I bet that Thanksgiving was found before Black Friday.

For the first time in years, the hype around Black Friday is greatly exceeding that of Thanksgiving, the purest of all American holidays. As the capitalism machine continues to grow explosively, some people are using the fact that Thanksgiving can be degraded to allow a shopping day to flourish.

How do you leave this and go to the mall? HOW?

Furthermore, accounting Black Friday with Thanksgiving might boost a shopper’s chance to actually buy something, as the day is a celebration anyways and you might as well go all out. Yet, most consumers don’t understand how this psychological connection does not aid them on their journey, as the capitalist advertisement machine rolls out more lies.

I love Thanksgiving, and I might be a bit biased when I ask for it to be moved. But think about it for a second; why can’t the “shopping celebration” be moved to the next day, which is still a weekend?

Think about it, Sears…

I stumbled upon a blogpost on canadianbusiness.com that discusses the purchase of internet domains. Columbia University has decided to spend nearly $1000 to insure that nobody is able to ridicule their name by buying and starting a pornography website that ends with a .xxx.

I find that Columbia’s decision is very weird, as it neglects the fame it will attain in case that happens. Seriously, even though this will definitely lead to a negative reputation, i believe that the advantages outweigh the disadvantages.

Columbia's Campus

Firstly, the main age group that watches porn (17-20) is the same exact age group that applies for college. If Columbia becomes famous enough worldwide, they will be more capable of putting a fight on to much NYU’s fame.

Furthermore, there is always the option of taking anyone who creates such a website to court for defaming and insult. This might allow the university to recoup all the money they spend on lawyers while at the same time trying to reach to the perfect age group demanded.

Two patties of grilled chicken or kofta (beef), served in pita bread, with onions, tomatoes, lettuce, and garlic mayonnaise. If heaven ever had a taste, then the McArabia would perfectly describe its gloriousness. But it would surprise you where the sandwhich is actually served: Middle Eastern Mcdonalds.

Mcdonald’s menu in any Middle Eastern country is very, very different than the one most people are used to here. The menu is altered to suit the culture it serves, as more Arabic touches are added to the whole package. Oriental sandwiches from Mcdonalds offer a very interesting hybrid that will succeed in challenging any person’s taste buds. Furthermore, by integrating the prefix “Mc-” into the name, Mcdonald’s offer a very mesmerizing exprience that promises Western flair and Arabic magic.

I find this cultural awareness and emotional intelligence very admirable and shows how Mcdonald’s is always a step ahead of their competitors, and that and only that ensures success

McArabia Grilled Chicken - Mcdonald's foreign policy is very effective

Will Michel Platini save European football?

UEFA’s newly imposed rules will attempt to decrease the alarmingly increasing gap between the richer and the poorer teams in the football world. By forcing teams to break even and not spend any money not made as revenue, the new FInancial Fair Play (FFP) rules were designed to limit the effect of rich, foreign owners and ensure that more equality is achieved.

Any European club isn’t going to participate in any European competition if it doesn’t abide the rules by 2017. However, certain losses can be announced in every preceding year depending on the ownership status of the club.

In my opinion, these rules will favor the richer clubs in both the long and short term. Many loopholes will be utilized to use the inefficiencies of this system, such as an owner getting a huge sponsorship from a company he owns/creates. Furthermore, clubs with richer owners can post an extra 40 million euros in their losses column for the next 3 years, which beats the purpose of the system. Finally, suspicions still exist around whether the UEFA will dare to exclude bigger teams who break the rules in fear of the huge commercial losses they might suffer as a result

Groupon finally went public on the 3rd of November, 5 months after the company declared its IPO plans in June. The IPO was priced at a lofty $20 per share, way above the estimated range of $16-$18 that was predicted “according to three investors who said they spoke with lead underwriters.”

The IPO launch marks the first time ever where a coupon-dealing website goes public. Furthermore, the company has now valued itself at $12.7 billion, which is the second largest IPO in the history of electronic companies. 30 million shares shall be put up to the public, compromising 6 per cent of the whole company.

