Article: These space mission cuts will cost us our scientists

These space mission cuts will cost us our scientists
After yesterday's retreat, the US and Europe will fall behind in the space race. The next man on the moon will be Chinese


Colin Pillinger, guardian.co.uk
Monday 1 February 2010

Few people who ­remember the 1960s can fail to have been inspired by the drama and excitement of the space missions, which pitted the United States against the Soviet Union in a race to land a man on the moon. Today there is still a massively competitive space race; but yesterday the Barack Obama administration cancelled its Constellation programme, which had aimed to put astronauts back on the moon. With the US effectively out of the race to the moon, the field is now clear for India, China and Japan.

The 1960s space race was about ­military prowess. This time it's about economic and technical leadership, but in terms of our future prosperity it is just as significant.

The US says it no longer wants to spend big money on rockets and will let private industry build them. Nasa also plans to develop ways of refuelling spacecraft in space to cut the costs of taking them there. This might be the best way eventually to get humans to Mars. There will be robotic missions to explore where humans want to go. I hope this means that at last we will get a sample of Mars and the missions won't be an expensive waste of money.

The main costs of the space programme are salaries – in relative terms the components cost very little. But you can't sack everyone in Nasa, because you know that at some future point you'll need their expertise and experience. I fear that in practice Nasa's leaders will be tempted to have their scientists undertake more background studies. But we've done all the studies we need to obtain samples from Mars and know exactly what to do with them.

Why do we need such samples? For a start, it is not possible to have a manned mission to Mars until we can definitively answer the question of whether there is any life there. Without this ­information, we risk astronauts bringing back microbes to Earth which could wipe out life on our planet. I hope cancelling the moon mission will in fact accelerate humans going to Mars, not mean that something even more ­inspirational will slip back.

Under George W Bush, the US had planned a manned lunar mission by 2015; this was then pushed back to 2018; now it's gone altogether. And Europe isn't any faster when it comes to going to Mars: the European Space Agency wanted to build ExoMars – a robotic mission to Mars – by 2009. But it's already 2010: they've been going for seven years and seem to have little to show for it.

They've gone for a high-cost failsafe mission which is long in the planning; but I believe they should be doing smaller, faster, cheaper projects – those which require a limited number of ­people but can be quickly completed, and through which they can learn a lot, even if the mission "fails" – although I believe there's no such thing as failure if you learn something. I headed the Beagle2 Mars mission in 2003, and in my view it's impossible to ensure a mission has a 99.9% chance of success. It's far better to spend the money on, say, three missions that have 95% chance. Europe could have done Beagle again by 2007, but instead we are still waiting.

By contrast, in India and China things are happening quickly – these countries are not afraid of making mistakes and learning from them. They've both had recent lunar missions; they're now planning to land on the surface with a robot; and after that will come a manned mission. I believe that the next man or woman on the moon will be Chinese.

And the importance of this goes way beyond space travel, once a nation shows it has the ambition, the ingenuity and the economic strength to mount such a mission. Just as the launch of Sputnik in 1957 showed that the Soviets were a technological power to be reckoned with, so it will be with India or China. These countries recognise that dynamic economies need to create something for the nation to export – be it providing the innovation for electronic goods, or whatever. Lunar missions – and, beyond that, Mars missions – are hugely effective in bringing young ­people into science and technology.

In the west, we have now had two generations who have missed out on such inspiration. Indeed, we risk our top scientists migrating to Asia.

If you went into a British classroom and asked how many children wanted to be a scientist, on average 2% would put their hands up. In India, about 30% would say yes. That's the difference between the west and the emerging economies; and that's why, ultimately, if we don't address this situation, it could be us staffing their call centres.

The Hunt for an Autism Drug

Click HERE to view the article online.

BusinessWeek

Armed with fresh medical insights, drug companies are redoubling their efforts to address the disease's complex causes

By Ellen Gibson

The Weakley family lives in Dover, Pa., about 30 miles south of Harrisburg. Their two-story house sits on a mostly treeless tract of land, across the road from a big white barn. Seated at the dining table, Beverly Morgart-Weakley is describing the recent changes she's seen in her 21-year-old daughter Jennifer. Once unable to form words, "she keeps saying 'mama', and she's starting to say the beginnings of other words. You'll hear something that almost sounds like a sentence and you can figure out what she's trying to tell you."

