Captain Obvious

Captain Obvious is back for his semiannual visit to state the obvious and plain truth about a wide variety of issues of interest to Rink Rats.

Captain Obvious says ….

Labor Unions and education are a bad fit; example, the state of our public education system.

City of La Verne (Tammany Hall) still does not get it.

To bring food as a host gift to a dinner party is a no, no.

Sandra Lee can cook my Thanksgiving dinner any year.

Big Ten football is overrated.

Barack Obama is not Jack Kennedy.

The Iranians are playing the United States for suckers.

Companies who demand their employees to work on Thanksgiving are clueless.

Consumers who shop on Thanksgiving are clueless.

Devorah Lieberman is the hottest SCIAC President.

Example is not the main thing in influencing others, it is the only thing.

The worst person to be around is someone who complains about everything, and appreciates nothing.

The best kiss is the last kiss.

The Capital Structure is 50% Debt, 50% Equity when the Debt to Equity ratio is 1:1

The Detroit Red Wings era of being an NHL elite team is over.

CSPAN is the best television and no one knows it.

JPM (FINALLY) REACHES $13B SETTLEMENT - The Justice Department announced last week that it has reached a roughly $13 billion deal with JPMorgan Chase to settle civil investigations into faulty mortgage bonds sold in the lead-up to the 2008 financial crisis ... It would be the largest settlement ever between Justice and a single company.

LADWP TROUBLES - The last few weeks have been rough ones for the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, even by their standards. Controversies over how $40 million in ratepayer funds was spent by two DWP affiliated nonprofits over the last decade, and major glitches in the $150-million-plus new meter-reading and billing system have echoed the problem-plagued startup of the "Obamacare" health insurance system, and have further eroded consumer confidence in the municipal utility. The DWP is giving the IRS, DMV, and even Congress a real run for their money in a race to the bottom in public popularity.

BARTRIOMO TO FOX - Fox Business News has hired Maria Bartiromo away from CNBC - a big get for Roger Ailes and a major loss for NBC Universal. Bartiromo, who worked under Ailes in her early days at CNBC, will bring much-needed life to Fox Business, which has languished in the ratings race and failed to make a name for itself on Wall Street. She may also have a role on Fox News ...

After 20 years of groundbreaking work at CNBC, Maria Bartiromo will be leaving the company as her contract expires on November 24,' a CNBC spokesperson said in a statement. Her contributions to CNBC are too numerous to list but we thank her for all of her hard work over the years and wish her the best.' ... In a statement Bartiromo said she was 'incredibly proud' of what the CNBC had accomplished over the last two decades. “I want to thank all the people at CNBC who have been with me on this journey, and of course the viewers and investors everywhere for making me love every minute of it,' she said."

KELLY EVANS ON THE RISE – Rink Rats is going ahead and declare Kelly Evans the winner in the whole Maria Bartiromo leaving CNBC thing. Evans is the most obvious choice at the financial news network to replace Bartiromo. ... She's insanely knowledgeable about markets and economics, putting her a cut above a lot of the talent that appears on TV. According to a network statement, Evans will be the host on an 'interim basis' with Bill Griffeth of 'Closing Bell' at 3 p.m. ET.

LIVING HISTORY - Chicago Tribune splash, "Signed and sealed: [Gov. Pat] Quinn makes Illinois the 16th state to legalize gay marriage. The re-election-seeking Democratic governor slowly signed the bill with 100 pens that quickly became souvenirs. He did so at a desk shipped from Springfield that ... Abraham Lincoln used to write his first inaugural address in 1861 ... Attendees shared celebratory kisses and waved miniature rainbow flags featuring the outline of Illinois. ... The bill-signing illustrated the rapidly changing views ... on gay rights. Supporters first introduced an anti-discrimination bill in the legislature in 1974. It didn't became law until 2005. It took an additional six years for civil unions to be approved, but only about half that time for the gay marriage measure."

DO NOTHING CONGRESS - The 113th Congress is on track to go down as the least productive in history - a legacy that may be cemented after Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid gutted the filibuster on presidential nominees by deploying the 'nuclear option.' Republicans say the unprecedented move will make them even less likely to cooperate with Democrats ... So far, this Congress has only enacted 49 laws, the fewest since at least 1947, when the Congressional Record began tallying legislative activity on a yearly basis. In fact, the 80th Congress - famously dubbed the 'do nothing' Congress by President Harry Truman - enacted 388 public laws by July 1947. In the last 66 years, there are just four occasions in which fewer than 100 laws were enacted by a similar point in the legislative calendar. And two of those instances were in the last two Congresses, with the previous Congress making just 62 laws through November 2011.

