Car killer: the video
Since my post a couple of days ago that detailed how auto dealers can commit vehicular homicide by pouring a solution into the engines of “clunkers,” I’ve spotted this video of what happens after the car poison is administered.
Don Mecoy
Business Writer
Loans: the good, the bad and non-performing
The state’s largest banking company, BOK Financial Corp., issued a good earnings report this week. But buried within were some numbers that help illustrate the bright side of Oklahoma’s economy and the stark contrast with states that aren’t doing so well — such as Arizona. BOK operates Bank of Oklahoma and separate banks in six other states.
The company reported that its non-accruing loans totaled $353 million on June 30, or nearly 3 percent of all outstanding loans. A non-accruing loan is one that is months past due and no interest is being charged. In Arizona, 20 percent of the company’s loans are non-accruing. Less than 5 percent of BOK loans in Colorado and New Mexico were non-accrual. In Oklahoma and Texas — BOK’s largest markets — the rates were less than 2 percent.
Meanwhile, the picture was even worse when focused on commercial real estate loans. In Arizona, 38 percent of BOK’s commercial real estate loans were non-accruing, compared with 12 percent in Colorado, 6 percent in New Mexico and just 3 percent in Oklahoma.
Another sign that you’re doin’ fine, Oklahoma.
Don Mecoy
Business Writer
How to kill a car
The Cash for Clunkers program requires that vehicles that auto dealers receive be sent to the scrap yard. But before the clunkers are squeezed, slammed and sliced, the engine should be destroyed — preferably with sodium silicate.
Here is the wording from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Final Rule document:
The agency has determined that a quick, inexpensive, and environmentally safe process exists to disable the engine of the trade-in vehicle while in the dealer’s possession. Removing the engine oil from the crankcase, replacing it with a 40 percent solution of sodium silicate (a substance used in similar concentrations in many common vehicle applications, including patching mufflers and radiators), and running the engine for a short period of time at low speeds renders the engine inoperable.
Generally, this will require just two quarts of the sodium silicate solution. The retail price for two quarts of this solution (enough to disable the largest engine under the program) is under $7, and the time involved should not substantially exceed that of a typical oil change.
If the dealer removes vital parts, such as the heads, this procedure isn’t necessary.
The agency also testing drilling a hole in the engine block and running the engine without any oil as methods of destruction. That must have been a fun week to work at the NHTSA.
Don Mecoy
Business Writer
Little League and the arms race
Members of the Oklahoma City RedHawks stand beside young players during the National Anthem before the RedHawks minor league baseball game against the Nashville Sounds at the AT&T Bricktown Ballpark in Oklahoma City, June 17, 2009. Photo by Bryan Terry, The Oklahoman
Economist Charles Wheelan uses his expertise to evaluate what’s happened to Little League and other kids’ organized sports. He compares parents pushing their kids into more competitive sports at earlier ages to the U.S. vs. U.S.S.R. arms race of yesteryear. The result of everyone ramping up their efforts is that nothing really has changed competitively.
If everyone practices three times as much, the same folks will probably end up with the scholarships, prize money and Nike endorsements. And if we assume that the extra practice, coaching and spending on equipment comes at the expense of other things (like riding a bike for fun, playing other sports or doing something really crazy like playing “kick the can” in the backyard for a few hours), then our kids’ lives are worse for it.
But individuals can’t change the system, Wheelan writes. It would require most everyone to stop pushing the kids to restore the former order. And that has its own dangers.
Suppose everyone else does regain their sanity and vows to cut back on the crazy sports schedules. Then the rational strategy is to be the one who practices twice as much, because then your kid might get the tennis scholarship, even if she’s not the most talented.
And that may be why they call economics the dismal science.
Don Mecoy
Business Writer
10-4, Ben, just keep printin’
Merle Hazard signs “Bailout” as an homage to the classic “Convoy.”
Don Mecoy
Business Writer
Stock market circuit breakers
The New York Stock Exchange has announced the third-quarter “circuit breaker” points at which trading will be halted for single-day declines in the Dow Jones Industrial Average. Let’s hope this is the last time we think about these in the next three months.
In third-quarter 2009, the 10, 20 and 30-percent decline levels, respectively, in the DJIA will be as follows:
Level 1 Halt
A 850-point drop in the DJIA before 2 p.m. will halt trading for one hour; for 30 minutes if between 2 p.m. and 2:30 p.m.; and have no effect if at 2:30 p.m. or later unless there is a level 2 halt.
Level 2 Halt
A 1,700-point drop in the DJIA before 1:00 p.m. will halt trading for two hours; for one hour if between 1:00 p.m. and 2:00 p.m.; and for the remainder of the day if at 2:00 p.m. or later.
Level 3 Halt
A 2,600-point drop will halt trading for the remainder of the day regardless of when the decline occurs.
Don Mecoy
Business Writer
Vision quest
The Wall Street Journal tries out a couple of online sites that sell cut-rate prescription eyeglass frames and lenses. Buying glasses online takes some time, and a leap of faith that some consumers may not be willing to make. However, the prices are incredibly cheap compared to what it costs to buy at a bricks-and-mortar shop.
In 2008, sales of vision-care products and services at optical retail outlets topped $25.8 billion—a modest increase of $73 million from the previous year, according to the VisionWatch trade report. But some retailers that specialize in discount eyewear are enjoying robust growth: EyeBuyDirect, an online retailer based in Bethesda, Md., that offers prescription glasses for as little as $7.95 a pair, reports that its sales have risen 900% since its inception in 2006.
Last week, I bought my second pair of prescription glasses from an online retailer. I paid $18. I’ve been happy with both pairs of glasses I bought online. However, my wife is not as pleased with her bifocals, which cost about $30. While they correct her vision properly, she’s not entirely satisfied with the size and fit.
Don Mecoy
Business Writer
Larry Nichols on CNBC
Devon Energy CEO Larry Nichols appeared on CNBC’s Kudlow Report on Tuesday to talk about the cap-and-trade legislation. Nichols is adept at these kind of spots, but Kudlow’s questions could have been written by Devon’s corporate communications department.
Don Mecoy
Business Writer
