance is inevitable in life and affects anyone regardless of creed, race, gender and beliefs. There is no way to avoid grievance, however, there are many ways to prevent the damaging effects of a prolonged period of grief from incorporating serious consequences in the lifestyle itself.

Fortunately, neuroscience is standing in our way, bringing ever-increasing evidence that our mind-body synergies can be worked on or coupled into lasting benefits that could instead alter and potentially seriously harm health and lifestyle. . Neuroscience informs and confirms that mindfulness, gentle yoga, meditation, breathing, and a sustained discipline to dwell in the synergies of mind and body start us on a journey of self-discovery of the master that lives within us. . So what are the benefits? First of all, correct breathing is essential. It improves the exchanges of oxygen and nutrients but does not stop there, it improves the transport of hemoglobin in the blood and as such clears the mind, keeps the brain healthy, maintains a balanced state of biochemical exchanges in the body. , and maintain the endocrine and lymphatic systems in optimal conditions, which in turn improves the body’s natural immune defense mechanism. Second, gentle yoga keeps the musculoskeletal and soft tissues in tip-top condition and ensures the circulation of nutrients throughout the body and, in conjunction with the mind, keeps the nervous system in a state of balance so critical for rest and recovery. dissipate stress and its consequences. Lastly, mindfulness and keeping attention focused on mind-body interactions also shows increasing benefits under the lens of neuroscience due to brain plasticity. The mind is flexible and changes its mind easily but the brain must follow and the combination of mindfulness, breathing, yoga is an exceptional cocktail to keep the body and mind in optimal conditions and, why not, eternally healthy. Studies also show that a regular yoga practice has exponential and long-lasting positive results in daily lifestyle activities, such as meeting important deadlines with better focus, clarity in decision-making, and an overall sense of well-being at home. and in the office. in social, leisure and private life.

The idea of ​​yoga as a science may come as a surprise to some, as does the statement: “Yoga is not just exercise. The facts are that over the last 5,000 years, yoga has been codified in various forms several times before being progressively prescribed.” by the allopathic general”. Practitioners as a form of exercise for its many benefits. These benefits range from the most common weight loss, cardiovascular and respiratory dysfunctions, orthopedic imbalances, arthritis, osteoporosis, hormonal dysfunctions and migraines, but also cataracts, colds and a wide range of somatic-psychological ailments. such as depression, a variety of addictions and anxiety. The convergence of science and medicine, both holistic and allopathic, towards common ground on the multiple benefits of a regular yoga practice, is an illustration of the power of the union of the mind-body practices and their influences on wellness and wellness Yoga as a science aims at the subtle transformation of the cellular body from the rewiring of brain neurons to actual changes throughout the central nervous system. It is also a fact, informed by research, that regular practice of any style of yoga provides lasting benefits for a healthy and happy life.

Although the modern expression of yoga in contemporary and often trendy yoga studios around the world is essentially reduced to physical practice, sprinkled with a few mantras, breath awareness, and a healthy dose of yoga fashion that reinforces the idea of ​​yoga as an exercise, the facts are that whether the practitioner sets the intention to improve their own being or simply practices, the benefits are fast, deep, transformative, effective and long lasting. Yoga is the fastest growing industry in the entire world. The practice of Yoga is a physical exercise that involves all layers of the mind and body with the aim of improving the awareness of our own being. Regularity, a pinch of discipline, a good dose of intention and mindfulness will accelerate the improvement of one’s being due to the biochemistry that plays in the cellular body. Neuroscience and Yoga testimonials from a wide variety of practitioners clearly summarize the most significant effects of yoga practice in a nutshell: clarity, awareness, quality breathing, flexibility, and a sense of well-being and inner balance, regeneration. Quality breathing has several benefits and is illustrated by various medical and scientific studies.

Legal Law

Tips Collection 101

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Today’s collections are said to be 95% psychology and 5% muscle. This article is a proven collection of tips, techniques, and thoughts that can help you and your organization raise more money, faster, and for less. Much of the content in this article may be common knowledge and the kinds of things you and your organization are already doing on a daily basis. But there are sure to be several action-oriented tips and ideas that, if implemented, will help you do an even better job with your accounts receivable.