Every parent looks forward to these developmental milestones, but Beverly has been waiting two decades. In the early 1990s, Jennifer was diagnosed with autism, and her early childhood was dominated by doctor's visits. Things got worse in her teens. The girl would sometimes bite her own arms in paroxysms of frustration. Many times she grabbed her mother or her younger sister by the neck and squeezed hard. Even the family's collie was bitten.

Beverly was skeptical of medications, but she needed a way to quell her daughter's increasingly violent outbursts. Doctors tried the antipsychotic drug Risperdal, but Jennifer gained weight and grew sluggish. Then they turned to Zyprexa, a schizophrenia medication, but the symptoms persisted. Over the past year the family has had a modest breakthrough with Namenda, an Alzheimer's drug from Forest Laboratories (FRX). Jen's aggression has subsided and her communication skills have improved. "She is still far from normal," says Beverly, looking on as her daughter repeatedly opens and closes the refrigerator, then settles on the floor in the den and methodically removes every item from a filing cabinet. "But she's made progress, and that in itself is a miracle." ...

Click HERE to view the entire article.

An Era of "Temp"

The Disposable Worker
Pay is falling, benefits are vanishing, and no one's job is secure. How companies are making the era of the temp more than temporary

By Peter Coy, Michelle Conlin and Moira Herbst

On a recent Tuesday morning, single mom Tammy DePew Smith woke up in her tidy Florida townhouse in time to shuttle her oldest daughter, a high school freshman, to the 6:11 a.m. bus. At 6:40 she was at the desk in her bedroom, starting her first shift of the day with LiveOps, a Santa Clara (Calif.) provider of call-center workers for everyone from Eastman Kodak (EK) and Pizza Hut (YUM) to infomercial behemoth Tristar Products. She's paid by the minute—25 cents—but only for the time she's actually on the phone with customers.

By 7:40, Smith had grossed $15. But there wasn't much time to reflect on her early morning productivity; the next child had to be roused from bed, fed, and put onto the school bus. Somehow she managed to squeeze three more shifts into her day, pausing only to homeschool her 7-year-old son, make dinner, and do the bedtime routine. "I tell my kids, unless somebody is bleeding or dying, don't mess with me."

As an independent agent, Smith has no health insurance, no retirement benefits, no sick days, no vacation, no severance, and no access to unemployment insurance. But in recession-ravaged Ormond Beach, she's considered lucky. She has had more or less steady work since she signed on with LiveOps in October 2006. "LiveOps was a lifesaver for me," she says.

You know American workers are in bad shape when a low-paying, no-benefits job is considered a sweet deal. Their situation isn't likely to improve soon; some economists predict it will be years, not months, before employees regain any semblance of bargaining power. That's because this recession's unusual ferocity has accelerated trends—including offshoring, automation, the decline of labor unions' influence, new management techniques, and regulatory changes—that already had been eroding workers' economic standing.
...

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Tanning Industry News

Is the Tanning Industry About to Be Burned?
By GEOFF WILLIAMS, AOL SMALL BUSINESS

Even if you've been following the health care hubbub in Congress, you may have easily missed the news that a 10% tax on indoor tanning services is being considered.

The idea is that since tanning -- outdoor or in -- can lead to skin cancer, a tax on the tanning industry should be implemented, and the money, about $270 billion over the next 10 years, would help fund health insurance reform. Unless you're a regular indoor tanning customer or someone who works in the industry, the tax was probably an afterthought.

But Karen Brutsche noticed.

Brutsche is the owner of the Suntan Shop, a small chain of indoor tanning salons in Virginia, and after a conversation with her, you suddenly realize how a seemingly hastily added amendment to a government bill can really affect a business owner. Brutsche began her business in 1983 at the age of 28 after several years of managing a retail store.

"My son was a toddler, and it was hard to keep up retail management hours and a family," says Brutsche. "Around the corner from where my sister worked, a T-shirt store had added tanning. She thought it might be a good business for me to start."

That seemed to be the case. Her business flourished over the years -- not as a national household name or anything -- but when politicians praise small business owners, Brutsche seems to be the model. She managed to open not just one store, but create jobs at four locations, and she has partnered with other tanning salons in the area, so she can offer her customers who have memberships 25 places in the region to tan. When the Great Recession hit, Brutsche was hit like everyone else -- losing 30% of her business in 2009 -- but she managed to keep the company going and not lay off any employees.

