WEEKLY BLOG COMMENTS (WBC) – No.60 V.1.1
DATES: 2013/04/14– 2013/04/21
ANALYST: Domingo Trassens
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Dear Friends:
The third week of April was shaken by the bombing attack at the Boston
Marathon. Also other very important subjects were the explosion in Texas, the
voting of the gun control bill in the Senate and the proposals about a new
immigration law.
In the economic side, a series of technology companies – Intel, IBM,
Yahoo, Nokia… - showed weak results for the period January-March 2013.
I would like to share with you a series of comments posted by myself in
the WSJ Journal Community during the last seven days about the top news and
other themes of the week.
My comments are organized in the following sections: United
States, Europe, The
World (Asia, Africa, Middle
East…), Latin America and
Economy, Business, Technology.
DAT
April
21, 2013
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UNITED STATES
Subject: The manhunt of the two
brothers from Chechnya who
are the suspect bombing attackers at the Boston Marathon.
My Comment: Two young guys of 26
and 19 from Chechnya
paralyzed Boston area
for more than 4 days. This is a good subject for a book of terror. (2013/04/20)
3 Recommendations
Subject: Different images of the
brothers Tsamaev since they arrived to the United
States and after the bombing
attack.
My Comment: “The hunt is over”
but till now it is not possible to achieve serious “conclusions”.
The case is completely open. There are a lot of question marks:
-Why ()did they made the bombing attack?
-Who supported the two brothers?
-Who is behind them?
-And about IMMIGRATION, this case shows again that the entrance of refugees who
come from countries destroyed by terrorist activities requires very special
procedures. When the officers of Homeland Security give visas to people from
areas with civil wars or totalitarian regimes, before they authorize the
entrance into the country, they have to research more than twice if they are
“criminals” disguised like “tender lambs”. (2013/04/20) 7 Recommendations
My Comment: Somebody suggested
that probably the Chechen brothers had resentment... What kind of resentment
could the youngest have?
According to the news, Homeland Security gave him American citizenship and the
people of Boston, Massachusetts
helped pay for his studies.
From my point of view, both had the criminality in their blood or they were
“robots” of an extremist group. (2013/04/20) 11 Recommendations
Subject: After the voting of the gun
control bill in the Senate, the Democrats try to regroup.
My Comment: The result of the
Senate’s voting was a serious defeat for the promoters of the gun control bill.
Somebody said the voting was a “pyrrhic victory”. (2013/04/19) 2
Recommendations
Subject: A big explosion in a
factory of a small town of Texas left
a lot of deaths and damages.
My Comment: The title of this
story says: “A Grim Day for a Small Town”. I
would like to summarize the news of the Texas’s
explosion and the Boston
bombing attack with the expression: “A Grim Week for all the Country”.
Both tragedies touch us intimately with pain, death and panic. (2013/04/19) 3
Recommendations
Subject: One analyst from Wall
Street Journal suggests that the current administration of the White House
wants to limit the high incomes of the retirees.
My Comment: The “social models”
that tie your hands and restrict your possibilities to be who you want to be
are totalitarian. (2013/04/18)
Subject: Before the voting of the
background-check bill (gun-controls) different groups pressured the members of
the Senate to pass the bill without objections.
My Comment: The background-check
bill requires that everybody votes according to his/her own principles
independently of the political game that we see behind this case. The country
needs real solutions and not winners and losers. (2013/04/17) 3 Recommendations
Subject: Two explosions of bombs put
shadows at the Boston Marathon.
My Comment: The terrorism always
wrecks the life of normal people, independently of the flags it lifts.
The Boston Marathon was a good target to generate popular panic in America,
wounding and killing people.
These attacks are a serious alert for the country and an infamous crime against
the people. (2013/04/16)
Subject: During a conference in Japan,
Secretary of State John Kerry focused Iran and North
Korea like the same block due both
countries work in the development of nuclear technology without the agreement
of the international community.
My Comment: Personally, I don’t
think it is a good idea to put North
Korea and Iran in
the same basket… (2013/04/15)
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EUROPE
Subject: Serbia and
Kosovo work to put down their disputes with the intention to be accepted as new
members of the European Union.
My Comment: The preliminary
accord between Serbia and
Kosovo is an important step for a permanent peace across the Balkans countries.
However, it is not enough to heal the wounds that remain open in the Serb and
Muslim communities of the region. (2013/04/20)
Subject: In Germany, the
candidate of SPD – Peer Steinbrück – for the September election attacks his
rival Angela Merkel.
My Comment: The September
election in Germany is a
duel between Angela Merkel and Peer Steinbrück. While everybody knows the good
and bad sides of Angela Merkel, Mr. Steinbrück is a big question mark. …
(2013/04/15) 1 Recommendation
Subject: Two Russians spies with
Austrian passports and natives from Argentina and Peru
respectively were found guilty of espionage against the western countries.
My Comment: These spies are lucky that they have been caught in Germany, a
country where the jails are better than the average. (2013/04/14)
1 Recommendation
Subject: Pope Francis began the
overhaul of the cases of priest sexual abuse.