I: Warning signs of potential credit and collections problems:

1. Numerous inquiries about one of your accounts.

2. The client changes banks frequently.

3. Customer who requests clarification or proof of service more frequently.

4. Changes in customer payment patterns.

5. Partial payments instead of full payment.

6. Problems in the geographical area of ​​the client.

7. Problems in the client’s industry.

II: Warning signs your sales force may see first:

8. Order levels are reduced.

9. Empty shelves in warehouse or retail floor.

10. Plant operating at less than capacity.

11. Your client’s main client is in trouble.

12. Loss of key staff members.

13. Large layoffs or reductions in hours.

14. Restricted tours in the areas of the facilities.

III:Warning Signs of Potential Bad Check Problems:

15. Checks with printed numbers less than 300.

16. There is no name or address preprinted on the checks.

17. Startup checks without printed information.

18. The address on the check and the ID do not match.

19. No photo ID or expired photo ID.

IV: Why collection problems occur:

20. Fear of losing future business (do not actively pursue delinquency for fear of losing future business).

21. Absence of credit and collection policy or unclear policy.

22. Lack of training of collection personnel.

23. Reluctance to use external collection sources at the beginning of the delinquency cycle.

V: Seven reasons to have a formal written credit and collections policy:

24. Clarify who does what.

25. Facilitates training.

26. Equity media.

27. Avoid unauthorized changes.

28. Promotes consistency.

29. Reduce wasted time.

30. Answer 95% of routine questions.

VI: Develop your Credit and Collection “Skills”:

31. Two basic concepts: (1) Time is the factor that most deteriorates the collectibility of an account, and (2) You will never have enough resources to collect all your delinquencies.

32. Implement a remission or early cure program to maximize your internal and external recoveries.

33. Early referral programs, in addition to collecting, help you identify and differentiate non-payers from late payers and treat them accordingly.

34. Accounts 60 days or less are over 80% collectible.

35. Accounts older than 90 days are typically less than 50% collected (internal).

36. Active accounts with less than 60 days past due will generally maximize your internal return and recovery. Use a third party for those more than 60-90 days delinquent while focusing internal efforts on the easiest slow paying accounts.

37. Develop and use a “60 Day Follow-up Program.”

• Concentrate all internal efforts in the time frame where they are most profitable.

• Start with your offenders early: Contact them often in the 60-day period.

• Get progressively stronger as the 60 days go by.

38. Items to be used in the 60-day Follow-up Program – copies of statements/invoices, letters, business visits, phone calls, credit suspension.

39. After 60-90 days, your options are: continue in-house with reduced results, cancel the account, use small claims court, an attorney, or an outside full-service collection agency.

VII: Collection letters:

40. The easiest way to automate to collect money.

41. You cannot resolve problems or determine if there is a payment problem.

42. One-way communication.

43. Subject to misunderstanding.

44. Collection letters maintain a dialogue with the debtor.

45. They are cheap.

46. ​​​​Set the stage for your next action.

47. Let the debtor know that you haven’t forgotten about him.

VIII:Other considerations in the use of collection letters:

48. Your bill is not the debtor’s only mail.

49. Your letter competes with professional couriers.

50. Change the look of each mailing.

51. You must discourage the debtor from disposing of their envelope.

52. You should encourage the debtor to open their envelope.

53. Increases the chances of getting positive results from your card.

54. Address a blank envelope – they’ll open it!

55. Add “Address Correction Requested” and “Postage Guaranteed Shipping” to the envelope.

56. Mark the envelope to encourage opening: “Urgent”, “Personal”, “Confidential”, “Do Not Fold”, “Personal and Confidential”.

57. Motivate the debtor to want to pay with appeals in your letters:

• “Save financing costs”.

• “Keep your good credit history.”

• “Keep being a valued customer.”

• “Avoid a history of delinquency.”

• “Avoid locating an outside collection agency.”

58. Make progressively stronger collection cards.

IX: Telephone Collection Calls.

59. Telephone contact is more expensive, but much more effective.

60. The calls should complement the letters and follow up on what was said in the letters.

61. Being a two-way communication, calls can identify and resolve problems.

62. Sell and keep control over the collection call.

X: Making the collection call:

63. The collection call format:

• Identify the debtor.

• Identify yourself.

• Demand full payment.

• Psychological rest.

• Determine problem or objection.

• Find solution.

• Close the call and get commitment.

64. Collection calls have three phases:

1. Opening Phase.

2. Negotiation Phase.

3. Closing Phase.

Opening Phase Tactics:

65. Verify the identity of the debtor. (I’m calling for [name]… is he/she?)

66. Verify the debtor’s address.

67. Identify yourself.

68. Indicate the debt you owe (You owe us $567.35…).

69. Indicate the type of action you want. (“I need full payment today”).

70. Pause and let the debtor respond.

Tactical Negotiation Phase-4 Steps (in this order):

71. Step one: “I must receive payment in full today.”

72. Step Two: “When can you send full payment?”

73. Step three: “How much can you send today?”

74. Step four: “When can I expect a payment?”

Closing phase tactics:

75. The collector summarizes what is going to happen and when.

76. Payments are always expressed in dollars.

77. Points in time are always expressed as dates.

78. Debtors must confirm that they understand the following action on their part.

XI: Selection of an external agency:

79. Always use a full service agency instead of letter writing services etc.

80. Look for agencies that report accounts to the three major credit reporting agencies.

81. Select an agency that works nationally rather than “locally” or “regionally” so that debtors are pursued even if they move outside of their local area.