BIRTHDAYS THIS WEEK – Birthday wishes and thoughts this week to: Woody Allen (78), Joel Coen (59), Jay Jones …famous for making Biology sexy, Randy Newman (70), Mike Scioscia (55), Vin Scully (86), Lawrence Summers (59).

JACK ASS OF THE MONTH – Sarah Palin, a regular Jack Ass to this forum, made it again when she called Rush Limbaugh one of her “heroes.”  Seriously.  Rush Limbaugh, a hero?  A drug addicted, sexist, womanizing, racist, bigoted adulterer—is apparently a “hero” to Sarah Palin. Congrats Sarah you again are a Jack Ass of the Month.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL PICK OF THE WEEK – Saturday 11/30, 8:00 PM ET, ABC: #22 UCLA Bruins (8-3) visit #23 USC Trojans (9-3). A HUGE game for both teams, UCLA wants it more – Bruins 38 Trojans 30.  Season to date (8-5)

SMALL COLLEGE FOOTBALL PICK OF THE WEEK – Saturday 11/30, 12:00 PM ET, BRAVO: Round Two begins of the D-III Playoffs - #24 Ithaca College Bombers (9-2) visit #15 Wesley Wolverines (9-2). The Bombers pull an upset in Dover – Ithaca 24 Wesley 21. Season to date (9-2)

NFL PICK OF THE WEEK – Thursday 11/28, 12:30 PM ET, Fox: The annual Turkey Day game in Motown and a game to decide the Norris Division leader – Lions 24 The Pack 20.   Season to date (9-2)

THE SWAMI’S WEEK TOP PICKS –

(NCAA, Nov. 30)  Arizona Wildcats (7-4) 21 at #12 Arizona State Sun Devils (9-2) 32

(NCAA Hockey, Nov. 30) Merrimack Warriors (3-8-1)  2 at Defending National Champions Yale Bulldogs (5-2-2)  5

(NHL, Nov. 30) Anaheim Ducks (17-6-3) 4 at San Jose Sharks (15-3-5) 3

(NFL Upset of the Week, Dec. 1) Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-8) 24 at Carolina Panthers (8-3) 21

Season to date (44-37)

CONGRATS CFL CHAMPS – The 101^st Grey Cup Game (Canadian Football Championship) was held yesterday and the Saskatchewan Roughriders beat the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 45 to 23. Congrats to the Roughriders for winning their fourth Grey Cup.

MARKET WEEK - The Dow and S&P 500 come off record Friday closes, featuring the S&P's first-ever close above the 1,800 mark. With seven straight weeks of gains behind them, the Dow is on track for its biggest yearly gain since 1993, while the S&P would chalk up its biggest annual advance since 1998.  The final trading week of November is a shortened one, with U.S. markets closed for the Thanksgiving holiday Thursday and open for a half day of trading on Friday.

DRIVING THE WEEK - President Obama, fresh off the Iran nuclear deal, is on the west coast where he will deliver remarks on immigration reform this morning in San Francisco before heading to Los Angeles for a pair of fund-raisers (one featuring Magic Johnson) ... Pending home sales this morning at 10 a.m. expected to rise 1.5 percent ... Case-Shiller home prices at 9 a.m. Tuesday expected to rise 0.9 percent ... Consumer confidence at 10 a.m. Tuesday expected to show a post-shutdown bounce to 72.4 from 71.2 ... Univ. of Michigan consumer sentiment at 9:55 a.m. Wednesday expected to rise to 73.0 from preliminary 72.0 ...

Index of leading indicators at 10 a.m. Wednesday expected to be flat ... Holiday shopping season kicks off in earnest on Friday. Expectations are for a fairly good year for retailers ... HealthCare.gov is supposed to be working fine as of this Sunday but the White House has already lowered expectations for the deeply troubled Obamacare Web site.

THIS WEEK’S POLL – Will you be shopping on Black Friday?

Answer:

-          Yes

-          No

-          Are you kidding!!

Next week: Quote of the month, holiday dining, and four days in the desert.

Happy Hanukkah on November 27!

Have a wonderful and safe Thanksgiving on November 28!

Until Next Monday, “Adios.”

Claremont, CA

November 25, 2013

#IV-32, 189