"I've cut back as much as I can, but I've not let the recession hurt my staff," says Brutsche, acknowledging that she no longer can do an annual goodbye dinner to students leaving her employment for college and had to stop giving employees birthday gifts. Otherwise, "my staff has gotten their raises, I've paid my manager's health insurance, and kicked in for another staffer's health care."

But this tax could level her business in ways that the recession hasn't, says Brutsche. "If people already think your rates are high, then you add 10% ..." She trails off, then adds, "Some people will stay. They love it, and this is a lifestyle for them, but those people on the fence -- they'll be gone."

What really hurt Brutsche was the timing. She had been "sweating bullets" over a lease renewal for a year, but finally had signed with her landlord, having crunched the numbers and decided that signing the new lease would be a smart decision. That was on a Friday over the holidays; two days later, she awoke on a Sunday morning to learn about the possible indoor tanning tax.

"I was floored," says Brutsche. "I spent most of the day in tears."

Of course, you could argue that health care has to be funded, so why not tax a practice believed to be unhealthy? If that puts someone out of business like Brutsche, it's a regrettable part of the equation. But if Brutsche is right, the tax would just put a lot of tanning businesses out of business -- which would remove the funding the tax is supposed to generate. Brutsche predicts, "They will not make $270 billion from us."

She may have a point even if every tanning business managed to stay open after a 10% tax. The Big Money recently ran a story with a headline that said it all: "Projections on tanning-parlor tax appear to be far too high." If the International Smart Tan Network, a Jackson, Mississippi-based industry group, is correct, the tax "overestimates tanning revenues by 40 to 50%."

Regardless of whether the tax is successful, Brutsche is certain that if it's implemented it will be the undoing of many tanning industry owners. "67% of tanning salons are female-owned and most are small, individually owned businesses," says Brutsche, who paints a portrait of tanning bed operators as part of the American fabric: "We live in the neighborhoods, raise our children, give to local charities and events, mentor young adults in how to hold a job, manage money, market, sell, plunge a toilet and change a vacuum cleaner bag -- life skills for college and careers. Regardless of one's knowledge or perspective of indoor tanning, it seems that Congress is voting for big business over small mom and pops."

She is referring to the fact that before the tanning tax was conceived, there was going to be a "botox" tax, a proposed 5% tax on all cosmetic procedures. Lobbyists rallied, however, on the claims that it would have discriminated against women. But, of course, this tanning tax may wind up discriminating against women business owners.

"The money won," says Brutsche. "We are such a small, fragmented industry, most of us didn't even see this coming. We don't have the political power or experience to fight -- we never have. A fragmented industry like ours has no way to fight the dermatologists, plastic surgeons, cosmetic or the drug companies."

Brutsche acknowledges that not everyone is a fan of indoor tanning. "We've been punching bags for a lot of different things," she says, "and some might be legit, and some might not."

In any case, for the critics who decry the tanning industry, the tax may be a godsend: "They've got us," she says, sounding, at least for a moment, like a business owner whose sunniest days are behind her. "This will totally cause us to go under."

Restaurant Bartering?

The Wall Street Journal

In Lean Times, Restaurants Barter for Trade Services
By JULIE JARGON

Independent restaurants are turning to an old-fashioned method to fill tables—barter.

As they struggle to keep customers and pay the monthly bills, restaurants are swapping food for services like oven-hood cleaning and pest control.

Bartering helps restaurants fill seats, reassuring prospective customers who might be turned off by the sight of a vacant eatery. It also attracts new customers when tradespeople bring friends along, reduces some costs, and helps retain employees who can't scoop tips off empty tables.

It's hardly a permanent fix for ailing restaurants, which still need cash to cover such expenses as rent, mortgages, taxes and utilities. But bartering is an especially useful tool for independent restaurants that, unlike some chains, lack access to corporate credit lines or cash.

Many restaurants are using barter exchanges that track and manage the transactions, which count as taxable income and must be recorded for tax purposes. Rather than traditional bartering, in which services are swapped directly between vendors, most barter exchanges use a "round robin" approach that offers flexibility for both restaurants and service people. For example, a plumber uses trade credits accumulated at an exchange to pay for a restaurant meal. The restaurant owner can use the credits spent by the plumber to "purchase" a variety of services offered by appliance repairmen, electricians and other exchange clients. The exchange acts as a bank, keeping track of credits and collecting fees on each transaction.