82. Use an agency that has optional litigation services available if a lawsuit becomes necessary.

XII: Twenty more tips, especially for medical practices:

83. Conduct new patient pre-registration (and credit check) by phone or mail prior to first office visit. This reduces bottlenecks in the office and allows time for a credit investigation.

84. Secure credit bureau reports on new patients with poor credit history – identify and resolve payment problems before services are rendered.

85. Possible “danger signs” on new patient registration forms:

• Address: temporary or just a post office box.

• Telephone: none or not listed.

• Business address/phone: none or the same as your home.

• Occupation: none.

• Reference: none, “a friend”, “medical society” or “yellow pages”.

• Marital status – divorced or separated people, young people, single.

• Age – very young or very old.

• No insurance coverage.

86. Jump doctor (if known).

87. “What bills do you have that are more important than your health?”

88. Collection Rate: 92% to 95% recovery is average to good for most types of group practices.

XIII: Special Medical Collection Call Debtor Appeals:

89. “I guess you’ve made several thousand dollars over the past few months, but we’ve only received a small payment.”

90. “We helped you in a time of need and, in good faith, expected to be paid within a reasonable time.”

91. “I know you want to protect your credit so you feel comfortable in case you or your family need to come back.”

92. “Add to a current loan (to pay us)… or let go of some other bills like you have ours for the past few months.”

Know the law… Debt collection, collection agencies, and credit bureaus are highly regulated. Full copies of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), and a HIPAA-approved model agreement for health care providers are available at: [http://www.ncsplus.com/regulations]

It’s 101 credit and collections tips and techniques that, when implemented effectively, can dramatically improve your cash flow and translate into increased profitability for your business.

Lifestyle Fashion

Why do politicians have fire exit signs covered?

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Politicians may well endanger themselves and others by using an extremely old political trick: disguising fire exit signs. They do this to avoid embarrassing photographs. This practice may very well lead to voters being lost or trapped in the event of an actual fire within the room where politicians are speaking or appearing. For advertising consultants, covering billboards is important work, because it prevents a politician from being photographed under a billboard that suggests an exit rather than an entrance.

According to a spokesperson for the Fire Chiefs Association, covering an exit sign or obstructing a fire escape is a very serious matter. It is strongly recommended that once a blocked exit or covered sign is detected, the local fire and rescue service be notified immediately. It should be noted that fire exit signs are quickly discovered once spawning is complete, but the risk involved in taking action is too great to ignore.

Boris Johnson’s former press officer, Dylan Sharpe, once went beyond simply covering the fire exit sign. Sharpe had the sign completely unscrewed and removed from the wall for which he had been designated. At the time, Sharpe was not in the employ of any politician.

The rules governing fire exit signs in England are set out in the Statutory Ordinance 2005. It states that non-domestic premises or businesses must have a person responsible, in the event of a fire, for exit routes. They are also responsible for ensuring that all emergency exits remain clear and properly identified at all times. All exits and emergency routes must be identified with signs, while exits and emergency routes must be illuminated. This lighting must be provided with emergency lighting whose intensity is adequate in case the normal lighting fails. Other than that, the regulation does not specify any provision that formally prohibits the temporary covering of fire exit signs.

That said, the practice of politicians covering fire exit signs is apparently not going to end any time soon. Although they have been strongly advised not to continue the practice, it continues to thrive. It seems that the desire to win the election and take office far outweighs the collective security of the voters who will elect them. This practice not only involves covering fire exit signs, it also involves blocking the exits. If a fire were to break out during a politician’s appearance at a location, the results would be chaotic and deadly.

Voters will be left with no clear understanding of where to go and, in some cases, no viable way out. The only way to truly ensure the safety of the public is to immediately notify your local fire authority of fire exit sign coverage or an exit being blocked.

Pets

Assignment of Sentence in California

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The subject of this article is the assignment of a judgment in the State of California. A judgment creditor in California may assign his or her judgment to a third party, pursuant to Section 954 of the Civil Code.

Section 673 of the Code of Civil Procedure sets out in detail exactly what information must be included in the acknowledgment of adjudication that is filed with the Court. If the judgment assignment acknowledgment does not contain the information required by law, the judgment debtor may object to any enforcement action taken by the assignee of record.

Judgment assignments in California are now widely used compared to 20 years ago when the author worked in property management and collected court judgments for his employer.

