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Politics : John McCain for President -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Cage Rattler who wrote (4574)	10/17/2008 3:47:31 PM
From: Skywatcher	Respond to of 6579

the BUSH MCCAIN economy STRIKES AGAIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Mervyns says it will liquidate all stores 24 minutes ago By ANNE D'INNOCENZIO AP Business Writer (AP:NEW YORK) Ailing department store chain Mervyns LLC, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in July, said Friday that it plans to begin liquidation sales at its remaining 149 stores and wind down its business. The Hayward, Calif.-based chain said in a statement that after completing a thorough analysis of all available options, including a sale of the company, the board determined that holding liquidation sales during the holiday season was the best way to maximize value for the company's creditors. It also cited a challenging retail environment and declining liquidity as factors forcing the company's liquidation. Mervyns now operates mainly in California and has seen its sales drop further as the state is among the hardest hit by the real estate slump. Mervyns plans to pursue the liquidation under the Chapter 11 bankruptcy code, which typically allows companies to retain more control over the selling off of assets. The company said it intends to retain an outside professional services firm to assist in the liquidation sales of inventory. "We are disappointed with this outcome but the company's declining liquidity position and the extremely challenging retail environment, together with the fact that we have exhausted all other possibilities, requires that we take this action," said John Goodman, chief executive of Mervyns. "We are confident that the deep discounts available through going out of business sales will drive significant traffic in our stores." Mervyns' announcement marks the latest retail obituary and represents yet another blow to the nation's malls, which are grappling with increasing vacancy rates in a deteriorating economic environment. On Tuesday, specialty retailer Linens 'n Things, which filed for bankruptcy protection in May, announced it will begin liquidation sales at its stores as early as this week after failing to find a buyer that wanted to operate the company. Gadget retailer Sharper Image Corp., which filed for bankruptcy in February and eventually liquidated its stores, is seeking a new life as a wholesaler. It announced on Monday it signed a $540 million licensing agreement with manufacturer HoMedics to create gadgets to be sold in the U.S. and elsewhere. The big problem with Mervyns, a 59-year-old chain, was that it had been squeezed between high-end department stores and discounters like Wal-Mart Stores Inc. Before its bankruptcy filing, Mervyns had been shuttering stores and leaving states such as Oregon and Washington since 2005, after a consortium of private equity players including Sun Capital Partners Inc. bought Mervyns from Target Corp. for $1.2 billion. In April, Mervyns appointed Goodman, who had been president and general manager of the Dockers brand _ a key supplier to Mervyns _ as president and chief executive. But the chain's heavy concentration in California has made a turnaround harder. Last month, Mervyns sued the private equity firms involved in the leveraged buyout of the chain from Target, alleging the deal stripped the retailer of its real estate assets, forcing it into bankruptcy. Mervyns said in the suit that the investment group, which included Cerberus Capital Management and Sun Capital Management, bought Mervyns in 2004, acquired its real estate and leased it back to the company at substantially increased rates. Mervyns says the increased rent was used to finance the buyout.

To: Cage Rattler who wrote (4574)	10/17/2008 3:50:13 PM
From: Skywatcher	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 6579

the level of hatred continues...The 'right' showing it's colors....WHITE Altered Obama photo in GOP club newsletter sparks outrage Illustration shows the candidate's head on donkey's body on a bogus $10 bill that says 'Food Stamps.' Leader of the Upland women's group denies racism, but a state party official decries the image. By David Kelly Los Angeles Times Staff Writer October 17, 2008 A Republican women's club in San Bernardino County sent out a recent newsletter with a photo of Barack Obama surrounded by fried chicken, watermelon and ribs, sparking widespread outrage and rebuke from GOP leaders and Democrats. The illustration shows the Democratic presidential candidate's head atop a donkey's body on a bogus $10 bill referred to as "Obama Bucks." Inscribed on the money are the words "United States Food Stamps" surrounded by stereotypical African American food. The October newsletter went out to about 200 members of the Chaffey Community Republican Women, Federated, based in Upland. "I apologize to anyone who was offended because that was not my intent," said club President Diane Fedele. "It was poor judgment on my part. It was strictly an attempt to point out the outrageousness of Obama's statement that he doesn't look like all those other presidents on the dollar bills." The caption reads: "Obama talks about all those presidents that got their names on bills. If elected, what bill would he be on ????? Food Stamps, what else!" Fedele said the mailer merely parodied the statements Obama made during a debate last summer and wasn't racist. "If I was racist, I would have looked at it through racist eyes," she said. "I am not racist, which is why it probably didn't register." Club member Kristina Sandoval agreed. "None of us are racists," she said. The use of watermelon, ribs and fried chicken was innocent, she said. "Everyone eats those foods, it's not a racial thing." That's not how club member Acquanetta Warren -- a Fontana city councilwoman and an African American -- saw it. "My daughter who is 16 was standing over my shoulder when I opened the e-mail, and her mouth dropped wide open," Warren said. "I actually turned the screen away and sent her to her room so she wouldn't see. I don't want to talk to anyone; I want a written apology so the public knows that this is not right and this is not representative of the way Republicans think." She's known Fedele a long time and is shocked by the newsletter. "When she didn't see a problem with this, I knew something was wrong," said Warren, who is also vice chairwoman of the California Republican Party for the Inland Empire. "This is an isolated, crazy thing. Our chairman is outraged. We just don't do this." Indeed, Fedele drew a sharp reprimand from Ron Nehring, California Republican Party chairman. "Any material that invokes issues related to race is absolutely unacceptable, tarnishes our party, diminishes the hard work of the tens of thousands of volunteers who are working hard every day for our candidates, and must be condemned," he said in a statement Thursday. "This material I've seen inspires nothing but divisiveness and hostility and has absolutely no place in this election, or any public discourse." His statement also referred to an image on the Sacramento County GOP website this week showing Obama in a turban beside Osama bin Laden with the words: "The difference between Osama and Obama is just a little B.S." The site also exhorted members to "Waterboard Barack Obama." "I called the chairman and said, 'You need to take that off your website,' and he took it off," said Hector Barajas, spokesman for the state GOP. Fedele and the others at the Chaffey Community Republican club are volunteers and can't be fired. Aside from politics, they also do volunteer and charity work throughout the community. Gary Ovitt, a county supervisor and chairman of the San Bernardino County Republican Party, is scheduled to meet with Fedele on Monday to discuss the incident. "He is disgusted and appalled by it, and he believes it is blatantly racist and offensive no matter what the intent was," said Burt Southard, Ovitt's spokesman. "These are individual clubs. This one in particular may be one of the largest in the state and is one of the most active." A spokesman for the Obama campaign in California, Gabriel Sanchez, declined to comment. State Sen. Bob Dutton (R-Rancho Cucamonga) represents the area, and his wife, a Latina, is a member of the club. "I thought it was unacceptable and a failed attempt at humor," Dutton said. "My wife isn't taking it personally because she knows the people involved. I called Diane and talked to her and told her it was inappropriate. She is a sweet lady without a mean bone in her body. But we all have to be more sensitive." Democrats weren't as charitable. "I think it's sad and unbelievable that they can't see how offensive this is," said Carol Robb, head of the San Bernardino County Democratic Party. "People are losing their homes, we are in financial chaos and the best they can do is a caricature of Obama on a donkey's body and food stamps. How out of touch with the 21st century can you get?" david.kelly@latimes.com