Paris Gets 400 Overseas Beds That slinky sylph can now rest her tired body in a family controlled hotel whether she be in Europe or ranging as far as Phuket Arcadia Beach in Thailand. Granddaddy Barron, co-chairman of Hilton Hotels, helped orchestrate a $5.7 billion (part of Paris’s allowance) deal to acquire Hilton Group. The two split a public breakup in 1964, part of the postnup being no international foraging by Hilton Hotels, putting it at a disadvantage to hated rivals like Marriott and Hyatt. With the expected ribbon-cutting for a spate of new hotel openings, Paris will grace us with her presence even more.

Questions of the Week
1. Speed vs. longer battery life? Who will win the Intel/Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) war? The next generation of in-home electronic devices hangs in the balance, as does the future of Intel and AMD. Intel is deep-sixing its ubiquitous ‘Intel Inside’ logo for ‘Leap Ahead’ and going the cooler running, longer life, slower chip. AMD continues to think warp speed is the way to go. These issues are important to Intel and AMD because their existence, let alone dominance, likely depend on the right choice. What do you think? I’m going with speed.
2. Will Uncle Sam ever have high-speed trains that compare favorably with those in Europe and Asia? NO! Why? Have you ridden the rails on the back of AMTRAK, the cattle/mushroom moving experts? Maybe I’m being too metamorphic. What I mean to say is: AMTRAK herds its passengers aboard, keeps them in the dark, and covers them with s--- (manure).
3. If the US wasn’t mired in Iraq, would it leap to the Ukraine’s defense and start a new, decades-long freeze with Russia over the gas control thing? Does Dick Cheney own shares in Gazprom, the Russian company playing the ‘it’s our gas and we’ll sell it to whomever we wish’ game?
4. Does it strike (bad word choice) you as ironic that GI’s will supervise Iraqi police to cut down on prisoner abuse? Would you like to be Sunni in post-war Iraq regardless of who runs the prisons?
5. As South Africa moves away from virginity testing of young women, are certain religions in America moving toward it?
6. Shouldn’t the Iraqi’s be the ones to determine if their election was valid? It’s their country; let them run it.

Triennial Shareholders’ Meeting? Healthsouth, under the leadership of its new CEO, Jay Grinney, held its first shareholders meeting since May 2002. The company’s second largest shareholder, Richard M. Scrushy (the one the Bible-belt Birmingham jury found not guilty of involvement in a $2.7 billion fraud - no tampering there), was out of the state on vacation. He did manage to squeeze in a press conference saying, “It is long past time for Jay Grinney to stop using me as his excuse of his inability to manage the company.” Now why didn’t he have the chutzpah to say that in person at the triennial shareholders’ meeting?

Say it ain’t so Dudley, eh? Paul Martin stands behind (Why not in front of?) his finance minister, Ralph Goodale, who is under investigation by the Mounties for leaks that may have led to insider trading. Keep it up, Oh Canada, and you will qualify for statehood.

Our Friends in Washington Update
1. Because I have always expected much more, I am disappointed that one of the few Colin Powell utterances since leaving office comes out in favor of the Bushies wiretapping frenzy. For shame, and tsk, tsk.
Not So Independent Independence Air, whatever that is beyond a wing and a prayer, may stop flying if it can’t get outside financing. Now that’s a (an?) unique industry problem.

Screwed Up Justice Of The Week Award The US Court of Appeals in San Francisco affirmed a $500,000 jury award for a mentally ill man who tried to kill a quadriplegic former classmate by unplugging his respirator. Why? It ruled that Pacific Bell had violated the Americans with Disabilities Act by refusing to rehire him because he was mentally impaired.

My Three Sons – A Question Of Morality William A. Ginglen got forty years after his three sons, who recognized him from cameras at the banks he robbed, turned him in to authorities. They said they were only doing the right thing, something their former marine father had taught them. If you were one of the sons, what would you have done? Would you as father, if one of your sons was a police officer and may have obtained evidence illegally, appeal?

Corporate Crook Update
1. Richard Causey, former chief accounting officer of Enron, finally caved and will testify against Lay and Skilling, former chief executives and two of Houston’s most hated. Causey will likely sit on a cot and contemplate his navel. The judge granted Lay and Skilling’s attorneys until January 30th, giving them more time to prepare. This is going to be one of the year’s most interesting. Will Skilling rat on Lay? Will Lay rat on Skilling? I hope they both get twenty-five years and have to repay every dime that they ever got from Enron in compensation.
2. Richard M. Scrushy sued HealthSouth for $100 million in back compensation. This guy really believes he’s innocent. The sooner someone nails his crooked hide to the wall, the better. Maybe Scrushy will be the trial of 2007.

As Miles O'Brien of CNN said, "Good riddance to 2005."
HAPPY 2006!