Its Gonna Hit The Fan This Time

A new film from Michael Moore is coming on October 2.

I know he can go a bit over the top, but this looks like it could be a solid piece of filmmaking.

For the record, I'm not getting compensated in any way for posting this, I just think its an important film from someone I admire. This is part of the film's PR push:

"It's got it all -- lust, passion, romance, and 14,000 jobs being eliminated every day.” - Michael Moore

CAPITALISM: A LOVE STORY tackles an issue Michael Moore has been examining throughout his career: the disastrous impact of corporate dominance on the everyday lives of Americans
(and by default, the rest of the world). But this time the culprit is much bigger than General Motors, and the crime scene far wider than Flint, Michigan. From Middle America, to the halls of power in Washington, to the global financial epicenter in Manhattan, Michael Moore will once again take filmgoers into uncharted territory.

Here's the trailer:


Purely personal opinion, but I'm looking forward to seeing the film. I've seen the mess we're in through by own eyes, I'm anxious to see it through Michael Moore's.

Metro Discovers It Has A PR Problem (DUH)

I've got to hand it to the fine people at Metro, the public transit agency in St. Louis.

I won't go into all the farces and fiascoes they've been responsible for lately, you can read them on earlier blog posts. But I've got to give them the award for UNDERSTATEMENT OF THE DECADE in Friday's article from The St. Louis Beacon. You can click on the headline to read the whole story about their budget problems and how the State of Missouri is going to ride in (presumably NOT on a bus) with twenty million bucks to bail them out. But if you go down to the bottom of the story, you see Metro's solution to one of the worst Public Relations practices in the Universe:

Making the case to the Public

Although 486 positions --- mostly bus drivers --- have been cut, Metro is trying to do some "resource shifting" to add a person to help bring the agency into the new technological age.

"Metro is behind the curve on new media," Metro spokeswoman Dianne Williams said. It’s not a question of preserving a bus driver instead of adding a public relations person. That person could assist "in bringing back enough money to put a whole lot more than one bus driver back on the street," she said.

"Everyone tells us we've got to get out in the community and tell the people our story," Baer said. Instead of using volunteers, "I don't think it's unreasonable to add one new media person," he added.

"We're looking at improving our public relations with the community," Klevorn said.

REALLY? YOU THINK?

If Metro had the slightest clue how to communicate with the public, both its customers and (more importantly) the people who can help fund their operation, they might not be in the horrific mess they've put themselves in.

But the Big Guy at Metro, Robert Baer remains clueless. Must be busy working on May's half hour update to the world.

Oh and Bob, thanks for not responding to my e mail of my last post. THAT'S the kind of "Public Relations" that keeps Metro so in touch with the community.

GUEST POST-ARE YOU HAPPY OR CONTENT?

I came across this well crafted essay from one of the media industry's most gifted researchers, Bob Lawrence, the President of Pinnacle Media Worldwide and thought it just had to be shared.

ARE YOU "HAPPY" OR "CONTENT"?

Where do we go from here? We look around around and see some of the most wonderfully, talented people out of work; people who could really make a positive difference for so many struggling radio stations. As a result, many of us are working even harder to take up the slack. The truth is though, that the product is not at the forefront of everyone's mind and we can't really blame anyone. Everyone is very much in the same situation; survival mode! I am about to tell you somethings you no doubt, already know, but do you keep them with you as life's trump card?

The stress levels in every area from programming to sales seem to be at an all time high and all are looking for a big miracle. We're even making deals with God. "Ok, Lord... we've learned our lesson and we promise to never allow ourselves to get in this terrible situation again... Now, will you please fix it for us?" I am a believer and I have strong faith. I also believe in miracles, but I believe that God gives us what we need rather than what we want and frankly, what we need this time is probably not what we want. What's needed just may be a good dose of reality!

No matter where in the world you live and work, we are all blessed, or "lucky" if you prefer. What we do tend to forget however, is that doesn't imply we have everything we want, nor does it suggest that we'll all be healthy, wealthy, and wise. It seems to me that we all must realize that being "content" isn't always synonymous with being "happy". I only learned recently to try being content with what I have, rather than what I don't have. No one says we have to like everything in life, either personally or professionally, but we can be "content" with it all. There are certainly lessons to be learned from our successes, as well as the trials. How we look at the place we are in life will help us learn and move to whatever is next.

My wife noted just a week ago, one evening when out to dinner, "When you were building your business, you seemed under such great stress. You were always on the road and disconnected from our family." She went on to add, "Today, when things are harder" (and it is harder for us too; perhaps even more so), "you seem more at ease and are leaning more on us then before." Wow! What an epiphany and what a blessing! Things were better professionally and business was very good - but the cost was a sacrifice for my family.

You have no doubt heard the following expressions... but do we live them?

"If there were no valleys there would be no beautiful mountains."
"If the rocks were smooth, we would never be able to climb them."
"If not for the rain, how would we appreciate the sunshine?"
(Ask San Diegans about that last one. We only get nine inches of rain a year, so when it comes, we love it!)


You get the point. While we sometimes find it so difficult to navigate through the tough times, it certainly gives us an appreciation for the good ones. Think back to the late 90's when we all experienced double-digit growth beyond what we thought possible? Did we learn from that and did anyone really think it would last forever? They called it all a bubble for a reason... they burst!

In the last several years, we have seen a good deal of thievery, deceit, lying, underhandedness, and shady business practices by many, only to fill their pockets, while good, honest people have paid a serious price. I heard someone recently say, "Money can't buy happiness, but it sure can help rent it for a while." I thought about that for a moment before realizing that this sort of thinking is what pulls us down the old rabbit hole. The truth is that money will never create happiness, nor even rent it for a short time. As trite as it sounds, happiness comes from within.

Are you content? I hope so, because of this I am certain... neither money, nor a flourishing business will make you happy. Your faith, your spouse, your children, your friends... only the relationships in your life will bring happiness. Liam Neeson was on the set of a new picture just Monday, for no doubt a proverbial boatload of money, when he rushed to be with his wife, actress Natasha Richardson. Sadly, she passed away Wednesday evening as a result of what at first, appeared to be a minor fall on a beginner skip slope in Canada. You can be sure that the academy award winning actor would gladly give it all up, if only...

I know we all do what we have to do. I'm not implying it should, or can be any other way. What I am suggesting is that it doesn't have to consume us and make us miserable. Ok - none of us probably have as much money as we had five years ago, or perhaps even a year ago, but we can still be content. No matter what, we will always have all the wonderful relationships and friendships that have been nurtured over a lifetime. It's only when we learn to be content, regardless of the prize in the end, that we can see the true reward of the blessings in all those things we already have.

Thanks to Bob for sharing. Definitely something to think about in these insane times. You can find out more about Bob and his company by clicking the link at the top of the post.

A Prophetic Look Back

I'm no fan of Osama Bin Laden, so please don't think of this as any kind of an endorsement of him or his actions.


That being said, I found an interesting story on Brian Sullivan's FriendFeed that was just plain eerie. Click the link above and read a story from CNN on November 1, 2004.


You think someone should have paid more attention to that story when it ran? W? Dick? Donald?

Maybe you don't have to fly planes into buildings to bring a country to its collective knees.