Bad economic times hitting the county I live in, hard.....

[Marti Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Marti]

Smithfield Smoked Pork Chops and Hams

Smithfield Foods, the largest pork producer in the world, announced Feb. 17
that it would eliminate 1,800 jobs and close 6 plants. The cost-cutting move
is expected to save the company $125 million a year by 2011.

[JWC Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close JWC]

Well said, Steve. California is a prime example of a state that simply doesn't understand that principle.

My county of Riverside, CA has been very badly hit and home prices have dropped by 70%. It is great for new buyers but most people now owe more than their home is worth.

[PigsDad Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close PigsDad]

With the state legislature dominated by <snip>

Hey John -- let's respect Angela's wishes and not turn this thread into a political thread, ok? There's plenty of room on the Political forum for that.

Kurt

[Marti Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Marti]

Ritz Camera Files for Bankruptcy

Ritz Camera Centers, which operates under such names as Ritz Camera,
Wolf Camera, Kits Cameras, Inkley's and The Camera Shops, filed for
Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Feb. 23 as more consumers shift to digital
photography. The company has more than 1,000 locations across 45 states.

[JWC Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close JWC]

I canceled our planned trip to New York City this summer. With the hard economic times in NYC, I feel it would be very anti-climatic to visit now after our visit last summer. We had such a wonderful time in New York and everything was about as good as it could get. We fell in love with the city and the people. We will go back to NYC when the situation gets better. Hopefully that will not be too far in the future.

[wackymother Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close wackymother]

I work in NYC and it's not like there are former stockbrokers selling apples on every street corner. This is a fine time to come and visit! We want your tourist money!

[Marti Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Marti]

Zales


Zales (ZLC) announces store closings

Struggling jewelry retailer Zale Corp. (NYSE: ZLC) announced the closure of
115 stores in a drastic cost-reduction plan. The company also announced
that revenue dropped nearly 18% in the second quarter.

The stores designated for closure will lock their doors for good when
their leases mature. The closing stores are poor sales performers...

[Beaglemom3 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Beaglemom3]

I work in NYC and it's not like there are former stockbrokers selling apples on every street corner. visit! !

....or plummeting from the 33rd floor.

[longtimer Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close longtimer]

I work in NYC and it's not like there are former stockbrokers selling apples on every street corner. This is a fine time to come and visit! We want your tourist money!

We would like to come up the Saturday of Mother's Day weekend. Any idea of what the crowds are like that time of the year? We were there the first Saturday in December last year and it got so crowded after nightfall there was no room on the sidewalks around Rockefellar Center. At one point we were standing in the crosswalk of the street in absolute human gridlock. There was no place to go and no one was moving in any direction. The police who were trying to control crowds were yelling at everyone to keep pushing to get through. Scary for all the older folks and little kids who could have been trampled if they fell. Though NYC is so pretty at Christmas time, I'll never go there on a Saturday in December again.

[Glitter Brunello Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Glitter Brunello]

We would like to come up the Saturday of Mother's Day weekend. Any idea of what the crowds are like that time of the year? We were there the first Saturday in December last year and it got so crowded after nightfall there was no room on the sidewalks around Rockefellar Center. At one point we were standing in the crosswalk of the street in absolute human gridlock. There was no place to go and no one was moving in any direction. The police who were trying to control crowds were yelling at everyone to keep pushing to get through. Scary for all the older folks and little kids who could have been trampled if they fell. Though NYC is so pretty at Christmas time, I'll never go there on a Saturday in December again.

Mother's Day weekend will be busy with tourists, but there won't be the kind of crazed crowds in one place the way people throng around Rock Center in December. May is a beautiful time to visit the city. I would suggest getting your theatre tickets ahead of time, and handling any special restaurant reservations in advance. Other than that, should be fine everywhere, though there will be crowds in/around Times Square, and down in Soho (though not as bad down there). Expect longer waits for the tourist bus hop on/off tours. Definitely come, though, you'll have a blast.

[ArtsieAng Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close ArtsieAng]

We would like to come up the Saturday of Mother's Day weekend. Any idea of what the crowds are like that time of the year? We were there the first Saturday in December last year and it got so crowded after nightfall there was no room on the sidewalks around Rockefellar Center. At one point we were standing in the crosswalk of the street in absolute human gridlock. There was no place to go and no one was moving in any direction. The police who were trying to control crowds were yelling at everyone to keep pushing to get through. Scary for all the older folks and little kids who could have been trampled if they fell. Though NYC is so pretty at Christmas time, I'll never go there on a Saturday in December again.

Come....It's a great time of year to be in NYC, and as Glitter has already mentioned, the crowds will not be like a Sat in Dec. Not even close. Do make reservations if you're planning on having a nice Mother's day dinner, tho. It's a big restaurant day.

[Marti Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Marti]

All Virgin Stores in US to Close by Summer

LOS ANGELES (March 3) - After nearly two decades of rocking
the music world with a mix of brash stunts and splashy CD releases,
the remaining six Virgin Megastores in the United States will shut
their doors this summer in another blow to recorded music.

The 52,000-square-foot Times Square flagship closes in mid-April,
to be followed by another New York store and outlets in Los Angeles,
San Francisco, Orlando, Fla., and Denver, all by June.
About 1,000 staff and 60 at the corporate level will be laid off.

[bigfrank Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close bigfrank]

LOS ANGELES (March 3) - After nearly two decades of rocking
the music world with a mix of brash stunts and splashy CD releases,
the remaining six Virgin Megastores in the United States will shut
their doors this summer in another blow to recorded music.

The 52,000-square-foot Times Square flagship closes in mid-April,
to be followed by another New York store and outlets in Los Angeles,
San Francisco, Orlando, Fla., and Denver, all by June.
About 1,000 staff and 60 at the corporate level will be laid off.

There still around , I thought they were out years ago.

[BoardGirl Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close BoardGirl]

I am seeing another bad side effect of hard economic times: employers that are treating workers like dirt. The attitude seems to be, "you're lucky to have a job, now don't whine and do whatever we want". Anyone else seeing this?

YES. Of course, I live in an at-will state so there is always some of that. But certainly MUCH WORSE now.

[T. R. Oglodyte Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close T. R. Oglodyte]

Originally Posted by 3kids4me

I am seeing another bad side effect of hard economic times: employers that are treating workers like dirt. The attitude seems to be, "you're lucky to have a job, now don't whine and do whatever we want". Anyone else seeing this?

YES. Of course, I live in an at-will state so there is always some of that. But certainly MUCH WORSE now.

When I was a lad delivering newspaper, one time I complained about how I had to get up every Sunday morning to deliver newspaper and how I had to deliver newspapers every afternoon Monday to Saturday.

My Dad looked me straight in the face and told me that when I went to work for someone and they paid me for me time, that time now belonged to them, not to me.

I've never forgotten that.