Outsourcing

I didn't watch the Academy Awards last night so I don't know who was wearing what or which celebrity couples caused a stir, but looking at the list of winners, it appears that a lot of awards are going out of the country. I saw Slumdog Millionaire and thought it was one of the better movies I have seen in a while. It isn't like moving making is something new in India, but it is fun to joke about everything being outsourced these days.

Even Major League Baseball is dabbling in outsourcing to India. I caught a piece on the evening news about a show in India called The Million Dollar Arm. It fits in the same genre as the other "Who Wants to be a _______" shows, but instead of a quiz show, it is more of a draft combine, with the pool of players being much more diverse in backgrounds as well as skill and talent levels. Long story short, the two winners got drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates, we'll see how that works out. I can only guess that somebody with a 91 MPH fastball has some coach-ability, but with hitters getting bigger and stronger (possible more skilled as well), my prediction is that these guys will see limited action if any at all in "The Show".

We should figure out how to outsource some of our economic troubles. Reading the details about the Liberty Media and Serius XM deal leads me to believe there could be a great market for creating companies with high market value in "tax losses". Creating these companies overseas should make it even less expensive to create a giant failure that is attractive to other companies for tax purposes. If we're lucky, somebody will create a Biggest Loser Corporate Edition for our entertainment, kind of like The Office, but the money and the questionable management would all be real.

I think Hutchison is getting the right idea, time to start preparing for some sort of post-apocalyptic reality. Where he has missed the mark is on vehicle selection. With Ford, GM, and the other American biggies headed deeper in the tank, I'd select a vehicle that will have a manufacturer still making parts up until the end of our civilized society's time. The shifting market is providing a lot of choices especially when it comes to lightly used luxury cars. I'm sure you could maintain Certified Pre-Owned status even if you highly modified your Mercedes to meet the demands of a neo-post-modern Mad Max-esque world . . .