Tony Romano, owner of Marcello's Pasta Grill in Tempe, Ariz., where business is off 40% from three years ago, joined the Arizona Trade Exchange in October. Since joining the exchange, he says he's been averaging $2,000 per week in trade credits from tradespeople, which has allowed him to pay for almost all of his monthly expenses—from laundry to fire-extinguisher maintenance—without writing a check.

Although the restaurant doesn't receive cash for the food, the tradespeople usually tip well, Mr. Romano says, which keeps his wait staff happy.

He says his traffic has increased 10% in the last month. New exchange clients also have led to catering jobs. "A lot of small businesses can't afford to take their employees out for a Christmas party, but they can barter it," he says. "I've booked two lawyers' offices and three dentists' holiday parties."

Independent restaurants have fared slightly better in the last year than chain restaurants, though it's hard to say how much bartering has helped. Same-store sales at independent restaurants declined 9% for the year ended Sept. 30, while same-store sales at chains declined 9.7% during that time, according to restaurant consulting firm Technomic Inc.

Rob Miller, president of the Arizona Trade Exchange, says he now has more than 30 restaurants involved in his exchange, up 20% from a year ago. The exchange charges a one-time $495 membership fee as well as a $12.50 monthly fee, and takes a 12% cut of each transaction from the person making the trade purchase.

Ric Zampatti, chief executive of The Barter Company, an Atlanta-based trade exchange with clients in South Carolina, Florida and Georgia, says his business is up 10% in the last year, due partly to signing up 35 new restaurants.

Tradespeople also appear to be spending more when they go out to eat. A trade credit is worth a dollar; Mr. Miller says he used to see tradespeople buy restaurant credits in batches of 100 or 200; lately, he says people are buying restaurant trade credits worth $300 to $500 at a time.

Cody Smith, owner of Dynamic Pest Control in Mesa, Ariz., has been cashing in his trade credits at restaurants more frequently in the past six months. "It's a great way to take the family out, enjoy a meal and walk away with very little cash out of your pocket."

Trading his pest control services for restaurant meals and other services has brought in new clients and boosted his sales by 15% in the last year, due partly to new cash-paying clients who aren't part of the exchange, Mr. Smith says.

Atlanta restaurateur Nancy Castellucci recently opened a fourth eatery called the Iberian Pig in an historic building that needed to be brought up to code. She used barter credits to cover 60% of the refurbishment costs.

"We would have had to go to the bank otherwise and we didn't want to go to the bank. When you have barter dollars, it's a much cheaper way to borrow money because you're not actually borrowing money, you're borrowing goods and services and not paying interest."

Mr. Zampatti of the Atlanta exchange says he's seeing restaurants increasingly use barter for routine maintenance costs. "In the past, restaurant owners would use barter to upgrade their lifestyle, like to go on vacation or buy jewelry, but because of the economy, now they're using it to pay for their business expenses."

Article: Bartender Turns Wine Into Clean Water

Bartender Turns Wine Into Clean Water
CNN

BLOWING ROCK, North Carolina (Nov. 30) -- Behind the bar at a local restaurant, Doc Hendley leans in to hear his customer over the band. "You like the pinot? Cool," he says.

It's a seemingly average interaction, but Hendley is not your average bartender. As he pours wine in the United States, he's also helping to save thousands of lives on the other side of the world -- and he's tapped into his regulars to help.

"[They] sit on the same stool, drink the same drink, pay the same tab every day. I felt like they really did want to be a part of something," Hendley says. "They just were waiting for somebody to bring that something to them."

That something is Wine to Water, Hendley's organization that provides clean water to people in developing countries through funds raised at wine tasting events.

Since 2004, Hendley has traveled to Sudan, Ethiopia, Uganda and Cambodia, working with local communities to build clean water wells and sanitation systems.

The 30-year-old first learned about the world's water crisis when he took a break from college, and his job as a bar-keep, to travel the world; he hoped it would ground his education and provide some direction. It did.

"I began seeing the figures [of] people that don't have access to clean water -- and it absolutely floored me," he recalls.

At least one in six people worldwide lack access to adequate amounts of safe water for drinking and hygiene, according to the United Nations. This contributes to diarrhea, the leading cause of illness and death, and translates to 1.5 million preventable deaths each year.

After returning to school, Hendley realized that just by using his ability to bartend and create relationships with people, he might be able to help the problem. At the bars where he worked, he solicited evenings to host wine tastings and provide information about the global crisis. By graduation, Hendley's "Wine to Water" events had yielded enough funding to implement water projects in the developing world.