However, the assignment must state that “all right, title, and interest” in the judgment is assigned to avoid any objection, as the California Supreme Court has ruled that the assignment of only a portion of the judgment is not likely to be valid unless that the judgment debtor consents or ratifies the assignment.

All judgment assignments the author uses to collect judgments state that “all right, title, and interest in and to the judgment” is being assigned.

An assignment of judgment in California generally transfers all rights the judgment creditor had to the assignee of record that has been declared by a California Court of Appeals.

“In doing so, the judgment creditor assigns the debt on which the judgment is based. By such assignment, the assignee normally acquires all the rights and remedies that the assignor possesses for the execution of the debt, subject, however, to the exceptions that the debtor had against the assignor.

A California Court of Appeals has ruled that, as long as the assignment of the judgment complies with the statutory provisions of the Code of Civil Procedure, a judgment debtor may not challenge the legal position of the assignee of the record judgment creditor’s authority to make the judgment. assignment.

Visit the following website to view any of the statutes cited in this article,

http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/calaw.html

An exception would be if the registered transferee lacks the capacity to enforce the judgment, such as a transferee that is a suspended corporation or something similar.

In the author’s 20+ years of experience collecting unpaid judgments in the state of California, he has had many judgment creditors “forget” that they had assigned their judgment to someone else and have tried to convince the author to do so. collection charge. He has been denied as the person who first becomes the assignee of record by filing an acknowledgment of assignment with the court or otherwise has priority pursuant to Civil Code Section 954.5(b).

The author sincerely hopes that you have enjoyed this article.

Sincerely,
Stan Burman

Copyright 2012 Stan Burman. All rights reserved.

Real Estate

FASB Proposed Lease Accounting Changes: Impacts on Commercial Real Estate

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Introduction:

The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) on August 17, 2010 published its “exposure draft” that requires companies to record almost all leases on their balance sheets as a “right-of-use” asset and a “payment of corresponding future lease – liability”. . What does this mean for your business in simple terms? This proposal essentially eliminates operating leases; all leases (unless immaterial) would be capitalized using the present value of the minimum lease payments. Therefore, companies that in the past had off-balance sheet lease obligations must now record these obligations on their balance sheet.

A key point to consider regarding the proposed lease accounting changes is that, in all likelihood, existing operating leases, signed prior to the implementation of the new rules, will require reclassification as capital leases that must be accounted for on the balance sheet. This means that real estate professionals must immediately consider the effect existing and planned leases will have on financial statements once the proposed rules are implemented. Since operating lease obligations can represent a larger liability than all balance sheet assets combined, lease reclassification can significantly alter companies’ balance sheets.

The impact of recording these lease obligations on the balance sheet can have multiple impacts, such as: companies needing to alert their lenders as they will now default on their loan covenants, negotiating new loan covenants with lenders due to the upgrade financial statements, the ratios used to assess a company’s credit potential will be adversely affected and restatement of a lessee’s financial statement once the change takes effect may result in a lower principal balance and changes in various ratios. accountants

The conceptual basis for lease accounting would change from determining when “substantially all the benefits and risks of ownership” have been transferred, to recognizing the “right of use” as an asset and apportioning the assets (and liabilities) between the lessee and the landlord.

As part of the FASB’s announcement, the Board stated that, in its opinion, “current accounting in this area does not clearly reflect the resources and obligations arising from leasing transactions.” This suggests that the end result will likely require more leasing activity to be reflected on the balance sheet than it currently is. In other words, many, perhaps virtually all, leases now considered operating are likely to be considered capital under the new standards. Therefore, many companies with large operating lease portfolios are likely to see a major change in their corporate financial statements.

Part of the purpose of this is to coordinate lease accounting standards with the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB), which sets accounting standards for Europe and many other countries. The IASB and FASB currently have substantial differences in their treatment of leases; Particularly notable is that the FAS 13 “bright line” tests (if the lease term is 75% or more of the economic life, and if the present value of the rentals is 90% or more of fair value) do not they are used by the IASB, which prefers a “facts and circumstances” approach that involves more judgment calls. Both, however, have the concept of capital (or financial) and operating leases, however the dividing line between said leases is drawn.

The FASB will accept public comments on this proposed change until December 15, 2010. If the FASB makes a final decision in 2011 regarding this proposed lease accounting change, the new rules will become effective in 2013.

Additionally, Securities and Exchange Commission staff reported in a report mandated by Sarbanes-Oxley, that the amount of operating leases held off-balance sheet is estimated at $1.25 trillion that would be transferred to corporate balance sheets if this accounting proposal the change is adopted.