My Comment: We have to hope Pope Francis takes effective action against
the priest sexual abuse cases. If the Catholic Church loses this opportunity,
nobody will believe anymore in the institution. (2013/04/14) 4
Recommendations
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THE WORLD: Asia, Middle
East, Africa…
Subject: The former Pakistani
dictator challenged the Islamabad High Court that ordered his arrest.
My Comment: The escape of Pervez
Musharraf from the Islamabad High Court with military protection shows that the
former Pakistani president has enough influence in the army institutions to
challenge the judicial apparatus of the country and put in a checkmate to his
political enemies. (2013/04/18)
My Comment: After all the actions
that we saw during the last few days, we have to suspect that former Pakistani
President Pervez Musharraf returned to his country with clear political goals.
Since 2008, when Mr. Musharraf left power, Pakistan is
living in chaos and with the “stain” of having given refuge to Osama bin Laden.
Under all these circumstances, Pervez Musharraf represents a possible
important option for a lot of Pakistanis including members of the military
institutions. (2013/04/19) 3 Recommendations
Subject: Palestinian Prime Minister
Fayyad resigned due to serious differences with other members of the government
of Palestine. Mr.
Fayyad was considered a “friend” of the western nations.
My Comment: Always the good
politicians with professional qualifications are the target of corrupt people.
2013/04/04 2 Recommendations
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LATIN AMERICA
Subject: Nicolás Maduro after his
victory, assumed the office of Venezuelan president in the middle of
serious complaints from the opposition that wanted a recount of the votes.
My Comment: The future of Venezuela
looks gloomy but only the Venezuelans can modify their destiny. Now they will
learn the consequences of regimes like the Chavismo. …
(2013/04/15) 1Recommendation
My Comment: Now Nicolás Maduro
has to show if he really has the capability to lead Venezuela by
himself. The “test” will be difficult because the country is divided and the
opposition looks strong. … (2013/04/15) 2 Recommendations
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ECONOMY, BUSINESS, TECHNOLOGY
Subject: Taiwan
Semiconductor Manufacturing posted positive figures for its last financial
quarter with good expectations for the current period.
My Comment: Today Taiwan
Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSMC) is smiling while other technology companies
cry.
Its case is very interesting. It works for others and the others are the
providers of chips for the smart-phone niche.
TSMC is the largest dedicated independent semiconductor foundry (a chip
fabrication plant).
One of the most important customers is Qualcomm, a strong provider of chips for
the phone and tablet makers.
In brief, while the majority of the companies involved in the PC business are
in trouble, the “revenues” of the members of the “chain” of the smart-phone
sector grow. (2013/04/20)
Subject: According to the story, IBM
blames to the software business for its last poor financial results.
My Comment: The real news is IBM
presented weak figures in the financial results of its first 2013 quarter.
Its total revenues were $23.408 billion, down 5.1% compared with the first 2012
quarter and its net income was $3.032 billion, down 1.1% also compared with the
previous year.
Despite some comments of the story posted by Wall Street Journal we
cannot blame the IBM Software unit for the bad results because the other key
units of technology company: Global Technology Services, Global Business
Services and Systems and Technology registered negative growths.
Really, all its business units declined with the exception of the Global
Financing Division that grew 1.9%.
In summary, IBM showed a poor image like its operations and projects didn’t
work well during the last quarter. (2013/04/20)
Subject: The investor group that
offered to pay the biggest price for the acquisition of the stocks of Dell
ended its bid.
My Comment: The news says
Blackstone ended its bid for Dell Inc paying $24.4 billion.
From my point of view, Michael Dell didn’t accept the offer because Blackstone
wanted to change the management of the company.
I believe this was the conflictive point with Michael Dell who wants to
continue as CEO of the company.
Meanwhile, the future of the PC maker continues uncertain. The decline of the
personal computer business makes difficult any other solution. (2013/04/20)
Subject: Before the publication
of the financial results of the last quarter, Apple anticipated its sales of
iPhones were less than previous expectations.
My Comment: The title of this
story: “Apple Takes Another Tumble” is more than dramatic. In the technology
business, the ups and downs are normal to the industry. Really, these
fluctuations don’t imply falls. (2013/04/19)
Subject: Some rumors say IBM is
talking with Lenovo to sell its x86 Servers unit. Lenovo is the Chinese company
that in 2005 bought the IBM PC unit.
My Comment: When IBM sees that
one of its business units is not more profitable, it sells it. During the last
ten years, the technology leader sold its printing systems to Ricoh, its hard
disk unit to Hitachi and
its PC package to Lenovo. (2013/04/19)
Subject: Nokia posted better
financial results than in the previous quarters, but it registered losses
again.
My Comment: The fall of Nokia was
deep due to its slow reaction in front of the advance of Apple and Samsung in
the niche of smart-phones.
Now we cannot expect its financial recovery will be fast. It is important that
in the last two quarters, the Finnish company improved its results.
Personally, I think Stephen Elop, Nokia CEO, has to strengthen the
position of the Lumia in the segment of smart-phones, but without disregarding
their other business lines. (2013/04/18)