He approached a local contact, Kenny Isaacs of Samaritan's Purse, with the intention of handing over the funds for their international charitable water projects. Instead, Hendley found himself in Sudan in spring 2004, training to oversee water projects and developing and installing water systems in zones deemed too dangerous for United Nations aide workers -- all in the midst of civil war.

"[I was] seeing these people living in conflicts, bullets whizzing by their ears -- yet their biggest concern was the huge loss of life because of the unclean water," he recalls. "That's when water changed from being my passion to the burden of my life."

After a year of service in Darfur, Hendley returned to the states and continued his fund-raising events while focusing on ways his group could improve upon other water project models.
"Throughout the desert there were bore holes [for wells] all over the place, they just weren't working," says Hendley. "Organizations would put a brand new, $15,000 bore hole in a village that already had one; [they] didn't stop to think that maybe that one is broken or just needs some parts."

Wine to Water is dedicated to achieving sustainability through education and empowerment of local community members, training them to install, maintain and repair their own water systems.

Hendley has found this approach reduces overhead costs, leaving more for investment in water initiatives and local economies. Because his operation is small, Hendley says he's less deterred by the instability of areas in dire need and is able to access pockets of the world that larger organizations may have to avoid.

To date, Hendley's group has worked in five developing countries, including India, bringing safe drinking water to more than 25,000 individuals in refugee camps, orphanages, schools, hospitals and a leper colony, as well as directly into hundreds of homes through the installation of bio-sand filters.

In the face of the overwhelming global crisis, Hendley says his work may be a drop in the bucket, but to him it's nothing short of a miracle.

"You can be a bartender in Raleigh, North Carolina; you can be just a regular anybody. And you really, really can change the world," he says. "You can touch thousands of lives. I'm walking truth of that."

Article: The SBA is Ready for Its Close-Up... on YouTube?

The SBA is Ready for Its Close-Up... on YouTube?
By GEOFF WILLIAMS, AOL SMALL BUSINESS
Posted: 2009-11-04 15:24:12

It's a little surreal to imagine the Small Business Administration (SBA) amidst videos of Susan Boyle and animated dancing pandas, but they've been part of the YouTube generation for two months now. While their channel is nowhere near as popular as, say, the dancing wedding entrance that appeared in the summer, it seems to be an effective enough platform for the SBA. It currently has 203 subscribers, and the SBA introductory video has been seen by over 4,000 people. It's not setting the world on fire, but it is there, where the SBA can put its videos within reach of anyone, of course, but particularly those under 35, which the agency has made clear they'd like to reach.

Their joining YouTube has had some critics. Shortly after it debuted, George Cloutier, author of Profits Aren't Everything, They're the Only Thing, told Reuters, "SBA officials should be spending less time worrying about YouTube and more time on the thousands of small businesses that fail every week. We'll lose half a million to a million small businesses while they're worrying about the next generation."

And more recently, Susan Wilson Solovic blogged about the SBA star turn at Small Business Television and was equally dubious about the merits of marrying the government organization with YouTube. "There are countless sites on the Internet that provide training videos and other 'how-to' information, so why doesn't that SBA focus its energy on figuring out a strategy to get financing into the hands of small business owners?" wondered Solovic, whose essay appeared across the blogosphere, including prominent sites like The Huffington Post and AllBusiness.com.

"Small business lending is up only slightly after plummeting last year, and entrepreneurs remain unable to get the funds they need to keep their doors open," continued Solovic. "You'd think this would be the top priority at the SBA -- not posting videos and sending out news releases."

I can see the critics' point, but I think it was a smart decision on the SBA's part and don't see this as a sign that the corporate apocalypse is upon us. I seriously doubt that YouTube is actually the SBA's top priority, as Solovic suggested, and it doesn't bother me that some tax dollars from the estimated $825 million SBA budget for 2009 are being diverted to produce these videos. (The Huffington Post huffed, "Your Tax Dollars Are Paying for the SBA to Post Videos on YouTube!") If the SBA weren't on YouTube, you could easily make the argument that the government agency is out of touch and not concerned enough with reaching those young, twentysomethings operating startups.

Sure, plenty of the SBA's videos are self-serving, but there are educational videos about how to market yourself better and financing a business. It's hard to fault that.