Commercial Real Estate:

The impact on the Commercial Real Estate market would be substantial and will have a significant impact on commercial renters and owners. David Nebiker, Managing Partner of ProTenant (a commercial real estate firm focused on helping Denver and regional businesses strategize, develop and implement long-term, comprehensive facility solutions) added, “This proposed change not only affects tenants and landlords, but intermediaries, as it increases the complexity of leases and provides a strong impetus for tenants to execute short-term leases.

Short-term leases create financial problems for homeowners as lenders and investors prefer longer-term leases to secure their investment. Therefore, homeowners should secure financing to purchase or refinance prior to the implementation of this regulation, as financing will be considerably more difficult in the future.

This accounting change will increase the administrative burden on businesses and will effectively eliminate the rental premium for single-tenant buildings. John McAslan, associate at ProTenant, added: “The impact of this proposed change will have a significant impact on the behavior of leasing. Landlords of single-tenant buildings may be wondering why not just own the building, if I have to register it? on my financial statements anyway.”

Under the proposed rules, lessees would have to capitalize the present value of virtually all “probable” lease obligations on corporate balance sheets. The FASB views leasing as essentially a form of financing in which the lessor allows the lessee to use a capital asset, in exchange for a lease payment that includes principal and interest, similar to a mortgage.

David Nebiker said that “regulators have missed the point of why most companies lease and that is because of flexibility as their workforce expands and contracts, as location needs change, and companies they prefer to invest their cash in producing income growth, rather than owning real estate.”

The proposed accounting changes will also affect owners, especially companies that are publicly traded or have public debt with audited financial statements. Shopping center owners and trusts will be required to conduct analyzes for each tenant located in their buildings or shopping centers, looking at terms of occupancy and contingent lease rates.

Proactive landlords, renters and brokers should familiarize themselves with the proposed standards that could go into effect in 2013 and begin negotiating leases accordingly.

Conclusion:

The end result of this proposed lease accounting change is an increased compliance burden on the lessee, as all leases will have a deferred tax component, will be accounted for on the balance sheet, will require periodic reassessment, and may require more detailed disclosure. of the financial statements.

Therefore, lessors must know how to structure and sell transactions that will be desirable to lessees in the future. Many lessees will find that the new rules eliminate the off-balance sheet benefits that FASB 13 provided in the past and will find leasing a less beneficial option. They may also see the new standards as more cumbersome and complicated to account for and disclose. Ultimately, it will become a challenge for every commercial real estate landlord and broker to find a new approach to marketing commercial real estate leases that makes them more attractive than ownership.

However, this proposed accounting change to FAS 13 could potentially spur a lackluster commercial real estate market in 2011 and 2012, as businesses decided to purchase properties rather than deal with lease administrative issues in 2013 and beyond.

In conclusion, it is recommended that landlords and renters start preparing for this change by reviewing their lease agreements with their commercial real estate broker and discussing the financial ramifications with their CFO, outside accountant, and tax accountant to avoid potential financial surprises if/when. accounting changes. they are adopted.

Both David Nebiker and John McAslan of ProTenant indicated that their entire corporate team is continually educating themselves and proactively advising their clients on these potential changes.

Annex – Definition of Capital Lease and Operating Lease:

The basic concept of lease accounting is that some leases are simply rentals, while others are purchases in effect. For example, if a company leases office space for a year, the space is worth almost as much at the end of the year as it was when the lease began; The business is simply using it for a short period of time, and this is an example of an operating lease.

However, if a company leases a computer for five years, and at the end of the lease, the computer is worth almost nothing. The lessor (the company receiving the lease payments) anticipates this and charges the lessee (the company using the asset) a lease payment that will recover all the costs of the lease, including a profit. This transaction is called a capital lease, however, it is essentially a purchase with a loan, as such assets and liabilities must be recorded in the lessee’s financial statements. Essentially, capital lease payments are considered repayments of a loan; depreciation and interest expense, rather than lease expense, are recorded in the income statement.

Operating leases do not normally affect a company’s balance sheet. There is, however, an exception. If a lease has scheduled changes in the lease payment (for example, a planned increase for inflation or a lease vacation during the first six months), the rental expense must be recognized in equal parts over the life of the lease. The difference between the lease expense recognized and the lease actually paid is considered a deferred liability (for the lessee, if the leases are increasing) or an asset (if it is decreasing).

Whether capital or operating, future minimum lease commitments should also be disclosed as a footnote to the financial statements. The lease commitment must be broken down by year for the first five years and then all remaining rents are combined.

A lease is capital if any of the following four tests are met:

1) The lease transfers ownership to the lessee at the end of the lease term;

2) The lessee has the option to purchase the asset at a bargain price at the end of the lease term

3) The term of the lease is 75% or more of the economic life of the asset.

4) The present value of the rents, using the lessee’s incremental borrowing rate, is 90% or more of the fair market value of the asset.

