But I go to Rite-Aid a couple of times a month for free stuff.

You mean that's not a winning business model?

(Oh, and the list is actually from something called '24/7 Wall St.com' - AOL is just passing it along).

Hi DJ!

IMHO, I think KB Home may have to feel the heat under the collar this year, too.

That company benefited so much from the housing bubble - they merged with Countrywide to have its own Countrywide mortgage division, and built houses like crazy, at least here in TX. Now, I have the feeling that they have a much larger inventory than they bet to have by the end of this year, and have to get rid of all of it very quickly.

How do I know this? Well, we bought a house at a KB subdivision in the Tomball area. The original price for a house of this model, if built with a contract between the builder and the buyer, would have cost at least $161 grand. The house we bought was on inventory, and little had to be done except for house inspection and a couple of fixes: we paid $139 grand for it - a savings of over $20 grand. Not bad. Mind you: we did the buy process Sept/October. We moved into our new house by the end of Oct. We also looked at other houses on inventory in that same subdivision. They were going, mostly for the same minimum of $139, with the maximum of $151 for a huge two-story house with a tiny backyard.

Fast forward to today.

Most of those houses that I talked about are still on inventory. One was about to be closed on before ours, when the sale fell through because of the buyer's inability to secure a mortgage. That house is two doors down from us. It is still empty. I still pass by a those other houses still on inventory.

The other night, out of curiosity, I did a search on those houses on the real estate sites. The ones on the KB Home inventory are selling, as of right now, for at most $120 grand. I told DH about it, to the answer of "Gee, thanks DW! I needed to know that!" We could have waited two months and bought any house for a steal around here, but we had no choice, because of DH's job. But if you can get a darned good, two-story house with 4/2.5/2 for $120 grand when it was first priced at $180 grand, you know the builder is desperate to get rid of it.

And if this is happening here in the Houston area, imagine San Antonio and other areas of TX where KB Home overbuilt... Oh yeah, they're feeling it on their collars right now!

Lets see the companies I want to disappear

NY TIMES

Newsweek (should be called Opinionweek)

LA TIMES

Anything based out of California. (if they are stupid enough to pay the high taxes which increase their cost of business they deserve to go under).

And to go bankrupt

Chrysler (just to screw with UAW)

GM (just to screw with UAW)

Ford - (just to screw with UAW - They need to keep on producing the Mustang though).

XM (Sorry paying $15 a month for what you can get for free is no fun though I do like the oldies channels).

XM satelite radio is SIRIUS-ly screwed up. Sirius radio was in "high end" cars and you paid to get commercials and "DJ's" talking over your songs.

Now, the lovely people at Sirius have brought that format to XM and they are killing off the fan base.

The channels have changed and all that blah, blah, blah over the music SIRIUS-ly sucks donkey balls.

You forgot a few from that list:

WizBang
Town Hall
Fox Network
The Weekly Standard

Well, that was certainly a weak riposte, StevenRobb.

You're still bent that W will retire undefeated, I suspect.

You're still bent that W will retire undefeated, I suspect.

Everyone's gotta have a dream.

Excessive leverage seems to be the culprit in the demise of most on the list.

However,I can't come up with a viable scenario for GM, which belongs on the list. Even with the bailout funding is Congress going to eat up to $100 billion in losses? At a minimum the massive AIG bailout will probably get repaid over time. Can't see that happening with GM.

Rite Aide might be a surprise entry on the list but for a recent development in my own neighborhood, where the drug chain recently renovated a store only to have a Walmart Neighborhood Market store then occupy a defunct grocer's space next door. You can guess what happened.

There are still some surprises out there for 2009 that are not on the radar yet. It will be interesting to see what happens.

There's a Walgreen's and a Rite-Aid across the street from each other in my neighborhood. I noticed when I got a prescription filled at the Walgreen's recently that there were only two cars in the entire Rite-Aid parking lot and I figured these were employee cars. Walgreen's lot was about a 1/3 full.

I considered that I might get my meds quicker at Rite-Aid, but then remembered the last time I'd been in there. I guess other people remember bad service too.

Ford will be the last of the big three to go under, but if they are left as the only one with onerous UAW and dealership deals, then they will drop fast.

Pier 1? I'm surprised it's lasted this long considering the shoddy cheap junk with high price tags available there.

That's OK, SteveRobb. When O-boy screws the pooch, you can pretend it's W and excoriate him with vigor.

Just try to put out of your mind that you guys have not won an election against a Bush since 1992, and you never beat W.

Ever.

"Just try to put out of your mind that you guys have not won an election against a Bush since 1992, and you never beat W."

I, for one, can do that.

Can you accept Al Franken beating Norm Coleman fair and square?

Can you accept Al Franken beating Norm Coleman fair and square?

You're suggesting a runoff election? That would work, take the controversy out of the process.

As it is, the results of the Coleman/Franken contest, regardless of who wins, are corrupted beyond redemption.