Once these videos are posted, like everything else on the Internet, they're there presumably until the apocalypse. And while that means some information will be outdated, the SBA seems to be working on building a video library of educational and historical content that might be useful for years to come. Some may consider it unseemly to start producing videos for YouTube at a time when the business community looks to the SBA for economic guidance, but on the other hand, the folks being hired to produce these videos have been getting some relief from the recession. They probably wish every government agency and corporation would be so unseemly.

Recession puts dent in U.S. restaurant count

Recession puts dent in U.S. restaurant count
From Nation's Restaurant News

By Sarah E. Lockyer

PORT WASHINGTON, N.Y. (July 27, 2009) The total number of restaurant locations in the United States shrunk during the past year, as smaller chains and independents in particular had difficulty weathering the economic storm.

According to the latest NPD Group ReCount, which tallies all commercial restaurant locations in the United States, the number of restaurants fell 1 percent this spring to 577,178 locations. A little more than 4,000 restaurants were closed from a year ago, when the United States boasted 581,201 restaurants, according to NPD research. The latest data was collected from April 1, 2008, to March 31, 2009.

The hardest-hit categories were fine-dining independents, which saw unit counts fall 7 percent. Smaller family-dining chains were close behind, with a 6-percent drop in locations among chains of between 50 and 99 units and a 5-percent drop in locations among chains that numbered between 100 and 499 locations.

“It’s clear that independent restaurants and smaller chains have been most impacted by the slower economy,” said Susan Kleutsch, director of product development for foodservice at The NPD Group, a market research firm based in Port Washington, N.Y. “The recession appears to have weeded out restaurants performing poorly prior to the economic downturn, and this seems most true for independents and smaller chains that are likely having a hard time competing with the resources and marketing power of major chains.”

Restaurants have been battling such economic pressures as slowed sales from reduced consumer spending and increased operating costs, especially for commodities, as well as higher rent and labor expenses. The past year has brought high-profile unit closures at such chains as Bennigan’s, Steak & Ale, Ruby Tuesday and Ryan’s Grill Buffet & Bakery.

The largest chains, which NPD classifies as those with more than 500 units, posted unit growth in all segments except family dining, where growth remained flat. Among the largest chains, the number of total restaurant locations rose 1 percent, reflecting a 1-percent uptick in quick-service locations and a 2-percent increase in casual-dining restaurants.

In Nation’s Restaurant News 2009 Top 100 report, which covers the largest of restaurant chain operations ranked by total domestic foodservice sales, the aggregate restaurant unit count hit 195,227 for those ranked Nos. 1-100 in size, a 1.6-percent increase from a year ago.

In the 2008 Top 100 report, the unit growth rate equaled 2.2 percent.

Among NRN’s Second 100 chains, which are mostly mid-sized, growth-oriented brands, the aggregate unit count totaled 29,299, which was a 1.5-percent increase from a year ago. In the 2008 Second 100 study, unit counts among the Second 100 chains increased 1.8 percent.

Starbucks Wipes Name From Seattle Location

Starbucks Wipes Name From Seattle Location
Friday, July 17, 2009



NEW YORK — Starbucks Corp. said Thursday it is wiping its name from one of its Seattle-area stores and adding alcohol to the menu.

The Seattle-based gourmet coffee chain said it is changing the name of one of its existing stores in its hometown to a name that reflects the neighborhood location. The store will be called 15th Avenue Coffee and Tea. It will open next week and will serve coffee and tea as well as wine and beer.

The company said it will then open two more Seattle-area stores without the Starbucks name in locations that aren't currently Starbucks stores.

The chain said if the rethought coffee shop is a success it will consider replicating it in other cities.

"It's interesting," said Morningstar analyst R.J. Hottovy, "especially since the Starbucks brand has been such an integral part of their success."

Hottovy said he thinks the Starbucks brand still "resonates" with those who drink coffee regularly. But, he added, with the recession now in its second year, the brand may be struggling more because it is considered "premium," and therefore expensive, by consumers.

The company has been unable in recent months to keep its sales growing as more consumers cut out small luxuries to save money. Starbucks is slated to report its fiscal third quarter financial results on Tuesday and analysts have largely predicted another same-store sales decline, particularly, in particular, that competition with lower-priced rivals like McDonald's Corp. has heated up.

McDonald's has been rolling out its own line of espresso-based drinks to all of its 14,000 U.S. locations and has been heavily promoting the beverages.