Each of these criteria, and their components, are described in more detail in FAS 13 (codified as section L10 of the FASB Current Text or ASC 840 of the Codification).

Sports

Initial NFL Point Margin Analysis

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The NFL Week 4 lines are out and this is the week of the local underdogs. The reason we take note of this is that one of our proven winning formulas is about betting on local underdogs in the right circumstances. Home underdogs have covered nearly 60 percent over the last 10 years and there are plenty of games this week that fit this scenario. We see several of these games where he will cover the local underdog. We’ve given you our first impressions of these games below and will finalize our picks for our subscribers later in the week.

Ravens (-4.5) VS. BROWNS: Cleveland is a homedog who was also in Week 2 when they covered and won against the Bengals. The Ravens couldn’t cover after being up on Sunday against Arizona, but their defense is the kind that gives young QBs like Anderson trouble.

Bears (-3) VS. LIONS: Why the Bears are favored here are the questions, as this team has some major flaws to deal with, particularly the ineffectiveness of quarterback Rex Grossman. The Lions were destroyed last week against Philly and that’s the kind of loss that can shake a team’s confidence. The underdog home scenario is at work here.

JEANS (-11) VS. Rams: There is no team other than the Saints that has been the biggest disappointment in the NFL as the Rams have shown no life this season and will now lose RB Steven Jackson to this injury. 11 is a lot of points and the Cowboys may disappoint here after such a big win last Sunday on the road against the Bears.

Packers (-2) VS. VIKINGS: Suspicious play here, as the Vikings should be down 7 points against the 3-0 Packers. This game reminds us of the Browns-Bengals game in week 2. However, the Packers are so hot they should be able to handle them here. Another local underdog here.

Texans (-3) VS. FALCONS: Another home loser scenario here, as the Falcons played well last week with the same setup but couldn’t cover against Carolina. The Texans pressed like pet dogs last week against the Colts in a wild line, as some covered with Indy when they started at -5.5 (we won with that number picking the Colts), while some pressed at -6, and some they even won with Houston when the line hit -6.5 on Sunday morning.

COLTS (-9.5) VS. Broncos: Well here, as the Colts take on the Broncos. Denver was shocked by Jacksonville at home last week and things could quickly get worse with another loss. Expect better performance from them in this game. The Colts, on the other hand, have destroyed Denver over the years, including two playoff wins.

DOLPHINS (-3.5) VS. Raiders: Two bad teams meet in Miami with the dreaded 3.5 spread.

Jets (-3.5) VS. BILLS: The Bills will go with backup quarterback Trent Edwards as JP Losman will miss a few weeks with injury. The Jets did well at home beating Miami last week and things could be turning around after a rocky start to the season.

Eagles (-3) VS. GIANTS: The Giants are the home underdogs in prime time against an Eagles team that put up a ridiculous offensive performance last week.

Steelers (-5.5) VS. CARDINALS: The Steelers are 3-0 ATS so far this year and go into dessert to face a Cardinals team that will likely go with backup quarterback Kurt Warner, which could give them a boost.

CHARGERS (-12) VS. Chiefs: The Chargers are playing poorly as they are now 1-2 after a tough road loss against Green Bay. The Chiefs got on the board last week against the Vikings, but this team can’t score anything. Both RBs in this one (LT and L. Johnson) have struggled.

Seahawks (-1.5) VS. 49ERS: The 49ers are the home underdogs here as they face a Seahawks team coming off an impressive inning over the Bengals. 49ers RB Frank Gore went wild in Seattle in both games last year.

Patriots (-7) VS. BENGALS: Another local underdog and this one is on MNF when the Bengals take on the Patriots.

Tours Travel

The day a “tidal wave” hit Chicago

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“Giant tidal wave hits local town lake.” April Fool’s joke? Probably. “Giant tsunami hits Chicago”. Joke, right? No. This was the headline in the evening edition of the Chicago Daily News on June 26, 1954.

I left the house in my beat-up Chevy around 9:00 a.m. on a warm Saturday morning in June 1954 and drove to Montrose Beach and Harbor on Lake Michigan to meet my father and some friends at Wilson Rocks. Bait Shop, where he hung out. hanging out with his fellow fishermen. We were going to do some perch fishing……which is a chewy white meat fish that is a taste of heaven when fried and served with lemon, tartar sauce and accordion fries. Preparing for my senior year in high school, I had been hard at work on construction and needed some sun and relaxation. Perch was the answer this Saturday morning, but soon he would find something very different…something he would never forget.