...and you never beat W.

We didn't need to. He self-destructed on his own and took your party with him.

This last election sends him cowering back to Crawford where he belongs and put the current republican party where it belongs - in the political wilderness.

The jerk who left snide comments to DJ doesn't realize that time in the wilderness is a time to focus on future goals, measuring carefully, and stockpiling for what is to come.

Have you noticed that gun sales went through the roof after Election Day? It was not for deer hunting season, I can assure you...

The jerk who left snide comments to DJ

The "jerk"? Hey, newton, who don't you call me by name.

And I know the reason you've got a gun - it's because you're a scared little coward who pisses in his pants every time someone goes "Boo!!"

Better run and hide behind your gun. Sorry to tell you, the world will work just fine without your help. Nothing will turn to chaos and America will not collapse because Obama or Al Franken are in office. I know it's a nice little fantasy you have when you dress up in your Army surplus fatigues and pretend you're a commando in your parent's basement, but it's time to act like an adult.
depp=true

Act like an idjit, lose yer vowels.

[ deleted for personal threats and attacks]

Sometimes folks just refuse to catch the drift and disenvowelment is not enough.

Steven~

The only thing you are right about is why the world won't collapse. The U.S. dollar collapse is imminent, and the Presidents of Mexico, U.S., and Canada have already started a merger of the three countries, dissolving our sovereignty. Playing commando may be the last hope for many that are living near the borders and concentration camps. As far as the disemvowelment is concerned, that could have been the comments editor or DJ himself.

As much as I love business stories, I'm not really sure here. But Rite-Aid stores are not much fun at all to shop at compared to the well run Walgreens with great prices, a dollar table and plenty of fun coupon specials and some nice looking salesgirls you'd love to bring home. But Chrysler's 50% plus sales drop in December can't be a very good omen either. Funny thing, but as great as Jeeps are, no company has remained in business that sold them.

You know what Kevin really needs to start, a Wizbang Business, and he should sign DJ and me up as the first two editors there. We both seem to write lots on business stories.

I don't disgree with much of your assessment of our current dilemma, LeMedusa, it's just that most situations here have never reached the extremes that the most fearful predict. Not rose colored glasses, just common sense.

Now, as far as the comment editor is concerned, I challenge you to find anything in my post that even resembles a threat. If it's DJ, well, it's your post. Have fun pulling the strings, childish that it is.

Wow. Ask DJ a direct question and watch him run.

StevenRobb, the editors can edit comments as
well as the comment section editor.
Hugh as a commenter was usually very fair in
his responses. If he disemvoweled a comment
as a Wizbang editor, it was deserved.

You are showing a propensity for crapping on
the floor of a site you've been allowed to
post at, and not on your dime.

If he disemvoweled a comment
as a Wizbang editor, it was deserved.

Listen, I don't intend to get into a pissing match with this because it's pointless. And if you don't like my opinion, fine. And if you want to pull posts, that's your option.

But it's quite another thing to accuse me of "personal threats and attacks" when there was literally nothing of the kind on that post. Now, most here are anonymous anyway and it's irrelevant to their personal identities, but it's an untrue claim.

Look, jerk: you threaten me, and you will be sorry.

I'm not afraid of you, nor will I ever be. Entendido?

(Sorry, DJ. This one needs a good scolding, like a temper-tantrum-ed two-year-old. And I know how to deal with an unapproachable two-year-old: I have one.)

This one needs a good scolding, like a temper-tantrum-ed two-year-old.

Charming. You beat your two-year-old. I have one too, fool, and it's pretty clear I'm a better parent than you. Looks like someone needs to call the authorities.

...and first of all, you're the one - out of the blue, I might add - who calls me a jerk and makes this ridiculous allusion to using your guns for something other than "deer hunting."

Grow up - and by the way, Wizbang, newton's post is what you would call a "threat." Hardly mine.

A scolding is not a spanking. The last thing I do is to spank my child. Good words of warning with a stern face are plenty good, and work.

And If you dare to call the authorities on a parent who has never abused her child under any circumstances, you will find yourself in big trouble. I can assure you of that, especially with a false accusation.

This is a warning. Not a threat.

As for the gun sales, I think a lot of Conservatives know what they're doing in that respect. They know that, if things get worse, they will only have themselves to defend with their lives, no one else. A socialist government willing to give goodies in exchange for your undying loyalty has the power to oppress those who say "NO." And that's why they have to prepare.

So, you better stay away from me. You have never dealt with a mother willing to defend her honor. Don't push me.

Again - stay away from me.

Oh, DJ. I wish I could just turn back the clock a little bit. I poisoned the thread, and now I have a nasty skunk in my hands. There's really nothing I can do now.

I sincerely apologize for this.

newton,

Now you've added some substance to your opinion. That's all anyone can ask.

Not to worry. This is a blog built for healthy debate. No one's out to get you, particularly me.