Andrew Hetzel, the founder of coffee consulting group Cafemakers, said Starbucks may also be renaming its stores to provide a testing ground for changes and, possibly, to bring in a new brand of consumer.

"It looks to me that they are testing a specialty sub-brand to see if they can capture some other segment of the market that would otherwise be disillusioned by a large corporate chain," Hetzel said, adding that opening only one at first "gives them a live shop to test changes in menu offerings, store design and, perhaps, procedures quickly" without disrupting operating stores branded with the Starbucks name.

Example of the Law of Unintended Consequences

On June 22, Baby Sprouts Naturals went out of business. Congress killed it. Baby Sprouts Naturals is a small company making what it calls "natural, non-toxic baby products" such as "organic apparel," toys and the like. None of the company's products contains lead. But an anti-lead law Congress passed in 2008, the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA), has snared even this leadless company in its trap.

Baby Sprouts Naturals is far from alone. Horror stories abound about small and large businesses, and, indeed, entire industries, closed or hobbled because of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act. The law sets new, absurdly stringent limits on how much lead any children's product can contain. It requires strict testing and labeling of all products intended for children and makes both manufacturers and retailers responsible for proving that such testing has taken place. It allows all 50 state attorneys general to take "enforcement" actions related to these issues and to hire outside counsel to do the legal work. It all but invites class-action lawsuits against children's product suppliers.

EDITORIAL: Lead in the head
Safety regulations kill jobs
By Thursday, July 16, 2009


Ballpoint pen manufacturers, makers of children's minibikes, used bookstores, thrift shops, vending-machine companies, clothing manufacturers, handmade toy outfits and all sorts of others are suffering because of various CPSIA provisions. Also hurt will be charities that resell donated products to raise money for social services. One result: The Salvation Army said that about 16,000 fewer people in substance-abuse rehabilitation programs will be served.

The law has caused "absolute chaos and disarray," according to Quin D. Dodd, the former chief of staff of the Consumer Products Safety Commission. Even businesses presumably intended to be helped by the law, such as the all-wholesome Baby Sprouts Naturals, are now swatted down by Congress' heavy hand.

CPSIA matters are reaching a head. Three new members of the bipartisan Consumer Products Safety Commission have been chosen since June 23. On Aug. 14, all children's products will be required to start carrying permanent "tracking labels" with manufacturing details so extensive that CNNMoney.com reports the "rigidity and complexity" could force small businesses to be shuttered.

On July 9, Mr. Dodd sent a petition (on behalf of clients) to his former agency requesting that it approve one of three forms of product test that do not require destroying a finished product. Current testing requirements are expensive because products must be destroyed to determine whether they are safe.

The agency itself has an almost impossible task. While its new, five-member board ought to grant Mr. Dodd's requests, along with requests to delay implementation of the requirement for tracking labels, the board itself can't be expected to keep covering up for this awful law's many defects.

House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Henry A. Waxman of California yesterday announced that a hearing on the CPSIA's problems, which had been tentatively planned for next week, will be postponed. Congress should not sweep its own mistake under the rug. Chairman Waxman should reschedule the hearing, sooner rather than later, and use it as a first step in an expedited process to completely rework this destructive law.

The Global Downturn Lands With a Zud on Mongolia's Nomads

The Global Downturn Lands With a Zud on Mongolia's Nomads
Falling Cashmere Demand Triggers Defaults, Forced Goat Sales and a Livestock Glut

By GORDON FAIRCLOUGH

TSOGT, Mongolia -- Waves from the global economic downturn hit Sodnomdarjaa Khaltarkhuu when bank officials showed up at his tent on the edge of the Gobi desert and threatened to foreclose on his goats, sheep and camels.

Falling demand for cashmere among recession-hit shoppers in the West is cutting into earnings among nomadic herders in Mongolia, whose goats produce the soft fiber used in high-end sweaters, scarves and coats. The result: herder loan defaults.

Mongolians are calling the current situation a financial zud, invoking a local term for unusually harsh winters that devastate herds. After Mr. Sodnomdarjaa couldn't pay back a $2,700 loan, he says bank officials pressed him to sell his livestock -- which he used as collateral. The bank says he misrepresented the number of animals he owned, which he denies. Now a judge has ordered the seizure of Mr. Sodnomdarjaa's family home -- a tent -- if he doesn't come up with the rest of the money soon.

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