When I pulled into the parking area, I noticed that it was filled with water even though it was a sunny day. The lake was unusually choppy. I also noticed people running towards the pier. There was a feeling that something very serious and very bad was going on and I immediately and instinctively headed to the bait shop to connect with my father. He saw me coming and he told me “let’s go to the dock, they need help down there”, and we left at full speed along with many others. A Seiche (pronounced sayh) had hit Montrose Harbor without warning on this June morning. It was 8 feet tall and 25 miles wide and hit the entire Chicago lakefront…from Michigan City, Indiana to the North Shore. Eight people were killed, most of whom were fishing right there in Montrose Harbor, where some 15 to 20 fishermen were swept off the narrow 175-foot concrete pier. And we knew many of them.

When we arrived, bathers and fishermen were running for shelter. Men, women and children ran and fell. Yachts rocked widely in the water. The wave at some points had rushed 150 feet to shore before sinking within minutes, which explained why I saw so much water when I pulled into the parking lot. There were rescues, panic, desperation and narrow escapes. Unfortunately, we arrived too late to be of any real help and then were left helpless as the rescue teams began the grim work of pulling every body out of the lake. Apparently the fishermen who had been lying face down, idly guiding lines in the water, were simply swept off the dock as the water swelled and washed over them. Fishermen at the North Avenue Pier, several miles to the south, were also washed into the lake, and the same grim work was being done there. Among those thrown into the water was Ted Stempinski, who had been fishing with his 16-year-old son Ralph. Ralph left the scene for a moment shortly before he hit the wave. When he returned, his father was gone. The same thing happened with John Jaworski who was also fishing with his son. Those tragic events hardly went unnoticed and stayed with me for a long time afterwards.

Park police quickly spread word of the approaching wave and pulled fishermen from a pier on 61st St. in Jackson Park minutes before the water submerged that area. At Loyola Beach, just to the north, waves broke over a 9-foot seawall. All the piers in the Belmont Harbor yacht dock were flooded when the wave raised the water level about 6 feet.

Before June 26, no one had heard of the word “Seiche”. After June 26, most of us were experts on the phenomena.
Specifically, “A Seiche has to occur in an enclosed body of water, such as a lake, bay, or gulf. A Seiche, a French word meaning “swing from side to side,” is a standing wave that oscillates in a lake as a result of seismic or atmospheric disturbances that create huge fluctuations in water levels in just moments Standing waves slosh back and forth between the shores of the lake basin, often referred to by many as tidal-like changes Lakes. Most seiches in the Great Lakes are the result of atmospheric disturbances and wind cessation, not seismic activity or enormous tidal forces” (Heidorn 2004; Wittman 2005).

This particular cuttlefish, which was the most dangerous of the three classes, was propelled by a severe squall line with strong winds and rapid changes in atmospheric pressure that pushed the surface of the lake across southern Lake Michigan a few hours earlier, going from northwest to southeast. It’s like throwing a stone into the middle of a bucket of water and watching the ripples move from the center. The atmospheric pressure caused by the storm was the stone and the waves were the Seiche. Like water sloshing back and forth in a bathtub, fast-moving squall lines with intense atmospheric pressure caused the lake to sway back and forth and water levels to rise along the shoreline. and ports up to 10 feet in a matter of minutes and with no warning.

Unlike a tsunami, which can travel across the open ocean at extremely high speeds, a seiche moves much more slowly. The Cuttlefish took 80 minutes to travel 40 miles from Michigan City to the Chicago lakefront on North Avenue. That’s about 30 mph. The Seiche lashed the entire Illinois coast with a wave approximately 2 to 4 feet high, but reached a maximum height of 10 feet as she approached the North Avenue Pier.

As an eyewitness to the immediate aftermath, I was struck by the way the Chicago newspapers over-dramatized the tragedy. The now-defunct Chicago Daily News carried headlines that read in two-inch black letters: “HUGE TSUNAMI HERE! Many washed into lake; 10 feared dead. Mother of 11 among victims. 3 divers, boats hunt others.” Three people drowned and several more were feared missing Saturday when a 25-mile-wide tidal wave hit the shoreline of Lake Michigan here.The freak wave, estimated to be between 3 and 10 feet high, hit around 9 a.m. from Jackson Park north to Wilmette. An unknown number of people were swept into the lake. Estimates of the death toll were as high as 10…” There had been no “big tidal wave”; there had been a monstrous and deadly cuttlefish. Since then, there have been numerous scares and reports of smaller seiches, but none causing similar damage or deaths.

Interestingly, however, one of the greatest disasters in the city of Buffalo, in the recorded history of New York, occurred at 11:00 p.m. on October 18, 1844, when a wall of water rapidly inundated the business and residential districts. Along the coast. The disaster struck without warning, breaching the 14-foot seawall and flooding the boardwalk. Newspaper accounts indicate that 78 people drowned. This tragedy was also caused by a Seiche, as prolonged high winds produced a Seiche by pushing water toward one end of Lake Erie. When the winds died down, or turned in the opposite direction, the water receded in the direction it came from and the Seiched did the rest. Buffalo is estimated to have two or three seiches a year, but the threat was largely eliminated with the construction of a breakwater on Lake Erie, a project that began in the 1860s.