The high price represents a signal of intent on the half of Groupon, as their high-valuation shows that they are ready to take on some of the network titans. Furthermore, the small allowance of shares will turn the product into a scarcer one, which will probably ensure that Groupon in the short term will be able to clinch onto its high valuation due to the simple laws of supply and demand. Furthermore, this will definitely lift the profile of the whole coupon-industry itself, as more international markets will hear about such companies.

“The point is, ladies and gentleman, that greed, for lack of a better word, is good. Greed is right, greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit,” claims Gordon Gekko, Wall Street’s vicious capitalist.

Which bring us to a point well-raised in Grady Pellar’s blogpost about Coca Cola; why would a company that rules supreme in one of the biggest fields start being more environmental? What benefits will it face? Why?

Cause of greed. Greed for money drives a company such as Coca Cola to go the next step in order to gain a more loyal fan base, and thus, more profit. Greed for opportunity leads Coca Cola to seize the chance for advertisement options expansion. Greed for life causes Coca Cola to spend millions in order to save the earth and keep it well-preserved for the next generations.

Greed will help Coca Cola remain supreme for the next few years, and it will ensure that growth will grow, and revenues will revive. God Bless you, Gordon Gekko

The Coca Cola Man-Crate

Egypt- Where to?

As the uproar and unrest continues in Egypt, the national economy has been hit in the hardest in the past few days. Citizens are rioting across most major cities, which has caused unrest and the sudden decrease of stability.

Standard & Poor’s rating agency gave the Egyptian economy  lower long-term foreign and local currency sovereign ratings, cutting it down to B+ from BB-, with a negative outlook. Other than the current wave of rioting against the ruling military council (SCAF), S&P also credited the decline of Egypt’s net international reserves and the risk of increasing unrest caused by more rising projections. The fact that the riots aim to overthrow the current ruling council confirm that stability is a dream that is very hard to achieve right now.

The outlook in Egypt and most of the Middle East is not bright right now, and unless an end can be found to the huge riots, looting, and police clashes, it’s not improving anytime soon.

The sudden decline of Farah’s Fata Restaurant has rocked Cairo in the recent few months. From a hot local dining spot to a failing street restaurant, Farah’s irrational management has been one of the main causes of its rapid fall.

Originally founded as an authentic barbecue restaurant, Farah transformed in the past few years into a modern restaurant, serving Fata (an Egyptian dish consisting of white rice, chunks of lamb, thick tomato sauce and bread soaked in spiced soup) to customers seated in the middle of a busy street in Cairo.

Fatta- The Stuff dreams are made of!

After the success of its experiment, Farah quickly became a Cairo titan. Its cheap prices and fast service, coupled with the popularity of its waiters, ensured that its success continued till the beginning of 2009.

However, this soon came to an abrupt end as Farah’s management committed one fatal mistake after the other. Higher prices were introduced, turning away most of the working class-consumer base. Furthermore, most of the seasoned waiters who represented familiar faces were fired, with younger workers filing in. This, with a few health violations, ensured that the owners’ hubris would be punished.

For most teams the transfer window comes as a breath of fresh air, for Arsenal though it’s a nightmare. Arsenal is more of a business than a football club, the club relies on youth development to create future stars. “We don’t buy stars, we make them”, claims Arsene Wenger, which perfectly sums up the arsenal philosophy in the transfer market. They spend so little, that achieving fourth in the league table is considered an over-achievement. Sure it finances part of the club, but hinders the footballing quality greatly. There won’t be any star players left, hence no young players will join the club. This will lead to the club falling behind rivals.

The solution is to spend big in the transfer market. You get a huge commercial boost, have a bigger chance of competing

Robin Van Persie, one of the last Arsenal stars

and furthermore, the cycle doesn’t stop. The success of a football club is based on how much trophies sit in the trophy cabinet, not how much money is sitting in the bank, on that front, Arsenal are lagging behind and a change of philosophy is the first step to competing once again.