Unlike devastating tsunamis caused by undersea earthquakes, seiches have never caused much damage in the Great Lakes, and most go unnoticed as they are relatively subtle and unnoticeable, causing water levels on beaches to rise. only a foot or less.

But this one was very notorious and it happened on a quiet, warm Saturday morning in Chicago. What began as a day of quiet fishing turned out to be an experience that has remained indelible in my mind and, I think, worthy of sharing. One thing is for sure, we will never experience a cuttlefish here… at least I don’t think so.

“It didn’t come in like a wall… the water just started rising and kept rising until it was maybe 6 feet higher than normal.” Dick Keating, Belmont Harbor Foreman and eyewitness.

Technology

Is the printed book becoming a relic of the past?

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When I was in college, I loved going to the library to study, sitting in a nice comfortable chair and reading myself to sleep. When Borders launched its blockbuster neighborhood bookstores, I followed suit, often walking out of the store with a book that I had the pleasure of trying out just as comfortably. Now, most people buy their books online and read them on their Kindle.

An Internet phenomenon has been the consolidation of retailers into new monopolies. Retailers like Netflix replaced blockbuster stores like Blockbuster Video, who found it impossible to maintain their traditional retail stores against the power of the Internet and the popularity of streaming downloads. Newspapers have been outdated through the more expeditious publication of the written word and, consequently, journalism has had to adapt to try to maintain some kind of quality.

The same has happened with the publishing industry and traditional bookstores. Borders, one of the “blockbusters” of the books, was gobbled up by Barnes and Noble, which now considers Amazon its main competitor. Amazon has developed a set of tools that allows authors to enter the publishing industry, a place once reserved for the elite and more closed than the world of Hollywood cinema.

A recent study found that almost 70 percent of consumers say they are unlikely to give up print books by 2016, and UK market research agency Voxburner recently surveyed more than 1,400 people, ages 16 to 24. about their media consumption habits. ; the survey found that 62% of respondents said they prefer print books to e-books.

I was surprised by these findings because I was sure eBook sales had been growing at an exponential rate. The annual BookStats study reports that 457 million e-books were sold last year; a 4,456% increase from 2008, when 10 million were sold (http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/books/2013/05/15/e-book-sales/2159117/). Although sales of print titles are higher, you can’t ignore the steady rise in the number of e-book sales, which I still think is the future of publishing. I think you have to take demographics into account, as most older readers will naturally choose a print book, while younger readers, who tend to do their homework on their laptops, will opt for an e-book.

According to New York Times bestselling author Hugh Howey, who has turned his back on the publishing industry and now publishes his own books, he makes more money self-publishing and frees up time that he would be using law enforcement agents. and publishers to write more and better books.

Print books are still bought because non-Gen Y readers are slow to convert to Kindle. They prefer to have a printed book in their hands, so there will be a market for the printed book in the near future. However, e-book sales continue to rise and older readers are buying Kindles. Impulse buying is much stronger with e-books, which are delivered instantly, and are cheaper than print books. I think the reading public will continue to prefer print books, but over time, e-book sales will overtake them, simply because of demographics.

My eBooks have print versions that are sold on Amazon and are also offered at Barnes and Noble. Although they only sell online, online book sales account for more than 50% of all book sales, as recently reported by Digital Book World (http://www.digitalbookworld.com/2013/online-retail-now -accounts-for- nearly half of all US book sales/). I think the trend is for online sales to take over traditional retail. We’ve seen a lot of bookstore closures and consolidations in recent years and I think we can continue to see more. I myself will miss being able to walk into a bookstore, pick up a book and relax in a soft armchair while I try out their passages to see if I feel like buying it, but there is no denying the trend. My eBook sales are still about three times higher than my print book sales, but the option is there to appeal to both markets, and that’s what Amazon is doing by giving authors its “Create Space” platform. .

I think publishers need to offer e-book and print formats to appeal to both sides of the market. In the end, it is the quality of the book and the promotions that are used to raise awareness rather than the medium that will control it. Like any other product, you need to package it and offer it to the consumer in a way that will appeal to their purchase of clothing.

However, as the reading public ages, new readers will be oriented almost exclusively to e-books. I regret the disappearance of the printed book, but I don’t see that anything can be done about it, except to preserve them in libraries and museums. With the trend toward iPads and Kindles, and public schools even proposing to issue iPads to students, young people will eventually grow up not knowing what it’s like to read a print book. Technology will do to the book what it has done to the printed newspaper.